THE BIDS AREN'T COMPARING THE SAME JOB
You get three quotes for your shower or floor project. One comes in noticeably lower than the other two. It's tempting to think you just found a good deal — but in almost every case we see, that lower bid isn't actually quoting the same scope of work. It just looks that way on paper.
THE MISTAKE: COMPARING PRICE, NOT SCOPE
The biggest thing homeowners get wrong when picking a tile contractor is going with the lowest number without checking what's actually included in each bid. Two contractors can walk the exact same shower and come back with numbers $2,000-$3,000 apart, and it's rarely because one of them is just "better at business." It's because they're not quoting the same job.
Here's what's usually different between a cheap bid and a real one:
- Add-ons left out — a niche, a bench, or schluter edge trim that one contractor includes and the other quietly skips
- Waterproofing quality — a full, proper waterproofing system versus a thin or partial job that technically "counts" but won't hold up
- Waterproofing left out entirely — yes, this happens, and it's the most expensive corner to cut because you won't know until there's a leak
None of this shows up as a line item difference you can spot at a glance. It shows up two years later as mold behind your shower wall.
THE ONE QUESTION THAT TELLS YOU THE MOST
If you only ask a contractor one thing before hiring them, ask what waterproofing method they use and why. It's the single best filter for whether you're talking to someone who does this professionally or someone who's cutting a corner you can't see.
For most residential showers, we use a liquid-applied waterproofing membrane like RedGard, applied properly across the whole wet area — not just brushed on as an afterthought. A contractor who can explain their waterproofing method clearly and confidently, without you having to pull it out of them, is usually a contractor who takes the whole job seriously. If someone brushes past the question or seems unsure, that's worth noticing.
A REAL JOB WE GOT CALLED OUT FOR
We got a call from a homeowner whose shower had been done a year earlier by a contractor who came in with the cheapest bid. It looked fine at first — that's the frustrating part about bad waterproofing, it doesn't announce itself. The corner that got cut wasn't obvious in the estimate; it just meant the wet area wasn't properly sealed. By the time we got the call, there was already water damage behind the wall, and the whole thing had to be opened back up and redone properly. The homeowner ended up paying for two showers instead of one — the cheap one and the real one.
That's the pattern we see over and over: the "expensive" bid usually isn't expensive because of markup. It's expensive because it includes the parts of the job you can't see once the tile goes up.
HOW TO ACTUALLY COMPARE BIDS
When you're evaluating contractors, don't just line up the total price. Ask each one:
- What waterproofing method do you use, and is it included in this price?
- Are add-ons like a niche, bench, or edge trim included, or extra?
- Is demo and haul-away included?
- Can I see photos of a completed job similar to mine?
Get those answers in writing before you compare numbers. Once you know you're comparing the same scope, the "expensive" bid often stops looking expensive at all.
GETTING READY TO HIRE?
If you want a clear, apples-to-apples quote that spells out exactly what's included — waterproofing method and all — get an estimate from BuddyTile and we'll walk you through it line by line.