How Much Does Bathroom Tiling Cost in Sydney? Real Numbers from a Tiler Who’s Been Doing This Since 1972

Quick answer

A standard bathroom tiling job in Sydney sits between $3,500 and $7,000 including labour, waterproofing and grouting, but not tiles. Add tiles and you are looking at $4,500 to $9,000 all in for an average 6 to 8m² bathroom.

Per square metre, expect $80 to $150 fully installed for most jobs. Labour alone runs $45 to $85 per m² depending on the tile and the layout. Waterproofing adds another $60 to $80 per m² of wet area. Tile removal, if your old tiles are coming off, adds $40 to $65 per m².

Those are the honest ranges from over five decades of quoting Sydney bathrooms. Below we break down exactly where every dollar goes, what makes a quote go up or down, and how to read a tiling quote so you do not get caught out.

At Leerberg Tiling we have been laying tiles in Sydney bathrooms since 1972. The team have quoted thousands of bathrooms over the years across Inner West, North Shore, Eastern Suburbs and everywhere in between. The numbers below are what jobs actually cost, not what looks good on a website.

How Sydney tilers price bathroom work

Most Sydney tilers price bathroom tiling one of three ways:

1. Per square metre, most common. The tiler measures the wall and floor area, multiplies by a per-m² rate, and adds line items for waterproofing, removal and grouting. This is the fairest method for the homeowner because you can see exactly what you are paying for.
2. Fixed price for the whole job. Once a tiler has done a site inspection, they will quote a single number. This is common for full bathrooms where the scope is clear. You get certainty but you cannot compare line by line easily.
3. Day rate. Less common for a full bathroom. More for small repair jobs, splashbacks or fix-ups. Sydney tilers charging by the day generally bill $600 to $900 a day for one tradesman.

When you get three quotes and they are $4,000, $6,500 and $11,000, it is almost never that one tiler is ripping you off. It is that they are quoting different scopes. The cheap one might be skipping waterproofing certification. The expensive one might be including tile removal, floor levelling and a frameless screen install. Read the quote, not the headline number.

The five things that move the price most

After 53+ years of quoting bathrooms across Sydney, the biggest cost drivers are always the same:

• Bathroom size and complexity. A 4m² ensuite with a square layout is way cheaper per m² than a 6m² bathroom with a hob, a niche, a curved wall and a frameless screen.
• Tile size and pattern. Standard 300×600mm wall tiles in a straight lay equals base price. Herringbone, mosaics, large format 600×1200mm or natural stone can add 25% to 50% more in labour.
• Whether tiles need to come off first. Old tile removal is dirty, slow work. If the existing tiles are stuck to a fibrous cement substrate that is still sound, sometimes tilers can tile over them. Most of the time in Sydney, the membrane is gone, the screed is shot, or the substrate is hollow, and it all has to come out.
• Waterproofing scope. Australian Standard AS 3740 and your council require certified waterproofing on every wet area in a Sydney bathroom. Floor plus 100mm up walls minimum, plus full shower walls to 1800mm. Whoever quotes you should be itemising this separately and providing a certificate at the end.
• Where you live. A North Shore or Eastern Suburbs job typically runs 10% to 15% higher in labour than a Western Sydney job. Parking, access, strata rules and tradesman demand all push the rate up.

Bathroom tiling cost Sydney: 2026 price breakdown by line item

This is the breakdown a fair Sydney tiler should give you. If your quote is one big number with no detail, ask for it broken out.

Labour: laying the tiles, $45 to $85 per m²

Why labour varies: bigger tiles need a perfectly flat substrate, which usually means more prep, thinner grout lines and two tilers to lift them. Mosaics need more time on every square metre because every sheet has to be set, levelled and sometimes back-buttered. Patterns mean more cuts, more waste and more set-out time.

Waterproofing: $60 to $80 per m² of wet area

Every Sydney bathroom needs waterproofing to AS 3740:2021, certified by the licensed waterproofer. For a typical 6m² bathroom you are looking at:

• Shower floor and walls to 1800mm
• Full bathroom floor
• Walls to 100mm up everywhere wet area regulations apply

Total waterproofing area on a standard bathroom: 12 to 18m². Total cost: $800 to $1,500 for a standard bathroom.

This is not the place to save money. Failed waterproofing is the single biggest source of bathroom defect claims in NSW. When it fails, you do not just retile, you replace timber framing, gyprock, sometimes ceilings below. We have ripped out bathrooms five years old because the previous tiler did not prime correctly or skipped the bond breaker at the floor-wall junction. The original saving of $400 cost the homeowner $18,000 in remediation.

Tile removal: $40 to $65 per m²

Removing old wall and floor tiles, plus the screed bedding underneath if it is loose, plus the old waterproofing membrane. Tile removal is dusty, noisy and slow. For a standard 6m² bathroom expect $1,500 to $2,500 for a full strip-out.

