Choosing Grout Colors: How to Find The Best Color For Your Tile

Kitchen stove and range hood with white tile backsplash
Light grout color makes this kitchen tile backsplash blend in seamlessly with the surrounding wall. (3 Echoes Content Studio)

With so many grout colors available, choosing the best one for your project can be challenging.

This post is sponsored by Custom Building Products.

Aesthetically speaking, one of the most important decisions when choosing grout is whether it will blend with or stand out from the tile.

Light grout between light tiles can make your installation look like a single uniform piece — ideal for minimalist design. On the other hand, contrasting dark grout with light tiles makes a bold statement.

To pick grout color based on the impact you want your finished design to have, consider the following:

In This Article


Multi-colored accent tile in white subway tile
Choose grout color based on the tiles’ style and design. (MultimediaDean/Getty Images)

Tile Design

Consider the tile’s characteristics and appearance. Then, answer these questions to ensure a successful installation:

  • Are the tiles patterned or do they have a solid color? With patterned tile, pick a grout color that best matches the tile edges so the pattern isn’t interrupted.
  • Are they natural stone or manufactured ceramic? For more contrast with natural stone tile, pick a darker color to highlight the dark veins.
  • If it is glass tile, is it transparent or opaque? White grout accentuates clear, iridescent and translucent glass tile.
  • Are there mosaic sheets or accents, and do they contain differently-colored tiles? Pick a neutral grout that works well with all the colors, or try a
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Ask Danny | Ep. 15: Fire Safety Tips Straight From the Experts


October is National Fire Prevention Month, so this week, I’m chatting with Capt. Dwight Smith and Steven Millhouse with Mobile Fire-Rescue in Alabama about their top fire safety tips for homeowners.


Firefighters outside of a burning home
Once you’ve escaped a house fire, never go back inside to retrieve any items. (davelogan, Getty Images Signature)

Fire Safety Plan

How do you put together a fire safety plan?

Stephen: The first thing is to actually have a plan. Many don’t even consider it until an emergency happens. You want to have a plan in place especially if you have small children or elderly people living with you as well.

  • Know the sound of the smoke alarm.
  • Practice escaping the home safely.
  • Know your means of egress, whether it’s the nearest door or window if you have a multi-story home.
  • Let your children practice crawling. You can make it like a game to make it fun for them.
  • Have a safe meeting spot outside, whether it’s the mailbox, a big tree at the end of the driveway, or a neighbor’s house.
  • Get out and stay out. Don’t run back in for pets, photo albums or anything like that. Call 911 and let the professionals do their job.

Dwights: To expand on having children practice crawling, making it like a game also makes it a reality to them because it makes them familiar with what they need to do.

Direct them to feel on doors, and tell them if it feels hot, then they should go to the window.

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Home Design Software Tips – Before You Build

The benefits of using home design software can be unbelievable. Whether you have experience with home-building design or not, home design software can give you a pretty clear picture of what the new house is actually going to look like and this is wonderful.

1. Make sure that you understand how the software works. Take some time to read the instructions and practice using the software until you become comfortable with all of the tools and other options that are available in the program.

2. Get a couple of books on house design, to make sure that you are designing everything so that it will function and flow properly in the new house. In other words, don’t make your hallways to big and your bedrooms too small.

3. Don’t design a house with engineering problems. Your home could look marvelous on your computer, but have engineering problems. Don’t get too excited, before you actually try to figure out if the home can be built.

4. Once you have a pretty good design, you’re going to need to make sure that all of the electrical, plumbing, heating and air-conditioning systems will actually work and function well with the home design.

5. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to understand how homes are actually constructed, before you design one. I can’t tell you how many architects I have worked with, who don’t understand how homes are actually built.

If you have the house design software, design a couple of different buildings, before … Read More