Tile Calculator

Installing tile transforms kitchens, bathrooms, and floors with durable, beautiful surfaces that last for decades. Successfully completing a tile project begins with accurate material calculations that account for layout patterns, grout spacing, and inevitable waste from cuts and breakage. Understanding how to measure your space and estimate tile quantities ensures you purchase adequate materials while avoiding costly over-ordering or project-delaying shortages.

Waste Allowance and Extra Tiles

Tile waste is inevitable due to cuts, breakage during installation, and damaged pieces in shipments. Standard waste allowance runs 10-15% for straightforward installations with simple rectangular layouts. Calculate waste by multiplying your base square footage by the waste percentage, then adding the result to determine total tile needs.

For an 80-square-foot bathroom with 10% waste allowance: 80 × 0.10 = 8, so 80 + 8 = 88 square feet of tile needed. This cushion accounts for edge cuts, broken tiles during cutting or installation, and defective pieces. Ordering exactly 80 square feet almost guarantees running short before completion.

Complex layouts with diagonal patterns, herringbone, chevron, or other decorative installations require 15-20% waste allowance. These patterns demand precise cuts and careful piece placement, generating more unusable remnants than simple grid layouts. The stunning visual impact justifies the additional material cost and waste.

Rooms with numerous obstacles like toilets, vanities, tub surrounds, or irregular walls need higher waste factors around 12-15%. Each cut around an obstruction creates offcuts that may not fit elsewhere in the installation. The more cuts required, the more waste generated, necessitating adequate material buffer to complete the project.

Trim and Edge Pieces

Base trim tiles, bullnose edges, and corner pieces complete tile installations with finished edges instead of raw tile sides. Calculate linear footage for these specialty pieces separately from field tile square footage. Measure each edge requiring trim, then divide by the length of your trim pieces to determine quantity needed.

Bullnose tiles typically come in 6-inch or 12-inch lengths. A shower surround with 20 linear feet of exposed edges needs 20 ÷ 1 = 20 pieces of 12-inch bullnose, or 40 pieces of 6-inch bullnose. Order 10-15% extra trim pieces to account for damaged pieces and cuts at corners where two trim pieces meet.

Inside and outside corner pieces handle corners where two trim pieces would otherwise meet at right angles. Count the number of corners requiring these special pieces, which often come individually rather than by linear footage. A shower with four outside corners at the vertical edges needs four outside corner pieces.

Decorative accent tiles and borders require separate calculation based on placement. A border running around a room's perimeter calculates on linear footage rather than square footage. Measure the room perimeter, determine how many accent tiles fit per linear foot based on tile size, and multiply to find the quantity needed plus 10-15% extra.

Measuring Your Space for Tile

Calculate the area requiring tile by measuring length and width in feet, then multiplying these dimensions. A bathroom floor measuring 8 feet by 10 feet contains 80 square feet of surface area. For walls, measure the height and width of each wall section separately, then add the totals together for complete wall area calculations.

Backsplashes require measuring the linear footage of coverage and the height from counter to upper cabinets. A typical kitchen backsplash runs along three walls totaling 20 linear feet with 18-inch height coverage. Convert the height to feet (18 inches = 1.5 feet), then multiply: 20 × 1.5 = 30 square feet of backsplash area requiring tile.

Shower surrounds need comprehensive measurement of all walls from the shower base or tub rim to the ceiling or desired tile height. A standard tub surround might measure 5 feet tall around three walls: one 5-foot back wall and two 3-foot side walls. Calculate as (5 × 5) + (5 × 3) + (5 × 3) = 25 + 15 + 15 = 55 square feet before subtracting the tub access opening.

Irregular spaces require the segmentation method: divide the area into rectangles, calculate each section individually, then sum the results. An L-shaped kitchen floor might consist of a 10-by-12-foot section (120 square feet) plus an 8-by-6-foot section (48 square feet), totaling 168 square feet. This approach works for any floor plan configuration.

Pattern Layouts and Coverage

Straight or grid pattern installation aligns tiles in rows and columns, minimizing waste and simplifying installation. This layout works with any tile shape and size, making it ideal for DIY projects and cost-conscious installations. Rectangular tiles can run either horizontally or vertically, creating different visual effects while maintaining installation simplicity.

Diagonal layouts rotate the grid pattern 45 degrees to walls, creating dynamic visual interest. This pattern requires extensive cutting around all edges where angled tiles meet straight walls, significantly increasing waste to 15-20%. Diagonal installations also take longer and require more skill to maintain straight lines at the 45-degree angle.

Brick or running bond pattern offsets each row by half a tile length, mimicking traditional brick walls. This classic layout works beautifully with rectangular subway tiles and similar shapes. Waste factors remain modest at 10-12% because the half-tile offcuts from one row become starting pieces for the next row, minimizing unusable remnants.

Herringbone and chevron patterns create sophisticated V-shaped designs using rectangular tiles. These installations demand precise 45-degree cuts on every tile end, generating maximum waste around 20-25%. The labor-intensive layout requires professional installation skills but delivers show-stopping results worth the extra material and labor costs.

Cost Estimation and Budgeting

Tile prices range from less than $1 per square foot for basic ceramic to $15-30 per square foot for premium porcelain or natural stone. Calculate material costs by multiplying your total square footage (including waste) by the price per square foot. An 80-square-foot bathroom with 10% waste (88 square feet total) using $5 per square foot tile costs $440 for field tiles.

Installation materials add 10-20% to tile costs. Thinset mortar, grout, grout sealer, and backer board or underlayment contribute necessary expenses beyond tile itself. Budget $0.50-1.50 per square foot for installation materials depending on substrate preparation needs and tile type.

