hmm... most of the laminates I've seen don't 'shine'... they have a satin or even a matte finish to them.

now. laminate meaning a photograph of wood, rather than 'engineered hardwood' which is a laminate with real wood on the top layer...

water and a microfiber cloth on an old swiffer head?

I use windex on my laminate floor, does better than the cleaner they suggested. I dampen a mop and spray the windex does the best job. I also use it on my vinyl kitchen floor, no streaks.

Stella

I use a microfiber cloth on a swiffer-like mophead with the following solution: equal parts water, vinegar and rubbing alcohol. I use enough that the cloth is wet enough to lift spots/spills off the floor without leaving the floor super wet - it dries very fast too. No streaks!

I had raised the question of shine, or lack of, in my use of Mop and Glow on a vinyl floor. I don't know if that product can be used on a laminate floor, but it seems to leave a bit of a shine (I had some problems last time, perhaps I didn't rinse the floor well enough).

As for a carpet because the dog tracks in, I't think a hard surface that can be easily cleaned would be better than a carpet that will hold the dirt... but if a carpet, get dark brown:>)

I was told to use water and micro-fiber cloth on my floor. It seems to work great.

The other thing to do is to check with the laminate manufacturer. We bought Pergo and they supplied us with a cleaning kit - a mop and some cleaning solution. DH has put the kit somewhere and can't recall where, or I would look to see the ingredients.

If there is an exceptionally tough spot (we got rubber on it from some casters on a chair, the place where we bought the Pergo said to use acetone. I bought some in the paint dept, not nail polish remover, because the latter had other ingredients. I haven't tried it yet, and don't know if it would work on other brands of laminate. Good luck.