That's like asking what's the best car. There are tradeoffs. Pick yours please.

Stainless steel. Hands down best performer for pretty much anything a kitchen can throw. That's why it's the most common material in commercial and industrial kitchens.

Now, what folks are using and loving in their home kitchens... that's a whole different thing. Some will swear by corain, some really want that big slab of real stone, others might want copper, concrete, laminate, wood, stainless steel, polymer-stone products... kind of as a preference. Some folks also think stone in the kitchen is icky, or hate tile, or the cold harshness of stainless, or the plastic quality of man made stuff. Also preference.

Or some folks might be hard on their counters, and can't have something that could chip or crack or burn or get soap stains. Others are more gentle and can have whatever their limit is. A rental unit might warrant a tougher material, where your own kitchen you might treat better and want something else. A dilligent housekeeper might have a more delicate counter, where a messier cook might need a heartier one. Some folks even have more than one kitchen, with one being more of a workhorse with those surfaces, and the other being more for display with those surfaces.

Over the years I've had these kitchen counters. Already there when I bought a house:

- white corian

- speckled white/gray/black granite

- dark green granite

When I remodeled the dark green granite kitchen (sucked the light out of the room) I went with Taj Mahal quartzite.

Decided to sell/move and build a new house. In that kitchen I also went with Taj Mahal quartzite.

I have used quartz (Cambria, Pental, Caesarstone & Radianz) counters in 9 bathrooms (remodels and new build) and have also been happy with those.

There isn't only one best material for counters.

Define "best"?

What "everyone is using" has more to do with fashion, trends, cost and marketing. Hard to correlate that with "best material".

I've have used almost every material for countertops over the years. The one I would not use again is marble. As gorgeous as it is, it can be unforgiving stain wise. Most recent install for renovated Cape cottage is soapstone. Wow!

The one material I didn't mention, that I also used before, is Travertine. Did a bathroom counter in it and would never use it again. It was sealed, but still stained.

I will need to replace counters in a year or 2, and have concluded that the priority is stain resistance. Although there is still probably a balance of relativity with aesthetics because, for example, I don’t want the look of stainless steel!

My kitchen CME with white Formica ( or similar brand) counters and I fight with any bit of berry, tomato, red wine that might go undetected at first. And heaven forbid someone leaves a package label on a damp spit- ink bleeds onto counter. I’m not sure if it’s the counter material or perhaps its age or what. Anyway I know I will focus on more bullet- proof stain resistance.

Myself, I’ve chosen wood for countertop material.

I like the warmth, the look, the patina over time, the resilience (dropped things not breaking), the affordable price, the ability to cut and self install.

I’ve found foodsafe finishes that make wood very resistant to staining (not to heat), but still feeling like wood. I’ve finished my main prep counter in traditional oil and wax, which is definitely not resistant to staining, but I can take that counter off the cabinet, break out the belt sander, and refinish that counter in an afternoon.

The island will probably be steel or copper. Stainless steel is harder to refinish. Copper is easy, with a buffer I can polish it up quite quickly. So I’m leaning toward copper.

Obviously, none of the above would work if one isn’t possessed of power tools :-)

Granite.

That's two different questions. I think what most people are drawn to currently is engineered quartz, probably because it's the newest and is being marketed as "bulletproof." Even though it's really not. It's stain resistant, but it can stain. It's hard and dense, but it can be burned, since it's made with resins and polymers. So yeah, not perfect.

The second question is "what is best?" That all depends on the individual. What is best for one person/family is not for another. All materials have their pros and cons. You need to determine for yourself if the pros outweigh the cons on any particular material, and choose what's best for you and your budget.

Personally, I like Danby marble. It's dense and doesn't stain. I don't mind the etches because I love the look and feel of a natural material. I also love honed Jet Mist granite, it's another natural material and has a pretty white swirling pattern on black. But many may not agree with me, especially on the marble.

For our family, it’s the extremely hard variety of soapstone, Belvedere, installed by M. Teixeira. Cannot stain or etch. Most difficult to scratch. It’s temperature neutral…neither heat or cold will affect it. Cleans with just dish soap and water. 9+ years and looks as good today as it did day of install.

That's the one counter top material I haven't ever used, Darbuka. But I love it, and I love your kitchen! Maybe some day!

This conversation brought to mind the Great Kitchen Debate (1959 Khrushchev / Nixon)

In the Soviet Union the goal was for every family to have their own house or apartment. The government was constructing large blocks of tiny apartments (300-500sf). Everything was standardized, including the tiny kitchen with a government issue refrigerator and range.

The American kitchen was filled with time saving gadgets and colorful appliances and Nixon explained that we have 1000 builders building 1000 different homes and every person could get what they wanted.

There is such beauty in the ability to choose what works for you without worry that is the "right" answer. As long as you know the pros and cons for each type of countertop you can pick what works best for you.