HOW-TO GUIDES
How to tile a floor: a complete step-by-step guide
Updated 08/26
By: Content Team
Reviewed: Kim Staples
If you’re wondering how to lay floor tiles we have everything you need to know. From measuring to fitting, grouting to sealing our guide can help.
What tools and materials you'll need before starting
How to prepare concrete, wood, or existing tiled floors
The right order for laying, cutting, and fitting tiles
How much floor tiling typically costs per m²
When it's worth calling in a tiler, and how to find one
How to keep a newly tiled floor looking its best
Adding floor tiles to a home can make a bathroom look larger, turn a hallway into a stunning home entrance and give a kitchen a touch of class. And, with porcelain tiles now sporting amazing effects such as matt concrete and marble, you can get safe, easy to clean flooring that looks incredible.
In this article, we explain in detail how to tile a bathroom floor, kitchen and hallway floor. If you’ve ever tiled a wall, such as in a bathroom, you may be surprised to hear it’s actually a very similar process.
We also have a fantastic guide on the cost of tiling, which includes floor tiling costs per m2.
Tools and materials
There are a lot of tools needed to do this job, so to help you we’ve grouped them into the different project stages:
Personal protection
Knee pads or a cushion
Safety goggles
Protective gloves
Measuring and preparing
Tape measure
Pencil
Spirit level
Dry cloth
Fitting
Flat bed tile cutter or electric wet tile cutter
Tile nippers
Tile file or sandpaper
Floor tiles
Tile spacers
Rubber mallet
Sealing and grouting
Bucket
Grout float
Grout finishing tool
Floor tile adhesive
Floor tile grout
PVA adhesive
Masking tape
Flexible sealant
Trowel
Notched trowel
Scraper
Damp cloth
Dustpan and brush
Sponge
Find a tiler for your floor
Preparing your floor for tiling
Before any adhesive goes down, the sub-floor needs to be sound, flat, clean and dry.
Skipping this stage is the single biggest cause of cracked tiles, lippage (uneven edges), and grout failure further down the line.
Concrete or screed floors: Sweep thoroughly and check for level with a straight edge across the floor. If there are dips or high spots, use a self-levelling compound to even things out before tiling.
Wooden floors and floorboards: Boards flex, so tiling directly onto them risks cracked grout and loose tiles. Fit a layer of exterior-grade plywood (around 12mm) screwed down securely into the joists, then prime it before tiling. A tile backer board is a common alternative to ply on wooden sub-floors.
Porous surfaces: Prime with two coats of diluted PVA and leave overnight to seal the surface and improve adhesive grip.
Existing tiles: You can sometimes tile over sound, well-bonded existing tiles, but loose, cracked or hollow-sounding tiles should be removed first.
How to lay floor tiles step by step
Once your sub-floor is prepped, the process for laying floor tiles follows six main stages.
1. Find your starting position
Using a pencil, mark a point on the floor that’s equal distance from both side walls.
From this position, place tiles on one side wall, with spacers between them.
Mark on the floor where the last full tile stops. This is called the fitting line.
Measure from the fitting line to the centre of the room and write this measurement down.
Repeat step one further down the floor. Using the distance from step 4, mark a new fitting line.
Make sure no cables or pipes are within the fitting line by using a cable & pipe detector.
Join the fitting marks together to create one mark.
Repeat steps 1-7 for the length of the room. This will give you another fitting line.
Join the width and length fitting lines. The corner where they meet is the optimal place to start tiling.
Why is this optimal? Well, it’s important you start from a central point and then work to the corners when tiling. This will give you the nicest finish and mean that less tiles have to be cut.
2. Laying the tiles
Before you lay a single tile, identify your escape route. You’ll want to ensure you work towards the exit of the room, so you won’t have to walk on a single tile to get out.
Make sure any pets and family members won’t have access to the room while you are laying the tiles or while they’re drying. If it’s a bathroom or kitchen that’s in regular use this is trickier and may mean you have to tile half of the room at a time.
Put on a dust mask and safety goggles. Then mix the adhesive.
Use your notched trowel to apply the adhesive from the starting position we identified above.
Put the first tile in place and press firmly.
Use tile spacers to position the next tile and then stick it in place.
Repeat steps 4-6 whilst checking that the tiles are always level and flat. A spirit level can help you do this.
Remove excess adhesive where needed, using a damp sponge. This is especially important if it has come through the grout lines.
Once all the tiles are in place leave them to dry.
3. Cutting tiles
The next stage is to fill any gaps with cut tiles.
First, measure the space from your current tiles to the walls. Walls aren’t always straight so you’ll need to do this each time to ensure the cut tiles will be nice and flush with the wall.
Mark on your tile with a straight edge and a pencil where you need to cut it.
Using a tile cutter, you can now cut the tile.
Repeat the steps in "laying the tiles" to attach the cut tiles to the floor.
4. Tiling around pipework and curves
Here's a great hack for getting the shape of pipework and other odd shapes on to the tile so it can be correctly cut.
Crease a piece of paper around the object and then cut along the crease.
Double-check that this shape fits perfectly around the object. If not, then trim it or restart the process to get it perfect.
Draw the shape of the cut paper on to the tile.
Cut this shape out of the tile and smooth off any edges.
You can then fit the tile as per the above steps.
5. Grouting
By this stage, you should have the entire floor covered in tiles that are stuck with adhesive. Once the adhesive has dried you should then:
Whilst wearing a mask and safety goggles, mix the grout.
Use a grout float to move the grout into the tile joints. A great way to do this is to work in a diagonal motion.
After the grout lines are filled use a damp sponge to clear away any excess grout.
When it’s starting to harden, use a grout finishing tool to smooth everything out.
