Pool Tile Cost Calculator For Australia (Per Square Metre)

Wondering how much to budget for installation of pool tiles?

Use the pool tile cost calculator below to get an estimate of how much your next tiling job will cost! Note that this calculator is for full interior tiling, rather than coping tiles.

What Are The Different Types Of Pool Tiles?

Here are the most common types of pool tiles in Australia:

• Ceramic
• Porcelain
• Natural Stone
• Glass
• Mosaic (standard and glass)

We'll now cover the approximate cost of each of these.

How Much Do Ceramic Pool Tiles Cost?

Ceramic pool tiles tend to cost $20-$50 per square metre, making it a reasonably affordable tile material. Installation is an extra cost on top of this.

An owner of a 9m x 4m pool with an average depth of 1.5m can expect to pay $3,100-$5,400 for complete supply and install of ceramic tiles in their pool.

How Much Do Porcelain Pool Tiles Cost?

Porcelain tiles are one of the most affordable options out there. They cost about $12-$25 per square metre for tile supply alone, with labour for installation being an additional cost.

The owner of a typical 9m x 4m pool with a depth of 1.5m can expect to pay $1,800-$2,800 for full installation of interior porcelain tiles.

How Much Do Natural Stone Tiles Cost?

Natural stone tiles are significantly more expensive than porcelain or ceramic, coming it at approximately $50-$90 per m².

Once labour for installation is factored in, a 9m x 4m pool with average depth of 1.5m will cost $6,500-$9,500 for complete tile install.

How Much Do Glass Tiles Cost?

Glass pool tiles are one of the most expensive options out there, costing $70-$100 per square metre for supply alone.

Full glass interior tiling of a typical Australian pool will cost around $8,300-$11,000 including supply and labour for installation.

What Affects The Cost Of Pool Tiling?

Generally speaking, there are three main factors that affect how much a tiling job will cost:

• Pool size
• Tile material
• Tile design

As you would expect, larger pools require more tiles than smaller pools, which means more cost for the supply of the tiles, and more cost in terms of labour to install those tiles.

The tile material chosen also has a big impact. Glass tiles can be much more expensive than porcelain tiles, with more complex installation procedures that result in higher labour costs (a double whammy of extra cost).

Finally intricate designs (such as complex mosaics) add substantially to how long it takes installers to lay the tiles. This corresponds to higher costs.

If you want to save money on a pool tiling job, choose simpler tiles with no or minimal mosaic design.

How Do I Find Reputable Pool Tilers?

To help you find licenced, insured and highly rated pool tilers, we're preparing a series of guides on some of the best operators in a variety of Australian cities.

Here's a list of our guides:

• Top Pool Tilers In Brisbane

These guides are a good starting point. You can also chat to neighbours or friends and see if there's anyone they recommend.

Whoever you decide to use, make sure that they are properly licenced and registered with your state's building authority. Some examples include the Queensland Building & Construction Commission (QBCC) or the Victorian Building Authority (VBA).

Can I Save Money By Installing Pool Tiles Myself?

A considerable fraction of the cost of any tiling job is for the labour to lay and install the tiles, so it is understandable that some will want to reduce costs by installing their own tiles.

While you certainly can do this, it is not recommended unless you have considerable experience with pool tiling.

Bear in mind that these tiles are designed to be continuously submerged for years or even decades. If you self-installed tiles are not sealed and grouted properly, you can get water leaking behing the tiles, which can lead to delamination and damage to your pool surface.

Worst case scenario is that you have to resurface your pool, an expensive process.

For this reason, most choose to go with a tiling professional.