The fireplace is a timeless structure in your home that must be functional and stylish. A fireplace with tile can help create a warm, comfortable and modern space, making this nice feature the focal point of your room. The tiled fireplace has become one of the most popular trends in recent years, offering a clean look that can complement your hearth and surround. As a stunning design element, you’ll want to highlight your fireplace with surrounding tiles that elevate the room and take your decor to the next level.
Whether you want to use stone, subway, ceramic or patterned materials, these fireplace tile ideas are worth considering for a stylish finish.
Some homeowners will want white subway tiles around their fireplace for a contemporary look that will brighten the room, while others may prefer black tiling that covers the chimney from floor to ceiling for a cool, moody vibe. With so many different styles, it can be a challenge choosing the right tile around your fireplace.
For inspiration, here are some examples of the best fireplace tile ideas. From farmhouse to modern styles, these beautiful tiled fireplace designs will elevate your home.
Fireplace Tile Ideas
Modernize Your Marble
A traditional-style surround mantel paired with Carrara marble tiles arranged in a timeless herringbone pattern gives this fireplace a classic and refined feel. Thoughtful decorative accents bring a fresh flair to the space. Leaning abstract art against the wall instead of hanging it up helps the decor seem more casual and contemporary, while vintage books and dried flowers add a layered and lived-in look.
Modern Fireplace Tile
This modern fireplace comes with stylish and classy decor elements, offering a simple approach that will take your living room to the next level. While most people consider the mantel to be the most decorative aspect, the outward-facing front known as the face provides an opportunity for artistic expression. These terracotta tiles in shades of gray and charcoal incorporate texture and earthiness in contrast to the minimalist lines of the creamy white surround mantel.
Divine DIY
Believe it or not, this chic vignette is the result of an amateur DIY project. Although the tilework on the face looks like marble, this fireplace is using a peel and stick tile composed of an adhesive substrate and a gel top, giving the design a three-dimensional quality. This tile is heat and humidity resistant, making it ideal for a low-budget easy-to-install upgrade.
Farmhouse Fireplace
The farmhouse fireplace has been one of the most popular designs in recent years, offering a rugged and trendy look for the home. This neutral color scheme gives this modern farmhouse living room an elegant and understated quality. The airiness of the matte white built-in cabinetry and dove gray overdyed rug is balanced by sturdier items like the black metal chandelier and thick wooden mantel. The patterned artisan tile on this fireplace adds visual interest to the space while still adhering to the soothing color story.
Reach New Heights
This lofty living space boasts a towering ceiling that is at least twenty feet tall. With such a high ceiling, it’s important to account for vertical space in your design. The tiles on the fireplace are arranged vertically which helps direct the eye upwards. Above the mantel, the second story also features vertical wood panels. Floor-to-ceiling windows and oversized wood cabinets are perfectly proportioned to the space.
Fireplace Stone Tile
If you love the ambiance of a fire but aren’t a fan of the effort required to build one, an electric fireplace could be a great option to explore. If your living room is wide a slim, linear electric fireplace can help you make the most of your space. The three-dimensional slate tile surrounding this wall-mounted unit gives lends an interesting architectural element to the space.
Try Out New Textures
This cozy common room brings together various colors and consistencies to establish a comfortable, homey vibe. The chimney breast that extends above the mantel features oak planks with visible texture painted in a deep, rich shade of brown. The same wood has been used to construct custom built-in bookcases that frame the hearth. Gray and white basketweave tile on the face introduces a contrasting textural element.
Collaborative Cultures
The Moroccan style of interior design is typically characterized by busy patterns, jewel-toned colors, and intricate ornamentation. This polished parlor offers a contemporary Westernized spin on a traditional form of Middle Eastern decor. The rough-hewn elongated hexagon tiles on the fireplace face are classically Moroccan in style, if not in color choice. These decorative touches continue throughout the space in pieces like a medallion throw pillow and ceramic garden stool.
Luxury Fireplace Design
This electric fireplace is surprisingly affordable and luxurious. Antiqued mirrored panels frame a faux marble facade that is both beautiful and budget-friendly. The shiny frame is complemented by decorative mirror mosaic jars that rest on top of the mantel. Objects like a tripod-style floor lamp and a large abstract vase complete this contemporary room.
