The Complete Bathroom Tile Buying Guide

Choosing bathroom tiles sounds simple until you're standing in front of hundreds of options. What size? What finish? Glossy or matt? Large format or mosaic? And how many do you actually need?

This guide walks you through every decision — in the order you should make them — so you can buy with confidence and avoid the most common mistakes. If you're still deciding between tile types, our guide to porcelain vs ceramic tiles is a good place to start.

Step 1 — Choose Your Tile Type

The first decision is material. For bathrooms, you're really choosing between two options:

• Porcelain — dense, near-waterproof, highly durable. Best for floors and wet rooms. Also excellent on walls if you want a consistent look throughout.
• Ceramic — slightly more porous, softer, and easier to cut. Perfectly suitable for bathroom walls. Not recommended for floors in wet rooms or heavily used family bathrooms.

As a general rule: porcelain for floors, ceramic or porcelain for walls. Browse our floor tile range and wall tile range to get a feel for what's available across both categories.

Step 2 — Pick the Right Tile Size

Tile size affects how your bathroom looks and feels more than almost anything else.

Large Format Tiles (600×600mm and above)

Large tiles — particularly 600×600mm, 600×1200mm and the increasingly popular 800×800mm formats — make small bathrooms feel bigger. With fewer grout lines, the eye travels further without interruption. They also look luxurious and are easier to clean. Our large format floor tiles are one of our most popular categories, especially in grey and cream tones. The downside: they require a flatter, more carefully prepared substrate and are heavier to handle.

Standard Format Tiles (300×600mm, 300×300mm)

Standard sizes are versatile, easier to work with, and produce less waste in rooms with lots of cuts (around baths, toilets, etc.). They work well in most bathrooms and give a classic, timeless result.

Metro Tiles (75×150mm, 100×200mm)

The metro tile has never really gone out of fashion. Originally from the Paris Metro, the bevelled rectangular tile suits everything from Victorian terraces to contemporary bathrooms. Our metro wall tiles work brilliantly as splashbacks, shower walls, and feature walls — available in classic white gloss, soft greys, and bolder statement colours.

Mosaic Tiles

Mosaic tiles are typically used as accents — a feature strip, the inside of a shower niche, or the floor of a walk-in shower where smaller tiles provide more grout lines (and therefore more grip). They're also useful for curved surfaces that larger tiles can't accommodate.

Step 3 — Choose Your Finish

The finish of a tile determines how it looks, feels underfoot, and how easy it is to maintain.

Gloss / High Polish

Gloss tiles reflect light beautifully and can make a small bathroom feel significantly bigger and brighter. Our gloss polished wall tiles are especially popular for smaller en-suites where you want to maximise the sense of space. They show fingerprints and water marks more readily than matt finishes, so they require regular cleaning in busy bathrooms. Best used on walls rather than floors.

Matt

Matt tiles have a flat, non-reflective surface. They're more forgiving of cleaning smudges and water marks, and they tend to suit a wider variety of interior styles — from industrial to Scandi to traditional. Our matt wall tiles and matt floor tiles are also safer underfoot when wet, making them a better choice for bathroom floors.

Satin / Silk

A mid-point between gloss and matt — satin tiles have a subtle sheen that catches the light gently without the intensity of full gloss. Many homeowners find this the most liveable finish: it looks premium but doesn't show every water mark.

Textured / Structured

Textured tiles — stone-effect, wood-effect, or abstract surfaces — add tactile interest and visual depth. Structured surfaces also improve slip resistance, making them excellent for shower floors and wet rooms. Browse our textured wall tiles for a wide range of structured finishes.

Step 4 — Think About Layout and Pattern

How you lay your tiles changes the look dramatically — even with exactly the same tile.

• Straight / Grid — tiles aligned in straight rows. Clean, classic, works with any style.
• Brick / Offset — each row offset by half a tile width. More dynamic than grid, and the default for metro tiles. Makes spaces feel wider.
• Herringbone — tiles laid at 45° angles in a V-pattern. Striking and contemporary, especially with rectangular tiles.
• Diagonal — square tiles laid at 45° to the walls. Makes rooms feel larger but produces more waste from edge cuts.
• Stacked vertical — tiles aligned vertically rather than horizontally. Creates a sense of height — great for rooms with low ceilings.

For small bathrooms, herringbone or diagonal layouts are particularly effective at making the space feel larger than it is. This works especially well with our marble effect wall tiles, where the veining adds natural movement to the layout.

Step 5 — Choose Your Grout

Grout is not an afterthought — it's part of the design. The wrong grout colour can undermine an otherwise beautiful tile job.

Matching grout creates a seamless, minimal look — ideal if you want the tiles to do the talking. Contrasting grout emphasises the tile pattern and layout — works brilliantly with metro tiles and herringbone. For bathroom floors and wet areas, always use epoxy grout or anti-mould grout. We stock a full range of grout, adhesive and tile finishing products to complete your project.

Joint width also matters: large format tiles suit 2–3mm joints for a seamless look; smaller tiles suit wider 8–10mm joints.

How Many Tiles Do I Need?

Calculate the area you're tiling (length × width in metres) then add 10% for waste — or 15% if you're laying a diagonal or herringbone pattern due to the additional edge cuts. Always order a little extra and keep spare tiles in case of future breakages or repairs.

Budget Breakdown

Ready to Find Your Perfect Bathroom Tiles?

Our Coventry showroom carries hundreds of bathroom tile options across every budget and style. Our team can help you coordinate wall and floor tiles, advise on grout, and help you calculate exactly how much you need. Free samples are always available — just ask.

Visit our Coventry showroom →