Since most houses in Florida are on slabs I figure it best to post here as opposed to Team.

We are looking to get rid of the carpeting but replacing it with wood or tile would be very expensive.
One option would be painting or staining the areas.

Concerns with staining is that it seems to enhance any flaws and would be hit/miss on how well it turns out.

The other option would be painting but just how durable will it be especially in the high traffic areas.

Looking for feedback from anyone who has done it as opposed to wood or tile.

I've done plenty of garages in rental houses with paint, here's what I think are the important things, use xylene base paint, the fumes are a unbearable until it cures, but after that it will last forever, fix any cracks in the slab with a tube of concrete patch before you start painting.

If you pull up the carpet and find that it's already painted get some denatured alcohol and see if the paint comes off, if it comes up you have to use latex base paint again (or clean off all the latex paint first)

I did it and I love it, first you clean the floor, then stain then seal, can be done in a weekend for a few hundred dollars. Only con in my opinion is the holes left from pulling up the carpet tack strips, next time I do it I will fill the holes first let dry for a few weeks then stain.

 

Ive been in several houses that have them including 1m+ houses, If done right its nice imo

My uncle stained and sealed several rooms, it came out great looking. I was very impressed. He cut lines and polished it to where it looked almost like stone or marble. I had an aunt who painted the floors in her house, she was running a daycare business and wanted the ease of cleaning. I never saw the finished product and I haven't heard if she liked it in the long run.

Very common practice in TX Hill Country homes.

I love the look.

Is this a DIY job or best to hire someone?
Of course hiring someone jacks up the cost.

DIY for sure, easy job.

My mom did in her house.



Closer

Very creative.
Looks sharp.

Have you peeled away your carpet?  You may have terrazzo.  Depending on the style and color, some terrazzo is beautiful and wicked easy to live with, especially after repair of the holes left by removal of the wooded rug strips and a professional polishing.
Good luck.

In my built in 1960 home, with some butt ugly terrazzo,  I did the glue down engineered wood floor throughout the house except tile in kitchen and bath rooms and the maintenance and comfort is wonderful.  
Total cost approx. $5 a square foot installed, but I love my home.

Cheers

The house was built about 8 years ago and definitely a simple slab.

I had a builder buddy: Bob Allen, RIP, who stained the concrete floor in the last three speck houses he built in Sarasota in the Mediterranean Arch. section of north Sarasota Cty.
He would frame the house and then polish the pad and then stain the floor using three or four different colored stains.
The end result looked very much like marble and was easy to live with, but it never had the clean and shiny surface that most women aspire to in their homes.  It would also show water marks like you might see on a wooden table after someone put a sweaty drink down and did not use a coaster.
I wish Bob were still with us ... he was like The Professor of home building.

There are builders who are also using this technique on countertops!
Google might help where Bob cannot.
Good luck to us all.

Investigate how they do it in commercial stores. Some of the stained polished concrete floors that I have seen are really nice and incredibly durable.