Soapstone is lovely, but I need a light colored counter to lighten up our kitchen.

I have had no problems with my quartz. Mine have some movement in them and it tends to hide things - good for hiding watermarks or fingerprints - bad because it hide crumbs too:)

What are the cabinets like? I used a lighter quartz on older wood cabinets:

https://www.houzz.com/photos/my-pics-work-in-progress-phvw-vp~110720042

Quartite(the natural stone) has light varieties and is harder than granite.

I have hard water and it has not affected my Taj Mahal quartzite countertops in the least! My white trim on my house is stained from the sprinklers, my white tile and grout gets stained in my showers, but my countertops remain looking beautiful and new.

jhmarie, my cabinets are a lot like yours, maybe a little darker. Your counters are definitely an inspiration for me!

My countertops are LG White Pearl. I originally saw them on a darker cabinet and wondered if they would work on my lighter tone - and they did. Take a door or drawer with you when you look around. There are many quartz that would look pretty with your cabinets. Do be sure your older cabinets are in good shape because a stone or stone like countertop is a large investment.

I have never heard of hard water being a problem for most countertops (not sure about marble) though some of the black counters will show water spots more. Some of the light granites, which are very pretty, can get rust from metals in the granite itself, not from the water. The metals in the stone react with moisture and form orange areas. Here is a thread about that:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/white-ice-granite-has-rust-stains-dsvw-vd~2973079

Another possibility is Corian - it is stain resistant and while I have not seen it in person, "Witch Hazel" is a Corian which is supposed to look good with wood cabinets.

Witch Hazel Corian (not fond of the backsplash here):

Here is an older wood kitchen that did a pretty granite:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/finally-finished-with-kitchen-updating-dsvw-vd~4512247

Older wood kitchens look best with a simple backsplash. White or cream subway tile seems to help blend the old with the new - or in the case of the thread above, bead board is also pretty. Chose the backsplash after the counters are in. Seeing the big picture can change what you want.

Also - just for your info, my sink is a Kohler Whitehaven "short apron" apron front sink - which I love. The shorter apron allows it to be installed on a standard sink base cabinet. I did have to wait and save up for it. I had no intention of spending that much on a sink ($960), but it works harder than my fridge and cost less, so in the end I got it and love it.

Or you could fix the water and get whatever countertop you like . . .

We have thousands of dollars in water softener and filters. They work, but nothing's perfect.

astro777, it seems you've received some useful suggestions about the granite. Regarding the water - we too have well water with heavy iron content. However, we use an air induction iron filter (these are specifically intended to filter iron) in addition to our water softener. It works well; we have no issues with red staining.

I know you didn't ask about water treatment, but just wanted to mention it. :) Good luck with your counters!

Thanks RH!

Solid surfaces like Corian laugh at hard water. I've pulled rusted drop-in sinks out of solid surface tops and had the rust removed from the top in seconds.