Careers · Explore one path
Floor Layers, Except Carpet, Wood, and Hard Tiles
Apply blocks, strips, or sheets of shock-absorbing, sound-deadening, or decorative coverings to floors.
Other titles employers use
Floor Covering Contractor · Floor Coverings Installer · Floor Layer · Flooring Installer · Flooring Mechanic · Tile Installer · Tile Setter · Vinyl Installer
Inside the work
What you would actually do.
6 responsibilities that define the role, before job titles and workplaces change the details.
- Sweep, scrape, sand, or chip dirt and irregularities to clean base surfaces, correcting imperfections that may show through the covering.
- Cut flooring material to fit around obstructions.
- Inspect surface to be covered to ensure that it is firm and dry.
- Trim excess covering materials, tack edges, and join sections of covering material to form tight joint.
- Form a smooth foundation by stapling plywood or Masonite over the floor or by brushing waterproof compound onto surface and filling cracks with plaster, putty, or grout to seal pores.
- Measure and mark guidelines on surfaces or foundations, using chalk lines and dividers.
Who it suits
Would this work hold your attention?
This career often appeals to people drawn to practical and organizing work.
- Practical
- Building, repairing, using tools, or working outdoors
- Organizing
- Creating order, checking details, and keeping work accurate
Skills and strengths
What you would get good at.
Compare the skills the work relies on, the subjects behind it, and the abilities that make it easier to learn.
Core skills
- Active Listening
- Speaking
Subjects to know
- Building and Construction
- Customer and Personal Service
- Mathematics
- Mechanical
- Production and Processing
Useful strengths
- Extent Flexibility
- Near Vision
- Oral Comprehension
- Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Oral Expression
Working day
Picture yourself doing it.
These measures show how much of the day involves people, movement, conversation, and hands-on work.
| Measure | Out of 5 | What that means here |
|---|---|---|
| Close to other people | 3.8 | Shared rooms, but not shoulder to shoulder |
| On your feet | 2.7 | Mostly seated |
| Talking face to face | 5.0 | Continuous — the job is conversations |
| Working with your hands | 4.9 | Handling tools, instruments or materials |
Preparation
How people prepare for this work.
Most employers do not ask for a formal credential. Other routes may also lead into the field.
- High school or less 95%
- A certificate or some college 5%
Tools of the work
Technology you may use.
- Web page creation and editing software
- Office suite software
- Data base user interface and query software
- Project management software
- Computer aided design CAD software
- Inventory management software
- Internet browser software
Opportunity near you
See where this work is growing.
Choose a state to compare the size of the field, annual openings, and expected hiring change.
- People doing this work
- 10,600
- Job openings each year
- 910
- Expected hiring change, 2022–2032
- 16.5%
Compare every available state
| State | People doing it | Job openings each year | Expected change |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 10,600 | 910 | 16.5% |
| Illinois | 1,850 | 150 | 6.9% |
| Utah | 1,540 | 130 | 19.4% |
| Texas | 1,490 | 120 | 12.0% |
| Missouri | 1,350 | 110 | 9.8% |
| Michigan | 1,280 | 100 | 4.9% |
| North Carolina | 1,240 | 110 | 14.8% |
| New York | 1,170 | 0 | 1.7% |
| Ohio | 950 | 80 | 6.7% |
| Colorado | 840 | 70 | 16.7% |
| Pennsylvania | 800 | 70 | 8.1% |
| Tennessee | 750 | 70 | 21.0% |
| Oregon | 710 | 60 | 22.4% |
| Maryland | 690 | 60 | 11.3% |
| Virginia | 620 | 50 | 8.8% |
| Arizona | 610 | 50 | 15.1% |
| Washington | 580 | 60 | 16.0% |
| Indiana | 510 | 40 | 8.5% |
| Nebraska | 510 | 40 | 15.9% |
| Idaho | 440 | 40 | 25.7% |
| Minnesota | 430 | 40 | 10.3% |
| Wisconsin | 410 | 30 | 13.9% |
| Montana | 360 | 30 | 28.6% |
| Massachusetts | 310 | 30 | 10.7% |
| Georgia | 300 | 30 | 20.0% |
| Alabama | 290 | 20 | 11.5% |
| Iowa | 260 | 20 | 13.0% |
| Kansas | 250 | 20 | 4.2% |
| New Mexico | 250 | 20 | 19.0% |
| Arkansas | 240 | 20 | 9.1% |
| Kentucky | 230 | 20 | 4.5% |
| Connecticut | 220 | 20 | 15.8% |
| Louisiana | 220 | 20 | 15.8% |
| Oklahoma | 190 | 20 | 18.8% |
| Vermont | 170 | 10 | 13.3% |
| Maine | 140 | 10 | — |
| Nevada | 120 | 10 | 20.0% |
| North Dakota | 100 | 10 | 11.1% |
| South Dakota | 90 | 10 | 12.5% |
| Puerto Rico | 80 | 10 | 14.3% |
| South Carolina | 80 | 10 | 14.3% |
| New Hampshire | 50 | 10 | — |
| Alaska | 40 | 0 | 33.3% |
Career to college
Build a path toward this work.
Start with a related major, then compare colleges where students complete that field.
Where to study
Colleges with strong activity in these fields.
Start with program size, admission, and likely cost. Open a college for the full picture.
The University of Texas at San Antonio
- Degrees each year
- 76
- Admit rate
- 88%
- Annual cost after aid
- $9,000
Rowan University
- Degrees each year
- 56
- Admit rate
- 78%
- Annual cost after aid
- $19,000
Tuskegee University
- Degrees each year
- 12
- Admit rate
- 31%
- Annual cost after aid
- $35,000
Thomas Jefferson University
- Degrees each year
- 4
- Admit rate
- 86%
- Annual cost after aid
- $25,000
SUNY College of Technology at Delhi
- Degrees each year
- 2
- Admit rate
- 88%
- Annual cost after aid
- $19,000
Compare every college offering building/construction finishing, management, and inspection