How many tiles do I need?

Common questions

How many tiles do I need?

Work out the area to cover, then divide by the area of one tile and round up. For a rectangular floor or wall the area is length × width. A 10 ft × 10 ft floor is 100 ft²; with 12 × 12 in tiles (1 ft² each) that is 100 tiles, or about 110 tiles once you add a 10% waste allowance for cuts and breakage. The calculator above does it for you in either feet or metres.

How much tile do I need for a room?

Measure the floor or wall as length × width to get the area, add about 10% for waste (15% for a diagonal or herringbone pattern), then divide by your tile size to get the tile count. For example, a 100 ft² floor needs about 110 ft² of tile bought, which is roughly 110 of the 12 × 12 in size or about 28 of the 24 × 24 in size.

How much extra tile should I buy for waste?

A straight grid layout usually needs about 10% extra to cover the tiles cut at walls, corners and around fixtures. A diagonal layout wastes more — plan on around 15% — and a herringbone or other complex pattern can reach 20%. It is normal to round up and keep a few spares from the same batch for future repairs, because matching the dye lot later is difficult.

How many tiles come in a box?

It varies by tile size and brand, so it is printed on the box or the product listing — for example a box of 12 × 12 in tiles often holds enough to cover about 15–20 ft², while large-format tiles come just a few to a box. Enter the tiles-per-box figure in the calculator above and it will tell you how many boxes to order, rounded up to whole boxes.

Do you tile under cabinets and appliances?

Usually no for permanent base cabinets, but yes for the strip an appliance like a dishwasher or fridge can be slid into, so it sits level and can be replaced later. Because the calculator measures the full rectangle and you are not deducting small built-ins, the leftover tiles cover those areas plus your waste — round up rather than trying to shave the count.

How do you calculate tiles by the square foot or square metre?

Tile is sold by coverage area as well as by the tile, so the area is the key number: length × width gives square feet or square metres. Add your waste percentage, then either buy that many square feet of tile directly, or divide by the area of one tile to get a tile count. Working in area also makes it easy to compare boxes, which list the coverage they provide.

Want the full walk-through? Read the tile guide →