19 Outdoor Tile Designs for Your Garden

Here are 19 outdoor tile designs that are the perfect addition for anyone wanting to upgrade their outdoor space. Get inspired and add a touch of elegance to your outdoor space!

Contents

1. Bright Base With Pale Stone

2. Zone Spaces With Contrast

3. Light Tones Lift Small Plots

4. Charcoal For Evening Atmosphere

5. Terracotta For Courtyard Warmth

6. Decked Look Without Decking

7. Split Face For Instant Texture

8. Brick Slips For Built In Character

9. Travertine For Quiet Elegance

10. Flagstone Feel Made Simple

11. Herringbone Adds Movement

12. Small Formats Sharpen Nooks

13. Texture For Grip And Depth

14. Soft Greys As A Modern Base

15. Slate Effect With Rugged Edge

16. Large Slabs For Seamless Flow

17. One Feature Wall That Anchors Everything

18. Walkways And Trims That Organise The Plot

19. Stepping Pads That Keep Things Practical

Outdoor tiles can lift a garden in a way paint or planting alone can’t. These tiles do two big things at once. First, they make your space look considered - not “bit of decking, bit of slab, plastic chair from the shed,” but intentional. Second, they make your garden easier to live with. Easier to clean after a barbecue. Easier to zone so the kids can be feral in one bit and you can sit with a drink in another. Easier to enjoy in the usual British mix of drizzle, bright spells and a breeze that arrives uninvited.

If you’re shopping for outdoor tiles, it can feel like a lot. Stone effect. Wood effect. Split face. Herringbone. Big format. Brick slips. You don’t need to know all the names. You just need to know what each look does for your garden.

Below are the key ideas we’d recommend exploring. Each one is about mood, practicality and how you actually use your outdoor space in British weather. We’ve included examples from our Outdoor Tiles range just to show you the kind of thing we mean.

Use these ideas as “this could be us” moodboards. Mix two or three in the same garden and it’ll feel layered in a good way, not messy.

19 Outdoor Tile Designs

1. Bright Base With Pale Stone

Pale stone effect porcelain sets a calm foundation that bounces daylight and helps compact or fenced plots feel open. It behaves like a clean canvas for sofas, planters and lanterns so weeknights feel useable rather than waiting for the one hot weekend. A brighter floor stops narrow side returns or close boundary walls reading like a tunnel and makes planting pop without shouting. A good example is Lunara in pale tones or Calla in soft grey for that airy, all day feel.

2. Zone Spaces With Contrast

Most UK gardens do several jobs at once. Switching tile tone or pattern under a dining set, beside a pizza oven or around a bar quietly declares what happens where so you do not need walls. A deeper patch invites evening chats and grown up time while a lighter patch nudges morning coffee and kids crafts. You are drawing a floor plan under your feet and everything runs smoother. For contrast that works, pair a dark surface like Pacific Anthracite with something light and easy like Lunara or Calla.

3. Light Tones Lift Small Plots

Soft greys and near whites make a yard feel breezy even under a heavy sky. They sit happily with timber benches, black planters and leafy greens and they do not clash with furniture you already own. In long, narrow gardens a pale floor keeps the view from feeling like a corridor and pushes light back toward the house. The look comes together with Calla in light grey or Lunara in white and beige.

4. Charcoal For Evening Atmosphere

When you want intimacy, go darker. Charcoal and anthracite visually pull the ground down so foliage, candles and festoons glow at dusk. Between cleans they are forgiving with paddling pools, barbecues and muddy trainers on the same day, shifting from kids party to grown up drinks without drama. The after hours mood lands neatly with Taranto slate tones or Carmona in deeper shades.

5. Terracotta For Courtyard Warmth

From burnt orange to biscuit, terracotta changes the energy of a corner and brings a little holiday home. A small café square under a bistro set or a sheltered nook with herbs instantly feels sunnier and it pairs beautifully with rough render and climbing greens. It still looks good on a grey Tuesday which is handy. The feel is easy to achieve with Helston Terracotta in brick or square formats.

6. Decked Look Without Decking

Love timber, not the upkeep. Wood effect porcelain gives you the boardwalk vibe without sanding or staining. Run planks lengthways to stretch a narrow plot or lay a short boardwalk to the shed or hot tub for calm, spa energy. It wipes clean after showers and spills and keeps its good mood through the seasons. The style ranges from coastal to rich and grown up with Fallowfield in Weathered Oak, Natural Oak and Dark Oak.

7. Split Face For Instant Texture

Flat boundaries make a garden feel unfinished. A strip of split face cladding behind a bench, along an outdoor kitchen or on a feature panel adds shadow and depth with minimal effort. It breaks up long fences, hides old brick and turns an ignored edge into a backdrop that frames the view from the house. For an easy win, look to Casterton Split Face in greys and naturals or Silvetta Split Face in warmer mixes.

