How to Make a Small Bathroom Look Bigger with Tiles

Home / Blog / How to Make a Small Bathroom Look Bigger with Tiles

Bathroom Interior

We are often asked by homeowners, “How to make a small bathroom look bigger?”

Here our design experts offer their top tips for choosing tiles that will help give the impression of increased space.

Many homeowners shy away from selecting large tiles when renovating a small kitchen or bathroom because they believe they will dominate the space and make it feel even smaller. On the contrary, big format tiles can help give an impression of the increased area due to reduced grout lines (too many grout lines can make a room look cluttered.)

Bathroom with big sized tiles Bathroom Tiles

3D rendering visual by Monoloft

1. Tile size

Going with large format tiles can help give the impression of increased space by reducing the number of grout lines. 

Pro Tips: Fewer grout lines can make a room look less cluttered and visually expanded.

You don’t have to rule out smaller tiles completely. For instance, if you love mosaics in your bathroom, you will want to use them throughout it by using different sized tiles in different room zones, with smaller tiles limited to the showering area. In contrast, the larger format is used more widely, and mosaic-style is restricted mainly for alcoves or recesses.

bathroom splash of colour Bathroom Neutral colours

3D rendering visual by Monoloft

2. Tile colour

We recommend light coloured tile shades such as white, cream, beige or grey to make the room look brighter.

Pro Tips: Pick a grout that is closely matched to the colour of the tiles. You’ll create a seamless transition without stark contrast that makes the space appear bigger!

However, this doesn’t mean you should always avoid using darker colours in smaller spaces. Dark coloured tiles intensify the depth and give an interesting perspective, making the area look longer and wider.

Pro Tips: Add a dash of bold colour to create depth.

bathroom diagonal tiles

3D rendering visuals by Monoloft

Bathroom 3

3. Tile laying pattern

We often recommend arranging tiles in a diagonal or diamond pattern because it creates a robust and eye-catching feature wall and breaks up harsh lines that make the space appear larger. 

Another trick of the trade is to lay tiles vertically if you have a low ceiling and lay rectangular tiles horizontally to give the illusion of lengthening the space.

Pro Tips: Choose one wall or splashback or just the floor to add pattern while leaving other areas plain for an airy feel.

We hope you found these tips informative and inspiring. We’ll be back with more and share tips designed to help you live vibrantly.

Until next time…