Penny Round Tiles

Matte tiles are trending strongly in Australian bathrooms for their contemporary look and practical ability to hide water spots and fingerprints. Gloss tiles reflect light and can make a bathroom feel brighter and larger, but show water marks and smudges more readily. For shower recesses and wet floors, matte or satin finishes with good slip resistance are generally preferred.

Measure your total wall and floor surface area in square metres, then add a 10–15% wastage allowance for cuts, breakages, and future repairs. For complex layouts with diagonal patterns or feature inserts, increase the wastage to 15–20%. Always order all tiles from the same batch (check the shade lot/batch number) as tiles from different batches can vary slightly in colour.

Floor tiles must have an adequate slip resistance rating (P3 minimum for domestic bathrooms) and be durable enough for foot traffic. Wall tiles can be glazed ceramic, porcelain, or natural stone, they don't need to carry load but should be moisture-resistant. Many Australian renovators choose matching or coordinating floor and wall tiles from the same range for a cohesive look.

For small bathrooms, tiles between 300 x 300mm and 600 x 300mm often work well on both walls and floors. Smaller mosaic or subway tiles (75 x 150mm or 100 x 200mm) are a classic choice for shower walls. While large format tiles can also work in small spaces, they require a very level substrate and expert installation. Avoid tiles that are too small on floors (like 50 x 50mm mosaics) in large quantities, as the increased grout lines can make a space feel busier.

The most effective approach is to choose one feature zone and use your feature tile there, a full-height shower wall, the bath surround wall, or the vanity splashback area. Keep the remaining surfaces in a neutral or complementary field tile. This creates impact without visual clutter. Limit your palette to two or three complementary materials for a cohesive result.

Australian Standards (AS 4586) require bathroom floor tiles to have a minimum slip resistance rating of P3 for domestic bathrooms and P4 or P5 for wet areas like shower recesses. The Blue Space recommends checking the slip resistance rating of any tile you're considering for floor use, particularly in the shower. Matte and textured porcelain tiles generally offer better slip resistance than polished or gloss finishes.

Porcelain tiles are fired at higher temperatures and are denser, less porous, and harder than ceramic tiles. This makes porcelain more water-resistant, more durable, and suitable for both indoor and outdoor applications, including high-traffic floors. Ceramic tiles are lighter and easier to cut, making them a practical choice for bathroom walls and splashbacks. For bathroom floors and wet areas, porcelain is generally the preferred option in Australia.

It's a genuinely classic pattern with roots in early 20th century bathroom design, and it has cycled back into popularity rather than going out of style, particularly for period-style and heritage-inspired renovations. Colour and grout choice do more to make it feel current or dated than the shape itself, a black and white or monochrome penny round reads more traditional, while a single warm or muted tone with matching grout gives a more contemporary result.

Penny round tiles are almost always sold pre-mounted on mesh sheets rather than as loose individual circles, which makes handling and spacing far more manageable than laying hundreds of small circles by hand. The sheets are set into adhesive like any mosaic sheet, with attention paid to lining up the pattern across sheet joins so the circles read as one continuous floor rather than a grid of visible squares. Because of the sheer number of small pieces and grout lines involved, professional installation is strongly recommended, especially for a floor.

Thickness varies by material and range, but penny round tiles are generally a similar thickness to other small-format ceramic or porcelain mosaics, thin enough to suit floor and wall applications without adding significant height at transitions to adjoining flooring. Always check the specific range's thickness if the tile needs to match up with an existing floor level, such as at a doorway.

It sits toward the higher end of tile pricing per square metre, since the small circular format means a large number of individual pieces and a dense network of grout lines, both of which add labour time on top of the tile's own cost. Because of this, penny round is commonly used on a bathroom floor or a single feature area rather than across large wall surfaces, which keeps the overall spend in check.

The circular shape leaves small gaps between each tile that a square or rectangular format doesn't, so a penny round floor naturally has a denser grid of grout joints than almost any other common tile shape. That's not a flaw in the product, more grout underfoot can actually help with slip resistance in a wet area, but it does mean more grout lines to keep clean and reseal periodically over the life of the floor.

Yes, they're a common choice for shower floors specifically because the dense grid of grout lines provides good grip underfoot, provided the tile itself carries an adequate slip resistance rating for a wet area. A textured or matte penny round finish is generally the safer choice for a shower floor over a polished or glossy one, which can be more slippery once wet despite looking similar dry.