Subway tiles vs. hexagon tiles in the bathroom - what’s your pick?

Honestly, I get the subway tile appeal - less grout is always tempting. But for me, hex tiles have actually been more forgiving during installs, especially in older homes where walls aren’t dead straight. You can cheat the layout a bit and no one notices. Maintenance is a pain, sure, but if you use epoxy grout and a good sealer on day one, it’s not as bad as folks think. Just my two cents...

- Ran into this exact issue renovating a 1920s duplex - those walls are never straight, and subway tiles really highlighted every imperfection.
- Hex tiles let me fudge the layout a bit, especially around weird corners.
- Maintenance: epoxy grout helps, but still more scrubbing than I’d like.
- For resale, I’ve noticed buyers lean toward subway for that “classic” look, but the hex pattern gets compliments on walkthroughs.

Subway tiles definitely win points for resale, but man, those uneven old walls turn a “quick” job into a weekend project real fast. I’ve had better luck with hex tiles hiding the weird spots - plus, they’re more forgiving if your measuring tape skills aren’t perfect (guilty). Only downside is cleaning all that grout... gets old quick. Still, buyers seem to love the classic subway look even if it’s not always practical.

Honestly, leveling old walls is half the battle with subway tiles. If you want that classic look but have uneven surfaces, try using a larger format subway tile - easier to fudge small dips and bumps. For hex tiles, I always recommend sealing the grout well, especially in bathrooms. Makes cleaning way less of a headache down the line. Both have their quirks, but if you’re aiming for speed and forgiveness, hex usually wins on tricky walls.

I totally hear you on the old walls struggle - my 1920s bathroom had more waves than the ocean when I started tiling. I actually went with classic white subway tiles because I was after that old-school vibe, but man, getting them to line up was a bit of a puzzle. The larger ones definitely helped hide some of the dips, like you mentioned, though I still had to do a bit of creative shimming here and there.

Funny thing about hex tiles: my neighbor did those on her bathroom floor and raved about how forgiving they were. She had some pretty uneven spots too, and the small size made it easy to nudge them into place. She did warn me about grout, though - said if you don’t seal it well, it’s like a magnet for grime. I guess with all those little lines, it’s just more places for stuff to settle in.

I’m with you on the quirks for both. Subway gives you that timeless look but needs patience if your walls aren’t straight. Hex is a bit more playful and, yeah, probably wins for speed if things are out of whack. At the end of the day, I think either can look awesome if you take your time and don’t stress too much about perfection - honestly, a little character never hurt anyone.