How to find the best tile combination for your bathroom?

bathroom with white wall tile, and black floor tile

Tips for choosing bathroom tile combinations

With the wide range of options available, it can be hard to settle on a tile combination for your bathroom design. From creating a sleek industrial look to a rustic, country or ocean theme, your choice of tile is the foundation of your bathroom aesthetic.

Whether you are building your new bathroom or renovating your old space, there are some key design methods you can follow to transform your space:

  • Try to have no more than three different tiles in your bathroom
  • Consider tiles that are easy to clean and maintain
  • If using more than one tile, have one that is a statement piece and one that is more subtle to avoid cluttering your bathroom
  • Use the same floor and wall tiles to create flow
  • Pick grout to accentuate your tiles

Bathroom floor and wall tile combinations to avoid

While many people choose bathroom tile combinations to match both the walls and the floor, you don’t necessarily need to use the same tile. If you are planning on having different bathroom floor and wall tiles combinations, avoid darker colours if you are looking to make your room look bigger.

If you are choosing more than one style of tile in your bathroom, don’t have too many different patterns and colours that conflict. This can make your space feel crowded and reduce the relaxing spa-like feel of your bathroom space.

If you have a bath or shower in your bathroom, avoid using tiles around it that will require more maintenance over time. Cleaning grime or mould of tiles is never a fun job, and can be made even harder if you have an intricate tile design or material that is hard to clean.

unique modern bathroom design

How to choose tiles for a bathroom on a budget

If you are working on a budget but still want to showcase some beautiful tiles in your bathroom, you can have the best of both worlds. Rather than using your tiles to cover your entire bathroom walls, you can choose to half tile your bathroom walls. You can alternatively choose to only tile your shower or only tile the floor. With these approaches you can still enjoy the effects of a tile bathroom but save some time and money. This is a great way to create a feature with your tiles and add some design flare.

How to pick bathroom tiles for a small room

Choosing bathroom tiles for a small room can create the illusion of more space. For a small bathroom, you can choose a large tile design and match your wall and floor tiles so there are minimal lines for the eye to be drawn to. When you have too many patterns on your tiles or too many materials for your backdrop, the eye is drawn to them and brings attention to the small space. Deciding on a wall hung vanity unit can also add to this effect, adding to the feeling of more floor space.

Choosing bathroom tiles for a large room

Wondering how to pick bathroom tiles for a large room? Fortunately with a large bathroom, you have more options available in terms of colour and theme selection. If you have a large bathroom, a large tile can make your space feel more expansive.

If you are struggling to pick a design, consider the layout of your bathroom in terms of any bathroom vanities or mirror cabins you will have. This can help you visualise your bathroom so you can set a theme and colour pallet to work off.

If you want to utilise your space to add some more colour, you can create a feature wall in your bathroom and use an elaborate tile design. Large bathrooms are perfect for this as they allow you the space to become more creative.

beautiful and spacious bathroom with white tile walls and a white bathtub

Start designing today

Choosing bathroom tiles is a big step in terms of any bathroom renovation. With your chosen colour palette and theme you can transform your bathroom into a luxury and private spa for your home.

Some important bathroom tile combinations to remember:

  • Stick to three or less tile designs
  • Use a larger tile or softer colour to create the illusion of more space
  • Don't have too many conflicting patterns to crowd your room
  • Use a feature wall to add more colour in your bathroom
  • To save money, use a half-tiled wall or only tile your shower and floors

Still unsure about visualising your bathroom? Use our Smart Designer to create your ideal vanity units, mirror cabinets and more today.