Kit Kat Tiles

What Are Kit Kat Tiles?

Kit Kat tiles, also known as finger tiles, are a narrow, elongated tile format — usually supplied on a mosaic sheet — named for their resemblance to the slim fingers of the chocolate bar. Where a standard square tile is laid one-to-one in a simple grid, a Kit Kat tile's long, thin shape (typically a 2:1 to 3:1 ratio) can be run stacked, staggered or in a herringbone pattern, giving you far more layout options from a single tile shape. That flexibility is why Kit Kat tiles are a go-to for splashback tiles and feature walls, whether you keep it simple or run them in a herringbone tiles pattern for something bolder.

Where to Use Kit Kat Tiles

Kit Kat tiles are mostly a wall tiles product. Their long, narrow shape and closely spaced grout lines suit a feature wall, shower surround or splashback far better than an open floor, where the same lines can visually shrink a room and get harder to keep clean underfoot. You'll see them doing the most work as kitchen splashbacks (our kitchen splashback tiles colours guide has more layout ideas if you're narrowing down a look), bathroom tiles shower surrounds, and feature walls in living spaces.

If you do want the look underfoot, keep it to a small, low-traffic area and pair it with a slip-rated finish. For anything larger, a rectangle tiles in a bigger format will be easier to lay and live with day to day.

Kit Kat Tiles vs Subway Tiles

Kit Kat and subway tiles are close cousins, not the same tile. Subway tiles keep closer to the classic brick proportions of the original early-1900s tile — usually a 1:2 or 1:3 ratio — laid in a simple offset bond. Kit Kat (finger) tiles push that idea further, with a slimmer 2:1 to 3:1 ratio that reads as a strong, linear line rather than a brick. That extra length is what unlocks the wider range of layouts above, giving Kit Kat tiles a slightly more contemporary, dynamic feel next to a subway tile's classic, symmetrical look.

Materials & Finishes

Kit Kat tiles come in porcelain, ceramic, glass and natural stone, so whatever look you're after — a rustic, honed stone finger tile or a sleek gloss glass one — there's a version that fits. Matte finishes tend to hide water spots and everyday marks best in a shower or splashback; gloss brings more light and shine to a smaller space. Either way, the smooth, sealed surface makes for straightforward cleaning.

Pair a Kit Kat feature wall with a large-format, plain tile on the floor in the same room for the classic feature-wall-plus-plain-floor combination.