The piperidone ring in the title compound, C12H15NO3S, has a slightly distorted half-chair conformation with the methyl, carbonyl and phenylsulfonyl ring substituents occupying equatorial, equatorial and axial positions, respectively. Molecules are connected into centrosymmetric dimers via C—H⋯O interactions and these associate into layers via C—H⋯O—S contacts. Further C—H⋯O interactions involving both the carbonyl and sulfonyl O atoms consolidate the crystal packing by providing connections between the layers.