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(Tiler, Tile Setter, Mosaic Tiler, Tile Fitter)
Construction & Trades
Salary
€30,000 - €60,000/yr
Level
Operational
Outlook
Growing
Sector
Construction & Trades
Floor and Wall Tilers measure, cut, and fix tiles to walls, floors, and other surfaces in residential homes, commercial premises, and public buildings. You prepare surfaces by cleaning, levelling, and applying adhesives before carefully laying tiles in precise patterns, ensuring they are flush, level, and properly aligned. Grouting, sealing, and caulking expansion joints are also core parts of the job, along with cutting tiles to size using specialist tools. You work alongside other trades such as plasterers, plumbers, and electricians on construction and fit-out projects. Some tilers take on artistic or specialist work, including mosaic installations and the setting of natural stone and marble.
Listen: a day as a Floor and Wall Tiler
Your alarm goes off at 6:30 a.m. You load your van with buckets, a notched trowel, a rubber mallet, a tile cutter, an angle grinder fitted with a diamond blade, and bags of adhesive and grout. By 7:30 a.m. you are on site at a new-build housing estate in Naas, signing in with the site foreman and checking the day's schedule on the contractor's paper worksheet. The morning begins with surface preparation in two bathrooms on the first floor. You check the walls with a long spirit level, mix up a thin-set adhesive to the correct consistency, and apply it with the notched trowel, combing it into ridges so the tiles bond properly. You are laying large-format porcelain tiles, which are heavy and unforgiving — a single tile set out of true throws every row that follows, so you measure twice before placing anything.
Entry to this trade is typically through the SOLAS Floor and Wall Tiling apprenticeship, which is an earn-and-learn programme combining on-the-job training with off-the-job phases at an Education and Training Board (ETB) or designated training centre. The completed apprenticeship leads to an NFQ Level 6 Advanced Certificate – Craft award. Leaving Certificate subjects such as Technical Graphics, Construction Studies, and Mathematics are useful preparation, though a Leaving Certificate is not always a strict requirement for apprenticeship registration. Some entrants first complete a QQI Level 5 PLC course in Construction Skills or a related area to build foundational knowledge. There is no statutory professional registration body for tilers in Ireland, but membership of representative bodies and Skillnet construction networks can support career development.
Most tilers in Ireland begin as apprentices under the SOLAS Floor and Wall Tiling apprenticeship, working under an experienced tradesperson on residential or commercial sites. After qualifying, you typically work as a journeyperson tiler for a construction company or fit-out contractor, building a varied portfolio across different project types. With experience, many tilers move into a supervisory or foreperson role, managing tiling crews on larger commercial or public-sector projects. Experienced tilers frequently establish their own subcontracting business, tendering directly for projects in the residential, hospitality, and commercial sectors.
AI and digital tools have limited direct impact on the core physical craft of tiling, which requires hands-on skill, judgement, and dexterity that automated systems cannot easily replicate. However, digital tools such as tile layout software and augmented reality apps are increasingly used during the planning and design phase to visualise patterns and calculate material quantities more accurately. AI-powered estimating and project management platforms are also becoming common in construction, helping tilers who run their own businesses to quote more efficiently and manage schedules. Overall, AI is more likely to assist tilers with administrative and planning tasks than to displace the skilled manual work itself.
→ Floor and Wall Tiler (Current role)
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Organisations in Ireland that employ people in this occupation.
Dublin and Nationwide
Tilers finish floors and walls on major construction contracts
Dublin and Nationwide
Tilers lay floor and wall tiles in new residential developments
Nationwide
Tilers complete bathroom and kitchen finishes in new homes
Nationwide
Tilers maintain and restore floors in government and heritage buildings
Dublin
Tilers work on social housing refurbishment and public facilities
Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin
Tilers carry out maintenance on council housing and public buildings
Galway
Specialist tilers install floor and wall tiles for residential clients
Dublin and Nationwide
Tilers finish interiors on large commercial and data centre builds
Nationwide
Tilers maintain hygienic wall and floor surfaces in hospitals
Dublin and Nationwide
Tilers complete fit-out work on commercial and residential projects
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