Roof shingles are a covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat, rectangular shapes laid in courses from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive course overlapping the joints below.

Roof shingles are almost always highly visible and so are an important aspect of a building in patterns, textures and colors. The type of shingle is taken into account before construction because the material affects the roof pitch and construction method. Some shingles can be installed on where others need solid sheathing (sheeting) on the.