And what is the counter TOP???

@I didn’t want to say becasue I feel like I’m going to get lectured/negative comments but I‘m getting quartz. Most likely Cambria Smithfield. I was quoted $3600 for cambria, about $6,000 for quartzite, and $8,400 for marble. Those last two arent in my budget. I called three local places and they were all similar.

So here's what you do:

You get the Cambria installed on the counter. When it's all done? You take the marble, stand it up on the counter and decide......: )

It can't go in until the counters are in place, anyway! It isn't even a decision you need to make at this moment.

Natural stone only looks good against fake stone if the two are obviously different scaled patterns. A loud counter with a quiet backsplash. A quiet counter with a louder backsplash. You want an element of harmonization, but contrast. Two patterns too close to each other just make the quartz look like a big "oops", we missed matching. It really shows up the faux materials in a bad light.

@JAN MOYER I assumed I‘d have to order the ”counter material backsplash” at the same time and have it installed at the same time, but I guess youre right. I’ll have to talk to the fabricator.

@User I was thinking that might be the case. The smithfield is very basic and looks almost plain white in photos but in person you can see very suble veining. I have a hard time picturing them together in my mind. The quartz sample I have has no veining on that part of it.

Mainly my question was about how much of a pain in the butt is it to clean backsplash grout?

i had quartz countertops installed and when I couldn’t decide on backsplash tiles, I just bit the bullet and had the same quartz put on the walls (up to the bottom of upper cabinets). Expensive? Yes. Worth it? Absolutely. No grout, easy to clean and looks fantastic.
And, in my bathroom remodel, I chose silver-grey grout because you know it’s going to turn that color anyway…

@Superior Thanks for your input! Unfortunately I don’t have a lot of info on the tile. It was on a random end cap at the back of Home Depot in boxes that said nothing but “3x6 tile” on them and marked with 80 cents clearance stickers. They look and feel just like real marble so I’m assuming that’s what they are.

You haven't any idea what you're doing hon. The tile has not one thing to do with the counter top fabricator. It can go in at ANY time. Your selection would require a white grout.

If yu splash and spill all over when you cook? that's an issue you need to deal with. Perhaps just stick with a matching riser to the top. Washable paint on the backsplash. If that tile is indeed marble? It is not for YOU. You will, despite a seal, find it too much maintenance, it will etch from acidic splashes unseen and not wiped up. Butter and oil can leave stains!

If you clean up your cook process? A riser can always be popped off a counter and you can tile up the road...way up the road.

Skip it for now because your "bargain" will not turn out to be one. Waste the fifteen dollars, not labor to go with it.

So marble etches with acidic foods whether it’s a counter or backsplash…..will spatters from acidic food (tomato sauce for example) etch the marble tile….and will it bother you? The other thing is that the tile you posted almost looks like it has some green in it so be sure to look at it in the light in your kitchen with lots of tiles from different boxes so you get the overall effect. But for sure wait til your countertop is in before committing.

@JAN MOYER I don’t know what you mean by “I don’t have any idea what I’m doing.” I asked for peoples experience with cleaning backsplash grout.
No, I’ve never ordered a countertop backsplash before so I didn’t know if it would cost extra to have them come out and measure and install a second time when I could have just ordered them together. I was going to put the tile in myself. I’ve tiled 4 floors before and one backsplash (but moved soon after the kitchen was done.) So it wouldn’t cost me any labor.

Also, lots of posts here on Houzz questioning whether backsplash quartz can take the heat from being behind a stove, so check the specs on it and know what btu’s your stove puts out.

I’d probably do white subway with white quartz. We have white grout, and it hasn’t been difficult to keep clean. More annoying is light gray grout on the mud room floor that always looks dirty brown because it is dirty. Impossible to keep clean. Never again.

I love a bargain as much as just about anyone, but not if it costs me more in the long run. The first thing I'd do is runs some tests on a few tiles: soak one in a pan of water and see if it changes color; let another sit overnight with splotches of red wine, red sauce, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce... you get the idea. Did it stain or etch? If so, could you live with that?

I'd also look up pictures of that tile with light grey grout to see if you like the look.

Finally, if everything seems to be good with the tile, heed DeWayne's advice and consider a very quiet counter like a solid color Corian.

If the fabricator made a template, you don't need to do much, other than MAKE A CALL and say " I need back splash riser for my counter top. We don't know if that is only the back, or would include any sides as well.

We don't know, because we are seeing ONE picture of a sink wall and nothing else.

But "risers" DON'T NEED a template,. He has that.

These are normally between 3 and 4 inches in height. Pretty standard. Check the space behind your faucet....make certain you don't need a cutting back of your window sill to get the faucet in place. Make certain they HAVE your sink on their site, and know WHAT you are using for a faucet.

I have white grout on my backsplash and have no issues keeping it clean. It isn’t like a shower where there is constant water and soap scum. If you clean your kitchen as you cook and after you cook, I don’t see where there would be a problem. Same with the actual marble tile. If you don’t clean, you will have etching and stains.

I am going to go against the grain here from EVERY tile installer and say NO grout-butt the tiles next to each other and forgo the grout IF you intend to use this tile. Again this will go against EVERY tile installer BUT why do you need grout anyways in your situation? Just my opinion and I expect backlash.

@Lorraine Funny you say this, the thought crossed my mind! Maybe I’ll do more research on that.

I agree that using marble against quartz will look "off". Since Cambria Smithfield is essentially an off-white, I'd go with a simple off-white ceramic subway tile and matching grout. I don't think you have to worry too much about keeping the grout clean on a backsplash. Very different than if you were using it in a shower with lots of soap scum and residue from shampoo and conditioner.

If you love the tile and are willing to do the installation yourself, that saves such a bundle that you might as well go for it. But I would suggest that you listen to the other posters who suggested a very quiet and solid color counter material and then use a grey grout or whatever darker color you find looks good with the tile. I put white tile with white grout in two bathrooms 30 years ago: walls AND floors, if you can believe that. Talk about not knowing what I was doing! But I had seen it in a designer’s house and loved it. Well, one bathroom has been remodeled and all white tile and grout is gone. Prior to the remodel, the grout was unevenly different colors - from dark gray to tan and a little white here and there. And I’m a diligent cleaner. The guest bath has yet to be remodeled, and the floor grout is, of course, dark in areas. The wall tile is not bad because it is seldom used (and I recently used a white grout refresher on it, which sealed and whitened it somewhat - and the process was not fun). But I just looked at it again and can’t say that it is truly white, but more of a light tan color. Again - 30+ years, and a bathroom, but I would never use white grout again. Just too much upkeep.