Kitchen Backsplash Tile Ideas: Materials, Patterns and Colors

A kitchen backsplash is the tiled wall between the counter and the upper cabinets, and choosing one comes down to three decisions: the material, the pattern, and the color next to your cabinets and counter. The kitchen backsplash tile ideas below are sorted by those three decisions, and every look comes with a real tile, its size, its finish and how much wall one box covers.

In short: ceramic subway for a plain, familiar wall, marble for veining, zellige for a handmade glaze, herringbone and picket for movement, glass and penny rounds for shine, and a stone slab for a wall with no joints. Our kitchen backsplash tiles collect the kitchen picks, and the wider backsplash tiles range has every material and shape in one place.

Kitchen backsplash tile ideas at a glance

Look	Example tile	Size	Finish	One box covers
White subway	White ceramic subway	2.5 x 8 in	Glossy	5.38 sq ft (38 tiles)
Long colored subway	Silken Tea Green ceramic	2.56 x 15.75 in	Glossy	10.76 sq ft (38 tiles)
Marble subway	Calacatta T marble	3 x 12 in	Polished	10 sq ft (40 tiles)
Handmade glaze	Blanc Fes zellige	4 x 4 x 1/2 in	Glossy	5.56 sq ft (50 tiles)
Marble herringbone	Bianco Dolomiti mosaic	12 1/8 x 13 3/8 in sheet	Polished	5.64 sq ft (6 sheets)
Picket	Pearl White ceramic	2 x 10 in	Glossy	2.37 sq ft (23 tiles)
Glass subway	Gray glass subway	3 x 6 in	Glossy	5 sq ft (40 tiles)
Penny round	White glass penny	12 x 12 in sheet	Glossy	5 sq ft (5 sheets)

How much tile a backsplash takes

With a 36 inch counter and upper cabinets starting at 54 inches, the backsplash between them is 18 inches tall. A straight run of counter 10 feet long with an 18 inch backsplash is 15 square feet of wall. With the white 2.5 by 8 subway above, at 5.38 square feet per box, that wall takes three boxes before cuts and waste; with the long Silken Tea Green, at 10.76 square feet per box, it takes two. Windows, outlets and the range wall change the total, and a full-height wall behind a range adds more; our guide to backsplash height covers the options.

Choose the material first

Material decides how the wall looks up close: a glaze, a natural stone, or glass. It also decides how much the tile changes from piece to piece.

1. Ceramic subway

This white ceramic subway is 2.5 by 8 inches, a little longer and narrower than a 3 by 6, and its glossy glaze has a slight wave, so light catches each piece a little differently. It is shown here behind open shelves above a dark green lower run. Every size, color and layout of subway tile is in our subway tile backsplash ideas, and the tiles themselves are in subway tile backsplash for kitchens and white subway tile backsplash.

2. Marble, for veining and a natural face

Marble gives each tile its own veining, so no two pieces on the wall match. Calacatta T, on the left, is a white marble with gray veining in a 3 by 12 inch polished subway; forty tiles cover 10 square feet. Bianco Dolomiti, on the right, is a whiter marble cut into a herringbone mosaic, shown in a kitchen above dark cabinets. Marble subway in more colors is in marble subway tile, and every marble format, from mosaics to large tiles, is in marble tile backsplash and stone backsplash tiles. For marble, travertine and limestone side by side, see our stone backsplash for the kitchen.

3. Zellige and zellige-look tile

Zellige is a clay tile cut and glazed by hand in Morocco, and the glaze pools thicker in some spots than others, so a single white comes out cream in one piece and cooler in the next. Blanc Fes, on the left, is real zellige, 4 by 4 inches and half an inch thick, with the irregular edges of a hand-cut tile. Blanche, on the right, is a glossy ceramic with a zellige-style glaze and a straight edge, shown here as a full wall behind a dark kitchen run. Both are compared in our zellige backsplash ideas.

4. Glass

Glass tile has a deep, bright shine, since light passes into the glass before it reflects back. This gray glass subway is exactly 3 by 6 inches with a glossy face, shown above a marble counter. Glass comes in subway, square, penny and herringbone mosaics in glass tile kitchen backsplash, and in subway shapes alone in glass subway tile backsplash. Our glass tile backsplash ideas go through each shape.

5. Warm natural stone: travertine

Travertine is a warm, beige stone with small natural holes, and a tumbled finish rounds the edges and gives the surface a soft, matte texture. Chiaro comes as 2 by 2 inch tumbled squares, 3/8 inch thick, on a 12 by 12 inch sheet; a box of six sheets covers 6 square feet. It pairs with wood cabinets and a cream or brown counter. More are in travertine tile backsplash. For the look of wood on the wall itself, our wood look backsplash tiles are porcelain planks printed with a wood grain.

Then the pattern

The same tile looks different in each pattern. A running bond staggers the joints like brickwork, a vertical stack lines them up in tall stripes, and herringbone, chevron and picket add a zigzag or a point.

