Tile prices per square metre can only be compared on equal terms: euros per square metre, VAT included, with shipping visible before you pay. Many sites in the sector instead show prices excluding VAT, per-box prices or permanent slashed discounts, and the comparison falls apart. We always show €/m² VAT included and the real total before payment: it’s the only honest way to sell tiles online.
Why comparing tile prices online is so hard
You open three browser tabs, search for the same wood-effect tile, and find three numbers that don’t speak the same language: 19.90, 24.50, 31 and change. It looks like a market full of bargains. Often it’s just a market full of different ways of writing the same price.
Tiles lend themselves to these tricks for a precise reason: they’re sold by whole boxes, but reasoned about per square metre. In between sit VAT, the coverage per box and pallet shipping. Anyone wanting to look cheaper has at least four levers to pull without actually being cheaper.
The good news: a single formula and five minutes with a calculator are enough to take apart any price list. First let’s look at the tricks, then the formula to protect yourself.
The four most common tricks in online price lists
- VAT excluded. The price on the page is net of 22% VAT. A €19.90/m² becomes €24.28/m² at payment. It’s a practice that started for customers with a VAT number, but on a site aimed at private buyers it mainly serves to look more convenient in search results.
- Price per box (or per piece). “€34 per pack” sounds good, but how much does that pack cover? 1.20 m²? 1.49 m²? Without the coverage per box the number says nothing, and it can’t be compared with someone who shows the price per square metre.
- Permanent slashed discount. The classic full price crossed out with -40% next to it, all year round, across the whole catalogue. If the discount never expires, it isn’t a discount: it’s the price. The strikethrough only serves to make you feel clever.
- Surprise shipping. The material costs little, then in the cart pallet transport appears and the total changes face. Tiles are heavy: shipping is a real line item, and anyone hiding it until the last step does it on purpose. How pallet delivery really works and what affects the cost we explain in a dedicated guide.
Tile price per m² or per box: the formula to compare two offers
Any offer, from any site, must be brought back to a single number: euros per square metre, VAT included. Then you add shipping and look at the total. That’s it.
In practice, for each offer you take three steps:
- Bring everything back to the m². If the price is per box: price ÷ coverage per box. If it’s already per m², move on.
- Add VAT if it’s missing. Price × 1.22 when the page reads “VAT excluded” or “+ VAT”. If it’s not clear, look in the notes at the bottom: if you don’t find it written down, ask before ordering.
- Calculate the real total. €/m² VAT included × actual square metres (with waste, rounded up to the whole box) + shipping to your address.
The actual square metres aren’t those of the room: to the measured area you add 10% waste for straight laying, 15% for diagonal or herringbone, and then you round up to the box. The full calculation is in the guide on how many tiles to order between boxes and waste; on our product pages the m²⇄boxes calculator does it automatically.
Two final points when you compare. First: the coverage per box changes from series to series, so at the same €/m² the number of boxes (and the total) can differ. Second: skirting, trims and special pieces are almost always paid separately; if one quote includes them and the other doesn’t, you’re not comparing the same thing. Put the two offers on paper, line by line, before deciding.
An example with numbers: who really costs less?
Let’s take a living room of 15.7 m², straight laying: with 10% waste you need 17.3 m², which at a coverage of 1.44 m² per box becomes 12 boxes, that is 17.3 m² exactly. Two made-up but realistic offers:
| Item | Site A | Site B |
|---|---|---|
| Displayed price | €19.90/m² VAT excluded | €23.50/m² VAT included |
| VAT 22% | to be added (+€4.38) | already included |
| Real price per m² | €24.28 | €23.50 |
| Material for 12 boxes (17.3 m²) | about €420 | about €407 |
| Shipping | only appears in the cart | published before the order |
Site A looked cheaper by €3.60 per square metre. Brought back to equal terms, it costs more. And shipping is still missing, which in case A you discover only at the last step, when you’ve already entered your address and payment details: at that point many give up and confirm anyway. It’s exactly the comparison that “creative” price lists hope you’ll never make with a calculator in hand.
Our commitment, in black and white
We’ve chosen the simplest path, which is also the most awkward for the seller: no ambiguous numbers. In practice:
- Price always in €/m² VAT included, on the product page, in plain sight. Next to it you’ll also find the per-box price with the stated coverage, so you can check in a second.
- Real total before payment: material, whole boxes and transport, all clear in the summary, with no line items popping up afterwards.
- Transparent shipping: the costs by zone are published on the shipping costs page, which you can consult before you even put anything in the cart.
- No permanent slashed discounts. When there’s a promotion, it has a start date and an end date.
- Complete technical sheet on every product: coverage, thickness, slip-resistance class, shade variation. An honest price is worth little if you don’t know what you’re buying.
It applies across the whole catalogue, from the Athena marble-effect series to the Woodland wood-effect one: the price you see is the price you pay, per square metre, taxes included.
Compare calmly, then see for yourself
From today you have the method: everything per m², VAT included, shipping on the total. Apply it to every quote, ours included, because an honest comparison doesn’t scare us: it’s the very reason we display prices this way.
Once you’ve narrowed the choice, browse the catalogue with prices per m² VAT included and order a sample for €5: it arrives at your home in 24-48 hours and the €5 come back to you as a voucher on your first order. Before spending serious money, colour should be seen in person. On price, though, nobody’s going to fool you anymore.