California Cool
In colder climates, fireplaces are something of a staple but these beautiful structures can also be found in warmer environments. Hand-painted Mission-style tiles in hues of cream and linen transform this unit into a focal point in this contemporary room. The pattern on this tile is small in scale, so expanding it all the way up to the ceiling makes it an even more powerful statement.
Break The Mold
This stunning sitting room boasts an array of striking design features from top to bottom – literally. The coffered ceiling features warm white crown molding arranged in a grid design. The geometrical influences continue downwards in the form of a decorative double stack fireplace. The more prominent bottom tier features a massive glass-front gas hearth surrounded by off-white marble tiles. The same finishes are echoed in the smaller upper tier, where an overmantel accommodates a big-screen television.
Streamlined Simplicity
Wood-burning fireplaces require ventilation, but that is not the case with electric fireplaces. Some people will build out a three-dimensional frame around an electric model to mimic the effect of the wood-burning style, but that isn’t a necessity. In this modern masculine space, large rectangular gray porcelain tiles frame an electric unit and introduce a sleek, sophisticated flair to the design.
Mix and Match Design Trends
Two design styles collide in this fun and fashionable family room. Features like white shiplap walls, rustic wooden beams, and a mammoth metal wagon wheel chandelier are distinctly a modern farmhouse design. The overstuffed sofa and smokey quartz agate geode tiles lean more towards coastal interior design. The wooden mantel contains decorative elements like beachy blue and white vases and country-style candle holders to further balance each design style.
Floor To Ceiling Fireplace Tiling
One of the most compelling features of this home is the ornamental carved stone fireplace. Marble is sometimes prone to developing orange stains because of the minerals it contains. This kind of discoloration can be removed with a poultice of baking soda and water, but some people prefer to leave it as is because it adds patina. Because orange and blue are opposite one another on the color wheel, the shiny navy ceramic tile brings the rusty hue out even more.
Get In Shape
Using similar shapes throughout a room can help disparate features feel more cohesive. The rectangular shape of the linear gas fireplace mirrors the narrow walnut wood flooring as well as the rough-hewn butterscotch colored brickwork. Even the couch meets the design brief thanks to its blocky arms and extended chaise seating.
Elegant and Eclectic
In eclectic interior design, furniture and accessories of different styles and eras come together to craft a one-of-a-kind space. With its combination of a tufted diamond-patterned rug, woven chairs, and abundant greenery, the seating area has a chilled-out boho vibe. The area surrounding the hearth has more of a traditional feel with its deep charcoal walls, herringbone tile, and framed antique art. Despite the mishmash of styles, this space is still harmonious.
Make A Bold Statement
This room proves that even the smallest spaces can have big style. Two-toned chevron marble tile elevates the compact smart electric fireplace. Because the mantel is fairly low to the ground, there is a lot of blank space to fill above it. A white and navy blue canvas print with a gold geometric overlay adds flair.
Casual Luxury
There’s a common misconception that high-end design is inherently stiff and formal. This upscale lounge shows that a single space can be simultaneously relaxed and refined. The tufted arms of the cadet blue chesterfield sofa and the subtle sheen of the stone mosaic tile feel posh and premium, while the birch wood mantel and coordinating open shelves have a sense of ease.
Accentuate Your Architecture
Vaulted ceilings give this family room a lovely airy quality that lends itself well to coastal interior decor. Built-in bookcases maximize the usable vertical space in this room, and their bluish-gray hue has a beachy vibe that is echoed in the wicker dome pendant light. A driftwood mantel brings some dimensionality to the space and creates a needed sense of separation between the hearth and the television.
Upscale Upgrade on A Budget
Updating your chimney breast is a simple way to revive old-fashioned decor. Here, the overmantel area has been wrapped in inexpensive wood planks and painted a matte pewter color to match the surround and built-in cabinets. Touches of smoky gray in the herringbone tile tie the face into the ornamental woodworking.
Books, Bricks and Brass
Maximalist interior design style doesn’t have to be cluttered and overdone. Massive built-in shelving provides ample storage for books, plants, and quirky tchotchkes. An outdated brick hearth gets a fresh face with the application of creamy white paint that complements the ceramic tile feature wall. A brass-framed circular mirror and matching ceiling spotlights add warmth and character to the design.
