15 Tiny Bathroom Ideas For a Beautiful and Functional Space
Transform the smallest bathroom of your home into a lavatory luxury with these efficient and stylish design ideas.
A captivating challenge often arises in homes of various sizes, shapes, and eras—the tiny bathroom. It’s easy to underestimate the significance of these compact spaces, as they have different considerations than larger-size bathrooms.
Adding or designing a tiny bathroom requires meticulous planning to optimize functionality, aesthetics, and comfort within constrained dimensions. To maximize the limited space, prioritize vertical and horizontal storage solutions like wall-mounted shelves and opt for space-saving features like compact toilets and sinks where possible. Lighter or neutral colors also create an illusion of spaciousness, and adding mirrors helps reflect light and give the space a larger feel.
Even the smallest bathrooms need style and functionality, as they influence guest experiences and even the value of your property—even with spatial constraints. Here are some of our favorite ideas for tiny bathrooms, from modern bathrooms in tiny homes to sleek half baths for guest use. Use these as inspiration for your next tiny bathroom renovation.
1. Lean into Earthy Hues
Make a tiny bathroom feel like a relaxing oasis by combining earthy elements like wood tones, dark greens, metals, and a live plant. Take a page from this Ohana model ATU tiny home built by Paradise Tiny Homes and add a stone-inspired vessel sink to pull the aesthetic together. The builders designed this bathroom with a floating vanity and toilet to make cleaning a breeze.
Photo by elliekdesign.com
Every inch matters in a tiny bathroom, and this dual-purpose laundry and bathroom shows how color and design work together to create a stunning and functional space. Built by Tru Form Tiny, this modern farmhouse has base cabinets, corner wall cabinets, and floating cabinets incorporating a mix of black, white, wood, and copper to give the room dimension, utility, and beauty that complements the rest of the house.
Photo by Malia Schultheis
A converted tool shed in British Columbia, Canada, added some eye-popping color to the bathroom in their 130-square-foot space. The back of the door matches some of the towels on the vertical shelving and charming baskets in the area behind the toilet. The homeowners added plenty of lighting and a small window in the door to allow some natural light to filter in and give the compact space some breathing room.
Photo by Dave Cordell
When adding a tiny bathroom in an area where regular plumbing is problematic, swapping a standard toilet for a composting toilet can be an excellent option—like this one. As for the clean aesthetic, architect Tilman Richter designed this mobile living space to feel pared down to reflect the simple joys in life. In doing so, he’s created a tiny bathroom that feels quite large.
Photo by Kathy Kwon
In tiny bathrooms with a simple and modern aesthetic, adding a decorative yet functional shelf adds a touch of elegance to a room. The bathroom in this industrial tiny home in Texas has a metal shelf with a brass finish, giving a touch of warm color to this gray and white bathroom.
Photo by Ana Juarez
The minuscule primary bathroom in this California condo illustrates how glass shower doors visually impact a room’s appearance. The frameless glass doors open the space up, making it feel much larger than it is. Homeowners Terry and Steve wanted a clutter-free aesthetic; incorporating towel bars into the glass doors and adding only small hooks to the wall makes the bathroom more luxurious.
Photo by Yoko Oda Interior Design, LLC
From a practical standpoint, your bathroom sink doesn’t need to take up much room at all. As long as it provides water and a drain, the sink meets your needs. This tiny home in San Diego, California, has eliminated a vanity in favor of this space-saving micro sink—which still has enough space for bathroom essentials and a small potted plant.
Photo: Tru Form Tiny
Wallpaper has made a big comeback over the last few years, and a tiny bathroom is a fantastic place to put a print on display. In this revamp of an early 20th-century Monterey Colonial residence by architect Birge Clark, the new design added vivid pink and black wallpaper and balanced it out with brass hardware and fixtures.
Photo: Paul Dyer
You may not be stuck with the existing dimensions of your tiny bathroom. If things feel too cramped and size-appropriate design options do not fit your desired aesthetic, ask a qualified professional if it’s possible to change the size of the room. Changing the configuration allows you to add a larger vanity, more shelving or cupboards, extend your shower, and more.
Courtesy of Jack Alessio Pretto and Spencer Bergen
This 367-square-foot Hong Kong apartment has a tiny bathroom with only enough space for a sink, toilet, and small tub. Adding a mirror that runs almost the full length of the tiny bathroom makes the small area feel more extensive. Sim-Plex Design Studio also made the room a different color palette than the rest of the apartment, making the bathroom distinct from the living space.
Courtesy of Patrick Lam
Instead of using the space under the stairs for storage, turn it into a room that homeowners and guests will use more often. The triangular area under the stairs—called a spandrel—can transform into a charming tiny bathroom with a bit of creativity. Design collective Creative Union upgraded a 100-year-old garage in Toronto, Canada, into a modern laneway house complete with a tiny bathroom that has pops of bright color.
Photo by Riley Snelling
Instead of designing your bathroom to look bigger, make it bold. This small powder room in River Ranch (a home by Jobe Corral Architects) is a marvel. An eye-catching Tom Dixon pendant light punctuates the striking blue watercolor wallpaper. When creating a bathroom with a dramatic vibe, you may want to have some simpler details, like a white vessel sink, to avoid visual overwhelm.
Photo by Casey Woods
Quality fixtures can make a difference for small primary or tiny main-level bathrooms. Upgrading to an alcove bathtub, bidet toilet, or high-end lighting can enhance a tiny bathroom for all users. For example, this San Francisco Victorian built in the early 1900s features an Arcitec sink, Stark 2 toilet, a crystal sconce, and Bisazza tiles for a luxury feel.
Photo: Sharon Risedorph
One surefire way to make your tiny bathroom feel more significant is to expand or modify the home’s footprint—even just a little bit. Paradise Tiny Homes designed this tiny house with a curved outset in the bathroom, making it the perfect space to add a small, round bathtub. Adding a domed skylight makes this compact bathroom feel larger and more lavish.
Photo by elliekdesign.com
Choosing a primarily white or all-white bathroom makes a bathroom appear brighter, which helps it appear cleaner. This neutral choice remains timeless, and you can add pops of color with accessories like towels. In this modern California tiny home, the designer uses the hue of the shower stool, tile, vanity, and more to give the room more personality.
Photo by Tru Form TIny
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