Powder Room Tile That’s Sure to Impress

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Style is king when it comes to this room of the house. Learn how to wow your guests and make a strong design impact with powder room tile.

What Is a Powder Room?

Powder rooms are strong selling points for houses on the market, but what exactly are they? If you think of powder rooms as small bathrooms, you’re on the right track.

These spaces include a toilet and sink and are typically located on the ground floor of multistory homes. You’ll also find powder rooms in easily accessible locations that enable guests to use them without entering other areas of your home. For these reasons, powder rooms can be referred to as half baths and guest baths.

Powder rooms are generally small, interior spaces, often without windows. They’re often located near the entrance of the home and are a nice option for utilizing the space under a staircase.

Many homeowners choose to decorate powder rooms more elaborate than the rest of their home and because of the typical small square footage, the price tag can remain affordable even with luxurious materials.

Why Is It Called a Powder Room?

Powdered wigs were the height of fashion in 18th-century Europe. Keeping them in good shape throughout the day required regular “repowdering,” but indoor plumbing had yet to take off. Instead, people powdered their wigs in tiny interior closet-like spaces called powder rooms.

Indoor plumbing became more common in the Victorian era, and people began to use “powder room” to refer to a general toilet room. 

Powder rooms became a space for “powdering” once again during Prohibition. Rather than powder their wigs, women would use power rooms to “powder their noses,” or reapply makeup. Mentioning bodily functions was considered improper during this time, so women would also use this euphemism to excuse themselves.

Modern housing codes and the construction boom after World War II saw the inclusion of at least one — and often two — bathrooms in every new house. From then on, powder rooms have become common and desirable home additions.

[Related: Your Complete Guide to Bathroom Tile]

The Demands of a Powder Room

Cream brick-look powder room tile with a leaf border
Powder rooms need to be able to wow guests without requiring high maintenance.

Powder rooms may be smaller than full bathrooms, but they often have even higher demands. 

Your family as well as guests are likely to use the powder room on a daily basis because of its easily accessible location. As a result, powder rooms need to be able withstand frequent use and be easy to maintain. You never know when a guest might pop in, so keeping your powder room clean and guest-ready needs to be a cinch.

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Design is equally — if not more — important in powder rooms. Their small size gives you the freedom to “go big,” and many homeowners embrace a bolder design in powder rooms than they would elsewhere. 

Design elements in powder rooms often include statement lighting, mirrors, sinks, and surface materials.

Terrazzo-look powder room tile
Powder rooms often feature bold design elements you might not include in a typical bathroom, such as the unique lighting fixture and sink pictured here.

Ceramic Tile Benefits for Powder Rooms

Ceramic tile is an excellent choice for powder rooms because of its durability and easy care. For example, ceramic tile is:

  • Scratch-resistant: Your guests may not be as careful with your surfaces as you’d like, but that’s not a concern with ceramic tile. Tile’s hard-fired surface is incredibly durable and resistant to scratches, scuffs, and chips.
  • Stain-resistant: Ceramic tile doesn’t stain easily, so no need to worry about it becoming discolored.
  • Easy to clean: You can clean most messes with a little soap and water alone.
  • Bacteria-resistant: Ceramic tile is inhospitable to the growth of bacteria and other microbes, such as mold.
  • Antimicrobial: Some tile options have antimicrobial properties that can suppress and even destroy harmful microorganisms, such as mold, fungi, bacteria, and viruses.
  • Allergen-free: Ceramic tile contains no allergens, and allergens in the environment such as dust, dirt, and pollen can’t penetrate ceramic tile’s nonporous surface. 

[Related: Low-Maintenance Benefits of Ceramic and Porcelain Tile]

Powder rooms also benefit from ceramic tile’s versatile design options. Make a big impact in this small space with your choice of ceramic tile colors, sizes, layout patterns, styles, and textures. Whether you want to coordinate with the rest of your home’s design or change it up, go all out or employ strategic accents, ceramic tile has what you’re looking for.

Three-dimensional gold tile accent border
Luxurious accents such as this three-dimensional gold tile border add a unique touch to a powder room design.

[Related: Nine Masterful Master Baths You’ll Swoon Over]

Powder Room Tile Ideas

You can tile just about any surface in your powder room, but these are some of our favorite tile applications for powder rooms.

Powder Room Floor Tile

Black and white graphic powder room tile flooring
Designs that might be overwhelming in larger spaces are often a perfect fit for powder room floor tile.

Your powder room will be seeing a lot of foot traffic. Ceramic tile is an ideal option to ensure your flooring’s longevity while also making a design impact. 

One of the benefits of choosing floor tile for small powder rooms is that you can choose a complex or bold design without it being overwhelming, as is often the case in larger floor spaces. For example, the geometric black and white powder room floor tile above steals the show and sets the mood for the crisp and clean space. 

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You can find more small powder room floor tile ideas on our Powder Room Floors Pinterest board.

[Related: Colorful Bathroom Floor Tile Ideas]

Powder Room Tile Backsplash

The backsplash is often the main attraction in a powder room. Think of powder room backsplash tile as a piece of art that your guests will admire as they wash up, and then choose tile that fits the bill. 

[Related: Bathroom and Kitchen Backsplash Tile: Your Complete Guide]

Powder Room Tile Accent Wall

Gray cement-look powder room wall tile with patterned tile interspersed
This powder room tile accent wall adds visual interest to an otherwise simply decorated space.