Tabula Rasa
Painting walls, trim, railings, and the surround a bright and brilliant shade of white transforms this townhouse into a blank canvas. Glass mosaic tiles in various shades of gray add visual interest without straying away from the neutral color palette. Unique furniture selections like a midcentury leather safari chair with a goldenrod throw pillow stand out even more against the understated backdrop.
Back To The Beach
A color palette featuring white, beige, and various shades of blue is ideally suited for a casual coastal living room. The miniature blue and white glass mosaic tiles adorning the fireplace face are reminiscent of sea glass. The honey-colored tones on the slim wood mantel and adjacent waterfall table infuse the space with touches of warmth.
Symmetrical Sophistication
Centering your fireplace in the middle of a feature wall is a great way to create a focal point. In this lavish living room, the hearth is surrounded by crystal blue built-ins filled with high-end decor. A polished brass ring pendant lamp adorned with bubble-shaped lanterns provides an alternative light source with a touch of vintage Hollywood glamour.
Retro Retreat
This charming coastal cottage is packed with vintage appeal. Many people don’t realize this, but a wood-burning stove can be connected to a class one chimney for ventilation. This antique stove is tucked into a firebox that has been updated with sapphire blue herringbone tiles. This niche is topped by a piece of reclaimed wood that serves as a rustic mantel. Classic wingback chairs have a beachy feel thanks to their blue and white upholstery.
Simple Tiling with White Surround
The Arts and Crafts era of interior design placed a heavy emphasis on craftsmanship and simplicity while drawing inspiration from nature. This early 1900s home has been redecorated in a minimalist style that still preserves some original details. Originally, features like a carved mantelpiece and under-window wainscoting would have been stained a warm, chestnut hue. Painting them bright white is a simple way to modernize this space.
Black Tile Fireplace in Cute Bungalow
If your fireplace is located in an interior wall that isn’t load-bearing, taking down the walls that surround it can really open up your home. This bijou bungalow would feel segmented and cramped with a full wall. This freestanding fire feature still separates the space but makes it a lot more functional. The wall looks like it’s made of painted brick, but it’s actually wrapped in handmade matte glazed tiles.
Secondhand Nature
A collection of well-curated vintage decor items helps this retro room feel warm and welcoming. Features like a graphic wall print of a bird and a dynamic midcentury modern wall sculpture are inspired by nature, as is the fire screen with its geometric abstract mountain adornments. The warm orange hue of the rustic glazed tiles magnifies the room’s midcentury aura.
Ahead of The Curve
Soft lines and curves help this family room feel relaxed and inviting despite of its vibrant colors and busy patterns. An arched metal fireplace insert with intricately engraved designs evokes the Victorian era. This detail work is further enhanced by the two-toned indigo and cerulean tile surround which features a petal design composed of interlocking circles.
Reach For The Stars
Fresh and fun finishes and decor refresh a stuffy formal living room and introduce an air of youthful exuberance. A classic, traditional fireplace mantel feels gets a facelift with the addition of contemporary black and white starburst tiles. Objects like a gold medallion mirror and a blanket ladder with a tufted throw give this space an international boho vibe.
Go For The Bold
Using high-contrast colors is an excellent way to highlight statement pieces in your space. If this mantel were painted white, it would blend in with the walls. Instead, the black paint draws attention to the craftsmanship of this piece. The slate gray tiles on the face and flat hearth perfectly complement the gold patina on the antique framed mirror that rests on the overmantel.
Uncomplicated Upgrade
If you’d love to renovate your fireplace with a limited budget, tile stickers can help you achieve the look for less. This living room goes from bland to beautiful with a few simple changes. A diamond-patterned floor rug and black and white peel and stick tiles help this space feel more graphic and contemporary.
White Subway Tiling For Simple Fireplace
This breezy beach house keeps things simple with bright white walls and neutral decor. With such a simple color palette, it’s important to include multiple textures to keep the space from feeling too stark. The glossy white tiles on the chimney breast look even sleeker when paired with a rough jute rug and woven wicker basket.
Beauty Never Fades
This stylish Southwestern home has an alluring earthiness courtesy of thoughtfully chosen decor. Not only is this hexagonal Saltillo tile incredibly durable, but its patina also infuses the space with character and warmth. The lived-in look is enhanced by the distressed throw rug with hints of orange and blue. A piece of abstract wall art brings additional color and brightness to the space and helps it feel more contemporary.
