Ceramic tiles exhibit a versatility of colored glazes and decoration, and they range from the plainest terra cotta tiles to highly decorated individual ceramic tiles and elaborately patterned tile floors.

Ceramic floor tiles can generally be divided into two types: unglazed and glazed. Unglazed tiles include: quarry tiles, encaustic and geometric tiles, and ceramic mosaic tiles, which can be either glazed or unglazed. Most other ceramic floor tiles are glazed.

While unglazed tiles derive their color solely from the clay, or from oxides, dyes or pigments added to the clay, the color of glazed tiles is provided by the glaze, either shiny or matte. Some potteries specialized in certain kinds of glazes and were famous for them. The earliest and most common method of clay tile decoration made use of tin-glazes which were essentially transparent lead glazes.

The thickness of historic ceramic tiles varied considerably according to their intended use and when they were made. Floor tiles were generally thicker and harder than wall or ceiling tiles. Colors included blue derived from cobalt, green from copper, purple from manganese, yellow from antimony and lead, and reds and browns from iron. An opaque glaze was created by adding tin oxide.