Kitchen benchtop materials compared, plainly.

Every slab on the floor is one of these four. Tap a material for what it is, what it shrugs off, and where it belongs.

Marble · Granite · Quartzite · Travertine
Natural stone

Real rock, cut straight from a quarried block into slabs. Nothing added. Every slab is unique, so the veins you see on the floor are the veins you get in your kitchen.

The scores here are the middle of the range: granite sits at the top, marble and travertine below it. Seal any of them and treat them like timber, not glass.

Granite: the hardest and least porous, takes hot pans and knocksread more →
Quartzite: very hard, a little porous, seal it and it is close to graniteread more →
Marble: softer and porous, drinks oil and etches with lemon, wine and vinegarread more →
Travertine and limestone: the softest and most porous, seal them and be gentleread more →
Onyx: the softest of all and the one that passes light, for bars and feature wallsread more →
In the workshop
Hardness sets the pace. Marble cuts quickly and polishes fast. Granite and quartzite are cut at a measured pace and polished to a deep gloss. All of them take every edge profile we cut, and every one is cut wet.
Best for  Kitchen benchtops · Island tops · Vanities · Fireplaces · Feature walls · Outdoor (granite)
How it holds up
Hot pansExcellent
ScratchesGood
StainsFair
OutdoorsGood
RepairableExcellent
KnocksFair
From the makers' own care guides. Full bar means it shrugs it off; a short one means keep it away.
Show me natural stone suppliers

— The names behind the slabs

Suppliers we trust.

Whether your focus is aesthetics, budget, or both, below you’ll find suppliers who share our values. These are people we work with regularly, their reps visit our workshop, know how we operate, and look after our customers the same way we do. They give straight, honest advice based on your scope and make sure you have the right information as they walk you through their selections.

Natural Stone10
Every yard here sells natural stone. Each stone we cut has its own page:Marble →Quartzite →Granite →Travertine and limestone →Onyx →
Porcelain and Sintered Stone02
Porcelain and sintered stone, the two fired slabs with no resin. Read what each one is like to live with:Porcelain →Sintered stone →
Reconstituted Stone09
Zero-silica reconstituted stone. The comparison above shows where it sits against the other three, and the workshop page shows how every slab is cut:How a stone benchtop is made →
Natural Stone10
Every yard here sells natural stone. Each stone we cut has its own page:Marble →Quartzite →Granite →Travertine and limestone →Onyx →
Porcelain and Sintered Stone02
Porcelain and sintered stone, the two fired slabs with no resin. Read what each one is like to live with:Porcelain →Sintered stone →
Reconstituted Stone09
Zero-silica reconstituted stone. The comparison above shows where it sits against the other three, and the workshop page shows how every slab is cut:How a stone benchtop is made →

— Stone guides

Pick your stone.

Every slab on the floor is one of these. Each stone has its own page: what it is like to live with, how it is cut, the names people ask for, and the questions people search before they buy.