How to Choose Your Kitchen Worktop

Contents

– Materials for your worktop

– The dimensions of your worktop

You will spend most of your time near the worktop: so don’t make a mistake!

There are different possibilities for a kitchen adapted to your desires. Each worktop has distinct advantages and constraints that correspond to your use. Before choosing your worktop, you should consider several things: material, thickness, resistance…

Your choice must meet three criteria: functionality (durability, scratch resistance, heat resistance, etc.), appearance, and thickness. In this article, you’ll find all the advice to make your choice.

Materials for your worktop

The most important point when it comes to the worktop is its material. This will determine its ease of maintenance and level of resistance to shocks and dirt. Of course, the material also contributes to the style of your kitchen.

Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the different materials or, better yet, combine 2 materials!

Comparison of materials used for kitchen worktops

	Benefits	Disadvantages	Advice
Wood	Soft and natural, warms the room, embellishes with time Easy to install and maintain (linseed oil) Affordable price: the harder the wood, the more expensive it is Absorbs noise	Burns and stains: use trivet and cutting board Less hard woods may warp over time	Dark woods: stained oak, wenge, rosewood Light woods: beech, birch, bleached oak, pine Honey woods: oak, walnut, elm, teak, maple The glued laths…
Concrete Variance Patina	Refined or rough look depending on the treatment: patinated, stained, waxed… Very trendy! Easy to clean (soap and water)	Installation by a professional May break at corners, edges Can be quite expensive	Choose a good pro: concrete is a complicated material to work with
Pierre Netovia	Very nice! Numerous styles and shades available Resistant Easy to clean (soap and water)	Expensive Installation by a professional Some stones would be: the shale. Some stones are porous and must be treated (limestone, sandstone)	The main materials: marble, granite, limestone, schist.
Glass Netovia	Very nice when it is clean! Luminous, fluid Solid, but with areas of fragility (corners, edges)	Installation by an expert professional Dear Scratches, sensitive to shocks	Ideal for brightening a room
Tile Netovia	Very decorative : many colors available Inexpensive, easy to install Solid	The non-smooth appearance The joints get dirty: need to brush them Splinters can jump	Easy to install yourself: the surface must be flat so that dirt does not get into the joints Waterproof unglazed tiles
Metal Netovia	Very modern Easy enough to install	Cold Easily marked: fingerprints Stainless steel is expensive Does not absorb noise	Different types of metal, for different prices: stainless steel, zinc.
Melamine	Thousands of colors and design The most economical Easy to maintain Easy to install	Can be unsightly if the finish is poor Less resistant to time: can blister near the sink Sometimes resists poorly to heat	—
Corian® Composites	The ultimate! Many colors All possible forms	Very expensive Parted	—
Porcelain stoneware	Solid Does not scratch, does not stain Heat resistant	Expensive! 3 m long maximum	Porcelain stoneware is a fired mixture of clay and silica. It is tinted by covering it with a layer of enamel.
Terrazzo	Resistant Easy maintenance Many colors	—	Terrazzo is a tinted cement tile with marble aggregates in it. It is tinted in the mass.

The dimensions of your worktop

The second essential criterion for choosing your worktop is its size. They depend on the configuration of your kitchen, its shape, but also the available surface.

Width of your worktop

Generally, a worktop is 60 to 65 cm wide, guaranteeing good ergonomics. It would help if you determined the width according to the furniture and technical constraints.

A worktop with a depth of 65 cm provides a 5 cm crawl space behind the cabinets to pass water and electricity supplies.

The thickness of your worktop

A worktop has four different thicknesses: 16 mm, 28 mm, 38 mm, and 58 mm. There are also more and more models of 20 mm thickness, which are more modern. This is known as a “slimline“.

Length of your worktop

The standard length of a worktop is between 1.80 and 3 m, although it is possible to find more extended models.

So much for our advice in this article on how to choose your kitchen countertop. Hopefully, you will find this post helpful, and don’t forget to leave us your comments below.