Tile Layout Calculator

See every tile and cut in your room and find the starting point that avoids thin slivers.

A good tile layout hides cuts and never leaves a thin sliver against a wall. This calculator draws your room with every tile, colors the cut ones and flags any cut thinner than a third of a tile.

Try a tile centered in the room, a joint on the center line, a full tile in a corner or a layout aligned with the door, and see which one gives the widest edge pieces.

How to use

Type the room width (along the door wall) and length. Tick L-shaped room if a corner is missing.
Pick the tile size and grout joint. Use Rotate tile to try rectangular tiles the other way.
Choose the pattern and where to start. "Best centered" tries a tile and a joint on each center line and keeps the one with the wider edge cuts.
Check the drawing: red pieces are thin cuts. Change the starting point until there are none, then mark the first lines on the floor.

Why center the layout

If you start with a full tile against one wall, all the cutting ends up on the opposite wall, often as a thin strip. Centering the grid splits the leftover between both sides, so the edges match and look intentional.

Whether a tile or a joint goes on the center line depends on the room: if centering a tile leaves 1 in strips at the walls, putting the joint on the center line usually leaves pieces of half a tile instead.

Start at the door

The doorway is what people see first. Aligning the layout with it puts a full row at the threshold and keeps the pattern symmetrical as you walk in. Use it when the room is seen mainly from the door.

Thin cuts

Cuts thinner than about a third of a tile look like mistakes, are hard to make and break easily. With large-format tiles, also check the cuts around the door frame and floor drains.

Where the numbers come from

Coverage and consumption figures come from manufacturer data sheets and published standards:

Frequently asked questions

Where should I start laying floor tile?

Usually in the center of the room, working toward the walls, so the cuts are equal on both sides. Start at the door instead when the entrance is the main view.

How do I avoid thin tile cuts at the walls?

Shift the layout by half a tile: put a joint on the center line instead of a tile, or the other way round. The calculator tries both and shows the widest cut.

What is the smallest acceptable tile cut?

A common rule is no less than a third of the tile, and never less than about 2 in (5 cm). Thinner pieces crack and look like an error.

Does the layout change how many tiles I buy?

Yes. Every cut piece uses a whole tile, so the drawing gives the real count. Diagonal layouts use more tiles than straight ones.