6. Herringbone

Herringbone sets rectangles at right angles in a zigzag. Here an olive green ceramic, 2.56 by 15.75 inches, is set in a herringbone behind a range under a wood hood, with white cabinets on both sides. A long tile makes a bold, wide zigzag, and a small marble mosaic makes a fine one. Both scales are in our herringbone backsplash ideas, and chevron, the version with points cut at an angle, is in our chevron backsplash ideas.

7. Picket

A picket tile is a long tile with a pointed end, like a fence picket, and the points lock together into a wall of tall diamonds. Pearl White is a glossy ceramic picket, 2 by 10 inches, shown here as a full wall behind open shelves and white cabinets; 23 tiles cover 2.37 square feet. Laid vertically, a picket draws the eye up toward the ceiling. More colors and finishes are in picket tile.

8. Mosaic: penny, hexagon and small shapes

A mosaic puts many small pieces on one mesh-backed sheet, so the pattern comes pre-set. This white glass penny round comes on 12 by 12 inch sheets and is shown under the wall cabinets of a modern kitchen. Small pieces give a backsplash fine texture, and from across the room the wall looks patterned. Every kitchen mosaic is in mosaic tile kitchen backsplash, and the full mosaic range, including bathroom sizes, is in mosaic tile backsplash.

9. Texture: fluted tile

Fluted tile has raised ribs across its face, so the wall has shadow lines even in a single color. It works as a small panel behind a range or a coffee bar, and as a full wall in a plain kitchen. See fluted tile and our fluted tile backsplash ideas.

Then the color

A white or gray backsplash keeps the cabinets and counter as the main colors, and a colored one gives the kitchen a new color without changing the cabinets.

10. Green

Silken Tea Green, on the left, is a pale, glossy green in a long 2.56 by 15.75 inch subway, shown with deep green cabinets and a farmhouse sink, a tone on tone pairing. Forest Green, on the right, is a dark glossy green in a 2 by 16 inch subway that makes the backsplash the main color in the room. More greens, from sage to emerald, are in green tile backsplash.

11. Blue

Teal Green is a saturated blue-green glossy ceramic, 2.56 by 15.75 inches, shown above a white farmhouse sink with navy cabinets. Next to white or wood cabinets, a strong blue or teal becomes the only color on the wall. More blues are in blue tile backsplash for kitchens and blue tile backsplash.

12. Black and gray

A black backsplash gives a white kitchen the strongest contrast. This black glossy picket, 2 by 10 inches, is shown behind a cooktop under a curved white hood, between white cabinets. Black tile in marble, porcelain and glass is in black backsplash tile. Gray is the softer option: gray backsplash tile runs from silver marble to concrete-look porcelain, and gray subway tile backsplash has the subway shapes only.

Where the backsplash goes

Behind the range, the backsplash is framed by the cooktop and the hood and is at eye level; see our backsplash behind the stove ideas. With white cabinets, the backsplash decides whether the room looks bright, warm or graphic; see our backsplash ideas for white cabinets and the white tiles in white kitchen backsplash.

For a wall with no joints at all, a single piece of stone can run from the counter to the cabinets, cut from the same slab as the counter. Our slab backsplash ideas show examples, and the stone itself is in our slabs.

Beyond the kitchen

A backsplash belongs behind a bathroom vanity too. The bathroom picks are in bathroom backsplash tiles, and newer shapes and finishes for every room are in modern backsplash tile.

Kitchen Backsplash Tile FAQ

Which backsplash tiles on this page come on sheets?

The Bianco Dolomiti herringbone, the Chiaro travertine and the white glass penny round come on mesh-backed sheets of about 12 by 12 inches. The subway, zellige and picket tiles are loose tiles, from 2 by 10 to 2.56 by 15.75 inches.

Which tile on this page covers the most wall per box?

The long ceramic subway tiles, Silken Tea Green and Forest Green, at 10.76 square feet per box, followed by Calacatta T marble at 10 square feet. The 2 by 10 picket covers 2.37 square feet per box, the smallest box here.

What is the difference between ceramic, marble and glass backsplash tile?

Ceramic has a glaze over a clay body, so the color is on the surface and can be glossy, matte or wavy. Marble is natural stone, and its veining runs through each piece and differs from tile to tile. Glass lets light pass into the tile before it reflects, which gives it a deep, bright shine.

Should a backsplash be glossy or matte?

Glossy tile reflects light and shows the color at full strength, which brightens a small or dark kitchen. Matte tile spreads the light softly and shows the texture of the glaze or stone. A glossy backsplash over a honed counter gives two distinct surfaces next to each other.

Is a slab backsplash better than tile?

They give different looks. A slab is one continuous piece of stone with no joints, so the veining runs uninterrupted and can match the counter. Tile gives you a pattern, a scale and colors that a single slab cannot, in many more shapes and finishes.