Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) is a species from the Cichlidae family. With increased economic value, tilapia fish scale waste can be processed into chitin and chitosan. This research aimed to isolate and characterize chitin and chitosan from tilapia fish scale waste. The deproteination stage was carried out with 1N NaOH, followed by the demineralization stage with 1N HCl until chitin was obtained. The deacetylation process was done by varying the 70% NaOH solution concentration to obtain chitosan A, 60% NaOH for chitosan B, and 50% NaOH for chitosan C. The chitin yield was 22.92%, and chitosan A, B, and C were 13,5%, 15%, and 16% respectively. The proximate test results showed that the water, ash, and protein content of the chitin sample were 9.05%; 0.77%; 40.05%, chitosan A 9.48%; 0.81%; <0.04%, chitosan B 9.46%; 0.97%; <0.04%, chitosan C 9.17%; 0.96%; <0.04%. Several characteristics of chitin and chitosan, such as color, shape, and odor, met commercial chitin and chitosan standards. The degree of deacetylation was analyzed using Infrared Spectrophotometry (FTIR). The highest degree of chitosan deacetylation was at 70% NaOH. The research concluded that chitin and chitosan could be isolated and characterized from tilapia fish scales. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.