Both are very durable and function well. I would choose based on the look you want.

Thank you. I am leaning towards granite, as I really like the look of the one I have chosen. It too is a gray granite - looks similar to soapstone. I thought the quartz looked too plastic - but was intrigued by the durability.

I have quartz and struggle with watermarks. Easy to clean with a tiny bit of dish soap and warm water. It is beautiful though.

Quartz can chip...and has for many!

I am not a fan of the look of quartz, so my vote would be for granite or quartzite.

If you already know you love the granite counter in your bathroom, then I'm sure you'll love it in your kitchen too-- as long as you get the same kind, from the same source.

My perimeter countertops are Virginia Mist granite, leathered. Very easy to maintain with a look similar to soapstone

We have Pental Quartz in our kitchen (island), we love it. Ours goes with our cabinets very well and although it is not a "natural stone" look exactly, it is definitely not plastic looking. We also have it in our laundry room, I've had no problems with it. I clean it with dish detergent/warm water and wipe dry. I'm careful around the stove top with it (hot pans, etc) because it is temperature sensitive, but that's about it. We found what looked good with our very visually busy cabinets and went for it. You should do the same!

And in the laundry room:

I'm in the midst of all kinds of testing of granite, quartz, and other materials for staining, acid resistance, heat resistance, hardness, etc. I would not say that engineered quartz is any more durable than granite. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. If you want granite, you should get it, but do as much due diligence as you can to make sure that the properties of your granite match your needs. Many granites are pretty much bulletproof.

Good luck!

I strongly dislike the look of engineered stones. Nothing beats the beauty of real stones imo. But I think this boils to personal preference perhaps.

i dislike most granite as i dont like a “busy“ counter. id go based on looks and sounds like for you thats granite. you could try quartzite too if you havent

Thank you everyone! Your comments really helped!!

I've had both quartz and granite and much prefer quartz for the look. Both are equally as durable IMO, even the white quartz in my last house had maybe 1 tiny chip after 3 years and I could get any stains out with the magic eraser easily.

I actually have both - granite (and a quartzite island) in the kitchen and white quartz in two bathrooms. The quartz has been in much longer but I haven’t had any problems with staining or chipping. I am careful, though, with hot appliances (e.g. flat irons) around it. All three materials have their pluses and minuses - it probably comes down to what you personally prefer.

Who said engineered stone is "indestructable"? Set a hot pot on it and get back to us please. At least you can fix scorched Corian; not so ES.

Nobody, and there have been at least 2 comments about the heat sensitivity of quartz. It's well publicized.

Joseph I've set hot pots on my quartz tons of times, never an issue.

OP mentioned quartz as being indestructible.

Casamacho: Your days are numbered, I swear.

My sister has Quartz and she even puts her crockpot on a cutting board. She was instructed by her kitchen person to be careful with heat. It’s very beautiful.

Natural stone or Glacier White Corian for me. Quartz is too expensive for what it is.

Joseph had it for 3 years no issues. Getting it again for current kitchen.

Casamacho are you talking hot or straight off the stove or out of the oven hot?

Casamacho, That may be true but why take a chance?

Hot pots and quartz not a match made in heaven no matter what ccasamacho tells you. IMO granite stands up to everthing and really needs no care forever except wiping it off . Hot pots straight from the stove no issue stood the test of time for hundreds of years and is not 1/2 plastic. Corian is all plastic even worse and no quartz behind your stove either that tells you something right there.

For what it's worth I do not put really hot pots on my granite. I always use trivets. I don't want to risk it causing an issue.

Yup I never thought not to! Our quartz guy told us it's fine. Usually right off the stove, I set it down before I can strain it into the sink or dump pasta back into the hot pot to mix with sauce, same as I did with granite. I don't use the oven often to be honest but I have set down the hot pan straight out of the toaster oven before taking something off to put onto a plate. The only issue I ever had with quartz is that anything dark red/orange would stain it if left on too long. But magic eraser took it right out.

Just my experience Patricia, maybe I've been lucky. Maybe I will be more careful once we get our new kitchen installed... but I'm curious to see what damage it would cause to white quartz, are there any photos out there of hot pans burning the surface?

I would also never place something hot, off the stove or oven, on a granite counter. Thermal expansion in stone can happen, so why take a chance to ruin your counters when all you need is a trivet.

Have you also looked at quartzite?

I don't like quartz except maybe in a MCM home or a very very contemporary home that is playing up industrial materials in a solid color or an obviously not natural stone pattern. I dislike all the quartz's that try to look like marble or stone. They look fake. There is a depth to natural stone that just isn't able to be reproduced in quartz.

Agree with @cpartist completely. And quartz definitely doesn’t have the sparkle that almost all natural stones have! @judy seems like you don’t like the fakeness/plasticy look of the quartz. In that case go with a beautiful natural stone and just clean up the water marks:)) It’s worth it in the end!!

love my leathered quartzite.

nothing like real!

love it!

I've had quartzite and quartz. My quartzite was way more bulletproof. I loved that stuff. To be fair, I have white quartz and the quartzite was darker, but I would not describe quartz as bulletproof. Mine gets wine stains and little scuff marks randomly.

"Hot pots and quartz not a match made in heaven no matter what ccasamacho tells you."

True.

" IMO granite stands up to everthing and really needs no care forever except wiping it off . Hot pots straight from the stove no issue stood the test of time for hundreds of years and is not 1/2 plastic."

Patricia, the Natural Stone Institute, the 70-year-old trade association of the natural stone industry, disagrees with you and recommends trivet use with all natural stone. I disagree also, as I've seen the crystals in granite have all the color sucked out in a perfect circle by the heat from a pot bottom, the same way toilet bowl cleaner does.

"Corian is all plastic even worse and no quartz behind your stove either that tells you something right there."

Corian recently celebrated its 50th anniversary; it's as classic as subway tile with that kind of longevity. Corian is repairable; quartz and natural stone not so much. Quartz problems behind a stove have been designer, not fabricator, installer, or manufacturer error, every single time I've ever seen it.

I’ve had both and slightly prefer quartz. Granite is wonderful but being a germaphobe, I want something with zero porosity. I just installed Cambria Beaumont and Cambria Crowndale. They are busy patterns and don’t look plastic to my eye. This is my second Cambria install. No cracks or chips. Easy to maintain. In my area, quartz is prefered for resale. That said, there are some stunning granite slabs that cannot be equalled for beauty. Choose what you like. But I would never set a truly hot pot on either. Never have, never will. It’s a rarity for granite to crack, but by no means unheard of. Good luck!