# Tile Roof Cost: Weight First, Then Everything Else Canonical URL: https://www.simplywise.com/blog/tile-roof-cost/ Plain text: https://www.simplywise.com/blog/tile-roof-cost/llms.txt Publisher: SimplyWise, Inc. (https://www.simplywise.com) Published: September 25, 2026 Updated: October 27, 2026 Category: Project Cost Guides Summary: Tile roof cost by weight: published pounds per square for concrete and clay, code slope and fastener lines, and named underlayment prices. --- Log in (https://simplywise.com/login) ## Tile Roof Cost: Weight First, Then Everything Else A tile roof is not a shingle roof in nicer material. The weight decides the framing, and the framing decides the price. Add SimplyWise as a preferred source (https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=simplywise.com) At a glance 1. Standard concrete tile weighs 900 to 970 pounds a square on Eagle’s table. Clay runs 598 to 1,800 on Ludowici’s. 2. Code floors the slope at 2-1/2:12. The tile’s own instructions often ask for more, and those govern. 3. A 30 lb felt roll lists at $34.99 to $39.99. A plain batten stick runs $1.99 to $2.49, treated $3.39. 4. No publisher we can cite states an installed price a square, so this page prints none. ## Tile roof cost starts with the structure The number that moves a tile job is not the tile. It is whether the frame under it can carry the tile. Eagle Roofing prints an approximate weight per 100 square feet for every concrete profile. Ludowici prints one for every clay tile. ## What a square of tile weighs | Product | Material | Pieces a square | Weight a square | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Ludowici LudoSlate | Clay | 109 | 598 lb | | Ludowici Americana 16 | Clay | 109 | 750 lb | | Ludowici Spanish 18 | Clay | 114 | 800 lb | | Ludowici Straight Barrel Mission 16 | Clay | 192 | 1,190 lb | | Ludowici Colonial | Clay | 310 | 1,800 lb | | Eagle Capistrano | Concrete | 88.5 | 900 lb / 570 lightweight | | Eagle Bel Air, Golden Eagle, Ponderosa | Concrete | 88.5 | 970 lb / 720 lightweight | Eagle’s standard Capistrano is 900 pounds a square and the lightweight version is 570. On a 25 square roof that gap is more than 8,000 pounds. ### What we could not source We wanted to print how many times heavier tile runs than asphalt. No shingle maker we checked publishes a weight a square on a warranted data sheet, so we print no multiple. ## The code sets a weight line and a slope line The 2021 model code puts three numbers on a tile roof. Section R905.3.2 floors the slope at 2-1/2:12. From there up to 4:12 the underlayment goes on double. Section R905.3.7 carries the line nobody quotes. Tiles under 9 pounds a square foot installed need a fastener each, whatever the slope. That is 900 pounds a square, right through the middle of the table above. Then the tile overrides you upward. Ludowici asks 3:12 for Americana 16, 4:12 for Spanish 18 and 5:12 for Straight Barrel Mission 16, and R905.3.7 makes those instructions binding. Check the profile’s own minimum slope before you price it. A roof that clears the code floor can still fall short of the tile you specified. ## The underlayment and battens are the priceable part Tile gets quoted by a distributor. The layer under it does not. | Material | Named listing | Published price | | --- | --- | --- | | 30 lb roof felt, 36 in by 72 ft | Warrior WARFELT4869-30, Orgill 30RF | $34.99 to $39.99 a roll | | Batten, 1 in by 2 in by 8 ft | Universal Forest Products 7475, McCoy’s 012603 | $1.99 to $2.49 a stick | | Batten, pressure treated, single source | Southern pine No. 2, McCoy’s 011336 | $3.39 a stick | | Roof tile adhesive, single source | DAP Storm Bond, part 7565029570 | $26.99 | A 216 square foot roll covers a little over two squares before laps. Between 2-1/2:12 and 4:12 the code doubles the layers, so buy it twice. Felt and the plain batten each carry two independent sellers. The treated batten and the adhesive carry one listing each, so treat both as single source. ## Turn the roof into a priced job SimplyWise Cost Estimator turns a photo into an itemized estimate in about 6 seconds. It is $29.99/mo or $239.99/yr, about $20/mo on annual, with a 7-day free trial. ## Lift and relay is its own job Tile outlives the felt beneath it. Ludowici warrants its clay for 75 years. So the first job due is a lift and relay. The tile comes off and gets stacked, felt and battens go back new, and the same tile goes down again. Price it in hours. The May 2025 federal wage survey puts the roofer median at $26.65 an hour across 135,490 roofers. That is a wage an employer pays an employee, not what you bill, and the survey leaves out the self employed. ## Why this page prints no price a square Eagle and Ludowici publish specifications, never prices. Do it Best, Sutherlands and McCoy’s do not list a single clay or concrete roof tile. Every installed figure we found traced back to a lead generation cost guide. So this page carries no price a square, no engineer fee and no relay price. ## Price a tile roof in four steps 1. Confirm the structure carries the weight Pull the profile’s published weight a square and get the framing checked first. 