What Should I Charge for Tile Installation? (2026 Contractor Pricing Guide)
Short answer
Most tile setters charge about $12 to $22 per square foot for a standard floor tile install, roughly $18 to $34 per square foot for a tiled shower or wall, and $20 to $37 for a kitchen backsplash, before demo and waterproofing. Labor is usually 60% or more of the price; shower waterproofing runs about $7 to $14 per square foot and tile demo about $4 to $8.
Tile Installation unit prices by work item
Enter a ZIP code to adjust every row to local cost levels. Rates start from a national baseline of 1.00 and scale by the published city cost index for that area.
Showing national baseline rates.
| Work item | Unit | Material | Labor | What to charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Floor tile, standard install Tile size, layout pattern, and subfloor prep change labor the most. | sq ft | $5.00 | $8.00 | $11.82 to $21.95 |
Shower or wall tile, installed Niches, curbs, and waterproofing detail drive the hours up. | sq ft | $6.00 | $14.00 | $18.25 to $33.89 |
Kitchen backsplash tile Small areas carry high per-foot labor; outlets and edges add cuts. | sq ft | $7.00 | $15.00 | $20.06 to $37.25 |
Large-format or pattern tile (herringbone) Patterned layouts and big slabs need more cuts, leveling, and hands. | sq ft | $8.00 | $14.50 | $20.48 to $38.04 |
Shower waterproofing membrane Sheet versus liquid membrane and curb and niche detail change the price. | sq ft | $3.00 | $5.00 | $7.28 to $13.51 |
Tile demo and removal Thinset bed, substrate damage, and disposal drive demo cost. | sq ft | $0.30 | $4.00 | $3.68 to $7.64 |
Material and labor columns are bare cost per unit before markup. The charge column applies +15% materials, +20% labor, then +10% overhead and profit, and shows a realistic range rather than one false-precision number.
How this number is built
There is no proprietary data feed here and nothing is hidden. Every figure above comes from four visible steps, which is exactly how your own price book should work:
- 1Start from bare material and bare labor cost per unit, at a national baseline.
- 2Multiply both by your local cost factor, from the ZIP table below.
- 3Add markup: 15% on materials, 20% on labor. This covers waste, procurement and supervision.
- 4Add 10% overhead and profit on the marked-up subtotal, then show a range rather than one number.
Regional cost factors
A national average is close to useless on its own. The same tile installation job prices very differently across markets. These are the multipliers applied above, against a 1.00 national baseline.
| Metro | Factor | Floor tile, standard install (sq ft) |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco, CA | 1.38x | $16.31 to $30.29 |
| New York, NY | 1.32x | $15.60 to $28.97 |
| Boston, MA | 1.24x | $14.66 to $27.22 |
| Los Angeles, CA | 1.22x | $14.42 to $26.78 |
| Seattle, WA | 1.20x | $14.18 to $26.34 |
| Chicago, IL | 1.18x | $13.95 to $25.90 |
| Washington, DC | 1.15x | $13.59 to $25.24 |
| Denver, CO | 1.08x | $12.77 to $23.71 |
| Austin, TX | 1.04x | $12.29 to $22.83 |
| Phoenix, AZ | 1.02x | $12.06 to $22.39 |
| Atlanta, GA | 1.00x | $11.82 to $21.95 |
| Houston, TX | 0.98x | $11.58 to $21.51 |
Before you send this number to a client
Worth doing
- Walk the actual site before committing to a fixed price.
- Itemize disposal, permits and prep as their own lines.
- Write down what is excluded, not only what is included.
- Compare these rates against your own last three invoices.
Where bids go wrong
- Using a national average as if it were a local quote.
- Forgetting that overhead is a real cost, not profit.
- Absorbing prep and access problems instead of pricing them.
- Quoting from memory when material prices moved.
Frequently asked questions
How much do tile installers charge per square foot?
Standard floor tile usually runs $12 to $22 per square foot installed, a tiled shower or wall $18 to $34, and a backsplash $20 to $37, before demo and waterproofing. Small areas and patterned layouts carry more labor per foot.
Why does backsplash tile cost more per square foot than floor tile?
Because the area is small and cut-heavy. A backsplash packs outlets, edges, and corners into a few square feet, so the per-foot labor is high even though the total job is small. Many setters also set a minimum charge.
Is waterproofing included in shower tile pricing?
It should be its own line. A proper shower needs a waterproof membrane under the tile, usually $7 to $14 per square foot, and skipping or hiding it is how callbacks and leaks happen. Quote it separately so the client sees it is real work.
Should I price tile demo separately?
Yes. Removing old tile set in thinset runs about $4 to $8 per square foot and can uncover substrate damage, so price it as its own line and note that hidden repairs are extra.
Other trades
Turn these rates into a sent proposal
A table is a starting point. Describe the job in plain words and Takeoff Convert prices it with cited starting prices (government wage data for labor, live supplier prices for materials where it can find them) that learn your own as you win jobs, then produces an itemized proposal your client can e-sign.
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