A roof tile is a small, overlapping unit of fired clay or moulded concrete, hung on timber battens and laid in rows so water runs from one tile onto the next. Both materials are made in plain flat shapes and in curved or profiled interlocking shapes, and a roofer can lay either on the same frame. The real differences are in how they look, how long they are expected to last, how shallow a pitch they can safely cover, what they cost to repair and whether the planners will accept them on your street.
This guide compares the two materials, not the tile shapes. For plain tiles against interlocking ones, see our answer on plain tiles or interlocking tiles. Lifespans and pitches here are published figures from named sources, quoted as typical and never as a promise. The wider service sits on our pitched roofing page.
How clay and concrete tiles are made, and why it matters on the roof
Clay tiles are shaped from clay and fired in a kiln. The colour runs right through the tile, so a chip shows the same tone beneath the surface. Concrete tiles are moulded from sand and cement, cured, and given a coloured finish. The colour is in the body or the surface coating depending on the product, and manufacturers describe their own finishes in their data sheets.
Those origins explain most of what follows. Fired clay is hard and holds its colour well, but a tile can crack if it is walked on carelessly or hit by a falling branch. Concrete is made to a consistent size, which suits a roofer laying large interlocking units at speed, and the standard profiles are available in a long list of colours.
The look from the lane
On a Stroud street the roofline is part of how a building reads. Clay plain tiles give the slightly irregular, softly varied surface people recognise on older cottages. Concrete interlocking tiles give a flatter, more even finish, which suits newer houses built with them in mind. Neither is better in the abstract; the question is whether the material fits the house around it.
Weight and what the roof frame can carry
Tile weight is the point where this choice most often goes wrong on an older house. Weight per square metre differs from one product to the next, so the figure to trust is the one printed in the maker's data sheet for the exact tile on your shortlist. The principle never changes: a heavier covering asks more of rafters, purlins and walls that were sized for something lighter, and old timbers have little in reserve.
The rule sits in the Building Regulations. The Planning Portal sets the line at a replacement covering that is 15 per cent heavier or more, and above it Building Regulations approval applies. Approved Document A talks about a significant change in loading being more than 15 per cent, so we tell customers to check the threshold with building control rather than rely on one wording. Its advice is to consult a structural engineer or a surveyor first when the new tile is much heavier.
When the swap is likely to need a structural check
A move from natural slate or old plain clay to a thick interlocking concrete tile can raise the load. A move the other way lightens it. Our answer on whether concrete tiles are too heavy for an old roof goes deeper on that. In practice we look in the loft at the size of the timbers, the spacing, and any sign that they have already moved, as covered in our guide to roof structure defects. If the frame is already dipping, a heavier tile makes it worse.
Stone is the extreme case. Cotswold District Council's technical guidance describes a stone slate roof as about 1,000 kg for every 10 m², so exchanging stone for anything else is a loading question as well as a question of looks.
Lifespan: what the published figures say
Published lifespans for roof tiles disagree, and any single number should be read with care.
Clay
MyBuilder's guide puts clay tiles at 40 to 60 years. Marley, quoting the BRE, gives a minimum expectation of 60 years for clay. CORC, a charity that advises on roofing materials, says 100 years or more is possible for clay with good upkeep. A Building Conservation Directory article argues that the often-quoted figure of up to 60 years is not a reliable guide, given the number of clay roofs that are hundreds of years old.
Concrete
MyBuilder gives 30 to 50 years for concrete tiles. Marley says around 60 years, though it is explicit that the number is no guarantee or warranty. CORC suggests 50 years or more with good maintenance.
A manufacturer's guarantee on a tile is not a lifespan. Neither is a figure from a cost guide. What decides how long a roof lasts is the batten and underlay behind it, the exposure and whether someone maintains it.
Reading the gap
On the numbers alone clay sits ahead, and the old roofs of the region bear that out. But a well-fixed concrete roof with sound battens will outlast a poorly maintained clay one. When we survey, the age of the covering matters less than the state of what holds it. Our answer on how long a tiled roof lasts takes that further.
