Topping it off: eight kitchen worktop materials and how well they work

Text by James Wormald
17.10.22

We ask a lot of the contemporary kitchen worktop, but with so many materials claiming to tick all the boxes from durability and hygiene to a simple install, it’s hard to see the wood for the quartz.

Lighter than aluminium and harder than natural stone, hygienic ceramic is an ideal material for kitchen worktop surfaces like next125’s NX 950

Whether you blame Covid lockdowns, recipe box subscriptions or the latest high-tech kitchen appliances, everyone’s spending more time in the kitchen. Meanwhile, popular open-plan spaces remove the option of simply shutting the door on the catastrophic mess of a big meal, before settling in for a relaxing evening.

The modern kitchen worktop has to work harder than ever before

The modern kitchen worktop, then, has to work harder than ever before. Impenetrable when standing up to increased use, yet simple and quick to clean, returning to its sleek and stylish position as backdrop to the perfect interior with ease. Here are eight of the most common kitchen worktop materials in a crowded market.

Arcilinea’s Thea fitted kitchen with waterfall worktop island in matte veined quartz

Quartz worktops

One of the strongest, most durable worktops around, the scratch-, stain-, heat- and impact-resistant Superstone quartz comes with a warranty of up to 50 years. It has a consistent composition, so although sparkling depth and artistic veining are available options, there’s no large variation from one end of the worktop to the other. What’s more, quartz is thermoformed, meaning bespoke shapes and sizes are moulded and installed without joints, allowing the non-porous, anti-bacterial surface to be cleaned with ease.

The polished Nero Assoluto granite worktops in this Arclinea Principia Convivium fitted kitchen feature a recessed workspace, holding a sliding grate in place

Granite worktops

Nothing quite sells luxury like a granite kitchen worktop. A completely natural slab-cut product, granite guarantees an absolutely unique pattern and colouring, yet the surface itself can be finished in contemporary matt, or a classically beautiful polish. It’s heat, scratch and water resistant, but the durability of granite does require sealing.

Cesar’s Intarsio Art & Order fitted kitchen demonstrates a succulent green marble surface

Marble worktops

Another natural stone product, in many ways marble appears to be quartz and granite’s off-brand cousin. The porous rock needs regular sealing to keep up its general protection; it’s not acid resistant, so as well as high-school chemistry, chopping lemons also demands a chopping board; and it’s also susceptible to scratches, so be careful with watches, belt buckles and jewellery – as well as knives. It is, however, naturally cool. So an excellent choice for baking and pastry work. While for some, the beauty of its naturally-occurring veins is enough to forget its other faults.

The Wildwood kitchen from LAGO forms material contrasts with 100-year-old oak worktop and cabinetry

Wood worktops

If unique and natural patterning is at the top of your wishing tree, then the warmth and depth of naturally-grained wood could be a suitably welcoming and environmental worktop option. Wooden worktops are easy to cut down to the right size, and indeed to cut-out whatever shapes you need it to fit around. Easy to cut, however, works both ways, so be sure to save the surface from scratches and scorches with boards and trivets.

Euromobil’s Sei series contrasts colour, texture and material with laminate kitchen worktops and surfaces

Laminate worktops

The time-consuming sealing process for porous wooden worktops still leaves the surface susceptible to damage if spills and stains are left for long periods. Alternatively, laminate kitchen worktops are more resistant to impact and water, and the mimicking material is often a more functional option, suiting a wide variety of design schemes.

The smooth, reflective surface of SCIC’s Bellagio fitted kitchen worktop bounces light onto its glamorous matelassé cabinet doors

Glass worktops

While wood provides either cosy and inviting or rustically charming environments to cook in, smaller and naturally low-light kitchens can benefit from the reflective bounce of a glass worktop. Extremely non-porous, stain-resistant and jointless, glass is ridiculously easy to clean compared to other surfaces, but far harder to keep that way long-term, with constant cleaning required to keep easy-to-spot watermarks at bay.

Stainless steel kitchens present an image of cold professionalism, but the refined steel Unit Metropolitan Energy kitchen from Cesar has professional warmth

Steel worktops

Naturally hygienic and easy to clean, completely waterproof and heat resistant, the commercial advantages of stainless steel worktops give cookspaces that high-grade kitchen look. In a residential setting, however, it’s a good idea to tone down the look with softer materials elsewhere in the palette. Easily moulded steel worktops, however, can continue into sinks and draining boards without joints, while the easy-to-scratch material gives a certain character that freshly shined steel surfaces miss.

Dade Design’s Concrete Kitchen (top) and next125’s NX 950 ceramic kitchen in concrete grey effect (middle, bottom)

Man-made stone worktops

Corian Solid Surface is poured as liquid, so the non-porous and stain-resistant worktop can mould seamlessly into sinks and splash back, with any possible colour available. Concrete’s stripped-back industrial look, meanwhile, is extremely fashionable right now, but choosing the material for a kitchen worktop demands plenty of sacrifice. The heavy, porous material is easy to stain and hard to clean, plenty structurally durable but not especially scratch resistant, and difficult to fit. A good alternative is next125’s NX 950 fitted kitchen. With all the durability, hygiene and functional attributes of ceramic, itself one of the most functional worktop materials, but is made to look like concrete.