If your bathroom was built before 1990, ask whether the substrate or the old vinyl might contain asbestos. In Sydney we still see this fairly often in homes from the 60s, 70s and 80s. If asbestos is present, removal becomes a licensed job and adds $1,500 to $4,000.

Surface preparation: $35 to $75 per m²

After demolition, the substrate has to be made flat and tileable:

In an old Sydney bathroom, Federation, post-war, even some 90s builds, the floor is rarely flat enough for modern large-format tiles. You will almost always need at least some levelling work.

Grouting: usually included, but check

Most quotes include grouting. Standard cement grout is part of the per-m² labour. Upgrades to look out for:

• Epoxy grout: stain-proof, more expensive, $15 to $30 per m² extra, worth it for showers and high-use kitchens.
• Coloured grout matching: some tilers charge a small premium, $5 to $10 per m², for non-standard colours.
• Full re-grout, regrouting only: $30 to $60 per m² as a standalone job.

Tile materials, usually bought separately

Sydney tilers generally do not supply the tiles. You buy them from TFO, Beaumont Tiles, Amber Tiles, or a specialist supplier. Typical material-only prices in 2026:

Add 10% to 15% for waste, cuts, breakages and future repair stock.

Real bathroom tiling costs in Sydney: three worked examples

Numbers below are full installed cost including waterproofing and grouting. Tiles supplied by homeowner.

Example 1: small ensuite, mid-range refresh

• Size: 4m² floor, 18m² walls
• Tiles: 300×600 mid-range porcelain, straight lay
• Scope: strip out, waterproof, tile, grout

Example 2: standard family bathroom, mid-range

• Size: 7m² floor, 28m² walls, including shower walls
• Tiles: 600×600 porcelain floor, 300×600 wall, mosaic feature strip
• Scope: strip out, level floor, waterproof, tile, grout, re-silicone

Example 3: premium bathroom, North Shore

• Size: 10m² floor, 40m² walls
• Tiles: large-format 600×1200 porcelain, marble feature wall, herringbone shower floor mosaic
• Scope: full strip-out, full re-sheet, waterproof, tile, premium finishes

These are real-world numbers, not best-case scenarios. Every job has surprises and a fair tiler will tell you upfront where the variables are.

Where bathroom tiling jobs go over budget

Five decades of bathrooms tells us the same overruns come up again and again:

1. Substrate surprises

You do not know what is behind the old tiles until they come off. Rotten timber framing under a 1990s shower is the classic. If the waterproofing failed five years ago and nobody knew, the studs are biscuit. Budget a $500 to $1,500 contingency for substrate repair on any bathroom older than 20 years.

2. Asbestos

Pre-1990 Sydney homes regularly have asbestos in wall sheeting, floor vinyl or even adhesive. NSW law requires licensed removal for anything over 10m². Always test before demolition on an older property.

3. Plumbing changes mid-job

You decide you want the toilet moved 400mm, or the shower made bigger. Every fixture relocation is $500 to $1,500 in extra plumbing. After waterproofing has been laid, changes get more expensive again because you have to re-do the membrane around any new penetration.

4. Just one more thing

Niche. Hob. Frameless screen. Heated floor. Each of these is reasonable but they are not in the base quote unless they are listed. Niches are $300 to $500. Hobs add a half-day of labour. Frameless screens are someone else’s trade entirely, usually $1,200 to $3,000.

5. Tile waste from layout decisions

Picking a herringbone pattern with diagonal walls and a stepped niche means tile waste of 25%+ instead of the usual 10% to 15%. That is another half a square metre of tile cost on a small bathroom.

A good tiler will walk you through these on the quote and give you a contingency line. If the quote has no contingency and the tiler has not asked about your home’s age, that is a flag.

How to read a Sydney tiling quote

A proper bathroom tiling quote should have these line items written down:

• Total tiling area, wall plus floor m², measured not estimated
• Labour rate per m² for each tile type
• Waterproofing as a separate line with m² of wet area
• Tile removal scope, full strip vs partial
• Surface preparation, levelling and sheeting
• Grouting type, cement vs epoxy
• Skirting, silicone and finishing
• Waste removal
• Waterproofing certificate at completion
• GST clearly stated
• Payment schedule, deposit, progress and completion
• Warranty period

Questions to ask before signing

• What is your NSW Fair Trading licence number?
• Do you provide a waterproofing certificate?
• Are you using subcontractors?
• What happens if waterproofing fails?
• What is not in this quote?

Tilers doing waterproofing in NSW must be licensed for waterproofing as a separate trade. Check the licence at the NSW Fair Trading website before paying anything. A waterproofing certificate is a legal requirement, not an option. Force the tiler to list exclusions. The most common excluded items are plumbing changes, electrical, painting, shower screen install and light fittings.

Cost differences by Sydney area

Tilers in Sydney do not all charge the same. Roughly speaking:

These are general patterns. A specific quote depends on access, parking, height, age of home and complexity far more than the suburb itself.

Ways to save on bathroom tiling without cutting corners

After 53 years of watching homeowners get this right and wrong, here is what actually saves money.

