cost to tile kitchen floor

Average Cost of Kitchen Tile Floor Installation

The average cost to have a professional tile a kitchen floor is $1,800 or $12 per square foot. This is the cost for materials, professional labor, and cleanup. If you choose to DIY your kitchen tile, you will need to factor in the cost for additional tools and materials that you don’t have on hand, but you will save money on labor costs.

Average Do It Yourself Cost

$4.50 / Square Foot

Average Contractor Installed Cost

$12.00 / Square Foot

Typical Cost Average

$9.50 – $15.50 / Square Foot

Last Updated: Tuesday, January 18, 2022


Overview of a Ceramic Tile Flooring

The kitchen is one of the central hubs of a home for both family and guests. Tile in the kitchen gives the space substantive good looks with an impressive range of tile types, shapes, sizes and colors to produce a design from classic to contemporary to rustic wood to Old World. Plus, tile is durable and stands up to spills and is easy to clean. Installing kitchen tile is one of those popular indoor projects homeowners tackle as they think about preparing to entertain during the holidays. Add radiant floor heating first, and you’ll complete a great kitchen upgrade.

This kitchen floor tile cost estimate looks at the cost factors involved in tiling a kitchen floor, materials and tools needed for DIY tiling, and the cost to hire a professional to tile your kitchen floor. We also offer some DIY tips and related projects to check out.

Project Cost Details

Kitchen Tile Cost Factors

This list of kitchen tile cost factors is provided so that you can get a good idea of how much your kitchen tile project will cost, and so that you can think through all the different options and possibilities for kitchen tile.

  • Kitchen Features – A simple tile job will be less expensive than a complicated one. If your kitchen is a basic square or rectangle shape without any unusual fixtures, the labor costs for your project will probably be on the lower end. On the other hand, if your kitchen is unusually shaped or has a lot of floor fixtures that require cutting and installing tile around, the labor costs for your project will be higher.
  • Kitchen Size – Bigger kitchens cost more to tile, but installation cost per square foot often goes down with room size, due to economies of scale. Older homes have an average kitchen size of 130 square feet or less, while newer kitchens tend to be a little larger at around 160 square feet. Add a dining area in the kitchen, and they can grow to 200+ square feet.
  • Type of tile – One of the main cost factors to consider when you are tiling a kitchen floor is what type of tile you want to use. There are many different tile materials that each offer a unique look and price range. In the Retail section is a list of tile materials and the approximate cost for each.
  • Prep work – Most kitchen floors require some prep work to prepare a clean, level subfloor essential for tile installation. In your total cost estimate for your project, make sure to include things like removing and disposing of the old flooring and leveling the floor, which are not included in this estimate.
  • Who Does the Labor – Labor charges can account for as much as 75% of the total cost. While hiring a professional saves you time and effort and ensures that the finished product will look professional, you’ll save up to $12, or maybe more, per square foot by DIY. Factor into doing it yourself the cost of tools and installation materials.
  • DIY Tools and Materials – See the Retail Costs below for a list of what you’ll need and what it will cost.

Cost of Installation Supplies

If you DIY, here are costs to consider. A pro might get lower wholesale rates on some materials.

  • $1-3 per square foot | Ceramic Tile (buy an extra box of any tile you purchase to have some for future repairs, if necessary)
  • $2 – $ per square foot | Porcelain Tile
  • $3 – $10+ per square foot | Stone Tile – Total costs might exceed the estimates above if you choose stone like travertine or marble.
  • $18 – $30 per bag | Mortar to secure the tile to the underlayment – enough for most bathrooms.
  • $12 – $70 | Grout – We recommend premixed grout for the most exact and uniform color throughout the tile floor. Mixing your own saves money, but differences in the mix from batch to batch can affect tile color.
  • $55+ | Drill and mixing paddle (can be rented)
  • $185+ | Powered tile saw with tile blade (saw can be rented, but not the blade)
  • $110 – $200 | Tile cutter – the easiest and most accurate option for cutting bathroom tile.
  • $30 – $50 | Tile snips – a hand-held tool that takes muscle to use, but saves on cost.
  • $3 – $5 | Pack of 100-300 tile spacers.

Permits, Inspection, Related Costs and Installation Time

Permits and Inspection Cost

  • $0 | Fortunately, tiling a kitchen floor does not require a permit or inspection! Make sure to check your local requirements if you plan to do any more significant kitchen remodeling.

Related Costs and Installation Time

The list above shows material costs. This section details tile installation costs, which outweigh material costs because installing tile is detailed and time-consuming.

  • $6.50 – $12.00 per square foot | Labor Cost to Install Kitchen Tile

Tile Floor Install Time Schedule

  • 2-4 days | You should be prepared to set aside several days for the job to allow for up to a day of floor preparation before the tile is installed, grouted and the grout is allowed to fully set up before the floor is used. If you are tiling the kitchen yourself, you may need a few extra days to complete it unless you have significant experience.

Cost of Related Projects

It is common for homeowners to complete a few of these while remodeling the kitchen.

  • Ceramic Tile Flooring
  • Laminate Wood Flooring
  • Porcelain Flooring
  • Ceramic Tile Removal
  • Tile Backsplash
  • Radiant Floor Heating
  • New Kitchen Sink
  • Hooking Up a Gas Appliance
  • Gas Line Installation

DIY or Hire a Pro?

Getting a tile job right – by that we mean it looks like a professional did it, lines are “perfectly” straight, the grout is uniform in color and the floor is exactly level – takes experience and skill. And the kitchen probably isn’t the place to gain that skill and experience.

But still, deciding whether to hire a professional to tile your kitchen or to do it yourself is about knowing your skill set and what you’re willing to do to make it look pro-quality. If you get it done, and you like the looks, you’ll save around $10 per square foot in our estimation. Homewyse says you’ll save more – up to $15/sq. ft. Remodeling Expense estimates it quite low, in our experience, at $3-$8/sq. ft. That would be cheap labor, and we would be suspect about what the results might look like. Home Guide is much more in the same ballpark as Business Finance News with an estimate of $7-$15/sq. ft.

For experienced homeowners, tiling a kitchen floor can a fun project – at least the results are. However, it is fairly labor-intensive and may take several days to complete. If you don’t have that kind of time on your hands, it may make more sense for you to hire a professional.

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