8. Brick Slips For Built In Character

Brick slips bring old yard charm without the weight of full bricks. Wrap a raised planter, face the front of a bar or add a small splashback behind a pizza oven and the whole space gains story. Mortar tone sets the mood, with pale for fresh and charcoal for heritage. The palette is easy to style with Dalby Brick Slips in Anglia, Brittany, Avon, Grosvenor, Barnhouse, Picadilly and Caramel.

9. Travertine For Quiet Elegance

Creamy neutrals with gentle movement feel more hotel terrace than showpiece rooftop. They flatter teak, rattan and linen look textiles and they make long lunches and slow mornings feel natural rather than staged. The calm tone lets you layer lanterns, olive trees and black steel without visual noise. The serene brief lands beautifully with Reva Travertine Effect in beige or grey.

10. Flagstone Feel Made Simple

Traditional flagstones are beautiful and fiddly to lay. Modular effect porcelain prints mixed sizes onto each slab so you get the patchwork look without the puzzle. It hides little scuffs after a lively barbecue and makes a new space feel settled from day one with that easy, old garden patina. The simple route is Corby Limestone Modular Effect in grey or beige.

11. Herringbone Adds Movement

Pattern is a quiet way to guide people. Herringbone brings subtle energy and says this patch matters, whether it frames a garden office door, anchors a bar run or turns a small square into a reading nook. Keep it soft and modern in gentle greys or lean warm for a pub garden cosiness. The ready made option is Yateley Herringbone in light grey or light brown.

12. Small Formats Sharpen Nooks

Compact 200 x 200 tiles on a crisp grid create tidy geometry that suits bistro corners, outdoor kitchen plinths and wipe clean landing pads by French doors. A mix of light and mid greys gives a gentle checker that hides crumbs and paw prints between sweeps and looks smart without shouting. For neat, versatile squares, look to Fago, Sulu and Deltano.

13. Texture For Grip And Depth

Smooth patio is lovely for dining but busy walkways, steps and the side return ask for more feel underfoot. Gentle ridges, pitting and grain add grip when it is drizzly and bring visual depth so the garden never reads flat. Continue that texture up a raised bed, around an outdoor kitchen front or behind a bench and the whole scheme feels built in. The balance of safety and style is easy with Barisan Textured Stone Effect and the textured options in Carmona.

14. Soft Greys As A Modern Base

Grey behaves. It plays nicely with black fencing, white render, warm timber and bold planting, reading tidy without sliding into clinical. It is the safe bet for modern gardens with grasses, structural shrubs and simple furniture and it keeps tableware and fabrics easy to pair. The palette runs from mellow to crisp with Carmona Grey, Perca Grey, Gordola Grey and Makira in light and dark tones.

15. Slate Effect With Rugged Edge

Layered colour and mineral depth bring a confident, slightly wild character that suits oversized pots, Japanese maples, grasses and simple steel furniture. It moves you away from new build patio into something with presence and works year round in our climate. The look is strong and steady with Taranto Natural Slate Effect or Sedan Rustic Slate Effect.

16. Large Slabs For Seamless Flow

Bigger formats reduce joints so surfaces read calmer and cleaning is quicker after a rainy kickabout. They carry corner sofas and long tables without visual clutter and make generous stepping pads across gravel so planting can breathe while routes stay practical. The inside to out flow feels effortless with Potenza 600 x 1200, Sabio 600 x 900 and Makira 600 x 600.

17. One Feature Wall That Anchors Everything

18. Walkways And Trims That Organise The Plot

You do not have to retile the whole garden to make it work harder. A slim run from the back door to seating saves the lawn in winter, guides feet where you want them and visually stretches the space by pulling the eye down the garden. A contrasting border around gravel or grass adds a crisp frame and a sense of order. The look is simple to achieve by edging a light patio such as Calla with a darker run like Lunara Graphite.

19. Stepping Pads That Keep Things Practical

Dropping big single slabs through gravel or planting looks polished and stays sensible when it rains. They make easy routes to the shed, link the hot tub and let you carry a plate and a drink without a tightrope act. Keep tones in the same family as your main terrace to pull the plot together. The job is neat and quick with large format pieces such as Deltano in grey or white and Marajo in light or dark grey.

Choosing Tiles For Real Life

Begin with how you live. If this is scooters, muddy paws and birthdays, choose surfaces that forgive and shades that hide the everyday. If this is slow mornings and late evenings, lean into palettes that flatter candlelight and greenery. 

Pale opens and lightens, charcoal creates evening mood and masks the chaos, terracotta brings a little holiday warmth when the forecast is stubborn and soft grey keeps things modern and easy to style. 

Choose one main surface you love being on, then add a contrasting texture or pattern to focus a dining patch, a bar run or a reading corner. Think about rain, pets and parties and pick finishes that still look good after all three. 

When the garden reads intentional you use it more, even on ordinary Tuesdays.