Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Tile Setter Salary in Nashville
2024 BLS OEWS Data · Construction · COL Index: 103
Tile Setters in Nashville, TN earn a median annual wage of $46,030 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $35,470 and the 90th at $58,770. After cost of living, that translates to $44,689 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: F (38/100).
What Tile Setters Take Home in Nashville
The $23,300 spread between entry-level and top-decile tile setters in Nashville is relatively narrow — about 51% of the median. That tight band usually signals a trade where pay scales primarily with experience rather than employer or specialization. New entrants can expect to climb steadily toward median pay over their first 5-10 years.
Nashville's cost-of-living index of 103 is within a few points of the U.S. average, so the $46,030 median for tile setters here translates almost directly into real purchasing power — roughly $44,689 in U.S.-average terms. What you see is what you take home, with no significant adjustment up or down.
With a Trade Pay Score of 38 (F), this trade-city pairing is below average. That typically reflects either weak nominal wages, sluggish 5-year wage growth, a high cost of living that hollows out real pay, or some combination. Workers should examine both the per-trade page (other cities for the same trade) and the per-city page (other trades in the same metro) to find a stronger fit.
Salary Distribution
Percentile Breakdown
| Level | Salary | COL-Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| 10th Percentile (Apprentice / Entry) | $35,470 | $34,437 |
| 25th Percentile (Early Career) | $36,020 | $34,971 |
| 50th Percentile (Journeyman / Median) | $46,030 | $44,689 |
| 75th Percentile (Experienced) | $58,770 | $57,058 |
| 90th Percentile (Master / Foreman) | $58,770 | $57,058 |
How These Numbers Are Calculated
Every wage figure here comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program at bls.gov/oes — a survey of about 1.2 million employers per release covering more than 800 occupations and every U.S. metropolitan statistical area. The Trade Pay Score combines raw median pay (30%), 5-year wage growth (25%), employment depth (25%), and cost-of-living-adjusted purchasing power (20%) into a single 0-100 grade. Read the full methodology.
Career outlook detail — projected 2032 employment levels for tile setters, typical entry-level requirements, on-the-job training expectations — comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship programs in Nashville are listed at apprenticeship.gov. All three are public-domain federal data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Tile Setter make in Nashville?
Per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data, the median tile setter salary in Nashville, TN is $46,030. The 10th percentile is $35,470 (typical for entry-level or apprentice-tier positions); the 90th percentile reaches $58,770 (master, foreman, or specialty roles).
How does Nashville pay compare for Tile Setters?
With a Trade Pay Score of 38/100 and a grade of F, the Nashville-Tile Setter pairing is below average — workers should consider whether a different metro for the same trade might deliver a higher grade.
What is the apprenticeship path for Tile Setters in Nashville?
Tile Setters typically complete a 3-year registered apprenticeship before reaching journeyman pay, starting around the 10th percentile ($35,470) and progressing toward the median. Registered apprenticeship programs in the area are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
How does cost of living affect Tile Setter pay in Nashville?
Nashville has a cost-of-living index of 103. The median tile setter salary of $46,030 translates to $44,689 in U.S.-average purchasing power — a downward adjustment because the metro is more expensive than average.
Where does this salary data come from?
Every wage figure on this page is a real BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics median or percentile from the 2024 release at https://www.bls.gov/oes/, which surveys roughly 1.2 million U.S. employers per release. Career outlook context (projected employment growth through 2032) comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/. Both are public-domain U.S. government data sources.
Other High-Paying Trades in Nashville
$106,050 median · Grade B
$90,210 median · Grade C
$85,340 median · Grade C
$77,280 median · Grade B
$77,280 median · Grade B
$76,550 median · Grade C
Tile Setters in Nashville, TN earn a median annual wage of $46,030 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $35,470 and the 90th at $58,770. After cost of living, that translates to $44,689 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: F (38/100).
The Tile Setters in Nashville, TN record above pulls directly from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey. What follows is the per-entity context — how Tile Setters in Nashville, TN sits in the broader U.S. skilled-trade wage data distribution and which underlying factors drive the headline numbers.
Every number on this page links back to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey; the methodology page describes the inputs, refresh cadence, and known limitations of the underlying data product.
For readers using this page as a decision input, the related-entity pages elsewhere on the site provide the comparison set. The most useful comparison for Tile Setters in Nashville, TN is typically a peer within U.S. trades, cities, and states with similar size, similar exposure, or similar geography — not the national-level summary alone.