Difference Between Floor and Wall Tiles — Strength, Grip and Where Each Goes

Floor tiles and wall tiles compared

Can wall tiles be used on the floor, or floor tiles on the wall?

Wall tiles should never go on a floor. The porous body and thin glaze are not designed for point loads or abrasion: a dropped pan cracks them, grit wears through the glaze at doorways within months, and a glossy wall glaze is dangerously slippery when wet. Nothing about the box warns you on the first day, which is why this mistake is so common in bathrooms.

Floor tiles can go on walls, and very often should. Using the same vitrified tile on the floor and the walls gives a continuous look, and the dense body does not absorb water in a shower. The practical limits are weight and cutting: a heavy 600x1200 mm floor tile needs a good polymer-modified adhesive, full coverage and sometimes temporary support while it cures, and it is harder to cut around switches and pipes.

The best of both is one design produced in two finishes — gloss or satin for the walls and a textured matt for the floor — so the colours match without putting a slippery tile underfoot.

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How to tell floor and wall tiles apart on the box

• Look for the footprint symbol — A foot or shoe icon means the tile is rated for floors. A hand or wall icon alone means walls only.
• Check the PEI rating — PEI III or higher for domestic floors, IV or V for commercial. No PEI rating usually means a wall tile.
• Check water absorption — Below 0.5% (group BIa) is vitrified and suits any floor. Above 10% (group BIII) is a wall tile.
• Look for an R rating — R10 or above is a floor tile rated for wet grip. Wall tiles are usually not tested.
• Compare thickness and weight — Floor tiles are thicker and noticeably heavier for the same size.
• Tap the back — Wall tile bodies are often red or white and chalky; a vitrified floor tile has a dense, glassy body.

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