Any material, any brand. And one that is ours.
Laminate, compact, porcelain or quartz. From the brands everyone knows or from ones nobody has heard of. Ordered to size, cut at the factory and fitted the same day as the kitchen. And then there is ours: laminate, forty-seven finishes that all cost the same and a German standard saying what it takes.
Four materials, and what sets them apart.
There is no best worktop: there is one that fits how you cook and what you want to spend. This is what actually separates them, without the adjectives.
| Material | What it is | Takes well | Watch out for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laminate | A board with a high-pressure laminate layer on top. It is the one that comes with the kitchen. | Daily use, damp and scratching. Dry heat to 180 °C and damp heat to 100 °C, measured to the DIN 68930 standard. | A pan straight off the hob goes past that 180 °C: it needs a trivet, as on any worktop. | The entry point. |
| Compact | A solid board of the same material right through, with no different core inside. | Water and a raw edge: the border can be left bare, with no trim. | It is usually dark inside, so a deep nick shows. | A step above. |
| Porcelain | A sheet of mineral fired at very high temperature. It is what people know as Dekton or Ascale. | The pan straight off the hob, knives and sun through the window. | A sharp knock on a corner or on the edge of the sink cut-out. | The dearest, along with quartz. |
| Quartz | Natural quartz ground and bound with resin. It is what people know as Silestone. | Stains and heavy use. It is the easiest of the four to look after. | Direct heat, and long hours of sun on the pale shades. | High. |
Outside those four there is solid wood and natural stone. Both can be fitted and both need real upkeep: oiling now and then for wood, sealing for granite or marble.
And we work with the names everyone knows.
We work with the brands everyone knows — Dekton, Silestone, Ascale and the usual names — and with the rest of each range. They are ordered to size, with the sink and hob cut-outs done at the factory, and they go into the same quote and the same installation as the kitchen: no hunting for a stonemason yourself, no juggling two trades.
They push the price up, and by a fair bit. That is why it is decided with the kitchen total in front of you, not at the end, when there is no room left to move anything.
And then there is ours.
Laminate. The one that comes as standard, the one almost everyone ends up fitting and the one with the worst reputation among people who have never looked at it closely. Ours comes out of the same German factory as the cabinets, with the test reports to show for it.
- Dry heat to 180 °C and damp heat to 100 °C, tested to the DIN 68930 standard.
- High resistance to scratching and abrasion, measured to that same standard.
- A three-layer board with a high-pressure laminate surface, not a thin film stuck onto any old chipboard.
- The cut edges are faced at the factory, and the underside carries a water-repellent paper with protection on the back edge: where water gets into a cheap worktop, this one is sealed.
- It comes with eight metres of moisture tape for the sink and hob cut-outs and for sealing above the dishwasher.
And forty-seven finishes, all at the same price.
Forty-seven, in three thicknesses, made to match the fronts: the same wood tone, the same grey, the same black. It makes no difference which of the forty-seven you pick: the worktop costs the same either way. What moves the price is the metres, the thickness and the edge, not the colour.
Stone look
Venato Nero marble · Jura beige-grey marble · Taj Mahal quartz · Sand-grey travertine
Wood look
Havanna oak · Sierra oak · Milano walnut · Como oak
Plain and concrete
Fine sand textured · Textured black · Slate-grey concrete · White terrazzo
This is a sample. All forty-seven are in the showroom, as real offcuts and next to the front you like, which is the only way to see whether they go together.
And it comes cut to size at the factory, with the sink and hob cut-outs already done, fitted by the same team that fits the kitchen. No hunting for a stonemason, no juggling two trades, no second company's quote. That is why the sums work out best here: what it costs, what it takes and the hassle you save.
Book an appointmentThickness and edge.
Three thicknesses: 16 mm, which leaves a fine line; 25 mm, the middle one; and 38 mm, the traditional one, which feels solid. The edge can be square or carry the same décor on the front. It does not change what the worktop takes: it changes how the profile looks from the kitchen door, which is the first thing you see on the way in.
What we get asked most.
Can I put a hot pan straight on it?
On porcelain, yes. On the others it is better not to, and that is not a flaw in any of them: the manufacturer says hot pans should never go straight onto any worktop and that you should always cut on a board. Laminate is tested to 180 °C of dry heat under the DIN 68930 standard, which is a lot; a pan just off the heat goes past it. A trivet costs three euros and solves all four cases.
Does the joint show if the run is long?
If the run is longer than a single piece, there is a joint. On laminate and compact it is mitred or trimmed and barely shows; on porcelain and quartz it is butt-joined with resin in the colour of the material and is almost invisible. Where the joint falls is decided in the design, not on installation day.
How much does going from laminate to porcelain add?
On an ordinary kitchen, the worktop line can triple. It is the biggest mover in the whole quote, which is why it is looked at at the start of the design and not at the end.
Can the sink go underneath the worktop?
On porcelain, quartz and compact, yes. On laminate only if it is one of the types made for it; otherwise the sink sits on top. It is decided together with the material, because it changes the price of the cut-out.
What about wood?
It looks very good and ages well, but it asks for work: oiling now and then and drying the water around the sink. If that does not appeal, there are wood décors that come close and ask for nothing.
They are all in the showroom.
Seeing them as real offcuts, next to the front you chose and under the light, is the only thing that settles it. Half an hour and you leave with the material decided and the price in writing.