Area and tile
Cost (optional)
Tiles to buy
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Area to tile
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Coverage per tile
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Grout
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Thinset
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Shopping list
| Item | How it is figured | Quantity |
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Same area in other tile sizes
| Tile | Per tile | Tiles + waste | Grout (lb) |
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Tiles and boxes for a floor or wall from the area, tile size, and grout joint, with waste, grout, and thinset mortar.
| Item | How it is figured | Quantity |
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| Tile | Per tile | Tiles + waste | Grout (lb) |
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This tile calculator counts tiles the way an installer does: each tile occupies its own face plus one grout joint on two sides, so a 12 x 12 in tile with a 1/8 in joint covers 12.125 x 12.125 in, not 144 sq in. Enter the floor or wall area, pick a tile size from the presets (12 x 12, 12 x 24, 18 x 18, 24 x 24, subway, plank, mosaic sheets) or type a custom size, choose the joint width, and the page returns the exact tile count, the count with waste, and the boxes to buy from the tiles-per-box figure. It also estimates sanded or unsanded grout in pounds and bags, and 50 lb bags of thinset mortar. Wall mode handles backsplashes and showers with several walls and openings. It is for homeowners tiling a floor, kitchen, or bathroom and anyone checking a tile order before it ships.
Coverage per tile = (tile width + joint) x (tile length + joint) / 144 sq ft. Tiles = ceiling(area / coverage per tile), then multiplied by 1 + waste% and rounded up again; boxes = ceiling(tiles / tiles per box). Grout is estimated from joint volume: per square foot of floor there are 144 / ((W + g)(L + g)) tile cells, each with joint area (W + g)(L + g) - W x L and depth equal to the tile thickness; the cubic inches are multiplied by about 0.07 lb per cubic inch for dry grout powder, which lands within manufacturer coverage charts for common sizes (a 12 x 12 tile with 1/8 in joints at 3/8 in thick uses about 7.8 lb per 100 sq ft). Thinset is figured at one 50 lb bag per 45 sq ft for tiles up to 12 in with a 1/4 x 3/8 in trowel, and per 35 sq ft for large-format tiles that need a 1/2 in trowel. Wall mode area = number of walls x width x height - openings. Metric mode converts meters and centimeters internally.
Exactly 100 if the tiles touched, but with a 1/8 in grout joint each tile covers 12.125 x 12.125 in, or 1.021 sq ft, so 98 tiles cover 100 sq ft. Add the standard 10 percent for cuts and breakage and you should buy 108 tiles, which is 11 boxes of 10 or 9 boxes of 12. Larger joints reduce the count slightly; a 3/16 in joint brings it to 97 tiles before waste.
Ten percent is the usual allowance for a straight grid in a rectangular room. Use 15 percent for a diagonal layout, herringbone, rooms with many cuts around cabinets and fixtures, or tile with a strong pattern that must be matched. Large-format tile (24 in and up) also warrants 15 percent because a single broken tile is a bigger share of the total. Keep a few spare tiles from the same dye lot for future repairs; the shade often changes between production runs.
Use unsanded grout for joints up to 1/8 in and for polished stone or glass that sand could scratch; use sanded grout for joints 1/8 in and wider, because the sand keeps it from shrinking and cracking. Grout quantity depends on joint width, joint depth (the tile thickness), and how many joints there are, so small tiles with wide joints use far more: 100 sq ft of 2 x 2 mosaics needs several times the grout of 100 sq ft of 24 x 24 tile. The calculator estimates pounds and rounds up to 10 lb and 25 lb bags.
A 50 lb bag of thinset covers roughly 40 to 50 sq ft with the 1/4 x 3/8 in square-notch trowel used for tiles up to about 12 in, and 30 to 35 sq ft with the 1/2 x 1/2 in trowel needed for large-format tile. Back-buttering large tiles for full coverage uses more still. Uneven substrates that need a medium-bed mortar can halve those figures. The calculator uses 45 and 35 sq ft per bag; buy one extra bag rather than running short mid-floor.
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