Figuring out what to do about your countertops is one of the trickiest items on the list of things when you are carrying out a kitchen remodel or renovation. You want durability with the price effectiveness, the right colour and ease, but is it possible to have it all? Today we look at stone countertops and how you can pick and choose based on what you are after in the long run for the best kitchen renovation project.
Factors that you need to consider when looking at stone countertops could be constructed material, colour variations, price, durability, ease of maintenance, ability to withstand heat and scratch resistance to name a few. There are also a variety of stone countertops to choose from, between natural and engineered stone countertops, they all have their merits. We have selected a ten popular kitchen countertop choices to compare them against points such as durability, easy maintenance, construction, heat endurance, scratch resistance, colour variation, and price to name a few.
| Granite | Marble | Quartzite | Soapstone | |
| Stone | X | X | X | X |
| Durability | High Heat & Scratch Resistant, Resistant to Chemicals | High Heat Resistant, Resistant to Chemicals, Susceptible to scratches | High Heat & Scratch Resistant, Resistant to Chemicals | High Heat Resistant, Resistant to Chemicals, Susceptible to scratches |
| Easy Maintenance | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Construction | Genuine Natural Stone | Genuine Natural Stone | Genuine Natural Stone | Genuine Natural Stone |
| Heat Endurance | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Scratch Resistance | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Colour Variation | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Porcelain | Butcher Block | Quartz Surfacing | Solid Surface | Laminate | Tile | |
| Stone | ||||||
| Durability | High Heat Resistant, Resistant to Chemicals, Susceptible to scratches | Scratches easily, Heat Resistant (but can burn), Can be repaired | Heat resistance (but can scorch), Scratch resistant, resistant to chemical | Scratches easily, melting due to high heat, Can be repaired | Somewhat stain resistant, can scratch and scorch | High Heat, Somewhat Scratch Resistant, Resistant to Chemicals |
| Easy Maintenance | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Construction | Engineered from Glass, Ceramics and Other Materials | Solid Wood Laminated together with Adhesive | Manufactured from Natural Quartz and polymer resin | Manufactured from acrylic resin | Manufactured from layers of plastic on particleboard | Different materials |
| Heat Endurance | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Scratch Resistance | No | No | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Colour Variation | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |