How many tiles do I need for a 12x12 room?

A 12 by 12 ft room is 144 square feet. With standard 12x12-inch tiles (1 sq ft each) you need about 159 tiles including a 10% waste allowance. Larger 18x18-inch tiles take about 71, and 24x24-inch tiles about 40.

How much waste should I add for tile?

Add about 10% for a standard straight layout, and around 15% for diagonal or patterned layouts or rooms with lots of cuts. Large-format tiles can need a bit more allowance because each cut wastes more material. Buy it all from one batch so the shade matches.

How many 12x12 tiles in a box?

It varies by brand, but boxes of 12x12-inch tile commonly hold enough to cover about 12.5 to 15 square feet — often around 12 to 15 tiles. Check the coverage printed on the box and divide your total square footage (plus waste) by it to get the number of boxes.

How many tiles for a 12×12 room?

By Ralph · Updated June 18, 2026

A 12 × 12 ft room is 144 square feet. With standard 12×12-inch tiles you need about 159 tiles including a 10% waste allowance. Larger tiles take far fewer — here's the count by tile size.

The math

Divide the floor area by the area of one tile, then add ~10% for cuts and breakage:

Room area = 12 × 12 = 144 sq ft
One 12×12-inch tile = 1 sq ft → 144 tiles, +10% = ~159

Tiles needed by size (144 sq ft + 10% waste)

Tile size	Per sq ft	For a 12×12 room
24 × 24 in	0.25	~40
18 × 18 in	0.44	~71
12 × 24 in	0.5	~80
12 × 12 in	1.0	~159
6 × 6 in	4.0	~634
3 × 6 in (subway)	8.0	~1,268

Use ~15% waste for diagonal or patterned layouts, and buy all your tile from one batch so the shade matches.

Different room or tile size?

The tile calculator counts tiles (and boxes) for any room and tile size, with the waste allowance and an editable price built in.