Weathertech Vs Smartliner [Floor Mats and Floor Liners]
Many auto accessories brands on the U.S. market, such as Weathertech, Smartliners(Maxliner), etc., offer you some excellent add-on floor liners/mats that are available in either of the two variant-custom fit for specific vehicles and trim to fit.
Floor mats/liners from these brands are designed to provide much more interior protection than traditional floor mats. Both Weathertech & Smartliners are high-performing brands that offer floor liners and mats for every automobile and every taste and budget.
The following comparative analysis between Weathertech vs. Smartliners will make you acquainted with all the factors you need to consider before you make a diligent decision on buying protective floor mats to keep your investment – and your boots – clean.
Top Rated Weathertech & Smartliner Floor Mats for Popular Vehicle Models
Weathertech Vs Smartliner [Comparison of Important Features]
1. Construction Technology
| Weathertech Floor Mats/Floor Liners | Smartliner Floor Mats |
| Weathertech brand uses advanced DigitalFit technology that enables it to measure the conformation of all automobile models. Adopting the laser measurement method in manufacturing helps it design thicker floor mats as per the makes and years of vehicles. Advanced free-form surface modeling (surface channeling) helps define, trim, and merge to give a robust product. | It uses the latest Computer-generated modeling equipment to create floor liners that will perfectly align with most vehicles. Floor mats are built with the standard thickness (not very thick). |
As the table shows, both brands use different manufacturing processes and technologies. Weathertech uses state-of-the-art laser tools to create custom floor mats/liners measured to precise craftsmanship.
The construction methods adopted by the Weathertech brand are rigorous robust and ensure top performance. The process ensures the high durability of floor liners. The construction process by weathertech has received certification for maintaining the ISO9001 Quality Standard.
Smartliners floor mats do use cad technique for floor mat designing, but the output is not superior as weathertech uses. Again, weather tech heavy-duty constructed floor mats are thicker and better prevent spills and debris from reaching the car carpet.
Winner: We recommend the Weathertech brand in construction and technology.
Recommended Weathertech floormat: WeatherTech Universal Trim to Fit All Weather Floor Mats
2. Material
| Weathertech Floor Mats/Floor Liners | Smartliner Floor Mats |
| A patented High-Density Tri-Extruded (HDTE) material offers a tactile feel to the surface that allows easy 3D printing. Thus, ergonomic and well-defined surface channels can be created. The advanced heavy-duty Thermoplastic Elastomer (TPE) is flexible and wear-resistant. The material can expand slightly during scorching temperatures but return to its average size without any damage. These mats are more or less odorless, non-toxic, and anti-skid. | Smartliner car floor mats are made of low-density plastic rubber blended polyethylene construction. The material is semi-flexible but rigid and strong. These mats are completely odorless, “BPA-free,” or “non-toxic. You don’t get any smell even at the time of unboxing. |
Judging by the texture of the material of both brands, one cannot differentiate between the two. Again, both weathertech and smartliner floor mats are odorless and non-toxic even after unboxing. Weathertech floor mats have no minimum smell after unboxing. But then, the scent is hardly noticeable.
Weathertech and Smartliners use rubberized materials, but the processing makes all the difference.
Firstly, the Weathertech brand uses advanced heavy-duty TPE materials that are more tough and flexible than Smartliners blended rubber plastic, and polyethylene material which may sometimes get may feel flimsy.
Secondly, Weathertech floor mats are made from nationally sourced materials that make the product more economically viable and preferred by localities.
Winner based on material usage: Weathertech is a bit superior to Smartliner floor mats.
Recommended Weathertech Floormat: WeatherTech Custom Fit FloorLiner for Honda Odyssey
3. Shape and Design
| Weathertech Floor Mats/Floor Liners | Smartliner Floor Mats |
| Weathertech FloorLiners follows the contours of a vehicle’s footwell accurately. It completely lines the carpet giving it absolute interior protection. The mat’s extruded cleats create traction and help the floor mat stay in place. The added anchoring design (retention system on the mats/liners through holes) that correspond with factory-mat mounting points Available in four different colors (black, grey, cocoa, and tan) to match your interiors Less aesthetically pleasing. | Smartliner floor mats offer a sleek, stylish look with molded 3D shape that perfectly aligns with the factory-grade carpeting. These floor mats are textured for greater traction with raised lips/edges. The floor mats have nibs that dig into the vehicle’s original carpet mat easily. The floor mats are available in four standard colors to match your interiors |
As the table shows, both brands use computer-aided technologies in designing their products. The brands are available in the same four colors. Talking about aesthetics, Smartliners are more stylish and sleeker.