Do save on

• Wall tiles in non-shower areas, use mid-range ceramic, not premium porcelain
• Standard tile sizes, 300×600 and 600×600, because common sizes are cheaper to buy and quicker to lay
• Straight-lay patterns over herringbone or chevron
• Fixtures behind the wall, such as cisterns and pipes, because these do not need to be premium

Do not save on

• Waterproofing
• The tiler doing the work, because a $500 cheaper quote that fails costs $15,000
• Floor tiles in the shower, the highest-wear surface in your house
• Adhesive, because a quality C2TES1 adhesive is non-negotiable for porcelain on walls

Free wins

• Have the tiles delivered to site before the job starts so the tiler is not waiting
• Empty and prep the bathroom yourself, including towel rails, mirror and vanity if possible
• Decide your full layout, niche locations and feature tile placement before demo, not during

Frequently asked questions

How much does a small bathroom cost to tile in Sydney?

A small bathroom, 4 to 6m², costs between $3,500 and $6,500 to tile, including waterproofing, grouting and labour. Tiles are usually $1,000 to $2,500 extra depending on what you choose.

Is it cheaper to tile over existing tiles?

Sometimes, but it is risky. Tiling over works only if the existing tiles are completely sound, the substrate underneath is dry and the waterproofing is still functional. In a Sydney bathroom over 10 years old, it almost never is. We have removed jobs where someone tiled over a leaking shower base. The leak just kept going underneath, hidden, until the bathroom needed gutting. Always strip out wet areas.

How long does it take to tile a bathroom in Sydney?

Typical bathroom: 5 to 8 working days of tiling work, spread over 2 weeks once you account for waterproofing cure time, 24 to 48 hours, and grout cure, 24 hours before silicone and 7 days before water exposure. A small ensuite can be done in 4 to 5 days. Premium jobs with mosaics and feature walls can stretch to 10 to 14 days.

Do tilers in Sydney need a licence?

Yes. Tilers doing work over $5,000 in NSW must hold a current Fair Trading contractor licence. Waterproofing is a separately licensed trade in NSW. Always check both licences before paying any deposit. Leerberg Tiling holds NSW Fair Trading Licence 206514C and is fully insured.

Should waterproofing be done before or after tiling?

Always before. Waterproofing membrane goes onto the prepared substrate, cures for 24 to 48 hours depending on the product, and tiles are laid on top of it. Anyone offering to seal a bathroom by waterproofing over the top of tiles is selling you a band-aid that will fail.

What is the cheapest tile for a Sydney bathroom?

Standard 300×600 ceramic from a volume supplier like TFO, around $25 to $35 per m² supply. Cheap does not mean bad. Modern budget ceramics are perfectly fine for bathroom walls. We would still always recommend porcelain on the floor and shower walls because of moisture absorption.

Are quotes free?

Most Sydney tilers provide free on-site quotes for bathrooms. Avoid anyone who tries to quote a bathroom over the phone. They have not seen the substrate, the access, or the existing condition, so the number is meaningless.

What is the most expensive part of a bathroom tiling job?

For most bathrooms, labour is the biggest line item, followed by waterproofing. Tiles can be the largest cost only if you have gone premium, $120+ per m², or chosen natural stone. On a typical mid-range bathroom, expect labour at 40% to 50%, tiles at 25% to 35%, waterproofing at 15% to 20%, and the rest in prep and finishing.

Can I supply my own tiles?

Yes. Most Sydney tilers expect this. We do not sell tiles at Leerberg Tiling. We can recommend suppliers who do not mark up heavily and who will deliver to site.

How much should I budget on top of the quote for surprises?

Add 10% contingency on any home built in the last 25 years. Add 15% to 20% contingency on anything older than that, especially with original wet areas.

Key takeaways

• Bathroom tiling in Sydney costs $80 to $150 per m² fully installed for most homes.
• A standard 6 to 8m² bathroom costs $4,500 to $9,000 all in, tiles included.
• Waterproofing is mandatory under AS 3740 and adds $60 to $80 per m² of wet area.
• Tile removal adds $40 to $65 per m² if your old tiles are coming off.
• North Shore and Eastern Suburbs run 10% to 15% above Western Sydney rates.
• The cheapest quote is rarely the cheapest job. Read the line items, not the headline.
• Always check the NSW Fair Trading licence and waterproofing licence before paying a deposit.

Get a real quote, not a phone estimate

At Leerberg Tiling we have been laying bathroom tiles in Sydney since 1972. Three generations of the same families have used us. We provide free on-site quotes across every Sydney suburb, from West Ryde where we are based, to Bondi, Mosman, Manly, Parramatta and the Sutherland Shire.

The team that quotes your job is the team that does your job. No subcontractors. No apprentices unsupervised. Licensed, NSW 206514C, insured, HIA member, and we provide AS 3740 waterproofing certificates on every bathroom.

Call 02 9808 1824 for a free on-site quote or use the contact form to request a callback.

At Leerberg Tiling we just like laying tiles.