Once the grout has dried you can clean the tile with a cloth.
6. Applying sealant
To ensure no sealant gets on the walls and any fittings or pipes, place a line of masking tape where the tile meets the wall. Ensure you leave a small gap.
Apply silicone sealant along the joins.
Use a sealing shaping tool to get rid of any remaining sealant.
Finally, take off the masking tape and you’re all done.
Tiling a kitchen or bathroom floor
The steps above apply to any room, but a couple of things are worth flagging for the two most popular spaces.
Kitchen floors take a lot of daily traffic, so porcelain is usually the best material for your tiles. It's hard-wearing, doesn't stain like natural stone can, and is easy to keep clean.
Avoid high-gloss tiles if you have children or pets, since they show dirt quickly and aren't especially slip-resistant. And choose a grout colour that won't show stains around the sink and cooker area.
Bathroom floors need anti-mould grout and a flexible adhesive, since floors and walls both flex slightly and need to cope with moisture.
If you're tackling walls as well as the floor, our guide to how to tile a bathroom covers the wall-tiling side of the job, which follows a similar process but with a few different considerations around waterproofing and tile weight.
Find a tiler for your floor
DIY vs hiring a professional
It’s important to quickly go over the many reasons to consider hiring a tiler for this job:
A trusted tiler can make cheap tiles look amazing, whilst a poor-quality DIY job can make expensive tiles look awful. If you aren’t confident in your abilities, it’s not worth risking the quality of the job and the expense of the tiles.
As we mentioned earlier, tiles must be level and you need the assurance that things won’t shift with wear and tear. A tiler can give you this reassurance.
You can ruin a lot of perfectly good tiles if you aren’t experienced with cutting them.
There are a lot of materials, equipment, and tools needed for this project. If you are only planning to do one job it may be much more cost-effective to hire a professional.
It costs far more to tear up a poor-quality job and replace it than it does to get it right first time.
If you would like to hire a tiler, then you can browse our directory of tradespeople.
When comparing quotes, ask each tiler whether their price includes floor preparation (levelling, ply overboarding, priming) as well as the tiling itself. Prep work is often quoted separately and can catch people out if it's missing from an initial estimate.
How much does floor tiling cost?
Floor tiling typically costs around £110 per m² in total, covering standard tiles, materials and labour.
Within that, the cost of the tiles themselves can range anywhere from £20 to £400+ per m² depending on material and finish. Labour tends to run at about £50 per m².
Buy around 10% more tiles than your measurements suggest. You'll need spares for miscut tiles now and for repairs down the line, and matching a discontinued tile years later is much harder than buying a few extra at the start.
If you're removing old tiles first, our ceramic floor tile removal cost guide breaks that down separately, and our full tiling cost guide covers bathroom and kitchen tiling costs too.
How much does tiling cost in 2026?
Discover average tiling costs in the UK, including bathroom, kitchen, and floor tiling prices per m², alongside tips to budget wisely.
Floor tiling cost calculator
Wondering what your project will cost before you start buying materials or getting quotes? Try our estimate calculator.
Our AI-assisted pricing tool uses real Checkatrade job data to give you a guide price based on your room size and tile choice, so you can budget with more confidence before contacting a tradesperson.
Job Estimate Calculator
How to find a tradesperson to tile your floor
If you'd rather leave it to a tiler, choosing the right person for the job makes a real difference to the finished result.
Start by entering your postcode into our search tool. We'll show you the Checkatrade tilers who work in your area.
Find a tiler for your floor
Look for a tiler with experience in your specific job type - floor tiling on a wooden sub-floor calls for different skills to tiling a concrete slab, and large-format porcelain needs a very flat, well-prepared surface.
If you're comparing floor coverings rather than committing to tiles, it's also worth getting quotes from a wood flooring fitter alongside a tiler, since the cost and lifespan trade-offs vary a lot by room and lifestyle.
Our hiring guide to finding a tiler covers what to ask before booking.
FAQs
No. Tiling a floor, inside your home, doesn't require planning permission or building regulations approval - you're free to decorate as you wish.
No, not directly onto bare floorboards. Boards flex too much and will crack grout and loosen tiles over time. Fit exterior-grade plywood or a tile backer board over the boards first, screwed securely into the joists, then prime before tiling.
Yes, as long as the concrete or screed is flat, clean, dry and free of dust. Use a self-levelling compound first if there are dips or high spots.
Yes, tiles work well over underfloor heating and conduct heat efficiently, but the heating system needs to be tested and the floor should be at the right temperature before adhesive goes down. It's best coordinated between your tiler and heating installer.
No, not unless the packaging specifically states they're suitable for floors. Floor tiles are made thicker and more hard-wearing to cope with foot traffic, while wall tiles used underfoot are prone to cracking.
Measure the room's area in m², divide by the area of a single tile to get the number needed, then add roughly 10% extra to cover cuts, breakages, and future repairs.
A small room like a bathroom can often be tiled in a day, with grouting the following day once the adhesive has cured. Larger or irregularly shaped rooms typically take 2-3 days in total.
Leave newly laid tiles for at least 24 hours before grouting, and check your adhesive's instructions, as cure times vary by product. Avoid heavy foot traffic for a few days after grouting while everything fully hardens.
Regular sweeping and a damp mop with a pH-neutral cleaner will keep most tiled floors looking good. Avoid harsh acidic or abrasive cleaners on natural stone tiles, and reseal grout periodically in wet areas like bathrooms to keep it resistant to staining.
A tiler can handle both repairs and full retiling, while a bathroom fitter is worth considering if the cracked tiles are part of a wider bathroom refresh. Need help with tile restoration near you?
See the tradespeople we've checked for your job