A Guide To Choosing The Right Tile Trowel

12/02/2025

Selecting the appropriate tile trowel is crucial for achieving a durable and visually appealing tile installation. The right trowel ensures optimal adhesive coverage, preventing issues like tile lippage or poor adhesion. This guide will help you understand the different types of trowels and how to choose the best one for your project.

Understanding Tiling Trowels

A tile trowel is a hand tool used to apply and spread or comb tile adhesive, during tile installation. They are designed to leave notches in the adhesive allowing air to escape when the tile is pressed into it. Tiling trowels come in various shapes and sizes, and when choosing the appropriate tile trowel, key components to consider are the notch shape and size, which determine the amount of adhesive applied and the coverage achieved.

Types of Tiling Trowels

Our extensive range of tile adhesive trowels includes a curated selection of brands renowned for their excellence, such as Rubi trowels, BAL Trowels, OX Trowels, Genesis Trowels, Marshalltown Trowels, and more.

Whether you're laying floor or wall tiles, engaging in intricate mosaic work, or levelling a floor, Pro Tiler Tools has the tiling trowels you can rely on. Our tiling trowels help to ensure your tiles are securely and evenly affixed to your surface regardless of your tile size and material. Here are the types of trowel we stock:

Margin Trowels: Margin trowels make applying tile adhesive to tight spaces and corners, where a larger trowel cannot reach, easier. They are ideal for finishing around windows, in corners, and for precise tile installation in any confined area, the Vitrex 150mm Margin Trowel is a great example.
Plastering Trowels: A plastering trowel is a specialized tool used for applying, spreading, and smoothing plaster or other materials, such as self levelling compound. The Kubala Extra Large Stainless Steel Plastering/Self Levelling Trowel is made of high-grade stainless steel, and is perfect for applying self-levelling compounds, floor screed, mortars, and adhesives, and for thermal insulation works.

Find out more:

Gauging Trowels: A gauging trowel is an essential tool for various construction, tiling, and mortar repair tasks. Renowned products like the Genesis Softgrip gauging trowel and the OX gauging trowel offer exceptional durability and performance.
Screeding Trowels: Screeding trowels are specifically designed to help you create an even, flat finish on surfaces such as concrete, plaster, and other materials. The RST Wooden Handle Flooring Trowel has a tempered carbon steel blade for use in all floor screeding and levelling applications.

Bucket Trowels: Whether you need a bucket trowel or bucket scoop trowel we stock adhesive trowels from well-known manufacturers such as a Marshalltown bucket trowel, Beava bucket scoop, Ox bucket trowel, or Rubi bucket trowel.
Notched Trowels: A notched trowel allows you to evenly spread tile adhesive or mortar with a grooved pattern when tiling, ensuring consistent and even application and a strong bond between the tile and substrate.

Types of Notched Trowels

The two most common types of notched trowels are square notch and U-notch trowels.

Square/Standard Notched Trowel: This trowel has square-shaped notches and is versatile, suitable for a variety of tile sizes.
Multi Notch Trowel: With H45-shaped notches, this trowel is typically used to undercut tile adhesive and help provide maximum coverage.
U Notched Trowel: Ideal for fixing large format wall and floor tiles with recessed/keyed back patterns. A couple of examples are the BAL Thick Bed U Notched Trowel and the Kubala Large Stainless Steel Trowel.

Read more: How To Use A Notched Trowel

How to Use a Trowel for Tiling

It’s important to know how to use your tiling trowel, here are some simple steps:

Prepare the Surface: Ensure the substrate is clean, dry, and level. You also always want to consider that you may need work gloves, dust control equipment, ear defenders, safety goggles or glasses, or even knee pads and kneeling pads. We stock an extensive range of personal protective equipment (PPE).
Mix the Tile Adhesive: Prepare the tile adhesive according to the manufacturer's instructions. The adhesive should be mixed to the correct consistency to allow for proper troweling and tile placement. Explore paddle mixers and whisks, mixing buckets, and our guide to The Best Tools To Use for Mixing Adhesive.
Select The Right Tiling Trowel: It’s likely that you will need a variety of trowels for your work, whether you’re a tiler, tradesman or a DIYer renovating a house, a tiling trowel set can be useful as it contains any trowel option you could need. Popular tile trowel sets include the Bihui 15 Piece Switchable Notched Trowel Set, Genesis Stainless Steel 6-Blade Trowel Box Set, or the Pro Tiler Tools Stainless Steel Softgrip Trowel Set.
Apply the Adhesive: Use the flat side of the trowel to spread a thin layer of adhesive onto the surface, pressing it firmly to ensure good contact. Hold the trowel at a 45-degree angle with the notched side against the adhesive. Comb through it to create uniform ridges.
Back Buttering Tiles: Applying adhesive to the back of the tile to achieve proper coverage creates a stronger bond with the mortar, fills voids on the back of the tile, and minimises tile slippage and lippage - an essential step for porcelain, natural stone, and large format tiles.
Place the Tiles: Press the tiles firmly into the adhesive, using a slight twisting motion to ensure full coverage. Ensure both the tile and the substrate are flat. Significant variations may require a larger notch size to achieve proper coverage.
Check Coverage: Periodically lift a tile to check that the adhesive has given good coverage.

By selecting the appropriate trowel and following proper installation techniques, you can achieve a professional and durable tile installation.

Looking for the right tile adhesive to use with your tile trowel? Take a look at these helpful articles:

By choosing the right size and type of trowel and applying the tile adhesive correctly, you can achieve a professional finish that ensures your tiles are securely set. Explore our tile trowel collection today, and if you need any assistance with your order, don’t hesitate to contact our team of experts should you have any questions, via email at [email protected] or give us a call at 01604 859800.