Can’t get enough of your backsplash tile? Extend it to create an entire powder room tile accent wall

Powder Room Tile Wall

Blue powder room tile wall with an art deco pattern
Your powder room wall tile can be all the same tile or a combination.

Tilling all of the walls in your powder room creates a sense of being transported to another space or time altogether. Especially with lavishly decorated powder rooms, powder room tile walls can create what’s known as a “jewel box” space — a small space decorated with high-quality materials, custom finishes, and extravagant details.

Powder Room Half Wall Tile

Powder room half wall tile with a silver design
As with backsplashes, powder room half wall tile often sports wallpapered looks.

Half walls are popular design elements in powder rooms. Powder room half wall tile protects the space behind and below the sink from splashes while also adding an interesting pattern to otherwise bare walls.

Powder Room Countertops

White herringbone powder room tile wall with a blue accent strip
Large-format gauged porcelain tile enables you to create the look of any material for your powder room counter tile.

Countertops are often more than merely functional in powder rooms. Make your powder room counter stand out by using an interesting design, look, or sink fixture. 

For example, this powder room makes use of large-format gauged porcelain tile to create a floating wood-look counter with unique wood-look vessel sinks.

[Related: Tile Trend Ideas: Counter Culture]

Powder Room Tile Designs

Now that you know where to put your tile, let’s examine some of the most popular powder room tile designs.

Wallpapered-Look Tile

White wallpapered-look powder room backsplash tile with a silver design
Wallpapered-look tile is a beautiful vehicle for ornate patterns.

Wallpapered-look tile is a perfect fit for powder rooms: It has a timeless vibe that fits with the long history of powder rooms while also providing the modern functionality and style options of ceramic tile. Tile with gold or silver wallpapered looks creates a truly lavish design.

Hexagon Tile Powder Room

Hexagon Tile Powder Room wall
This interlocking hexagon pattern creates a unique powder room tile accent wall. 

Hexagon tile makes for a playful powder room. Use black and white mosaic hexagon tiles for a vintage look, or larger hexagons for a more modern vibe.

[Related: Unleash the Creativity of Hexagon Tile: Hexagon Tile Uses and Design Ideas]

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Marble Tile Powder Room

Marble Tile Powder Room wall and flooring
This powder room features gray marble-look tile slabs for its flooring and accent wall.

You can’t go wrong with a marble tile powder room if elegance is your goal.

The marble aesthetic is a popular choice for the look of luxury and large-format gauged porcelain tile provides marble-look tile slabs to give you a sustainable and more affordable choice—and, moreover, a broader selection so that you can choose the exact color and veining type you desire for your project. 

[Related: Tile Trend Ideas: Modernized Marble]

Powder Room Mosaic Tile

Blue Powder Room Mosaic Tile wall
This baby blue powder room mosaic tile is the main attraction in the space, creating a simple but effective accent wall.

Small tile for a small space — fitting, right?

All jokes aside, mosaic tile lends itself to dazzling powder room tile backsplashes and accent walls, as the above photo proves. Visit our Mosaic Tile and Micro Mosaics Pinterest boards for more mosaic tile powder room ideas.

[Related: Mosaic Tile Ideas: Your Big Guide to Little Tiles]

Powder Room Subway Tile

Powder Room Subway Tile Wall
Powder room subway tile pairs well with black and white decorations and classic fixtures.

Subway tile is everyone’s favorite tile design, so we’re not surprised that it’s finding its way into powder rooms. Classic white subway tile is a great choice to create a retro powder room.

[Related: Everything You Need to Know About Subway Tile]

Black and White Tile Powder Room

Black and White Tile Powder Room wall in a marble look
Step into luxury with black and white marble-look powder room tile.

Black and white are a timeless color combination, and a great choice for sleek powder room tile. This black and white tile powder room features gauged porcelain tile panels/slabs in two designs for a look that’s minimalist yet striking.

[Related: Black and White Tile Designs for Every Space]

Black Tile Powder Room

Black hexagon tile backsplash
This powder room adds detail to the all-black color scheme with a hexagon tile layout and speckled countertop.

Black tile powder rooms are bold, moody, and a dramatic backdrop for pops of color.

[Related: Bewitching Black Bathroom Tile]

Glass Tile Powder Room

Glass Tile Powder Room backsplash in cream tones
Glass tile is often used in mosaics to create a dazzling powder room design.

Glass tile powder rooms can be delicate, mesmerizing, or modern, depending on the design that you choose. And since powder rooms often lack windows, glass tile’s ability to reflect light is an added bonus.

Colorful Tile

Yellow bathroom tile accent wall
Colorful tile and fun patterns make for a unique powder room tile backsplash or accent wall.

We tend to see a lot of neutral hues, jewel tones, and luxurious finishes in powder rooms. However, colorful tile is just as at home in powder rooms. Combine your favorite colors and patterns to create a one-of-a-kind powder room tile design.

[Related: Tile Color Psychology: How Your Tile Color Affects Your Mood]

Perfect Tile for Your Powder Room

Blue herringbone bathroom tile wall with octagon and dot tile flooring
Some of the most impactful powder rooms combine multiple ceramic tile designs with luxurious fixtures and decorations.

Whatever the vision for your powder room, we hope you’ve found the perfect powder room tile to bring it to life. 

Learn more about the benefits of ceramic tile for powder rooms, and then explore more powder room tile designs on Pinterest:

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