They are lightweight and more efficient to lift compared to Weathertech. Weathertech brand focuses more on the design that offers precision, not on appearance.
Both brands have raised edges on all sides to better trap fluids and further guard carpets against wear. Both are categorized as anti-slip mats with clasps or snaps that hook to the original car carpeting.
However, Weathertech has a more pronounced lip, particularly at the rear. They are designed to channel spills to a separate reservoir that better contain spills than Smartliners floor mats with wall-to-wall coverage. WeatherTech’s liners have a more grippy surface.
Winner: Both brands’ levels score here, except that Weathertech has an additional retention system that makes it stay in place more strictly.
Weathertech Floor Liner with excellent design: Weather Tech Rear FloorLiner for 2012 – 2015 Toyota Camry
4. Fitment & Custom Vehicle Range [Smartliner Vs Weathertech]
| Weathertech Floor Mats/Floor Liners | Smartliner Floor Mats |
| Weather tech floor liners are laser-measured for a custom fit (digital-fit) & semi-custom (trim to fit). They make floor mats for both front and rear sides and cargo in some instances. They are designed to match your car’s specific floor configurations and are easy to install. The brand makes floor mats for almost every vehicle on the road. The colossal custom range for customers to choose from, and even floor mats are trim to fit. Tools are not required for installation. | Smartliner floor mats use advanced computer modeling to ensure a near-perfect custom fit. These floor mats can’t be trimmed. The brand manufactures floor mats for both front and rear sides. Available for the many models and makes of cars, trucks, and SUVs but still less than the range covered by weathertech. Basic installation doesn’t require any tools. Easy to install floor mats. |
Both Weathertech and Smartliners are easy-to-install products. But Smartliner floor mats haven’t been designed with the laser measurement technique used by weathertech. Therefore, it may pose a poor fit for some cars compared to the latter in many cases.
We noted that weathertechs products fit precision lengthwise and from side to side. They conform better even with uneven floors and obstructions. The Weathertech universal floor mats are easy to trim for a customized fit. Trim-to-fit mats offer a better fit for your car & weathertech offers trim to fit designs.
Moreover, Weathertech floor mats have the widest variety of liners for almost all vehicles running on American roads. Smartliners’ vehicle-specific floor mats range is slightly less than Weathertech, and they focus more on trucks and SUVs.
Winner based on fitment and range: Weathertech floor liners.
Recommended Weathertech Floor Mat with Wider Vehicle Fitment: WeatherTech Universal Trim to Fit All Weather Floor Mats for Car, SUV
5. Maintenance [Which floor mat is easy to maintain – Weathertech or Smartliner?
| Weathertech Floor Mats/Floor Liners | Smartliner Floor Mats |
| All Weathertech floor liners are easy to clean. The advanced surface channels carry spilled fluids and debris to a lower reservoir. The liquid gets trapped, adjusting minimum fluid movement while driving. Just pick up the floor liner off the door and empty it if needed. The loose mud/dirt can be cleaned using a water hose or pressure washer. If you want to remove stuck dirt, all you need is a bristle brush. Everyday use can make the Weathertech floor mats grey out faster, but the best part is that you can restore the original look by using an auto tech cleaner. Their floor mats are a little heavy but easy to lift. | Smartliner has raised lips and molded outer edges and does an excellent job locking in all the dirt, mud, and liquid spills. Smartliner floor mats are lighter in weight. Easy to lift and clean without getting the carpets messy in the process. |
In the area of maintenance, both the brands fair equally well. Weathertech and Smartliners floor mats offer ease of operations to customers. Both can be installed easily in your vehicle and are easy to clean.
However, we’ll give this category to Weathertech, who scored an average of 4.7 stars out of 5 in maintenance, slightly higher than the 4.5 average ratings achieved by Smatliners. This is because the ability to hold liquid spill (advance surfaced channeling) is more effective in weathertech than in smartliner floor mats.
