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How to tile around a window

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Tiling around a window can be a little tricky but with the right guidance and step by step approach it can be DIY’d! In this guide we’ll take you through how to tile around a window, whether you’re using a trim or not. Firstly, if you don’t know how to tile at all… follow our how to guide for tiling a wall and use this simple process to start from the base of the wall underneath the window, tiling up to the level of the windowsill.

 If you’ve followed our setting out guide then you should be using as many whole tiles as possible for a neat finish, this will reduce the amount of cutting required. But as a window needs specific measuring, continue your guide marks from the wall to mark where your tiles need to be within the recess. You’ll need to then dry lay the last tile on the wall to mark where it will need to be cut so there is no lippage between the wall tile and the window’s recess.

Repeat this dry laying and marking process for the other tiles left and right of the window and for one row above the window recess.

It’s a good idea to put your marked tiles in specific piles to denote which sides you’ve measured and mark them in position (aka 1, 2, 3 etc.)

It’s most likely that you’ll also be tiling inside the window recess, if you are, mark this in the same way as the outer tiles. If you’ve got a large window recess, or using very small tiles, start from the window and work your way forwards to the edge of the recess. You can then measure up the sides and above, if you’re tiling these areas too.


Start cutting your tiles to the designated markings, we’d advise doing these one at a time and checking them in situ with a spirit level if you’re a novice, that way you avoid making multiple mistakes and potentially wasting tiles.   If you’re tiling around the window using a trim then step four is the point at which you would add them into place, if you’re not using a trim, skip to step five.

Trims are typically added where you finish tiling your non-recess wall, so you’ve already tiled below your window until the last tile, you’ve marked it in place and cut it to size and then measured it to ensure it’s level. Now you need to measure and fit your trim before fixing that last row of tiles to the wall.

Measure your trim so it fits the sides of your window, marking where to cut. You can cut a trim with a hacksaw, and we’d suggest using a mitre block to create a 45-degree angle (known as a mitre cut) as it looks more polished and sits flush in the corners, however there is no right way to cut a trim, it is personal preference!

You’ll need to repeat this process for each side of the window and just check that they fit comfortably together. If so, apply your adhesive, embed the trim into the adhesive and push them into place, you can then apply the rest of your adhesive within the space of the last tile and your trim and then place the tile on top.

You can now move on to step six.

If you’re not using a trim and you’ve skipped step four, the next step is to fix in place your measured tile row that sits flush with the window recess, you do this the same as the rest of your wall tiles, you will just need to ensure the gap between this tile row and the window recess tiles is grouted once your tiling is complete.

Whether you’ve chosen to use a trim or not, the next step is to tile your window recess.

Start from the window frame and tile outward, starting on the windowsill before tiling the sides. Continue in rows as you would a normal wall, placing all your tiles horizontally (parallel to the window frame) before placing your final row of cut tiles at the front of the recess.

If you’re tiling the top of the recess, complete this last and use T-shaped wooden batons to hold the tiles in place whilst they dry.

You can now carry on with tiling the rest of your room, and once the adhesive is dry (usually 24 hours, depending on the temperature of the room and the type of adhesive you have used) you can start applying your grout.

Remember, if you’ve not used a trim you will need to connect the edges of the tiles around the recess with grout to seal them.

Once your grout has dried and the tiles have been cleaned, apply a bead of silicone around your window frame to ensure a watertight finish.
Wall TilesHow to tile around a window