How to Use the Mosaic Tile Count Calculator
Running out of tiles mid-project halts your work, while buying too many wastes money. Enter your project's width and height along with a single tile's width and height, and the calculator finds the exact piece count from the area ratio. Add a waste margin suited to your pattern's complexity to cover cutting and breakage losses. Straight patterns need about 10%, complex layouts about 15%, and curved mosaic art around 20%.
Recommended Waste Margin by Pattern
| Pattern Type | Recommended Margin | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Straight / grid pattern | 10% | Minimal cutting loss |
| Complex pattern | 15% | More edge cutting |
| Curved / mosaic art | 20% | Irregular cuts and breakage |
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do I need a waste margin?
Cutting, breakage, and trimming around edges or curves all waste tiles, so adding 10-20% extra keeps you from running short.
Does this account for grout spacing?
This calculator uses pure tile area, so if your grout lines are wide, choose a higher waste margin to compensate.