Consistency Is Key
Using the same finishes throughout your home can help a large open floor plan feel more cohesive. The stone-colored mosaic tile that stretches above the two-story fireplace can also be seen on an adjacent feature wall. With its warm undertones, the pale gray color palette mellows out the more modern, linear furnishings.
Into The Woods
Natural materials abound in this soothing sitting room. The rustic wooden mantle is stained in the same honey hues as the ceiling beams that span the ceiling at a perpendicular angle. The rough texture in the beams can also be found in decorative elements like a wicker pendant light and sheer sisal roller shades. The multi-textural honeycomb mosaic tiles also look like wood, but they’re crafted out of marble.
Cozy and Comforting Colors
Vanilla has a reputation for being bland and uninspired, but the creamy tones in this restful room provide a compelling counterargument. Whitewashed bricks meld in seamlessly with the decorative woodworking, while a plush beige floor rug further softens the space. Marble topped tables with gold legs give a hint of glam.
Go To The Matte
As the modern farmhouse style of decor has risen in popularity, an increasing number of people are embracing walls with horizontal planks of wood in a style known as shiplap. Shiplap walls traditionally have a matte or flat finish for a more homespun feel. The pattern on these encaustic porcelain tiles hints at a Middle Eastern-inspired influence, but their matte finish helps them slot seamlessly into the space.
Wall-To-Wall Wow Factor
If you discover truly stunning tile, you shouldn’t feel as though you need to limit it to your fireplace surround. In this chic living room, gorgeous sapphire blue arabesque tiles stretch up to the base of a mantel and then span the walls on either side. If you’re only tiling the lower part of a wall, capping it off with chair rail molding helps the room feel more well-defined.
Get Inspired By Nature
The expansive picture windows in this peaceful parlor overlook abundant lush greenery. In turn, the picturesque view has inspired the interior decor in this space. The eco-friendly bamboo flooring that extends throughout the room gleam in the natural light that pours in through the windows. Meanwhile, the natural stone lining the chimney breast has a Zen-like quality.
Start Your Own Tradition
Carrara marble and a custom tapered drywall chase breathe new life into a once-dated living room. The built-in bookshelves that flank the revamped fireplace have a traditional feel to them, which is further amplified by classic furniture like a sock arm couch and a massive coffee table with mitered corners.
Set The Mood
Even if you hate the hassle of building a fire, you don’t have to let this feature go unused. Staging candles inside the firebox allows you to recreate the ambiance of a glowing fire without all of the effort. Over a dozen pillar candles in varying heights create a staggeringly romantic display in this sleek monochromatic sitting room.
Elegant Living Room Fireplace
A warm color palette and traditional architecture and decor come together in this updated take on a Southern Colonial-style home. Chinoiserie is a European imitation of East Asian art forms that was popular in the American South during colonial times. The bright yellow orchids erupting from a pair of matching black Chinoiserie plant stands complement the buttery undertones in the painted walls. Wicker furniture was commonly used in Southern Colonial homes. Wicker weave tile gives a nod to that classic inspiration.
A Breath of Fresh Air
It’s not uncommon for a fireplace to be flanked by floor-to-ceiling built-in shelving. Here, two square windows on either side of the chimney breast create an additional light source that helps the space feel lighter. Open shelving provides additional storage but keeps the space streamlined and simple.
Go Off-Center
A narrow hallway off to the side gives this sitting room a somewhat unconventional layout. Deliberately asymmetrical shelving makes this architectural layout seem more intentional. The vertical firebox mounted in a narrow marble slab helps draw the eye upward and makes the ceilings seem higher. The television niche to the left of that helps balance out the hallways on the other side of the room.
Large Black Tiles Around Fireplace with White Surround
Revitalizing your home doesn’t have to be difficult and sometimes all you need is a few cans of paint. This living area once features drab walls, a faded oak mantel, and peach ceramic tiles. Sanding down the mantel and painting it the same crisp white as the walls immediately made this space feel more modern. After cleaning and sanding the ceramic tile, matte black paint was applied for a graphic look. When painting ceramic tiles, use latex, acrylic latex, or enamel paint for the most long-lasting effect.
