Wondering where to end your backsplash? Never even thought about it? It can be a surprisingly complex question. These tips will help you find the right place to stop your backsplash to get a crisp look in any kitchen.

From a designer perspective, the best time to stop a backsplash is … never! After all, when you’ve chosen a beautiful material, why wouldn’t you want more of it? Taking a backsplash wall to wall and counter to ceiling makes for continuity of line and definitely a dramatic effect.

Of course, in reality it isn’t always an option to cover every inch of wall in a coveted stone. Someone has to decide: Where should the finish end on the range wall? Above the range hood? Below it? In your project, the decisions can be simple or quite complicated, depending on multiple factors.

General Rule No. 1: 

Tile the Cabinet Walls

Opinions differ on this, but for a polished look tile just the main walls of the kitchen, those that back the cabinets, ending at the corners rather than wrapping around to finish the sides, if there are any. In the case of an odd corner, consider the whole corner part of the “back.”

In some cases, a “sidesplash” on a noncabinet wall can be functional and beautiful, but skipping it is the simplest way to avoid situations where elements don’t line up neatly. Typically, the counter, upper cabinets and wall all end at different places on the sides, leaving no definitive stopping point.

Small Kitchens 

Fully covering the wall usually is your best bet in a small kitchen or in a larger kitchen that has just a small area for the backsplash.

A layout, with just a single backsplash area between the fridge cabinet and the side wall, is common in galley kitchens in apartments and condominiums. Tiling the entire area in one material makes for the tidiest finish, which can help make the kitchen look its biggest.

Big Kitchens

In the case of a very large kitchen, or one with dramatically tall ceilings, taking tile to full height can bust the budget or completely overload the look. In a case like this, ending the tile vertically at the same line as the upper cabinets gives a better finish.

If you use a darker color for the tiles than the remaining upper wall, it can visually help bring down the apparent ceiling line and make the room feel a little more intimate.

In spaces with taller ceilings, a bulkhead often is used to fill in the void above the uppers. This also gives the tile a natural place to finish, so everything looks pleasingly framed in and there’s no empty space left to collect knickknacks and dust.

General Rule No. 2: 

Align Cabinets and Backsplash Edges

Knowing where to stop the tile horizontally is easy if your kitchen runs wall to wall, but what if it ends partway along a longer wall? In a case like this, where the kitchen cabinetry ends midroom, the best option is to end the upper cabinets, lower cabinets and backsplash all in one crisp line.

Of course, this requires the upper and lower cabinets to align crisply, which can take careful planning when laying out the kitchen. Using filler panels and adjusting the spacing around a window can help make cabinets end at the same place on the top and bottom, even if the widths of each cabinet don’t match perfectly above and below.

Other Tiling Considerations

Peninsulas

What about times when the upper and lower cabinets don’t align? A common place for this to occur is in U- or L-shaped kitchens where the uppers end over a peninsula. In this case, Experts suggest ending the backsplash in line with the uppers, so you still get a crisp vertical line.

Windows

Sometimes there will be very small areas of wall between windows and a counter or cabinet. It may be tempting to leave these areas empty and often easier on the tile installer, but the overall effect will be subtly tidier if you imagine the window does not exist when planning where to end the tile.

Modern Slab Backsplashes 

In a kitchen with modern styling and a cool slab backsplash, it’s extra important for the elements to align pleasingly, or the look can become sloppy. The cabinets and counter should be sized to line up perfectly. When installing a peninsula with an overhang, you can also add or subtract an inch or two of counter to make the math work out just right.

Traditional Slab Backsplashes 

Going for a more traditional or farmhouse-inspired look? A charming slab backsplash benefits from having some negative space left around it and doesn’t really need to line up with anything — in fact, it can be almost better if it doesn’t.

Edgy Tiles 

If you have an interesting tile shape, such as a hexagon, you can consider ending the tile with a messy edge to give a more relaxed appeal. This can apply to the horizontal ends and the verticals. 

Cabinet-Free Walls 

In L- or U-shaped kitchens that have large areas — or entire walls — with no upper cabinets, you can tile the empty wall full height or simply continue the upper line of the backsplash around the entire room.

Ending the backsplash with a shelf, even a shallow one, can give it a nice cap on walls where there are no other particular ending points such as a window or cabinet.

Differing Heights 

In a kitchen with many items at different heights, use the bottom of the cabinets as a main stopping point, with possibly a little exception at the range for a taller backsplash up to the hood. 

In more traditional kitchens, sometimes the tile will run even a little above the bottom of the cabinets, which gives a pleasing overlap that feels more relaxed and reduces the need to cut tiles into tiny slivers.

Another way to solve any backsplash height conundrums is to use an elegant short backsplash, just a few inches tall. This way, you can run it around the entire counter at one unbroken height and leave the rest of the wall a uniform color.

