What Is the Best Material for Bathroom Countertops?

Few things are more subjective than picking out materials for redoing your bathroom countertops. After all, everyone has different preferences and tastes.

The type of material that’s best for your bathroom countertop depends on your personal priorities for the space. Some of the most common factors we discuss with homeowners and property managers include:

• Cost: There’s a whole range of price points per square foot for countertop materials, from laminate and wood composites on the low end to marble and granite at the higher end.

• Durability: If you need your bathroom countertop to stand up to rough handling from children or lots of heat-styling tools, that can help you rule out more delicate or fragile materials like laminate.

• Maintenance: Some materials, like solid surface or laminate, are easier to clean than others.
• Beauty: While you can certainly find a laminate pattern that imitates the look of marble, it’s better to get as close to the real thing as possible if you want to make a lasting visual impression.

Once you’ve determined what’s most important to you in a bathroom countertop, that’s when the real fun begins. Here are some of the best materials for bathroom sinks and countertops—and the pros and cons of choosing each type.

Quartz

Quartz is a man-made material composed of resins, color pigments, and crushed quartz crystals—hence their name. As a bathroom material, it’s an engineered stone that’s designed to look and feel like natural stone. 

Quartz bathrooms can be a great way to impart a sense of luxury similar to natural stones like granite and marble, without paying granite and marble prices. However, it still requires some maintenance that can make it challenging for bathrooms that need to withstand a lot of wear and tear.

Granite

Granite has a well-earned reputation as the luxury choice for bathroom countertops. It captures natural beauty with swirling patterns that serve as a statement piece for any bathroom vanity.

However, granite is also one of the most expensive materials. Its availability and price are dependent on whether it can be easily mined. It’s also incredibly heavy, meaning you need the proper setup and professional expertise to install it properly.

Granite also tends to require resealing every year or before you sell your home, so it’s higher maintenance than most other materials.

Marble

Marble is a natural material that has been prized for thousands of years across civilizations for its beauty and durability. It’s more resistant to heat and wear.

However, much like granite, marble is extremely expensive. It’s also prone to staining as a white material and can be challenging to keep in pristine condition over the course of years or decades.

Solid Surface

Solid surface is composed of two-thirds natural minerals and one-third high-performance acrylic resin and pigments. This material is durable and easy to maintain, all while more easily handling high temperatures and high-traffic areas.

In many cases, solid surfaces can be the best countertop material for bathroom vanities. It’s lighter than quartz and not as fussy or high-maintenance as granite. There’s a whole spectrum of possible colors to choose from, and bonds without a trace, making look more natural than laminate.

If you’re looking for a high-quality material with ample color options that won’t require you to get a second mortgage on your home, Durasein Solid Surface countertops are the way to go.

Laminate

Laminate is a popular choice for countertops. It’s a cost-effective material that can incorporate a rainbow’s worth of patterns—so it can fit just about any bathroom style or design vision.

While laminate bathroom countertops are more affordable than some other types of materials, they can also be more fragile than other options. It can stand up to water and is resistant to staining in most cases, but it can burn from something as simple as an overheated blow dryer. It’s also prone to dents and can become dull with prolonged damage.

Tile

Tile is a timeless classic for bathroom walls and flooring, but it can also make a good bathroom countertop surface. It comes in a massive array of color and finish options, and they can have a level of detail that makes your bathroom look like a work of art.

However, as a bathroom countertop material, tile is difficult to maintain and keep clean. The grout lines attract germs and are prone to developing mold if you don’t clean them regularly and take care of spills quickly.