14 Kitchen Backsplash Tile Ideas to Pair With Wood Cabinets

Stately and stylish, warm and organic—natural wood elevates any space. Whether you’re looking to complement existing cabinetry or planning a brand-new kitchen, these stunning backsplash ideas will enhance your space with beautiful movement and sleek silhouettes. From chic subway to dynamic patterns, read on for 14 tile ideas that pair perfectly with wood cabinets.

1. Backsplash Tile With Oak Cabinets

A neutral light wood is a great base for an expressive motif. The curved design of the Elipse Azul tile echoes the wood grain in the kitchen cabinets, creating mesmerizing movement. The slightly muted dark blue and off-white coloring of this patterned tile gorgeously complements the light oak wood.

Shop this groovy tile in this and three other on-trend colorways: Eclipse Carbono, Eclipse Preto and Eclipse Verde.

2. Create a Natural Transition

The undulating tones of the Tribeca Oatmeal subway tile create an elegant transition between the white wall cabinets and the wood base cabinets in this bright, modern kitchen. Its lush beige coloring appears white in areas where the glossy finish reflects natural light, tonally matching the upper cabinets, while creamy undertones complement the light wood of the lower cabinets.

Shop our extensive selection of handmade-look tile for more perfectly imperfect designs.

3. Make it Monochromatic

Beige tile paired with maple wood creates a stunning, monochromatic color scheme in this marvelous, contemporary kitchen. With minimal tonal variation, the curved design of the Wave Old Cream tile introduces gentle movement while softening the tile’s edges. White grout joints further elevate the look, echoing the white light fixtures and countertops.

Explore more trending neutral looks in our wide selection of beige tile.

4. Add Depth With Dark Colors

Deep brown wood lower cabinets are paired with rich navy Wave Blue Reef tile to create a moody, sophisticated design. By opting for open shelving in place of upper cabinets, the layout allows natural light to reflect off the glossy tile, brightening the dark tableau.

For more cool looks–from sparkling sapphire to bright sky–shop blue tile.

MORE TO EXPLORE | Brilliant Blue Kitchen Tile Ideas

5. Stretch Your Budget With Tile Under $7

Whatever your budget, you can find stylish tile to complete your kitchen backsplash at The Tile Shop. Priced under $7/sq. ft., the Villa White Matte tile infuses this beautiful DIY backsplash, designed by @cassandra.noellee, with affordable handmade-look appeal. Featuring a softly undulating surface texture, this perfectly imperfect tile gives the backsplash a stunning sense of movement that contrasts wonderfully with the stately dark wood cabinets.

Shop our wide selection of tile under $7 for more designs that are on-trend and on-budget.

MORE TO EXPLORE | How to Install a Kitchen Tile Backsplash

6. Complement Your Countertops

Perfectly imperfect, handmade-look Fired Earth Homespun subway tile is the ideal complement to the wood cabinets and granite countertop in this charming transitional kitchen. Featuring purposefully worn edge detail, this chic subway tile feels both sleek and elegantly distressed, creating subtle visual texture that ties in gorgeously with the rich detailing of the cabinets.

MORE TO EXPLORE | Tile for Every Style: Transitional Design

7. Get “Groove-y” With Your Design

Pair wood cabinets with an orderly geometric design for a space alive with dynamic movement. Here, the raised lines of the 4-D Diagonal White tile bring striking geometry to this C2 Interiors–designed backsplash. The subtle pattern, highlighted by light reflecting off the glossy surface, contrasts wonderfully with the natural flow of the wood grain, creating a space that seamlessly marries organic and man-made artistry.

Explore 3-D tile for designs that make your walls “pop.”

8. Neutral Backsplash Tile With Dark Wood Cabinets

If your cabinets are dark, a light, cool neutral can help balance the tone of your kitchen. Here, the soft shade of Neo Hex Gloss Blue-Grey tile lightens the visual weight of the cabinets, while its glossy finish reflects light, brightening the prep area. The elongated hexagon shape creates a sleek pattern that adds visual interest to the minimalist wooden cabinets.

9. Add Drama With Contrasting Grout

White grout with black tile—or black grout with white tile, as shown with the Signature Bianco tile—adds a subtle sense of drama to your space. In this minimalist modern kitchen, designed by Designbild, the contrasting tones create visual interest, with the black grout echoing the black range hood, shelves, and handles.

MORE TO EXPLORE | Tips to Nail Your Grout Color and Design

10. Be Authentic With Handmade Zellige Tile

Crafted by hand, every piece of Moroccan Zellige tile is truly one of a kind. Subtle variations in size, shape, glaze and color give your backsplash character that pairs beautifully with the unique look of natural wood. In this midcentury modern kitchen, designed by Fox Homes, Zellige White Gloss tile is paired with light wood lower cabinets. The gridded layout of the square tiles contrasts with the organic movement of the wood grain, while the tile’s handcrafted details contribute richly layered visual texture.

Discover more authentically unique designs in our collection of Zellige tile.

MORE TO EXPLORE | Tile for Every Style: Midcentury Modern

11. Focus on a Folksy Pattern

This kitchen embodies everything we love about modern farmhouse style—wooden cabinets, open shelving, white subway tile and a folk-art-inspired pattern. The handmade-look details of the Star Blue tile add charm to the motif while providing a stunning complement to the stained wood cabinetry. By limiting the patterned tile to the stove backsplash, Kyndred creates a visual distinction between the cooking and prep areas, making the entire space feel larger.

MORE TO EXPLORE | Tile for Every Style: Modern Farmhouse

12. Keep It Crisp and Clean With White Tile

Whether your cabinets are blond or dark wood, you can’t go wrong pairing them with crisp, clean white tile. We love how this kitchen, designed by Molly Howe Design, uses Hex Matte White tile with white grout to create a textured yet chromatically uniform backsplash. The white range hood and countertops further enhance the neat, streamlined look of the space.

Shop our vast assortment of white tile for more crisply clean designs.

13. Choose a Fashion-Forward Design

Globally inspired and effortlessly chic, the Nikki Chu Tangier Graphite tile features a dynamic, abstract hand-drawn motif—an artful contrast to the natural wood cabinets in this cool, contemporary kitchen. The pattern’s gridded layout of horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines contrasts beautifully with the fluid movement of the woodgrain, while the hand-drawn look adds a complementary organic quality.

For more fashion-forward looks in on-trend neutral color palettes, explore our exclusive Nikki Chu designer collection.

14. Pair Wood with Terrazzo Look Tile for Organic Appeal

Derived from the Italian word for terrace, terrazzo is created by pressing chips of marble and granite into cement—a popular style for the patios of medieval Florence. Though traditionally used outdoors, terrazzo and terrazzo-look tile—like the Agata Cinza tile shown here—have been adapted to grace all kinds of contemporary spaces. Featuring rich visual texture in a greige palette, this large format tile complements the sleek, modern wood cabinetry with warm, organic movement.

Let’s Create a Space You’ll Love!

Ready to tackle your kitchen reno? Want to know what color tile goes with cherry cabinets? The tile experts at The Tile Shop are here to help every step of the way. Schedule a free design consultation or find your local store to get started.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Hi! I'm Eimile, Marketing copywriter. What I love about working at The Tile Shop is getting to see all the new design trends. I especially love bright, bold colors and retro designs. When I'm not writing copy, I'm usually reading a novel or taking a walk around my Minneapolis neighborhood.

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