Shower Tile Calculator
Calculate shower wall and niche tile area in square feet or square meters.
Returns wall area, niche interior, and the total with a 15 percent waste allowance.
Shower tile estimation involves calculating the total surface area of all walls and the floor, accounting for the tile size, grout joints, and a waste factor for cuts. Accurate estimation prevents mid-project shortages (which can mean discontinued tile colors) and avoids expensive excess.
What this calculator works out: Wall Area = (Width + 2 × Depth) × Tiled Height Total Area = (Wall Area + Niche Interior) × 1.15
It sizes the three walls of a standard alcove shower plus the inside faces of any niches, then adds 15% for cuts. It does not include the shower floor or pan, because those are usually a different tile (mosaic sheets on a sloped pan) bought separately, and mixing them into one number hides which one you are short of.
What each variable means:
- Shower Width: the back wall, the one between the two side walls
- Shower Depth: front to back, counted twice for the two side walls
- Tiled Wall Height: floor to the top of the tile, not the height of one tile. Typically 84" for a standard alcove, or full height to the ceiling.
- Niche Interior: the back, top, bottom, and two sides of each recessed shelf. Assumes a common 14" × 26" × 3.5" niche.
- Waste allowance: 15% is applied throughout. Straight-lay with large tiles can get by on 10%; diagonal or herringbone layouts want 20%.
Worked example: Alcove shower 36" wide and 36" deep, tiled to 84", with one niche.
Wall run: 36 + (2 × 36) = 108 linear inches Wall area: 108 × 84 = 9,072 in² = 63 ft² Niche interior: (14 × 26) + (2 × 14 × 3.5) + (2 × 26 × 3.5) = 364 + 98 + 182 = 644 in² = 4.5 ft² Total before waste: 67.5 ft² With 15% waste: 67.5 × 1.15 = 77.6 ft²
Buy by the box, not the square foot. If a box covers 10 ft², that is 8 boxes, and the eighth is the one that saves you.
Planning tips:
- Order full boxes, not individual tiles: most suppliers sell in boxes of 10–20 tiles
- Buy all tiles from the same dye lot: colors vary between production runs
- Add 1 extra box as a repair reserve (discontinued tiles are very common)
- Niche/built-in shelves require additional tile and cut planning: add 5% extra per niche
How we build and check this calculator
This calculator runs entirely in your browser, so the numbers you enter stay on your device. The math behind it is written by hand and tested against worked examples and standard references before the page goes live.
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