Tile Quantity Calculator
Estimate how many tiles you need for a floor or wall, including a built-in 10% allowance for cuts and breakage. Multiply the floor area by the inverse tile area, round up, then add 10%.
Last updated: May 2026
Compare with similar
About this calculator
The formula is N = ⌈(L_floor × W_floor) / (L_tile × W_tile)⌉ × 1.1, where L_floor and W_floor are the room (or wall) dimensions in metres, L_tile and W_tile are the tile dimensions in metres, the ceiling function rounds up to the nearest whole tile, and the × 1.1 multiplier adds a 10% waste buffer. The result is the number of tiles to order. Variables: all dimensions in metres; the calculator handles unit conversion implicitly if you enter consistent units. Edge cases: the 10% waste allowance is built in but may not be enough for all jobs. Simple square-grid layouts on a rectangular floor with no obstructions need only 5–7% waste — the built-in 10% is plenty. Diagonal patterns (tiles rotated 45° to the room), large-format tiles (60×60 cm and bigger), and tiles laid in herringbone or brick patterns produce more offcuts and need 15–20% waste; consider ordering an extra 5–10% beyond what the calculator returns. Rooms with many cuts (around toilets, columns, kitchen islands) also need more waste. The formula assumes the floor is fully tiled with no openings; for partial tiling (e.g., wainscoting on a wall, or a tiled splashback), enter only the area to be tiled. It also assumes a single tile size; mosaic mixes and accent strips require separate counts. For decorative borders, motifs, or laid-pattern designs, draw a tile-by-tile layout plan before ordering — calculator estimates are starting points, not final quantities for complex designs.
How to use
Example 1 — Bathroom floor with standard tiles. Floor 3.0 m × 2.4 m, 30×30 cm tiles (0.30 m × 0.30 m). Area = 3.0 × 2.4 = 7.2 m². Tile area = 0.30 × 0.30 = 0.09 m². Tiles for floor = 7.2 / 0.09 = 80; ceiling rounds to 80; with 10% waste = 80 × 1.1 = 88 tiles. ✓ Order 88 tiles. Note: tiles are sold by the box, often 10–12 per box, so round up to the nearest box size — likely 9 boxes of 10 = 90 tiles. Example 2 — Kitchen floor with large-format tiles. Floor 4.5 m × 3.5 m, 60×60 cm tiles. Area = 4.5 × 3.5 = 15.75 m². Tile area = 0.60 × 0.60 = 0.36 m². Tiles = 15.75 / 0.36 = 43.75; ceiling rounds to 44; with 10% waste = 44 × 1.1 = 48.4 → order 49. ✓ For large-format tiles, 10% waste is the bare minimum — consider 15% (44 × 1.15 ≈ 51 tiles) because cuts on 60×60 tiles waste a lot of material per cut. Round up to the next box; large-format tiles often come in boxes of 4–6 tiles.
Frequently asked questions
How much waste should I add for different tile patterns?
Straight grid (tiles aligned with walls): the built-in 10% is usually plenty. Brick pattern / running bond (offset by half-tile each row): also 10%, sometimes 12% because end cuts go to waste. Diagonal pattern (tiles rotated 45°): 15–20% because the offcuts at the room edges are triangular and often unusable. Herringbone: 15–20% — every cut at the perimeter wastes material, plus the diagonal-cut tiles. Chevron: 20%+ because the angle cut leaves significant waste per tile. Versailles or French pattern (multi-size mixes): up to 25% because the pattern requires specific cuts. For mosaic sheets with small tiles, the waste is lower (3–5%) because individual mosaic tiles can be popped off and re-used. Large-format tiles (≥ 60×60 cm) increase waste regardless of pattern because each cut wastes more material; add 5% beyond the pattern-specific rule of thumb.
How do I tile around obstacles like toilets and pipes?
Each obstacle that requires a cutout in a tile typically wastes the rest of that tile — even if only a small notch is removed, the remainder usually can't be reused elsewhere because of the cut. For a typical bathroom, the toilet, washbasin pedestal, and bath edge can account for 5–10 sacrificed tiles in a small room. Add these to the waste estimate. For complex spaces (kitchens with islands and multiple appliances), the cumulative cutout waste can reach 15% on top of the base pattern waste. The simplest way to estimate: count the major obstacles (toilet, basin, kitchen-island base, fridge floor, pillars) and add one to two extra tiles per obstacle to the base waste allowance. For tight cuts, professional tilers use water-cooled wet saws that produce cleaner cuts and slightly less waste than DIY scoring tools.
What's the difference between floor tiles and wall tiles?
Floor tiles are denser (typically PEI rating 3–5), thicker (8–12 mm), and more abrasion-resistant; they can usually be used on walls but are heavier and harder to cut. Wall tiles are typically thinner (5–7 mm), have lower abrasion ratings (PEI 1–2), and shouldn't normally be used on floors because they crack under foot traffic. The dimensions are typically interchangeable: many tile ranges include both wall and floor variants at the same size. The PEI (Porcelain Enamel Institute) rating tells you whether a tile is suitable for foot traffic: 1–2 walls only, 3 light residential foot traffic, 4 normal residential, 5 commercial. For wet areas (bathrooms, kitchens) check that the tile is rated for wet use; some decorative tiles aren't. The calculator's geometric output is the same regardless of tile type, but tile selection (and thus per-tile cost) varies dramatically.
What are the most common mistakes people make estimating tiles?
The first is forgetting to add a waste allowance — the 10% built into this calculator covers simple jobs only; complex patterns or rooms with obstacles need 15–25%. The second is mixing units; tiles are often quoted in centimetres while floor dimensions are in metres, and forgetting to convert produces results 100× off. The third is ordering exactly the quantity needed; tiles are sold in boxes, and the practical minimum is usually one full box more than the calculator suggests. The fourth is ignoring tile-batch variation; tiles from different production runs (different 'shades') can look noticeably different, so order all tiles from the same batch by specifying the batch number to the supplier. The fifth is not accounting for the layout direction; if you're laying tiles in a specific direction or pattern, edge cuts can be more wasteful. The sixth is forgetting accent tiles, borders, or feature strips — these are usually ordered separately. And the seventh is not ordering 5–10% extra beyond the calculator output for future repairs; a few unbroken spare tiles let you fix damage years later without obvious patches.
When should I not use this calculator?
Skip it for hexagonal, octagonal, or other non-rectangular tiles where the simple area-divided-by-area formula doesn't work — for those, the tile area is the actual face area (not the bounding rectangle), and pattern waste calculations are more complex. Avoid it for mosaic sheets where individual tiles are tiny but sheets cover larger areas; the relevant unit is sheets, not individual tiles. It is the wrong tool for decorative mosaic murals, custom patterns, or any job where the tile layout is artistically designed; for those, draw a tile-by-tile layout and count manually. Do not use it for stone, terrazzo, or natural-material flooring sold by the m² rather than per tile. And for any large commercial job, get a professional tiler's takeoff — they account for patterns, batch variation, and edge cuts more accurately than a generic calculator.