2. Check both slope minimums The code floor is 2-1/2:12. The tile’s own instructions often ask for more, and they govern. 3. Count the underlayment and the battens Published prices, doubled where the slope calls for double underlayment. 4. Price the crew hours, then get the tile quoted Price the labor from your own crew rates. The tile comes from a distributor. ## Keep reading - Construction Calculators (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/construction-calculators/) - Roof Replacement Cost (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/roof-replacement-cost/) - Roof Repair Cost (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/roof-repair-cost/) - Roofing Squares and Bundles (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/roofing-squares-and-bundles-calculator/) - How Much Do Roofers Make (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/how-much-do-roofers-make/) ## Sources ### Manufacturer specifications - Eagle Roofing technical specifications (https://eagleroofing.com/technical/technical-specifications/) (2026-09-11). - Ludowici Americana 16 (https://ludowici.com/product/americana16/) (750 lb, 3:12; 2026-09-11). - Ludowici Spanish 18 (https://ludowici.com/product/spanish18/) (800 lb, 4:12; 2026-09-11). - Ludowici Straight Barrel Mission 16 (https://ludowici.com/product/straight-barrel-mission16/) (1,190 lb, 5:12; 2026-09-11). - Ludowici LudoSlate (https://ludowici.com/product/ludoslate/) (598 lb, 75 year warranty; 2026-09-11). - Ludowici Colonial (https://ludowici.com/product/colonial/) (1,800 lb, 5:12; 2026-09-11). ### Code - 2021 Residential Code chapter 9 (Seattle reprint), R905.3.2 and R905.3.7 (https://www.seattle.gov/documents/Departments/SDCI/Codes/SeattleResidentialCode/2021SRCChapter9.pdf) (2026-09-11). - 2021 code, second reproduction (https://up.codes/viewer/maryland/irc-2021/chapter/9/roof-assemblies) (2026-09-11). - 2024 code, unamended federal adoption (https://up.codes/viewer/general-services-administration/irc-2024/chapter/9/roof-assemblies) (R905.3.8; 2026-09-11). ### Supplier listings - Do it Best, Warrior 30 lb felt (https://www.doitbest.com/product/144204/warrior-36-in-x-72-ft-rated-30-lb-roof-felt-asphalt-saturated-144204/) ($39.99; 2026-09-11). - McCoy’s, Orgill 30RF felt (https://www.mccoys.com/shop/p/080303/orgill-30rf-roofing-felt-72-ft-length-3-ft-width) ($34.99; 2026-09-11). - Do it Best, 1x2x8 furring strip (https://www.doitbest.com/product/105870/universal-forest-products-1-in-x-2-in-x-8-ft-furring-strip-105870/) ($2.49; 2026-09-11). - McCoy’s, 1x2x8 spruce pine fir (https://www.mccoys.com/shop/p/012603/1-in-x-2-in-x-8-ft-spruce-pine-fir-select-kiln-dried-surfaced-on-4-sides) ($1.99) and treated pine (https://www.mccoys.com/shop/p/011336/1-in-x-2-in-x-8-ft-southern-pine-no-2-pressure-treated-mca-06-surfaced-on-4-sides) ($3.39; 2026-09-11). - Do it Best, DAP Storm Bond (https://www.doitbest.com/product/797817/dap-touch-n-seal-storm-bond-low-gwp-polyurethane-roof-tile-adhesive-797817/) ($26.99, single source; 2026-09-11). ### Wages and product - Federal wage survey, roofers 47-2181 (May 2025, series …218108 median and …218101 employment). - Hero photograph by Jeuwre (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roofing_003.jpg) (Creative Commons Zero; 2026-09-11). - SimplyWise Cost Estimator (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/simplywise-cost-estimator/id6670619664) (4.8 on the App Store; 2026-09-09). ## Common questions on tile roof cost ### Weight and structure **How much does a tile roof weigh?** A square of standard concrete tile is 900 to 970 pounds on Eagle Roofing’s table. Clay runs 598 to 1,800 pounds a square across Ludowici’s profiles. **Can my roof take tile without reinforcement?** Only an engineer looking at your framing can answer that. Pull the profile’s published weight first, because the lightweight version of the same tile can cut it by a third. **What is the minimum slope for a tile roof?** The 2021 model code sets 2-1/2:12 in section R905.3.2, with double underlayment up to 4:12. Many tiles ask for more, and the manufacturer’s instructions govern. ### Price and materials **Why is there no tile roof cost a square on this page?** No manufacturer, distributor or retailer we checked publishes one. Every installed figure we found traced back to a lead generation cost guide, so we print none. **What does the underlayment under a tile roof cost?** A roll of 30 lb felt covering 216 square feet lists at $34.99 to $39.99. Double the count between 2-1/2:12 and 4:12. **Can SimplyWise price a tile roof from a photo?** Yes. 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