A sheet of glass over paint....... or mirror. Stainless steel, larger format tile. Paint and a short riser matching the top. Now law say it must be any total covering. Very washable wallpaper.......

Really........I fail to see the big deal with grout: ) Clean your kitchen, wash up splashes promptly . Much depends effort you are willing to trade for looks.

You could consider back-painted glass backsplashes. There are several Houzz kitchen forum posts on this, and several image examples if you Google it. I've never had one, so can't speak to pros and cons, but when clean I think they look great in a contemporary space. Also, you could use any color you want.

close set tiles. you do not need to grout tile if the tiles are set close together.

I have had sealed, honed, travertine tiles that touch one another for 10+ years as my kitchen backsplash and never had an issue with cleaning.

You can use porcelain wood look tile as a backsplash

Or you can use LVT Vinyl Tile as a backsplash.

Grout serves many functions. But the biggest function is to lock together the tiles as a functional whole. Which is why the written industry standard requires it.

You can also use the same material on the backsplash as on the counter top.

I have back-painted glass and I love it!

No back splash at all = no grout. In two different homes I have decided to have no backsplash at all. Antyhing that has hit the wall behind my stove or in that area has easily wiped off of the painted surface. It is so much easier to maintain than tile or other backsplashes. I do have a 5" strip of the countertop as a mini-splash. This seems to be making a comeback in European kitchen designs and I hope it does here too.

Kendrah, I may do that (no splash) in my bathroom. It looks like we have to replace our sink/vanity, and it's unlikely we will find something that lines up just right with the current splash, which I am tired of anyway. It sounds kind of freeing.

My current kitchen had wallpaper before we moved in, now it is painted, and either is fine! Although, after 16 years the paint behind the cooktop is starting to show some wear…from 15’ away…The previous vinyl wallpaper, when we bought the house, was in good shape though, I just didn’t care for the pattern. Sure was durable, though; it had to be 15-20 years old.

@BeverlyFLADeziner

gorgeous! I am considering travertine for a new build and love the way yours looks!