Average is probably around $15 a sq.ft for material. Installation extra.

The average backsplash tile that most kitchens that I did was around $20-$30 a square foot 5 years ago. These days, the few projects that I take on in retirement, the price has gone up. $50-$75 has been more the average. People are willing to put in a small amount of expensive tile to dress up lower priced cabinets or counters.

That is really low. The price of tile is all over the place. You can easily spend more than $100 per square foot. I was trying to stick to a budget and was thrilled to be able to keep it down to $20 a square foot. You can find tile in the price range your contractor is allowing, but your choices will be very limited.

Wow, and here I am hesitating to get samples of tile costing $15-20/ sf! There are a lot of options in the $8-15 online, though not so many would look good with a busy granite (which is my problem). If you just want plain subway tiles or 1 inch mosaic, those can be found in lots of options for a decent price. I'd point you to a site, but honestly I've been looking at so much tile lately they are all a blur.

I spent $10 sq/ft for glass subways. Then it cost $800 for installation of about 50 sq/ft because cutting glass is more difficult and requires a special blade.

You can find tile for $2/sq... the average I sell is probably $6-8/sf. Natural stone is more like $10 - 15/sf. That doesn't count grout, sealer or any special accent or bullnose pieces. Installation is anywhere from $10 - 20/sf (ceramic being cheapest, natural stone in the middle and glass the most expensive). But asking "what does a backsplash cost" is like asking "what does a shirt cost?" Wal-mart T-shirt or designer silk?

Thank you for the great info. I was trying to see where to start with negotiating the price tag on that kitchen remodel. The proposal was just a description of the project and total cost. I know I need to ask for an itemized proposal but it was my first time meeting a contractor and I am trying to understand how he came up with that total bid. I was thinking he'll describe only the work not the tile, granite etc. which I am thinking I need to pick. Great info - thanks again!

Definitely ask for the breakout costs of installation etc. - the cost minus materials. The cost of the tile, the cabinets, the counters - all that is up to you. You can research and find out the ballpark cost per square foot of what you want. Visit a specialty tile store as well as a big box store. Bring some samples home and figure out what's important to you. Then you can compare apples to apples. Goodluck!

If you shop around and have some flexibility, you can get some good prices on closeouts. We got some beautiful handmade Walker Zanger discontinued tile for our bathroom at a fraction of the original price. But $6/sq. ft. is really low. Hard to find something for that that isn't builder basic.

I priced some Sonoma tile today & the price they gave me was $28.80/sq ft + shipping. I'm interested in the 3x6 "Star" beveled subway tile. The 2x1 rhomboid mosaic tile in matching color is $59.27 per sheet. Is this reasonable? Can I negotiate w/ the tile company in price?

Do you trust your installer to pick out your tile? Or would you pick it out yourself? I'd want to know if the type of tile affects the price of installation.

Also general question but should you buy 'extra' like when buying flooring in case any of them are damaged?

As others have said, it depends on the material and your location.

We used polished Travertine subway tiles with small glass tiles for an accent band. Our backsplash was about $35/sq ft (if my memory serves me; too lazy to dig out the invoice).

I went today and priced out a 3X6 tumbled bianco carrara marble and it was $12.80 a sq. ft. and that was a pretty middle of the road stone. A gray subway tile was slightly less. I don't think $6.00 a square foot will get you very far unless you opt for big bix store stock tile which leaves you very few options.

I'm in NE Florida & the quote for tile demo & installation is $750 for 33 sq ft. Quote doesn't include any materials but does include drywall work if any needs to be done to wall once original tile is removed.

The tile I looked at today is ceramic but is made when the order is placed.

This post was edited by kgolby on Wed, Feb 20, 13 at 23:27

It seems a bunch of us are shopping for backsplashes.

thedork: It is good to have allowances called out, because they are so highly variable. You don't need to negotiate the allowance, you will simply have to pay for the variance. But it is important when comparing bids to know the differences in the major allowances.

The allowance is at the low end, but it is easy to get carried away with a lot of tile options. A subway tile, 4x4 or 6x6 from a major manufacturer can run you as little as $3 to $5. You can even get colors and bevels at that price. But the prices that people here are citing are very common as well -- it depends on your budget and what style you are seeking. Trim pieces, btw, will add to your total costs and they tend to be expensive.

kgolby: glad you found your tile!