Bathroom tiling cost in Melbourne
Tiling a typical Melbourne bathroom — floor plus walls on an average 10 m² job — runs $630 to $1,675 in labour, with tile supply on top. Where your job lands in that band comes down to four things: the size of the room, what is under the old tiles, how much of the work is wet-area, and the tile you choose.
How much to tile a bathroom in Melbourne? The quick answer
| Job component | Melbourne band (2026, labour) |
|---|---|
| Bathroom floor + walls — typical 10m² job | $630–$1,675 |
| Wall tiling, per m² | $42–$105/m² |
| Floor tiling (standard format), per m² | $37–$94/m² |
| Waterproofing (wet areas), per m² | $37–$84/m² |
| Old tile removal, per m² | $21–$58/m² |
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GST-inclusive Melbourne labour bands, cross-checked against 90+ Australian trade pricing sources. Tile supply is on top — covered under tile choice below.
What drives the price
Room size cuts both ways. A typical family bathroom is around 10 m² of tiled surface once the walls come in, which is what the $630–$1,675 band describes. A small powder room lands under it — but not proportionally under it, because set-up, cutting and edge work do not shrink with the room. Floor-to-ceiling tiling on a large bathroom pushes past the top of the band on sheer area.
Waterproofing is non-negotiable. Wet areas have to be waterproofed before a single tile goes down, at $37–$84/m², and in Victoria the applicator needs a separate licence. A quote that is suspiciously cheap has usually thinned this line — it is the one part of the job you never want done twice.
The substrate decides the surprises. Stripping old tiles runs $21–$58/m², and what turns up underneath — flaky screed, moisture damage, an old membrane that failed quietly — is the classic source of mid-job variations. Older Melbourne homes deserve a contingency.
Tile choice moves the supply bill, not the labour. The lay rate barely changes between budget ceramic and mid-range porcelain — the tile bill is what moves. Mosaic and feature work is the exception: fiddly formats push the labour itself to $63–$125/m². If you are weighing tiles against other floor finishes entirely, our epoxy vs tile bathroom floor comparison covers that fork.
Wall versus floor: where the money goes
Bathroom walls carry most of the tiled area and most of the fiddly work — niches, tap penetrations, window reveals, and the cuts around them — which is why wall tiling quotes at $42–$105/m² against $37–$94/m² for a standard floor. On a typical job the walls are roughly two-thirds of the tiled area, so a per-m² saving on the wall rate moves the total more than the same saving on the floor rate.
Per-m² or total price? How Melbourne tilers quote bathrooms
Small bathroom jobs are usually quoted as a total; bigger or multi-room work comes per square metre. To sanity-check either — treat this page as your bathroom tiling cost calculator: measure the floor, measure each tiled wall to its finish height, add the areas, then multiply by the bands above and add waterproofing across the wet zones. If a total quote implies a per-m² rate far outside the bands, ask which line item is doing the stretching.
How to compare bathroom tiling quotes
Get the scope in writing: strip-out and disposal, substrate prep, waterproofing (with the certificate), the lay, grout and silicone, and who supplies the tiles. Quotes diverge on what they quietly exclude far more than on rates. Check the waterproofing licence, ask how variations are priced before work starts, and treat the cheapest number with the thinnest scope as the most expensive quote on the table.
Retiling as part of a bigger overhaul? A full renovation is a different job with different economics — see our Melbourne bathroom renovation cost guide.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to tile a bathroom in Melbourne?
For a typical 10m² floor-and-walls job, bathroom tiling labour runs $630–$1,675 in Melbourne, with tile supply on top. Small powder rooms come in under that; large or feature-heavy bathrooms go over.
What does bathroom tiling cost per square metre?
Wall tiling runs $42–$105/m² and standard floor tiling $37–$94/m² labour-only in Melbourne. Mosaic and feature tiling is the outlier at $63–$125/m².
Does bathroom tiling include waterproofing?
Usually quoted as a separate line. Waterproofing wet areas runs $37–$84/m² in Melbourne and must be done by a separately licensed applicator in Victoria — never let it be trimmed out of a quote.
Do the old tiles need to come off first?
Almost always in a bathroom. Stripping existing tiles runs $21–$58/m², and it is the moment substrate or membrane problems get found — build in a contingency on older Melbourne homes.
Is it cheaper to tile a bathroom during a full renovation?
The tiling itself costs much the same, but trades sequence more efficiently on a combined job. If you are changing more than the tiles, price the work as a renovation rather than as a stand-alone tiling job.
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