Easy to Maintain Weathertech Floor Mat: WeatherTech Custom Fit FloorLiner for Honda Odyssey
Easy to Maintain Smartliner Floor Mat: SMARTLINER Floor Mats 3 Row Liner Set
6. Pricing [Which is the cheapest floor mat – Smartliner or Wethertech?]
| Weathertech Floor Mats/Floor Liners | Smartliner Floor Mats |
| Weathertech floor liners are pricier than other alternatives because of their technology and heavy-duty material. For example, all two rows of a sedan from Weathertech can easily top $170. Price may vary from portal to portal. | Smartliner Floor Mats are reasonably priced. The price of these floors remains the same on the home portal or from any authorized dealer and other e-comm portals. All smartliner floor mats for at least two row comes in the range of $120-$140. |
It is to be noted here that prices for floor mats/liners can vary considerably, depending on what you drive, where you buy from, and units you purchase (for the front or rear or both).
Smartliner has a competitive edge over weathertech floor mats in terms of price. For example, the smartliner honda 3-row liner unit costs around $190 compared to the 3-row liner of the weathertech honda unit costs around $231.
It is also instructive to note that both brands are better rated when put side-by-side. But Smartliner is considered more budget-friendly than the Weathertech mats unit, which can place you outside of your budget.
Winner: Smartliner floor mats are reasonably priced with good features.
Cheapest Smartliner 3 Row Floor Mat with excellent rating: SMARTLINER Floor Mats 3 Row Liner Set
7. Warranty, returns and shipping
| Weathertech Floor Mats/Floor Liners | Smartliner Floor Mats |
| Weathertech floor mat products are backed by a 3 years & lifetime limited time warranty. The brand has a replacement policy on their floor mats. They replace the product at no charge in case of damaged product delivery or charge a prorated amount if you go for exact product replacement after some use. The products have a 30-days return policy. Terms and conditions are primarily as same as any other auto accessories products. The brand offers free- shipping for most of its floor mats range. | A lifetime warranty backs Smartliner floor mats. All floor mats products that the brand offer is returnable but with standard terms and conditions. Total refund in case of factory defects, including shipping and handling charges. In replacement/e exchanges, buyers have to bear all return shipping charges plus a 15% restocking fee. Smartliner ships their floor mats free anywhere in the contiguous U.S. |
Although weathertech floor mats have a limited lifetime warranty, the brand does not honor purchases made by unauthorized dealers.
Better check while buying from any e-comm portal, including amazon. It is recommended to buy directly from their home portal. Their customer service is impressive.
Smartliner, on the other hand, has a more flexible warranty and return policy which they extend to various dealers like amazon or eBay. Smartliners’ floor mats range is more widely available on online portals than Weathertech.
Winner based on availability, customer support, and policy: Smartliners has an edge.
Smartliner Vs Weathertech [Comparison Summary]
Check out this summarized Comparative Chart to understand the difference between the two brands.
| Features | Weathertech | Smartliner |
| Country of origin | Bolingbrook, Illinois USA | Orlando, USA |
| Fitment | Two Options- Custom fit and trim to fit | Only custom fit |
| Material | High-Density Tri-Extruded (HDTE) material & 100% recyclable! | 100% recyclable blended plastic rubber and polyethylene |
| Density | High density | Low density |
| Thickness | Thick | Thin |
| Color | Four | Four |
| Weight | A bit Heavy | Light |
| Design | Pronounced lip, raised edges, advanced surface channeling. | Raised Edges & Sleek Channels. |
| Warranty | Limited lifetime warranty | Limited lifetime warranty |
| Shipping | Free shipping for standard-sized products & Ground Shipping within the 48 contiguous states. | Free shipping within the 48 contiguous states. |
| Stain removal | More comprehensive, shallower grooves made them easier to clean. | More profound, but narrow grooves but easy to clean for most spills, dirt, and mud. |
Wrapping up:
Floor mats/liners from these brands are designed to provide much more interior protection than traditional floor mats. Both Weathertech & Smartliners are high-performing brands that offer floor liners and mats for every automobile and every taste and budget.
Both weather tech and Smartliner performed excellently in many areas. They were similar in terms of maintenance, and reliability. However, distinct areas make Weathertech a better choice for drivers than Smartliner.
Weathertech scores are high on durability, material, sturdiness and fitment (both front and rear), and comfortability and stickiness (how well they stay put) on underfoot.