Shop Tile by Color

The neutrals

White makes a room brighter and larger and is the safest backdrop for strong cabinetry or fixtures. Gray is the cooler, more modern neutral and hides everyday dust better than white. Beige and brown warm a space and forgive sand, crumbs and traffic, which is why they are common in entries and outdoors.

The strong colors

Black gives the sharpest contrast and turns a floor into a graphic element; in small rooms it is dramatic rather than dark. Green and blue have become the go-to colors for backsplashes and powder rooms, especially in handmade glazes where every piece varies. Red, yellow and purple are for accents and pattern work rather than whole floors. Multicolor blends carry several tones at once, which is useful when a room already has a lot going on.

Three things that change the color you get

• Finish. Polished deepens color and reflects light; honed and tumbled surfaces look lighter and softer. The same stone can read as two different colors in two finishes.
• Grout. A matching grout makes a surface read as one field of color; a contrasting grout turns the same tile into a pattern of lines.
• Light. North light cools a color, warm bulbs push it yellow, and a small windowless room shows a tile differently from a sunlit kitchen.

This is the one decision worth testing in person: order a sample, set it against your cabinets and counters, and look at it at night as well as during the day.