Atlas 2022 Index
What are the most popular tiles right now?
When it comes to decorating a house, one of the most essential materials is tiles. Whether you need wall tiles or floor tiles, this multipurpose and decorative element of the home can be deployed in rooms throughout.
There are many different types of tiles out there; they come in different shapes and sizes, are made from different materials, and come in a vast variety of colours to suit everyone’s tastes. But which are on trend right now? What are the most popular? And which are falling out of favour? To make sure your tiling job is the talk of the town, the biggest current trends for 2022 have been identified.
Most popular tile styles
1 – Ceramic Tiles, 1,300,500 annual global Google searches
Ceramic tiles are the most popular style of tile in 2022, which is unsurprising as ceramics are both beautiful and sturdy while coming at a reasonable price. There were over 1.3 million Google searches for ceramic tiles in the past year, down from the previous year but still enough to remain the most popular.
2 – Mosaic Tiles, 1,281,000 annual global Google searches
Mosaic tiles are the second most popular style, although their gap from the top of the rankings is greater than it was a year ago. Despite losing over 200,000 searches, there were still over 1.2 million for this style, more than enough for second place. Mosaic tiles come in many different designs but are always a collection of smaller tiles attached together to create something special.
3 – Porcelain Tiles, 1,089,000 annual global Google searches
Porcelain is a ceramic material, but porcelain tiles are different to ceramic ones as they are denser. This means they absorb less water and are therefore more useful as floor tiles, however, their sturdiness comes at a higher cost. Porcelain tiles were the only other tile style with more than a million searches, dropping by almost 200,000 in a year.
Trending tile styles
1 – Craquelure Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 130
2021/22 Google Searches: 230
Search Increase: 76.9%
2 – Raku Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 4,130
2021/22 Google Searches: 5,260
Search Increase: 27.4%
3 – Pickett Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 950
2021/22 Google Searches: 1,150
Search Increase: 21%
Craquelure tiles are on trend this year, as their popularity has dramatically increased by over 75%, increasing by 100 searches. Craquelure is a type of ceramic tile which gives an old fashioned classical look through the cracked ceramic glazing process. Raku tiles saw the second-highest increase in popularity, although the 27% increase in searches was nowhere near the level for Craquelure. Pickett tiles ranked third, and they were the only other style of tile that increased in popularity by more than 20%.
Tile styles falling out of fashion
1 – Arabesque Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 146,800
2021/22 Google Searches: 106,900
Search decrease: -27.2%
2 – Fan Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 14,760
2021/22 Google Searches: 11,120
Search decrease: -24.7%
3 – Form Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 5,330
2021/22 Google Searches: 4,060
Search decrease: -23.8%
Overall, there are far more styles of tiles that are losing popularity this year compared to ones growing in popularity. Arabesque tiles have lost the most interest, showing they are not in the public interest anywhere near as much as they were last year, the drop of almost 40,000 searches is a decrease of more than 27%. Fan and form tiles came in second and third respectively, with both having a search decrease of over 23%.
Most popular tile colours
1 – Black Tiles, 320,300 annual global Google searches
You can’t really go wrong with black, and black tiles can be a stylish way to add impact to any space. Be careful though, as overdoing it with black tiles can be overbearing, but thankfully black can easily be matched with other dark and monochrome colours.
2 – Grey Tiles, 237,700 annual global Google searches
Another monochrome colour comes in second place, with grey tiles receiving just over a quarter of a million searches in the last year. Grey tiles are a contemporary option that can be used alone or alongside lighter colours for contrast.
3 – Gold Tiles, 145,700 annual global Google searches
It seems that consumers in the last twelve months were seeking a bit of luxury in their lives, with over 145,000 searches for gold tiles. Metallic colours such as gold add a touch of class to your space and work well with neutral colours.
Trending tile colours
1 – Lemon Yellow Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 410
2021/22 Google Searches: 1,040
Search Increase: 153.7%
2 – Eggshell Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 380
2021/22 Google Searches: 620
Search Increase: 63.2%
3 – Apricot Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 1,810
2021/22 Google Searches: 2,710
Search Increase: 49.7%
Two of the colours that have seen the biggest year on year increase in interest are both named after foods, with lemon yellow taking the top spot with an increase of 153.7%. Off-white eggshell tiles had the second-highest increase, and apricot colour tiles saw searches rise by just under half.
Tile colours falling out of fashion
1 – British Racing Green Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 400
2021/22 Google Searches: 270
Search decrease: -32.5%
2 – Antique Brass Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 370
2021/22 Google Searches: 260
Search decrease: -29.7%
3 – Pastel Pink Tiles
2020/21 Google Searches: 2,100
2021/22 Google Searches: 1,550
Search decrease: -26.2%
British racing green tiles are the colour which has seen the biggest decrease in popularity since last year, with a decrease of just under a third. Antique brass and pastel pink saw similar decreases, with interest falling by 29.7% and 26.2% respectively.
Methodology
- A list of tile styles was found on the Atlas Ceramics website, as well as various articles.
- A list of all colours was sourced from Wikipedia.
- We used Google Keyword Planner to see the global searches for each tile between May 2020 and April 2021, then again between May 2021 and April 2022.
- We then calculated the difference and percentage difference between the two.