How many tiles do I need?
Working out tile quantity is a matter of dividing the area you're tiling by the area of a single tile, then adding a waste allowance for cuts and the odd broken tile. Because tiles are sold in boxes, this calculator can also turn the total into the number of boxes to buy — just tell it how many tiles come in a box.
How to use this calculator
- Choose Imperial (room in feet, tiles in inches) or Metric (room in meters, tiles in cm).
- Enter the room length and width.
- Enter your tile size (length × width).
- Set a waste allowance, and optionally the tiles per box to get a box count.
The tile formula
Tiles = (floor area ÷ tile area) × (1 + waste%), rounded up. Keep the units consistent — this calculator converts your tile size (inches or cm) into the same units as the room automatically.
Worked example: a 12 ft × 10 ft floor is 120 sq ft. Using 12 in × 12 in tiles (1 sq ft each) with a 10% waste allowance: 120 ÷ 1 = 120 tiles, × 1.10 = 132 tiles.
How much waste to allow
- 10% for a standard straight (grid) layout in a simple rectangular room.
- 15% for diagonal layouts, herringbone and other patterns, or rooms with many corners and cutouts.
- Buy spares: keep a few extra tiles from the same batch — future repairs are hard to match once a line is discontinued.