Make sure your fabricator knows you're not doing a splash right away please. You want a 1/8" gap between your tops and wall, not 1".

As mentioned above the 4" piece will be your backsplash. Either use it and leave it with the walls painted or leave it off and tile later. One or the other, not both.

Thank you. @Joseph Corlett, LLC Can you elaborate on why the 1/8" vs 1" Will the 1/8" gap cause any issue later when I do the backsplash? @millworkman Will there be any issue with the paint in the interim given no backsplash?

You might want to consider doing something different than 4”, which is now associated with kind of basic kitchens. A shorter, thicker 2” or 2.5” splash tends to look a little fresher. You can remove the splash when you decide to tile the backsplash, or you can keep the short splash and tile above like some DeVOL kitchens do. Good advice here:

https://carlaaston.com/designed/2-inch-high-kitchen-slab-backsplash

I’ve attached a photo of where we did a 2.5” splash in one of our bathrooms.

I would leave it without the backsplash regardless of size. Paint and when your ready add the nice backsplash

No to quartz as a backsplash. It can scorch with heat. So, I’d vote for no splash. Paint now and then install a splash later.

No to small quartz backsplash. Just make sure you tell your countertop installer that you aren't doing a backsplash and to make the gap look finished. You can always add it later... but you'd also be surprised at how inexpensive you can do a backsplash with simple subway tiles. Do you have a floor & decor near you?

No to the 4 inch and the smaller one mentioned above. Paint it, until you are ready to put in tile backsplash.

@itsourcasa I do have a floor and decor and have found relatively good priced tile, but installation quote was quite expensive. I don't like the look of simple white subway tile so my choice is a taupe-ish subway tile in a herringbone pattern.

A major question you need to consider- do you really think you’ll tile the backsplash soon-ish? If so, then yes by all means just go without a backsplash for a while as a temporary measure. But if the possibly-tiled-backsplash has no real timeline, I don’t think you want to go with no backsplash indefinitely. Backsplashes exist for a reason.

@Ephma lol soon-ish yes. within the next 6 months. Hoping I could get installation cheaper than what my builder is offering..

Krista, we did it ourselves so no install cost! It’s really not that bad, just making the cuts for ends is time consuming and grouting is a pain but worth it.

This is ours from floor & decor..

No to the 4 inch.

We can't see your kitchen, so can't comment, but you may be able to do less backsplash than you think.

You really only need it behind areas that get, well, splashed.

Those are the cooktop and the sink.

So you can really save a lot of money right there.

And depending on the look of your kitchen, and how much your food squirts and spurts, you might even want a sheet of stainless behind the cooktop.

Just a random question - is setting tile in a herringbone pattern a DIY job for a novice?

@KW PNW Z8 exactly -- I don't think so. I'm already not much of a DIYer so @itsourcasa suggestion is a non starter for us. We'll have to pay someone

1/8" vs 1" gap

If the counter installer thinks you're going to have a backsplash, s/he will not be careful to minimize the gap b/w the counter and the wall -- s/he will assume the tile will cover whatever gap exists. 1" is probably OK if you're going to tile immediately, but if you're not, then the smaller the gap the better.