We ordered both tiles and bamboo flooring from Fast Floors and had no problems at all. The one caveat is that you do need to be ready to receive the delivery. The tiles we got were quite heavy (obviously) but we had a contractor on site at the time so he was able to use a bobcat to help unload the truck. In any case, you might want to check with the online company about delivery requirements. Other than that, it worked out very well.

Good luck wth your project!

I think Daltile and Emser let you purchase material anywhere with the option of picking up at a local "pick up" center. Several of the tile manufacturers have distributors that are classified as pick up centers. You can actually buy somehwere else and the pick up can be locally. This could have changed, but we have used this method quite a bit in the past. Of course tile is very heavy, so if you may want to have your installer or contractor pick the tile up for you.

We were actually able to take the prices we saw on the Internet and show it to the local dealers and they came very close to the same price (including the shipping cost). This allowed us to buy local, but still get the price we were looking for.

Things have changed and many manufacturers today will VOID a warranty with material purchased online or not by a certified installer. Counterfeit or improperly installed materials can fail. So check with the manufacturer before you buy! I've had a few regretful clients that went that route.