You can also pair a short backsplash with a second backsplash material, so you have one style, usually the more high-end material, such as a stone slab, run continuously and then a second material in pieces where needed to fill in.

One Last Cost-Saving Idea

Keep in mind, a full-height backsplash may not be as budget-busting or as visually overwhelming as you would think. A classic porcelain tile, with an optional contrast grout, can give a sophisticated, classic look for just a few dollars per square foot, meaning it can actually be a more luxe-looking option than a higher-end material used in a conservative dose.

I once heard a story about a homeowner who had a major design regret. During a previous renovation, she elected to put all four counter stools on the same side of her kitchen island, a frequent spot for her family meals. This left her with a beautiful look but turned out to be an unfortunate mistake from a functional perspective. Now everyone in the family face in one direction, like strangers in a diner.

Don’t let a good visual get in the way of functionality. Before you renovate or give your island an update, consider these options for how to choose the best dining arrangement to save your household — and your knees — a lot of bumps down the road.

One-Side Seating

An island with seating on just one side is a common arrangement for a reason, and it can work well for some situations. However, if you’re looking to use the island as a frequent spot for family meals, it’s usually not ideal. Placing all seats on one side means everyone who is seated will be facing forward in a line, which doesn’t facilitate conversation.

This works fine when just one or a few guests will be perched, chatting with the chef, or for a small household where most meals involve just one or two people. If the island isn’t expected to be used for larger groups than that, it makes sense not to dedicate any more space to seating.

If you don’t have room or a need for seats on more than one side, go the simple one-side route — just keep in mind that some factors will affect how comfortably guests can sit.

If your island has sides or legs that the seats sit between, they might cut into the legroom.

Choosing an island without sides will give a bit more space for legs and knees, and more flexibility to scoot the stools to the side a little so diners can face toward each other more easily.

Two-Side Seating: Adjacent Sides

Adding seats to even just one adjacent side can go a long way to making your island a much more inviting spot to dine. By extending the island overhang to two sides instead of just one, you allow guests to sit facing each other.

You can keep seats on both sides at all times, or save space by keeping seats on just one side most of the time and pulling a seat over to the available shorter side when needed.

This can be a great compromise where the floor plan doesn’t leave a lot of room for seating. By extending the overhang a few inches on the short side, you allow it to be used as a dining spot in a pinch, without losing too much storage or circulation space.

If you use a rounded corner, you can effectively get three directions of seats from just two sides of the island, for a dining experience that’s even closer to sitting at a regular table.

Two-Side Seating: Opposite Sides

If your kitchen is long and skinny, it may make more sense to have a long, thin island, with seating on two opposite sides. This means guests can face each other, although if the island is quite narrow, you may not have much room to fit place settings as well as serving dishes.

If you don’t mind the more eclectic look, mixing bar stools that have backs with backless bar stools will give you the best of both worlds, with comfier seats for everyday use and more compact seats to pull out for bigger get-togethers.

Three-Side Seating

Generally, fitting seats on three sides of the island requires a large kitchen. However, there are multiple configurations that can work for different layouts.

One option is to extend a dining area out from the island to create a T shape. This essentially butts a full table up against the island, for plenty of seating for six or even more.

Compared with having a stand-alone table away from the island, this takes up less floor area because you don’t have circulation space between the island and table. Of course, the trade-off is the table has only three useable sides.

In an average-size kitchen, the decision often comes down to whether you want a more casual or more formal experience. For casual dining, this is a great solution that keeps the chef in on the action.

Four-Side Seating

Lastly, there is the option of skipping the proper island all together and using a dining table as an island instead. This gives up the storage space of an island cabinet but still provides an extra surface for prep work while cooking and obviously a dining space once the meal is ready.

If you use a bar height table, it can easily double as a workspace. However, it will be extra important to use seats that tuck up against or under the table so the surface is easy to reach.

Selecting the Number of Seats

Islands are often staged for photos with the maximum number and size of plush seats that can fit on each side. However, in real life, people don’t always take up just a seat’s width of space, with knees and elbows needing some room of their own.

An island can look just as stylish with some breathing room around the seats, and anyone who dines there will be glad to have enough personal space to feel comfortable.

Plan for each guest to have 24 to 30 inches of counter width. But be as generous as you realistically can. If you’re planning out the configuration of your island, try drawing or taping out different scenarios to see which allows for the most seats of this size in your space.

Backless Stools

Once you add seats to any side of the island that is in the potential flow of traffic or the chef’s workspace, you may want to consider using backless bar stools for your seating, or a style that otherwise can tuck fully under the counter and out of the way.

Seating With Arms

If you have a narrow island, seats with arms will provide a more comfortable dining experience. At the same time, arms generally take up more space and often won’t tuck under as easily. If you hope to use stools with arms, plan for each guest to have 28 to 32 inches of width instead.

Carefully consider whether you have the space for roomy stools with arms. If you do, consider it an investment in many comfortable meals at your wonderful dining island.