My architect/designer sez these days Granite prices lower than nearly all the other solid surfaces and contributes to its popularity espec if u r not looking for esoteric colors. Marble, which i have alot of in our offices for multiple conf and other tables, even in a dark shade, is "delicate" in the sense that it is brittle and can crack etc, and in a lite color maintenance is brutal b/c it will stain (not an issue with, say, a dark wine color marble like we have but it does crack). I have seen some Granite Tiles used where costs need trimming and when done in larger tiles, and done well and creatively, the look is acceptable and grout lines minimal. So you may be able to compromise in one area this way...it is the long lengths of granite that set you back. Soapstone is a joy b/c of the touch, and if you like it oiled up black, stains not an issue. Natural colors of soapstone are lovely but we have only used that in dining area cabinet tops in bar-like areas...and natural is not good for kitchen. (It also is great in bathrooms, even flooring b/c it isnt slippery). But soapstone is a more old-fashioned/colonial like look...not slick and modern My favorite for counters is Stainless Steel!!! installed in 1993 i still love it. But i would then warm up the look by having the island be done in something else. Also St.Steel with dark wood cabs really look warm and approachable.

Every choice has pluses and minuses, in the end you have to choose which plus and which minus matters the most to you and/or which have an easy fix (like using a cutting board under the crockpot; at work we have an extra piece under the big coffeemaker). budget mattered a lot to me (and I hated formica) so, I ended up with a lesser expensive granite and am very happy, no sealing or extra work for the stone I chose. I had formica previously which looked like h#*! from the day I moved in and didn't get better (except that I could use bleach to remove stains) so those of you whose formica looks like new after 30 years must be taking appropriate care -- using cutting boards (mine had little cuts all over) and so forth -- where my previous owners did not. But, I read that formica now is much better quality than what was installed 30 or 40 years ago. I looked at Burled Beach and liked it. It looked a warm sand-ish color on my samples in my house, but I saw a demo kitchen of it at a big box store and it was a warm greenish tone (I still liked it) under their fluorescent lights. You always have to ability to STOP and make changes unless the cabinets are all already made. If he is just now starting it might not be too late -- call him now! PS do you have an IKEA near to you? Most counter materials are less expensive there.

cailgirl123, it’s a tough decision to make! Our bathroom marble scratched immediately, but it’s a guest bath that isn’t used as often. I lift, not slide glass containers, etc. & wipe down water splatters after my grandkids use it. So, for us, it’s been a little over a year & I love it. Not sure about a heavily used or teenage-girls-with-all-kinds-of-products scenario. Quartz maintenance is a no-brainer, evidently. I couldn’t decide if I liked the light “marble-like” looks & would probably have gone with a solid gray in the kitchen had the price been more budget-friendly. I loved the quartzite (Fantasy Brown first drew me in.) but couldn’t decide about the brown part (depended on the slab) & functionality in a kitchen. So, back to granite I went. When I found a Thunder White that didn’t look like someone had splatter painted it with purple paint, I was in love. There are still small raspberry flecks running through it, but it’s not an overall purple splotch look. Lol! My granite place had no samples so I did no testing. It’s only been five months, but I love my kitchen counters! They do water spot, & I keep a drying mat on both sides of my sink as we often keep out glasses with ice water, etc. So far, no stains. I’m the main cook & our kids are grown. I do have grandkids who cook with me but since that’s supervised, it hasn’t been a problem. Hope that helps! Here are a couple of photos. There’s a semi-circle scratch on the bottom left in the marble close-up if you enlarge it. The marble has light & dark streaks running through it so the darker part is natural.

@kel_kat5 - It is a mistake to think that Dayana’s situation is representative of granite counters. Most importantly, the Bahamas White granite she pictured looks like it’s in the family of the Imperial White or Kashmir granites, which is notorious for behaving more like marble and staining easily because it is more absorptive than other granites, I.e. porous. If one is looking for a granite with a white background, check out the granites in the family of Alaska White, White Springs, Bianco Delicatus, and Lennon, which are pretty bullet-proof. I’ve had different granites in different homes, and none even needed sealing, and were carefree, and we didn’t baby them. There are a thousand granites out there, and they should not all be lumped under the same umbrella. Quartz is a great choice if you want a more uniform appearance to your counters. There are stories on this forum of Quartz staining, scorching and chipping, and having resin pools. I actually think Quartz is a wonderful choice for counters. But get it for its appearance and beauty, not because you think it is more durable than granite.