Kitchen splashback height: how high should you tile?

A kitchen splashback doesn’t have one correct height: it has several that make sense, and which one you choose depends on where the wall gets dirty, how the units are arranged, and the look you want. The question “how high to tile” sounds like a matter of centimetres, but it’s really a matter of logic: once you understand where the splashback starts and where it ends, the right height almost works itself out. Tiles, whether ceramic or the more technical porcelain, remain the most chosen solution precisely because they combine wall protection with easy cleaning — but the starting point is deciding how much wall to cover.

Where it starts and where it ends: the logic of the measurements

The heights of a kitchen splashback aren’t arbitrary numbers: they follow from the measurements of the units. Knowing these three figures makes every decision easier.

The worktop usually sits at around 90 cm from the floor, a measurement tied to the height of whoever cooks: taller than average, you tend to raise it to 95–100 cm; shorter, you go down towards 75–80 cm. It’s from this height that the exposed stretch of wall to be protected begins.

Above the worktop, the space between worktop and wall units is typically 50–60 cm. This is the band most exposed to splashes, steam and grease, the one that justifies the splashback on its own. When the base units are deeper, the wall units can be hung lower, which reduces this space.

The extractor hood, finally, has to be fitted at least 65 cm above the hob for reasons of safety and extraction performance, and in its visible version it remains an important visual reference: it sets how far up the splashback should reach so that the transition doesn’t look untidy. Keeping these three figures in mind — worktop at 90, space of 50–60, hood at 65 above the hob — is the most reliable way not to get the height wrong.

The most common height options

In practice, four choices come up again and again, each with its own logic. The low band protects the bare minimum, the standard splashback covers the working zone up to the wall units, the run up to the extractor hood follows a design line, and the full wall frees the kitchen from the units. The table sets the four solutions side by side, along with the cases where each one makes sense.

The 60 cm band remains the standard because it lines up with the actual working zone, but the other options aren’t fallbacks: they answer different needs. One detail many people discover too late: if the splashback stops at an in-between height and the wall units don’t cover the untiled part exactly, a strip of bare wall stays visible and breaks up the whole. Deciding the height after the position of the wall units has been fixed, rather than before, avoids this stepped effect.

The two-metre reference and hygiene

You often hear that, in the kitchen, you should tile “up to two metres”. It’s a real reference, but it needs putting in context: it isn’t a uniform national rule. Various local building regulations require kitchen walls to be clad up to about two metres or made of a washable and disinfectable material. Full-height tiling is therefore one of the ways to meet the requirement, not the only one, and the exact height depends on the local regulation and the intended use — the case is different, for example, for commercial kitchens.

The practical point is that the genuinely critical zone for hygiene is the one around the hob and sink, where grease, splashes and steam land. There you need a surface that cleans up thoroughly and copes with close contact with heat. A washable, low-porosity surface is what makes the kitchen wall easy to maintain over time — and this is where the choice of wall material stops being purely about looks.

Why porcelain suits this zone

Among the materials used for a kitchen splashback, porcelain has properties that make it particularly suited to the working zone. Its extremely low water absorption — under 0.5%, so much so that it’s described as a near-waterproof surface — means splashes and steam don’t penetrate: they stay on the surface and wipe straight off. That’s the difference you notice behind the hob, where grease and heat put any wall to the test. Porcelain stoneware, to use the industry term, is built precisely for this kind of demanding surface.

Added to this is its heat resistance, useful in the area right above the hob, and a low-maintenance quality that doesn’t fade with time or with the everyday degreasing products you use. On the aesthetic side, rectified porcelain — the version with edges cut precisely to 90° — allows minimal grout lines, around 2 mm: once laid, the eye stops reading the lines and takes in the splashback as a continuous surface, an effect that especially enhances the up-to-the-hood and full-wall solutions. If you’re after that clean continuity, a concrete effect is among the most consistent choices for contemporary kitchens; and to get your bearings across effects, sizes and finishes, it’s best to start from the general overview of tiles for the kitchen.

Frequently asked questions

What is the standard height of a kitchen splashback?

The most common measurement is around 60 cm: it covers the space between the worktop and the bottom of the wall units, that is, the zone most exposed to splashes and steam. It’s the standard because it lines up with the actual working zone.

Is it worth tiling the kitchen up to the ceiling?

It makes sense in two cases: when you want to be able to move or replace the units in future without having to redo the splashback, and in kitchens with no wall units, where the full wall becomes a full-height design feature. It means more material and more installation, but it offers greater freedom in the layout.

Should the wall behind the hob be tiled higher?

The hob zone is the one most stressed by heat and splashes, so it should always be covered, even when you go for a low band elsewhere. With a visible extractor hood, running the splashback up to the hood at the cooking area is the tidiest solution.