Professional installation costs $5-15 per square foot for labor, varying by region, tile type, and installation complexity. Simple ceramic tile floor installation might run $5-7 per square foot, while intricate stone tile shower surrounds could cost $12-15 per square foot or more. DIY installation eliminates labor costs but requires tool investment and skills development.

Total project costs including materials and labor typically range from $8-25 per square foot for complete tile installations. Budget accordingly by multiplying your square footage by estimated total cost per square foot. An 80-square-foot bathroom at $12 per square foot total cost would budget approximately $960 for complete project expenses.

Grout Spacing Considerations

Grout joint width affects both tile appearance and the number of tiles needed to cover a given area. Narrow grout lines of 1/16 to 1/8 inch create a seamless look with tiles appearing to flow together, popular for rectified tiles with precisely cut edges. Standard grout spacing of 1/8 to 3/16 inch accommodates slight size variations in most ceramic and porcelain tiles.

Wide grout joints of 1/4 inch or more emphasize the grid pattern and work well with rustic, handmade, or irregular tiles where size variations demand more spacing. Subway tile installations traditionally use 1/8-inch grout lines for a classic look, while large-format tiles often use minimal grout lines to maximize the expansive appearance.

Grout spacing has minimal impact on square footage calculations for standard installations. A room requiring 100 square feet of tile with 1/8-inch grout lines versus 1/4-inch grout lines differs by less than 2% in actual tile quantity. For practical purposes, most calculators ignore grout line variations when estimating tile needs for typical projects.

However, mosaic tiles with extensive grout coverage relative to tile size may reduce actual tile needed by 5-10% compared to simple square footage calculations. A floor covered in 1-inch mosaic tiles with 1/8-inch grout spacing has proportionally more grout than a floor covered in 12-inch tiles with the same spacing. This difference rarely justifies complex calculations, as waste factors typically exceed any grout-related savings.

Calculating Tile Quantities by Size

Standard 12-by-12-inch tiles cover exactly 1 square foot each, simplifying calculations. An 80-square-foot room needs 80 tiles plus waste allowance. At 10% waste, order 88 tiles (or round up to the nearest full box). These common tiles typically come boxed in quantities covering 15-20 square feet, so you'd need 5-6 boxes for this project.

Smaller tiles cover less area per piece, requiring more tiles for the same square footage. A 6-by-6-inch tile covers 0.25 square feet (36 square inches ÷ 144 square inches per square foot). That same 80-square-foot room needs 80 ÷ 0.25 = 320 tiles, plus 10% waste brings the total to 352 tiles. Small tiles typically come in boxes covering 10-12 square feet.

Large-format tiles like 18-by-18-inch or 24-by-24-inch cover more area per piece, reducing the number of pieces needed and grout lines in the finished installation. An 18-by-18-inch tile covers 2.25 square feet (18 × 18 = 324 square inches ÷ 144 = 2.25). The 80-square-foot room needs 80 ÷ 2.25 = 35.6 tiles, plus 10% waste equals 40 tiles or 90 square feet of material.

Rectangular tiles like subway tiles (commonly 3-by-6-inches) cover 0.125 square feet per tile. Calculate the quantity by dividing total square footage by coverage per tile: 80 ÷ 0.125 = 640 tiles for the base area, plus 10% waste brings the total to 704 tiles. Subway tiles usually box in quantities covering 7-10 square feet.

Special Considerations for Different Tile Types

Ceramic tiles are affordable and widely available, suitable for walls and light-traffic floors. They're relatively soft and easy to cut, making them DIY-friendly but more prone to chipping and breaking. Factor in 10-12% waste for ceramic tile projects due to this increased breakage risk during cutting and installation.

Porcelain tiles offer superior hardness and water resistance compared to ceramic, ideal for floors, outdoor applications, and high-moisture areas. The extreme hardness makes porcelain more difficult to cut, requiring diamond blades and potentially more broken tiles during cutting. Budget 12-15% waste for porcelain installations, especially if you're a DIY installer learning proper cutting techniques.

Natural stone tiles like marble, granite, slate, and travertine bring unique beauty with natural color variations and patterns. Stone tile often has less consistent sizing than manufactured ceramic or porcelain, requiring wider grout joints and more cutting to fit pieces properly. Plan for 15-20% waste with stone tile due to sizing irregularities and the brittleness of natural materials.

Glass tiles create luminous backsplashes and accent walls but demand careful handling and specialized installation techniques. Glass is brittle and shows every imperfection, requiring precise cuts and gentle handling. Waste factors of 15-20% account for breakage during cutting and installation, plus the need for perfect pieces in visible areas.

Ordering and Purchasing Strategies

Buy all tile for a project from the same production lot to ensure consistent color and sizing. Ceramic and porcelain tiles can vary between production runs, creating visible differences if you must reorder mid-project. Check the dye lot number on boxes and select all boxes from matching lots when purchasing.

Order all materials simultaneously including tile, grout, thinset mortar, and trim pieces. This ensures availability of matching components and prevents delays waiting for back-ordered items. Grout color selection depends on tile color and desired appearance, with contrast grout emphasizing the grid pattern and matching grout creating a seamless look.

Purchase extra boxes beyond your calculated needs for future repairs. Even perfect installations may crack tiles from dropped objects or require cutting into the tile for plumbing or electrical work years later. Keeping 5-10 matching tiles in storage ensures repair capability without searching for discontinued styles.

Verify return policies before purchasing, as many tile retailers accept unopened box returns but charge restocking fees. Calculate conservatively and buy slightly more than your waste-adjusted estimate, knowing you can return full, unopened boxes if you don't need them. This strategy prevents running short while minimizing waste and cost.