Rugs, Carpets and Carpeting - Purchasing New Carpet--HELP!

we are building a new home and need to purchase flooring for it. Our custom builder has referred us to a carpet shop, but I would like to compare prices at other dealers. IS there a way I can directly compare carpet prices?

For example, because there are hundreds of carpets styles and "levels" available, is there a way I can narrow our choice down? we recently had carpet installed in our current home and the contractor we used mentioned that the carpet we had installed was "40-ounce." Can I go to all the different carpet dealers and tell them we want pricing on "40-ounce" carpet and expect them to be pricing out same/similar carpet?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Yes, you can price shop different shops, there is no law that says you can't. The builder my get mad, because he won't be making his marked up profit off the flooring.

Also compare cost of carpet to other floor covering options.

As to whether they'll be pricing same or similar by specifying 40 ounce, perhaps, perhaps not. 40 ounce refers to the face weight of the carpet. Roughly speaking, take one yard of carpet, shave off all the yarn, put it in a bag, and weigh it. That weight will be the face weight of the carpet. But, what is that yarn made of, how tightly packed is the yarn, is the yarn staple or continuous filament, is it solution or topically dyed, is it loop or cut pile? There are too many other factors to be taken into account to rely solely on face weight. For instance, say it's a cut pile with fairly long yarn but loosely packed. It will tend to get matted down more easily than yarn that is not as long but more tightly packed. They may both be 40 ounce, but one may serve your needs better than the other. My first consideration in carpet is not face weight. It's more material construction and composition. Face weight can be a deceptive factor and is sometimes used to provide bragging rights that may or may not be all that forthright.

Solution-dyed nylon is still touted as the most durable.