Whether you are creating a new kitchen or improving the old one, the trick is to tailor it to the way you live. Choosing a countertop for your kitchen renovation is simply more than complementing the style of your cabinets-it must also meet your functional needs. That means supporting the task of cooking-standing up to knives, hot pots, rolling pins, and spills. Listed below are the pros and cons of these two countertops – Granite and Quartz.
Granite kitchen countertop
Granite is a natural material and is quarried out of the earth and then sliced up into pieces, polished and sealed that we see and use. To familiarize yourself with countertops, it is really important that you actually go to the warehouse and pick the slab that will get used in your house. If you try to pick granite off of a sample, you’re going to find the top that shows up at your house probably isn’t going to look like the sample that you looked at. Granites are priced in levels. So, it starts at levels 1,2, 3 goes up from there. Some granite warehouses are going to have it as A, B, C. Same concept either way, but A or 1 being the lowest cost granite and they get more expensive as you go up the line. Speaking of quality, it doesn't go by price. So, when you pay more for granite it’s not higher quality more durable granite, think of it as a semi-precious stone, where the less of it there is the more it’s going to cost.
PROS of Granite countertop
● Varies in price anywhere from $45 to $110 per square foot.
● Resistant to high temperatures, scratches, and etches.
● Each slab is unique and varies in color.
● Easy to clean.
CONS of Granite countertop
Prices could get very high for exotic slabs.
Granite is a porous material and needs to seal at least once a year.
Typically, you have to pay for the whole slab.
Quartz kitchen countertop
Unlike granite, quartz is a manmade product. It is made up primarily of natural quartz about 90-93%, crushed up and mixed with 7-10% resin binders. Because of this, Quartz is very dense and non-porous. So, you do not have to worry about sealing it as you do with granite. You can select off a little sample. Quartz is heavy but a little more flexible than granite, so less likely to break on the installation. Some of the popular companies selling quartz are Cambria and Caesarstone.
PROS of Quartz countertop
The price point varies from $65 to $200 per square foot.
Easy to clean.
No sealing required.
Nonporous making it antibacterial and stain-resistant.
Resistant to scratches, etches.
CONS of Quartz countertop
It is not heat proof (use a trivet for hot pots)
Cannot be used in outdoor applications.
Other popular choices for countertops are marble, concrete, soapstone, stainless steel, butcher block.
If you need help in selecting kitchen finishes including your countertops, we would love to help you through a VIP shopping day. We call it Kitchen designer for a day where we select kitchen finishes, flooring, and lighting in a day. To learn more, click here. If you need any other design direction reach out to us to book a discovery call in our calendar to discuss by clicking on the link below.