Minimum pitch: how low a roof each tile will tolerate
Pitch is the slope of the roof, measured in degrees. Each tile has a floor below which wind can push rainwater back up beneath the laps, and that floor depends on the product. These are manufacturer figures; always check the data sheet for the exact tile.
| Tile | Material | Minimum pitch (Marley or Sandtoft data) |
|---|---|---|
| Canterbury plain | Clay | 40 degrees |
| Hawkins plain | Clay | 30 degrees |
| Old English Pantile | Clay | 30 degrees |
| Concrete plain tile | Concrete | 35 degrees |
| Mendip (smooth) | Concrete | 15 degrees |
| Double Roman (smooth) | Concrete | 22.5 degrees |
What the table tells you
Plain tiles in either material need a steep roof. Interlocking profiles can go lower, and some concrete ones go as low as 15 degrees. That is one reason concrete interlocking tiles took over on post-war houses and extensions built with shallow roofs. If you have a low-pitched roof that leaks, see our answer on tiles on a low-pitched roof.
Our short reference on the minimum pitch for roof tiles lists more profiles.
Cost: buying, laying and repairing
We do not publish a price per tile because it changes between ranges and merchants. The sourced figure that lets you compare the two is the cost of repair. Checkatrade's roof repair guide (June 2026) gives £90 to £120 per m² for concrete tile repairs and £110 to £160 per m² for clay, ex VAT and excluding access. Clay is the dearer of the two to work with, and mending an old clay roof can mean searching for a tile that matches.
For a whole roof, MyBuilder's guide (August 2026) gives a typical full re-roof of £5,000 to £12,000, with gable roofs at £5,000 to £8,000 and hipped roofs at £8,000 to £12,000. It does not separate clay from concrete, so we do not claim a gap. Checkatrade's October 2026 replacement guide shows a wider spread, from about £4,000 to £19,000, with hipped roofs at £145 to £285 per m² and gable roofs at £110 to £260 per m², +VAT.
Where the price comes from
Scaffold, stripping the old covering, new battens and underlay, labour and waste usually add up to more than the tiles. The tile choice moves the total, but not as much as the access and the amount of timber that needs replacing. Our figure arrives once we have surveyed, in a written quote for the whole job. For repair costs in detail, see our guide to tiled roof repair costs.
Conservation areas, listed houses and the Cotswold setting
Stroud District has 41 conservation areas, and the Cotswolds National Landscape takes in more than half the district (the present name of an area still legally designated an AONB). Re-roofing like for like does not normally count as development, because the works do not materially affect the building's external appearance. Changing from clay to concrete might, so raise it with the planning team before any tiles are ordered. Find out too if the house is listed or subject to an Article 4 direction.
Why materials get scrutiny
Stroud District Council says protection covers the entire building and every grade of listing. A roof covering that changes the character of the building can need listed building consent. Substitute materials are treated with suspicion: the English Heritage policy reproduced in Cotswold District Council's 2000 guidance describes concrete tiles and reconstituted stone as inappropriate alternatives to real stone slates on historic buildings. That policy is about stone slate roofs specifically, but it shows how the question is approached.
What this means in practice
On a clay roof in a conservation area, the safe course is clay. On a modern house outside any designation, concrete is entirely suitable. For anything in between, such as a Victorian terrace with an old concrete replacement from the last century, we photograph the existing covering at the survey and recommend the like-for-like route.
Why concrete interlocking tiles are so widely used
Concrete interlocking tiles are a very common covering on British houses, and the reasons are practical. A large tile covers more roof per tile, so fewer are laid. The interlocking edge gives a weather seal along the sides, which allows lower pitches. The profiles are standardised, so replacements are easy to find, and the moulded shapes accept ridge and verge fittings from the same manufacturer. All of that keeps the installed cost within reach and makes repairs simple.
None of this makes concrete the right answer for every house. If the roof is steep and old, or sits in a setting where the plain clay look matters, the arguments reverse. A good survey asks three things: what is on the roof now, what the frame can carry, and what the setting requires.
How we advise
We survey, photograph the roof, and say which material is suitable and which is not. If the choice is close, we quote both options so the difference in cost is clear. The work carries our 10-year workmanship guarantee in writing, and if a change of covering is notifiable under the Building Regulations, we explain the process and deal with the notification.