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Posted: 1st October 2025 | Author: Nationwide Supplies
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Measuring a bathroom for tiles might feel like a small step in your renovation, but it’s one that makes all the difference. Getting the numbers right ensures you order the correct amount of tiles, keep waste to a minimum and avoid costly delays mid-project.
Whether you’re tiling walls, floors or both, accuracy is key to achieving a clean, professional finish. With just a tape measure, a calculator and a little patience, it’s a job that any DIYer or tradesperson can tackle confidently.
Measuring a bathroom for tiles is a crucial step to your bathroom renovation project, and though it’s a straightforward enough task on paper, it can get complicated depending on the dimensions and layout of your bathroom.
Top tip! Most tile suppliers use the metric system, so steer clear of inches and feet to avoid having to convert your measurements later.
The process is simple: draw or find a plan of your bathroom layout and measure the area of the surfaces you want to tile. You can then divide that area by the size of your tiles and add a waste margin to find out how many you’ll need. Then divide the number of tiles by how many you get in a box, and you’ll know how many boxes to buy.
If maths isn’t your strong point, don’t worry. You can use this simple universal coverage calculator to make short work of the sums - all you need to do is provide the measurements. Easy, right? But obstacles, fittings and irregular shapes in your bathroom can make your measurements more complicated.
Need to measure for floor tiles? Here’s what could make it more complicated:
Irregular layouts can throw off simple area calculations because not all sides are square.
Solution: Break the floor into smaller rectangles or squares on your sketch and measure each one separately. Add them together for the total area.
Small recesses are easy to overlook, but missing them can leave you short on tiles.
Solution: Measure these as separate sections and include them in your calculations. Double-check areas around radiators, toilets and pipework.
If you don’t tile underneath these, failing to subtract them can inflate your measurements and waste money.
Solution: Decide whether tiles will run underneath or stop around them. If not tiling beneath, subtract those areas from your totals.
These require more tile cuts to maintain alignment, which increases waste.
Solution: Allow a higher wastage margin (closer to 15%) to account for angled cuts and layout adjustments.
Large tiles in a small bathroom may lead to more cuts, while small tiles mean more grout lines and intersections.
Solution: Plan the layout in advance and buy extra tiles if you anticipate lots of offcuts.
Planning to tile the walls of your bathroom? Here are some common pitfalls.
Sloping ceilings, alcoves or uneven walls make it harder to calculate area with a simple height by width measurement.
Solution: Split the wall into smaller rectangles or squares, measure each separately and add them together for a total.
Openings break up wall space, and forgetting to subtract them from your total can lead to over-ordering tiles.
Solution: Measure each opening and subtract its area from the total wall measurement. Don’t forget recessed shelving, bathtubs fitted against the wall or shower niches.
These make tiling more complex, often requiring awkward cuts. They can also affect how much surface area needs tiling.
Solution: Decide whether tiles will go behind or around these features and adjust your calculations accordingly.
Not every bathroom needs full floor-to-ceiling tiling, and this decision greatly affects tile quantities. Half-height tiling or feature walls will reduce the area measured.
Solution: Decide your tiling layout before measuring. Mark the intended height on walls (e.g. 1.2m splashback or full height) to calculate only what you’ll actually need.
No matter what surface you’re measuring for, there are a few things to keep in mind to avoid costly mistakes.
All tile projects need extra tiles for cuts, breakages and spares. A typical allowance is 10 to 15%, but bathrooms with awkward shapes or patterned layouts may need to be at the higher end of that estimate. You should also allow for more wastage if you’re a DIYer intending to tile the room yourself, as you may make more mistakes than a professional tradesperson.
The width of grout lines may seem small, but over a full wall or floor they can add up and change the number of tiles required. Check manufacturer recommendations when working out coverage.
If you’re adding decorative skirting tiles, trims or a border row, you’ll need to measure these separately from your main tiles to ensure enough coverage of each tile design.
Beyond standard wastage, it’s wise to plan for spare tiles in case of future damage or repairs. Measuring with this in mind ensures you’ll have matching tiles available later.
It’s easy to misread a tape measure or jot down a figure incorrectly, and even a small mistake can leave you short of tiles. Always measure each wall or floor section twice to confirm accuracy, and cross-check your totals before ordering. As the old adage goes, measure a thousand times, cut once.
Measuring a bathroom for tiles might take time and care, but it’s well worth the effort. Accurate measurements mean fewer surprises, less waste and a smoother installation from start to finish - even better when paired with stylish tiles from brands like Capietra and Splendour Tiles. Whether you’re tiling a floor, walls or a full wet room, good preparation sets the stage for a professional-looking finish that lasts.
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