People spend weeks choosing tile and about four minutes choosing grout. Grout is roughly 5 percent of the surface area and about 50 percent of the finished look.
The three approaches
Match the tile. Grout close to the tile colour makes the surface read as one continuous plane. This is what you want with large format tile and in small rooms you want to feel bigger.
Contrast deliberately. Dark grout with white subway tile emphasises the pattern and the geometry. It is a strong look and it is a commitment — it draws the eye to every line, which means every line has to be perfect.
Go slightly darker than the tile. The safe middle ground, and what we recommend most often for floors. It hides traffic without turning the floor into a grid.
Practical colour advice
- Floors: avoid bright white. It will not stay white, particularly in an entryway through an Ontario winter.
- Shower floors: mid-grey hides soap residue and mineral deposits better than anything else.
- Backsplashes: you can afford to be bolder here. It is a small area, it stays cleaner, and it is at eye level where the detail is appreciated.
- Natural stone: pick from the veining, not the base colour.
Cementitious vs epoxy
| Cementitious | Epoxy | |
|---|---|---|
| Stain resistance | Poor without sealing | Excellent |
| Waterproof | No | Yes |
| Colour consistency | Can blotch as it cures | Very consistent |
| Resealing needed | Yes, periodically | No |
| Cost | Baseline | Roughly double the material |
We recommend epoxy in two places specifically: kitchen backsplashes, where airborne grease finds cementitious grout and never leaves, and shower floors, where constant moisture is the whole point. Elsewhere, a good cementitious grout is fine.
Joint width
Rectified porcelain takes a 1/8 inch joint. Non-rectified tile needs wider — typically 3/16 — because the pieces vary slightly in size and a wider joint absorbs that variation. Handmade tile and natural stone need wider again. Anyone promising you hairline joints on handmade tile is setting you up for a bad result.
Get a free estimate
Ultra Renovations Inc has been installing tile across Ajax, Pickering, Whitby, Oshawa and the wider GTA for over ten years. We are a registered Ontario corporation, fully insured, and rated 5.0 on Google.
Call (647) 648-8985 or request a free estimate and we will come out, measure properly, look at your subfloor, and give you a written quote for your tile and grout at no cost.