How much do tile & stone setters make in Alabama in 2026?

The median tile and stone setter in Alabama earns $44,800 a year, which works out to about $21.54 an hour based on a standard 2,080-hour work year. That's the midpoint — half of setters in the state earn more, half earn less. Knowing where you fall in the range, and why, is what actually helps you negotiate or plan your next move.

The bottom quarter of tile and stone setters in Alabama — those at the 25th percentile — earn around $37,250 annually, or roughly $17.91 an hour. These are typically workers newer to the trade, working for smaller residential contractors, or employed in lower-cost markets within the state. If you're in this range and you've been setting tile for more than a couple of years, that's a sign your pay hasn't kept pace with your skills.

At the 75th percentile, setters pull in $47,560 a year — about $22.87 an hour. The gap between the 25th and 75th percentile is roughly $10,300 annually. That spread reflects real differences in experience, specialty work, employer type, and geography. A setter doing large-format porcelain in a commercial buildout in Birmingham or Huntsville is doing different work than someone handling basic ceramic in a residential rehab, and the pay reflects that.

Specialty materials move the needle. Setters who are comfortable with natural stone — marble, travertine, slate — large-format tile over 24 inches, or complex mosaic and medallion work command better rates. So do setters who can read plans, communicate with general contractors, and manage a small crew. If you can do all of the above, you're not competing with entry-level labor, and your pay shouldn't look like theirs.

Geography matters inside Alabama. Metropolitan areas — particularly the Huntsville metro, which has seen sustained commercial and government construction activity, and the Birmingham-Hoover area — tend to support higher hourly rates than rural counties. If you're consistently driving long distances to larger job sites, it may be worth repositioning where you base your work, or factoring drive time and fuel costs into your effective hourly rate.

Overtime and seasonality are real factors in this trade. Tile setting slows down on new construction when framing and rough mechanicals aren't done, but commercial remodels, hospitality renovations, and healthcare facility work can keep setters busy year-round. Workers who can stay flexible and pick up weekend or evening shifts during commercial buildouts often add meaningfully to their annual take-home beyond base hourly rates.

Some workers may be covered by a collective bargaining agreement — check with your local for current rates.

BLS OEWS data captures wages reported by employers, so it reflects base pay reasonably well. What it doesn't capture is the value of benefits packages: health insurance, paid time out, retirement contributions, or per diem on out-of-town jobs. A setter earning $21 an hour with full benefits and a retirement match is in a better position than one earning $23 with no benefits. Factor the full picture when comparing offers.

If you're looking to push past the median, the path is fairly direct: broaden your material skills, get comfortable with waterproofing systems and substrate prep (Schluter and similar systems are common on job specs now), and build a track record on commercial projects. Contractors who specialize in hospitality, healthcare, or high-end residential tend to pay more and keep crews busier. Pairing those skills with reliability — showing up, hitting production targets, leaving a clean job — is what keeps the phone ringing with the better-paying contractors.

All figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release.