Setting up the walls
On this page the flooring calculator tiles walls rather than a floor, starting with a bath surround: a back wall and two ends around a 60 × 30 in tub (1700 × 700 mm in metric), tiled from the tub’s rim to 6 ft in 3 × 6 in subway tile. Change the walls to your room, add each window or door with its size and where it is (how far from the wall’s left end and from the floor), or bring in the walls you drew in the room planner, doors and windows included. Then pick how high you tile: full height, half height, a kitchen splashback or the bath surround. The From and Up to fields take any heights you like.
Rows, columns and cuts
Rather than area plus a percentage, each wall is set out the way a tiler would: columns centred so both end cuts match, and rows starting with a full tile on the bottom line (the tub’s rim, the worktop or a batten), with the cut row at the top. Choose Centred rows to split the cut between top and bottom instead. Every cut piece counts as a tile, and a tile wholly inside a window is left out. The table lists each wall’s grid, and the drawing shows the first wall with its cut tiles paler. Enter the tile width across the wall and its height up the wall; swap them for tiles laid upright.
Adhesive, grout and trim
Choose the adhesive and notch. The thinset options use CUSTOM VersaBond’s coverage per 50 lb bag, and the ready-mixed ones BAL Green Star’s per kilo, with a separate figure for wet walls such as a shower. Grout uses Mapei’s formula from the tile’s size, thickness and joint. For trim, give the number of exposed side edges (two for an alcove tub) and tick the top edge if the tiling stops short of the ceiling; the edges are fitted into whole lengths of the size you pick.
How much extra
The count already includes every cut, so the extra field starts at 0. Topps Tiles advises 10% on top for breakages, cuts and wastage together, and the result shows that figure next to yours; keep a few spares for repairs.
Tiles for a bath surround
A back wall and two ends, tiled from the tub's rim to 6 ft (1,829 mm), rows starting with a full tile on the rim and columns centred on each wall. Every cut piece counts as a tile; nothing is added for breakages.
| Tile | Tub | Wall to tile | Tiles | Cut | Top row |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 × 6 in subway | 60 × 30 in | 48.3 sq ft | 380 | 128 | 1.75 in of 3 in |
| 4¼ × 4¼ in | 60 × 30 in | 48.3 sq ft | 392 | 106 | 1.94 in of 4.25 in |
| 4 × 12 in | 60 × 30 in | 48.3 sq ft | 165 | 95 | 1.13 in of 4 in |
| 12 × 24 in | 60 × 30 in | 48.3 sq ft | 35 | 31 | 9.5 in of 12 in |
| 7.5 × 15 cm | 1700 × 700 mm | 4.07 m² | 396 | 124 | 0.5 cm of 7.5 cm |
| 10 × 20 cm | 1700 × 700 mm | 4.07 m² | 221 | 89 | 9 cm of 10 cm |
| 30 × 60 cm | 1700 × 700 mm | 4.07 m² | 35 | 31 | 10.2 cm of 30 cm |
A top row of a few millimetres is the case to avoid: raise or lower the tiling height, or choose Centred rows.
Tile adhesive coverage
| Adhesive and notch | Coverage |
|---|---|
| CUSTOM VersaBond, ¼ × ¼ in square notch | 90–100 sq ft per 50 lb bag |
| CUSTOM VersaBond, ¼ × ⅜ in square notch | 60–67 sq ft per 50 lb bag |
| CUSTOM VersaBond, ½ × ½ in square notch | 42–47 sq ft per 50 lb bag |
| BAL Green Star, 6 mm notch, dry wall | 0.4 m² per kg (15 kg tub) |
| BAL Green Star, 6 mm notch, wet wall, solid bed | 0.33 m² per kg (15 kg tub) |
Sources, checked September 2026: International Residential Code, R307.2 bathtub and shower spaces; American Standard, Princeton 60 × 30 in bathtub (14 in high); Premier Care in Bathing, bathroom size guide (1700 × 700 mm); Carron Profile bath, 515 mm high, as listed by Sanctuary Bathrooms; CUSTOM Building Products, VersaBond Professional data sheet; BAL, Green Star data sheet; Schluter, JOLLY and RONDEC data sheets; Homelux, PVC round edge trim; Topps Tiles, how to set out wall tiles and how to tile a wall; KraftMaid, kitchen cabinet sizes; Marazzi, bathroom tiling height; Fireclay Tile, wall tile height; Mapei grout formula as on the tile page.