Porcelain vs Ceramic Tile: Choosing Bathroom Tile

Treat this as a field note from one working house, not a showroom checklist. Now that the redo of my girls' bathroom has risen to the top of the house to-do list, it's time to pick out tile! I got a lot of questions about the tile that we chose for our last bathroom redo, including why I chose ceramic over porcelain tile so I thought I'd share the pros and cons of each! (post includes commissionable links; for more information, see my full disclosure statement {here})

Let's kick things off with the not-so-pretty “before” of my girls' bathroom:

Our girls' bathroom (vanity, large mirror, & vanity light) before remodeling

The bathtub and the wall tile in the tub are going to stay as-is but everything else is going to go, including the floor tile. It's pretty non-offensive simple white square tile but it's not in great tile with a few cracked tiles and several that are chipped:

I want tile that's simple and classic and will stand the test of time but be more interesting than simple square tile. It's a “I don't know what I want but I'll know it when I see it” kind of situation!

Bathroom Floor Tile Options

These are four of my current favorites tiles, ranging from highly patterned tile to a simple large white hexagon:

Porcelain tile options for a bathroom floor

Tile options:1. Gray & blue patterned tile | 2. Large white hexagon tile | 3. Star pattern gray hexagon tile | 4. Blue & white Moroccan tile

I also recently came across {this hexagon tile} and think it's so pretty:

Bluish gray hexagon tile for our bathroom floor

It's more interesting than the white hexagon and more timeless than the patterned tiles. The color is grigio chiaro which translates to light gray but what A strong choice is about it is that it has a soft, subtle blue-green undertone. It's a bit of a chameleon, looking gray in some lights and blue or green in others.

You might have noticed that all of my final contenders are porcelain tiles as opposed to ceramic tile like {this gray floor tile} I chose for our bathroom redo:

Why would I want ceramic tile for my girls' bathroom but be ok with ceramic tile for our master bathroom? Here's the scoop on porcelain vs. ceramic tile and why you might want to choose one over the other depending upon the project you're working on…

Porcelain vs. Ceramic Tile

One of the most significant differences between porcelain and ceramic tile is that porcelain tile is kiln-fired at a higher temperature, making it more dense & durable and less porous than ceramic tile. Since porcelain tile is less porous, it doesn't absorb water as readily as ceramic tile so is a much better choice for areas that will be exposed to a lot of water like shower floors and outdoor applications. Porcelain is also more impervious to stains because of this.

Another difference is that ceramic tiles are coated with a glaze so if the tile chips, the chip will be a different color, making that “oops” quite obvious. In comparison, porcelain tiles are often unglazed with the color running through the entire thickness of the tile. If an unglazed porcelain tile chips, the chip is less obvious since the color of the chip is the same as the color on top of the tile.

One possible negative of porcelain tile is that because it's harder, it's are also more difficult to cut, requiring a wet saw with a diamond blade (vs. ceramic tile that you can cut with a simple tile cutter). This isn't an issue at all for a professional tile installer who can easily work with either product, but DIYers might prefer the ease of working with ceramic tile. Another negative of porcelain tile is that it's generally more expensive than ceramic tile.

So which type of tile is best to use in a bathroom? Overall, porcelain is the superior tile so if you find a porcelain tile that works within your budget it's generally your best bet. What if the tile you fall in love with is ceramic? Ceramic tile can definitely work in a bathroom as long as it's not one where there tends to be a lot of standing water or things are going to be dropped on it a lot. For us, this meant that I was totally comfortable using ceramic tile in our master bathroom (I would have preferred a porcelain tile but couldn't find one I liked as much as the ceramic!) but in a kids bathroom, I'd rather play it safe and go with porcelain.