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Tile & Flooring Calculator

Calculate tile quantity, thinset coverage, and grout volume for any floor or wall layout, including waste factors for diagonal and herringbone patterns.

Enter your room dimensions and tile size to get a precise count of tiles needed, plus thinset mortar and grout quantities. The calculator adjusts waste percentage based on your chosen layout pattern, since herringbone and diagonal patterns generate significantly more cut-tile waste than straight-lay. Includes trowel size recommendations based on tile dimensions.

Pro Tip: Always dry-lay your first two rows before mixing thinset. This lets you check that the layout is centered and that you will not end up with a narrow sliver of tile along the most visible wall. A sliver less than half a tile width looks like a mistake.

Installing a kitchen backsplash? You may need to estimate drywall or cement board for the substrate.

Drywall Estimator →

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Tile & Flooring Calculator
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How It Works

  1. Enter Room Dimensions

    Input the floor area length and width, or wall height and width for backsplashes and shower walls. For L-shaped rooms, enter each section separately.

  2. Specify Tile Size

    Enter the tile dimensions (e.g., 12x24, 6x6, 3x12 subway). The calculator uses these to determine tiles per square foot and the appropriate trowel notch size.

  3. Choose Layout Pattern

    Select straight lay (5-10% waste), 1/3 offset or brick pattern (10-12% waste), diagonal (15% waste), or herringbone (17% waste). Pattern choice directly affects how many tiles you need to buy.

  4. Set Grout Joint Width

    Enter the grout joint width in fractions of an inch (1/16, 1/8, 3/16, 1/4). Wider joints require more grout but are more forgiving of slight tile size variations.

  5. Review Material List

    The results show total tiles (rounded up to full boxes), bags of thinset, bags or buckets of grout, and the recommended trowel size. Each quantity includes the pattern-specific waste factor.

Built For

  • Homeowners retiling a bathroom floor who need to know exactly how many boxes of tile to order.
  • Contractors preparing material lists for kitchen backsplash installations with subway tile in a herringbone pattern.
  • Flooring installers calculating thinset and grout quantities for large-format porcelain tile in commercial lobbies.
  • DIYers comparing material cost between different tile sizes and patterns before committing to a design.

Assumptions

  • Thinset coverage based on 50-lb bag of polymer-modified mortar applied with the recommended trowel notch.
  • Waste percentages assume a rectangular room with standard wall-edge cuts.
  • Grout calculations assume consistent joint width across the entire installation.

Limitations

  • Does not calculate additional thinset needed for leveling uneven substrates. Floors out of plane should be leveled with self-leveling compound before tiling.
  • Mosaic sheets and natural stone with irregular edges may require waste factors higher than listed.

References

  • Trowel size recommendations from the Tile Council of North America (TCNA) Handbook for Ceramic, Glass, and Stone Tile Installation.
  • Waste percentages based on National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) estimating guidelines.

Frequently Asked Questions

For a straight lay pattern, add 10%. For 1/3 offset (brick pattern), add 12%. Diagonal layouts need 15%, and herringbone needs 17%. These percentages account for cuts along walls and around obstacles. If your room has many cutouts (pipes, columns, floor vents), add an additional 3-5%.
Tile up to 4x4 inches uses a 3/16" V-notch trowel. Tiles from 4x4 to 12x12 use a 1/4" x 1/4" square notch. Large-format tiles (12x24 and bigger) require a 1/2" x 1/2" square notch to get adequate coverage. The goal is 85-95% mortar contact on the tile back.
A 50-lb bag of modified thinset covers approximately 60-70 sq ft with a 1/4" square notch trowel, or about 40-50 sq ft with a 1/2" square notch. Large-format tiles often require back-buttering in addition to troweling the substrate, which increases consumption by roughly 25%.
Grout volume depends on tile size, joint width, and tile thickness. Smaller tiles with wider joints use more grout per square foot because there is more joint area. For example, 3x6 subway tile with 1/8" joints uses about 3 lbs of grout per 10 sq ft, while 12x24 tile with 1/16" joints uses less than 1 lb per 10 sq ft.
Yes, buy 2-3 extra tiles beyond the calculated waste for future repairs. Tile dye lots vary between production runs, and matching a tile years later is often impossible. Store the extras flat in a dry location with the dye lot number noted.
Yes. Enter the wall height as the "length" and the wall width as the "width." The waste factors and thinset calculations apply the same way. For shower walls, calculate each wall separately and subtract the area of niches, windows, or the shower door opening.
Use unsanded grout for joints 1/8" wide or narrower, and sanded grout for joints wider than 1/8". Sanded grout is stronger and resists cracking in wider joints, but it can scratch polished marble or soft stone. For natural stone with narrow joints, use unsanded grout or an epoxy formula.
Disclaimer: Verify all quantities before purchasing. Actual coverage varies by tile size, trowel technique, substrate flatness, and manufacturer specifications.

Learn More

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Tile Estimating: Pattern Waste, Grout, and Thinset

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