Dark Dichotomy
Wraparound picture windows from floor to ceiling fill this modern cabin with abundant natural light, creating an opportunity to play with darker and more dramatic decor. The space is anchored by a stunning modern fireplace that features faceted three-dimensional pentagons and hexagons. The subtle sheen to the black metallic ceramic tilework has an elegant look, especially in conjunction with the gold finish on the abstract modular light fixture.
Modern Farmhouse Living Room with Boho Vibe
Give your modern farmhouse a fun and youthful twist by including bohemian-influenced decor. Certain items in this space fall squarely into one design style patterned cement tile and tufted pillows are distinctly boho, but a reclaimed wood mantel is pure farmhouse. Other objects embody both styles. Most notably, the ornate scrollwork on the decorative window arch has a bohemian vibe while its corrugated metal siding has farmhouse flair.
Break Away From The Pack
From modern to industrial, there are many farmhouse interior design styles to consider. While modern farmhouse design is characterized by features like shiny stainless surfaces and a predominantly white color palette, the industrial version can be a little rough around the edges. Industrial farmhouse blends darker metals like the ones in these iron arched windows with more organic touches like these unfinished wood beams. Painting the brick surrounding the same shade as the walls can preserve the texture and make it feel more contemporary.
New England Nautical
This elegant sitting room offers a glimpse at a more formal version of coastal style. Couches with two-toned taupe stripes are a reference to Breton shirts, which are an iconic nautical fashion choice. Heavy sailcloth curtains subtly complement the sailboat print that rests atop the stately oversized mantelpiece. A patterned throw rug rounds out the design with its pops of ocean blue.
The Bold and Beautiful
Choosing a distinctive tile is an easy way to add some punch to otherwise simple and understated decor. The shape and coloration of these indigo and silver fan glass mosaic tiles are reminiscent of fish scales. The subtle sea-inspired theme is reinforced by a framed painting of a beach that is centered in the overmantel.
Things Are Looking Up
If you’re decorating a room without a lot of square footage, installing horizontal tile can make it feel wider and more spacious. Conversely, if a room has low ceilings, vertical tile can make it look a lot loftier. Matte black vertical tiles elongate this living area, especially when paired with floor-to-ceiling windows.
Anything But Basic Geometry
Despite its use of sharp lines and simple shapes, this fireplace design is deceptively complex. A mosaic of interlocking square and rectangle tiles is softened by the abundant gradation that runs throughout the mile. The shape and colors of the black glass and metal firebox intentionally echoes the TV that hangs above the polished walnut mantel.
International Intrigue
Most people know the word “arabesque” as a body position in ballet, but it also refers to the style of tile seen here. The word arabesque is French in origin and translates to “in the Arabic style”, as the shape is a fundamental motif of Islamic art. This arabesque layout feels particularly chic courtesy of its monochromatic tile and grout and glamorous glazed sheen.
Go High and Low
With its towering ceilings, this gathering spot can only be referred to as a great room. This posh space is adorned with well-appointed furnishings including black leather chairs and a gold chrome light fixture. These premium pieces are grounded by more primal concrete tiles. An espresso brown feature wall helps this vast space feel more inviting.
A New Spin on An Old Classic
This stylish California home is a wonderful example of midcentury modern architecture, which has been further enhanced by thoughtful choices in decor. Though the furniture may not be original to the era, they are well-made contemporary reproductions. Pieces like a silver chrome arc lamp, upholstered swivel lounge chairs, and plush sheepskin area rug are spot-on for the time period. The straight, stacked tile layout is another hallmark of midcentury design. While navy blue isn’t typically found in the midcentury color palette, it plays beautifully off of the orange undertones in the polished hardwood floors.
The Sky Is The Limit
The powdery pastel blue shade of these thin clay tiles has an almost ethereal quality that is reinforced by the choice of bright white grout. Each tile is coated with a hand-applied glaze that brings out subtle but noticeable color variations. The dark colors of the patterned rug may seem jarring in this serene space at first, but when you look closely, you can find sky blue accents that tie it into the rest of the decor.
Make It Work
As more people begin to work from home, living rooms have had to become multifunctional spaces that can also accommodate a home office. Positioning your desk with a striking feature wall behind you will make you the envy of every Zoom meeting. The black grout surrounding this elongated hexagon tile feels cohesive with the black shiplap walls. An abstract black and white painting continues the color story, while the blonde wood mantel keeps the space from feeling too severe.