Tile and flooring allowances: how to check yours covers what you pick

Your contract says something like "Tile allowance: $1,500." Then you find the tile you love at $14 a square foot, and nobody can tell you whether it fits. This guide is the math. For what an allowance is in general, start with allowances in a remodel contract.

(If you searched "flooring allowance" because you're buying or selling a house, that's a different thing: a credit at closing. This guide is about remodel contracts.)

Four questions to ask about your allowance

1. Does it cover material only, or material plus installation? Under AIA's standard approach, an allowance covers the cost of the material delivered to the site, and labor, installation, overhead, and profit are priced elsewhere in the contract (AIA Contract Documents). Residential contracts vary, so check yours.
2. Is it per square foot or a lump sum? "$5/sq ft" and "$1,500" behave very differently once you add waste.
3. Does it include tax, delivery, and waste? If not, those come out of your pocket.
4. What happens to the difference? AIA's approach adjusts the contract by change order for the difference (AIA). Ask whether the contractor adds markup on an overage, and whether you get a credit if you come in under.

How much extra to order

You'll always buy more than the floor area. Manufacturers and retailers give these guidelines:

Your installer has the final say. They know the room and the layout. Mohawk also suggests keeping extra for future repairs (it recommends 10–15% more), and Wayne Tile points out that if you run short, a new box may come from a different dye lot and not match, which is one more reason to keep a little "attic stock."

The math, step by step

1. Area = length × width for each surface (floor, shower walls, backsplash)
2. Area to buy = area × (1 + extra %)
3. Boxes = area to buy ÷ square feet per box, rounded up
4. Material cost = boxes × square feet per box × price per square foot
5. Add sales tax and delivery if the allowance doesn't include them
6. Difference = material cost − allowance. If it's positive and your contract adds markup, add that too.

Mohawk's worked example: a 12 × 15 ft room is 180 sq ft. Add 10% and you get 198 sq ft. At 17.3 sq ft per carton that's 11.4, so you buy 12 cartons (Mohawk FAQ, PDF).

Example: one bathroom, two tile choices

(Illustrative numbers. Your prices, box sizes, tax, and contract terms will differ.)

Allowance: $1,500, material only. Floor plus shower walls: 120 sq ft. Straight lay, 15% extra. Boxes hold 10 sq ft. Sales tax 9%.

If the contract adds a 10% markup on overages, Tile B's change order is about $700. Switch the shower walls to herringbone and the extra goes from 15% to about 20%, which raises the cost again.

Also ask about labor. Large-format tile, mosaics, and patterns can change the installation price, which sits outside a material-only allowance. Ask before you order.

Lighting and fixture allowances work by count

Lighting, plumbing fixture, and hardware allowances are usually a count times a price: 8 recessed lights, 2 pendants, 1 faucet. The same questions apply: does the allowance include trim kits, bulbs, tax, and delivery, and what markup applies to an overage?

Track allowances as decisions

In RenoBinder, each allowance item is a decision with a decide-by date and a budget line showing planned, committed, and paid. When a pick goes over, log the change order and watch the revised total.

General information, not professional advice. Waste factors are manufacturer and retailer guidelines. Confirm quantities with your installer, and check how your contract defines each allowance.

Open the free tool

Launch offer: 30% off with code LAUNCH30