Pros and Cons of Popular Bathroom Countertop Materials

The wide range and variety of bathroom countertops offer the homeowner plenty of choices to design a truly unique bathroom. Countertops that might not work so well in the kitchen can be good choices in the bathroom’s more forgiving environment.

On the lower end of cost are tiled and laminate bathroom counters. Both are easy to self-install. Laminate counters often come with pre-cut holes for sinks.

On the upper end are solid surface and quartz countertops—both are waterproof, durable, and attractive, plus they offer good resale value.

You can even make your own bathroom countertop from scratch with concrete. Tile, too, is another from-scratch bathroom countertop that offers a world of design possibilities.

While it’s possible to find a bathroom countertop made from a very unusual material, such as stainless steel, crushed glass, concrete, or wood, most of today’s bathroom countertops consist of one of these five different materials: laminate, tile, solid surface, stone, and quartz.

Laminate Countertops

If your vision of laminate countertops is that of the metal-edged laminates of decades past, you need to spend a little time looking at new products from Formica, Wilsonart, or other top manufacturers. The look has evolved so much that laminates can fool you into thinking they are granite, wood, marble, leather, or even stainless steel.

Laminate countertops are made from layers of plastic that are bonded to a particleboard (MDF) core to create a solid countertop surface. Countertops that are available in-stock are unified pieces that can be cut and fit by anyone.

Or laminate counters can be created by fabricators who can make a countertop to your specifications from a designer laminate, giving it custom edges and other designer features.

Purchased off the shelf, prefabricated laminate countertop material costs $10 to $30 per square foot. When the laminate countertop is custom-made by a fabricator, expect to pay a bit more.

Laminate countertops are best for guest bathrooms or powder rooms but are not the best choice for primary baths or other places where style is important. They can also serve as a quick fix where you need to redecorate a bathroom quickly, such as when staging your home for sale.

Ceramic/Porcelain Tile Countertops

Ceramic, porcelain, or glass tiles are traditional countertop materials often seen in traditional decor, but they are also used in trendy, modern styles thanks to recent innovations, especially with porcelains.

Traditional ceramic tiles are made of clay with a surface glaze; they are heated by fire to harden them. Porcelain is a type of ceramic that features finer clays fired under higher temperatures. Porcelain is a harder and denser material that is excellent for floors and countertops. Porcelain can authentically mimic other materials, such as wood or even leather, giving you many design options.

Although glass tiles are not technically ceramics, they are installed in much the same way as ceramic tile and offer even more design and style options.

Ceramic and porcelain tiles come in a wide range of costs, with materials alone running from less than a dollar per square foot to $200 or more for hand-crafted artisan tiles. In general, expect to pay $2 to $15 per square foot if you are installing your own tile countertop. For professional installation, costs are typically about $16 to $65 per square foot. 

Ceramic and porcelain tiles are a good choice if you want to save money on a quality countertop by doing the work yourself. 

Solid Surface Countertops

Made from a blend of acrylic and polyester particles bonded together with resins, solid surface countertop materials are generally formulated to resemble stone and can be shaped into a variety of shapes, including all-in-one countertops with sink basins integrated into them. Dozens of different colors and styles are available from many manufacturers, including Corian, Silestone, Swanstone, and others.

These newer generation faux stone countertops have largely replaced the so-called cultured marble plastic countertops that once dominated the bathroom countertop market. Once regarded as a premium building material, solid surface now occupies a middle tier between laminate at the lower end, and natural stone and quartz at the upper end. 

Solid surface materials typically cost $20 to $50 per square foot, fabricated and installed to your specifications. These countertops are excellent in heavy-use bathrooms, such as those used by children. They can also be a good choice when you want a quick solution to redecorating a bathroom in preparation for a home sale.  

One feature of solid surface countertops: they are so easy to refurbish. Scratches can be sanded down with fine-grit sandpaper by any homeowner. Do-it-yourselfers can even buff down solid surface material to a fine gloss with a vehicle buffer.

Natural Stone Countertops

Natural stone of all types is regarded as a step above ceramic or porcelain tile as a countertop material. Many different types of stone are used, including slate, soapstone, limestone, travertine, marble, onyx, and granite.

A natural stone bathroom countertop usually consists of a thick solid slab with openings cut for the sinks, but stone countertops can also be created with tiles laid in much the same fashion as ceramic tile countertops. Each type of stone has its own set of pros and cons.

• Slate: This is a good hard countertop material that resists stains once sealed. Colors are uniform shades of gray, black, or green. Costs range from $77 to $100 per square foot for solid slabs.
• Soapstone: A milky stone with subtle veining. Colors are typically shades of white or gray. This is another non-porous stone that is easier to care for than granite or marble. Solid slab countertops typically cost $55 to $120 per square foot.
• Limestone/travertine: Somewhat rare for bathrooms, limestone and its close relative, travertine, are relatively porous stones that need to be carefully and repeatedly sealed when used in countertops. Although slabs can be purchased, many limestone or travertine countertops are made from tiles. Costs for slab countertops run from $10 to $15 per square foot. 
• Marble: A heavily veined metamorphic stone, marble is one of the most beautiful of all natural stones, available in an almost infinite variety of colors and patterns. Marble is a relatively soft, porous stone that needs to be sealed every year or two. Solid slab marble countertops typically cost $40 to $100 per square foot, but they offer an elegance unmatched by other countertop materials.
• Granite: Although similar to marble, granite is more likely to have flecks of varying colors in it, with less veining than is seen with marble. Granite is the most popular natural stone for countertops, thanks to its availability and diversity. Slab countertops typically cost $40 to $100 per square foot.

Opt for natural stone whenever you want your bathroom to send a message of luxury. Natural stone is a good choice for a primary bath, but may not be suitable for family baths that get lots of use. 

Concrete Countertops

Concrete has become a very popular trend in countertops. As a countertop material, concrete is not the rough gray slab found in sidewalks but is more typically a stained, highly polished surface that may even be texturized. Some installers even embed tile, stone, or bits of polished glass into the surface during fabrication.

Concrete countertops are one of the more expensive options—expect to pay $58 to $140 per square foot, fabricated and installed. They are a good choice when you want to make a special design statement, and can also serve well for heavy-use family bathrooms. 

It’s easy to reverse-mold simple concrete countertops from MDF and quick-set concrete. Premium concrete countertops molded in situ are more difficult for DIYers and must be made by experienced fabricators.

Crushed Glass Countertops

Countertops made of crushed glass are a relatively new introduction, but they are steadily becoming more popular. These countertops are made from recycled crushed glass embedded in either clear acrylic or concrete.

These uniquely beautiful countertops are striking to look at, and they lend a bathroom a trendy designer appeal. Because they are typically custom fabricated, no two crushed glass countertops look the same. They can be either traditional in appearance, or extremely modern, depending on the glass used in them

Crushed glass countertops typically cost $65 to $140 per square foot, installed. They are best reserved for upper-end bathrooms where style is important.

Quartz Countertops

Quartz countertops are not solid quartz but are instead an engineered stone product made from 70 to 90% ground-up quartz and other stone minerals, blended with resins and pigments, and then shaped into countertop slabs.

A variety of styles is available, some of which are nearly indistinguishable from natural stone slabs. These countertops are often sold with integrated sink basins built into them. Major manufacturers of quartz countertops include Corian and Cambria. 

Quartz countertops typically cost between $50 and $200 per square foot. They are best used in bathrooms where a contemporary styling is desired, but they can also work well in heavy-use family bathrooms. 

Quartz is considered the highest-end countertop material and will enhance the appearance and value of most homes.