Determine which room floor you wish to tile. Take into consideration the traffic that the room experiences because you must consider the durability of your tile before you make a choice. For example, most tiles are rated on a scale between one and five, with one being the least durable and five being the most durable. So, if you are looking for a very durable type of tile, you will want to choose something with a rating of four or five.Also take into considerations any other important room requirements that you have identified such as how easily the tile can be cleaned, how often it must be cleaned, or how often it will likely need to be replaced. Think about how the floor will be used. For example, a play room floor will likely experience a lot of jumping, bouncing, running, hitting, and a large number of other "play" factors. That might have an impact on the type of tile for that room.

Decide what type of tile you want. Will it be brick, concrete, ceramic, cork, glass, mosaic, peel and stick, porcelain, terra cotta, terrazzo or something else? Your choice can be dependent upon a number of factors, like the room's specific requirements for moisture proof, non-slip, scuff proof, water resistant or another specific type of tile. Also take into consideration other factors that might affect your tile choice like its susceptibility to extreme heat or cold; how easily it can be maintained; its level of refurbishing difficulty; and of course, how easily it can be laid by a novice.

Decide on the color and pattern of the tile you want. Not all types of tiles come in all colors or patterns so this decision may affect your tile possibilities. While ceramic tiles come in solid colors and patterns, other types of tiles come only in patterns. Therefore, this decision may eliminate some tile possibilities.

Determine the size of the tile you want to use. A lot of tile comes in a standard 12 inch by 12 inch size, however, there are also smaller sizes like 10 inch by 10 inch, or 8 inch by 8 inch. If your heart is set on using smaller tiles, then your options with regard to tile choice will be significantly narrowed.

Determine the supplies necessary to lay the tile. Will it require grout, glue, or something else in order to complete the job. This may have an impact on your final tile choices.

Measure the floor to determine the square footage of the space to be covered. Using the tile size and the square footage of the room, calculate the number of tiles required to do the job. Be sure to allow for some replacement tiles in case you need to cut and splice in places or replace damaged tiles.

Establish a budget for your tile floor. If you don't have an unlimited amount of money on hand to choose top grade tile, you need to establish that limitation. While you can search for deals, sales, or clearance tile, there is no guarantee that you will be able to find exactly what you want, when you want it.

Purchase your tile choices based on all of the decisions you have made in the steps above