Tile Listings
The National Tile Authority directory indexes tile contractors, installation specialists, and related trade professionals operating across the United States. Entries span residential, commercial, and industrial sectors, organized by geography, specialty type, and licensing status. This reference describes how the listing inventory is structured, what information each entry contains, and the standards applied to verification of credentials and service scope.
Geographic distribution
Tile installation is a licensed trade in 35 states, with licensing administered through state contractor boards, construction industry commissions, or general contractor licensing agencies depending on jurisdiction. The listing inventory reflects this regulatory fragmentation: entries are organized at the state level first, then by metropolitan statistical area (MSA) or county where sufficient professional density exists to warrant subdivision.
High-density markets — including California (Contractors State License Board, Class C-54), Florida (Construction Industry Licensing Board), and Texas (Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation) — carry the largest share of listed professionals. Sparse markets in rural states may aggregate listings at the statewide level rather than by city or county.
Specialty categories within the directory follow the classification framework used by the tile-directory-purpose-and-scope index, which distinguishes between residential finish tile, large-format commercial installation, wet-area and waterproofing systems, and industrial/chemical-resistant tile. Each geographic node displays only the specialty categories with active listings; placeholder nodes are not published.
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the Tile Council of North America (TCNA) both publish installation standards that inform how specialty boundaries are drawn. ANSI A108/A118/A136 standards govern installation materials and methods; TCNA's Handbook for Ceramic, Glass, and Stone Tile Installation defines assembly types. Listings that reference compliance with these standards are flagged accordingly.
How to read an entry
Each directory entry is structured around five discrete data fields:
- Business name and DBA — the legal business name as registered with the relevant state agency, plus any trade name in active use.
- License number and issuing authority — the state license number, the name of the issuing board, and the license classification (e.g., C-54 Ceramic and Mosaic Tile in California, or Tile and Marble Contractor under Florida Statute §489).
- Service area — the counties, MSAs, or states within which the contractor holds an active license and actively accepts work. This is self-reported and subject to periodic review.
- Specialty designations — drawn from a controlled vocabulary aligned with TCNA assembly categories and ANSI method standards. Designations include substrate types (concrete, mortar bed, cement board, uncoupling membrane), setting material types (thin-set, medium-bed, epoxy), and finish material types (ceramic, porcelain, natural stone, glass mosaic, quarry tile).
- Verification tier — a status indicator described in detail in the Verification Status section below.
Entries do not include pricing, project portfolios, or consumer review aggregates. The directory functions as a professional reference, not a consumer review platform. For a full description of what the directory is and is not designed to do, see how-to-use-this-tile-resource.
What listings include and exclude
Included:
- Licensed tile contractors with an active state license in at least one US jurisdiction
- Tile setting subcontractors operating under a general contractor's license where state law permits
- Specialty trade professionals holding Ceramic Tile Education Foundation (CTEF) Certified Tile Installer (CTI) credentials or Advanced Certifications for Tile Installers (ACT) designations
- Commercial tile contractors registered with the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA)
Excluded:
- Unlicensed handyman or general repair operators offering tile as an incidental service
- Manufacturers, distributors, and material suppliers (indexed separately)
- Design professionals (interior designers, architects) without active installation licensure
- Contractors operating under expired, suspended, or revoked licenses at time of listing
Permit and inspection requirements are relevant context for any listing. Tile installation in wet areas — showers, steam rooms, pool surrounds — typically requires a building permit and inspection under the International Residential Code (IRC Section R307) or International Building Code (IBC), depending on occupancy type. Listings that include wet-area and waterproofing specialties are cross-referenced against the permitting jurisdictions where those services apply.
Verification status
Listings carry one of three verification status designations, applied at the time of indexing and subject to scheduled review cycles:
Active-Verified — License number confirmed against the issuing state agency's public license lookup database within the preceding 12-month review window. Service area and specialty designations reviewed for consistency with the license classification on record.
Active-Unverified — Listing submitted by the professional or sourced from public contractor databases, but license confirmation has not been completed in the current review cycle. License number and issuing authority are displayed as submitted; independent confirmation against state records is recommended before engagement.
Inactive — License expired, lapsed, or confirmed as non-renewed. Entry retained for reference and historical completeness but flagged with inactive status. Inactive entries are excluded from filtered search results by default.
License verification relies on public lookup tools operated by state contractor licensing boards. California's CSLB license check, Florida's Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) online verification, and Texas TDLR's license search represent the primary verification sources for the three highest-volume states in the index.
Credential verification for CTEF CTI and ACT designations is confirmed through CTEF's publicly accessible installer verification database. NTCA membership status is confirmed through NTCA's published member directory. Neither credential type substitutes for state licensure where licensure is required by law.
Status discrepancies, license changes, and corrections to listing data can be submitted through the contact page for review by the directory maintenance team.