How much does countertop installation cost?
Countertop installation costs $50 to $150 per square foot, or $1,500 to $6,000 for an average kitchen, per HomeGuide.
The square footage is smaller than people expect, and that is the first thing to settle. HomeGuide publishes 20 to 30 square feet of countertop for a small kitchen of 70 to 99 square feet, 30 to 40 square feet for an average kitchen of 100 to 200, and 40 to 60 or more for a large kitchen — so a 150-square-foot kitchen carries roughly 35 square feet of counter, and the whole job at $1,500 to $6,000.
Source: HomeGuide
This page is general information, not professional advice. Remodeling prices move with your local labor market, the condition of what is already there, the finishes you pick and what your building department requires, and the only number that counts is a written quote from a contractor who has walked the job.
Countertop cost per square foot by material
| Material | Material only | Installed |
|---|---|---|
| Laminate or Formica | $10 – $50 | $20 – $80 |
| Marble | $30 – $130 | $40 – $150 |
| Quartz | $40 – $170 | $50 – $200 |
| Corian | $30 – $80 | $50 – $150 |
| Slate | $40 – $70 | $50 – $100 |
| Porcelain | $20 – $60 | $50 – $120 |
| Butcher block | $30 – $70 | $50 – $150 |
| Soapstone | $50 – $90 | $60 – $130 |
| Quartzite | $50 – $110 | $65 – $150 |
| Granite | $40 – $100 | $80 – $150 |
| Stainless steel | $70 – $190 | $80 – $200 |
Source: HomeGuide
HomeGuide groups those into six types with their own bands: natural stone, engineered and solid surface, and wood all at $50 to $150 per square foot installed; laminate at $20 to $80; metal at $80 to $200; and gemstone at $50 to $300 or more. Its notes on the popular two are that quartz is about 90% natural quartz mixed with resins and pigments, is non-porous and harder than granite but not typically heat or UV resistant, and that granite is heat-resistant and durable but porous and needs regular sealing.
Source: HomeGuide
What the labor is, and what it is not
| Cost factor | Per square foot | Average for 30 – 40 sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Countertop materials and delivery | $30 – $100 | $900 – $4,000 |
| Labor to fabricate and install | $20 – $50 | $600 – $2,000 |
| Total cost to replace | $50 – $150 | $1,500 – $6,000 |
Source: HomeGuide
HomeGuide puts the labor to install kitchen countertops at $20 to $50 per square foot, which it says is 30% to 40% of the total project cost. The material is the bigger half, and the factors it lists as moving the material price are the grade of the slab — low-grade natural stone has more visible defects and fewer colours — the thickness, the colour and pattern, whether the piece is custom or in stock, and premium edging.
Source: HomeGuide
Concrete is the exception that explains the labor line. HomeGuide says materials are only about 10% of a concrete countertop and the labor to mould, fabricate and finish it is the other 90%.
Countertops inside a kitchen remodel
HomeGuide puts countertops and backsplash at 10% of a kitchen remodel budget, behind cabinets at 25% and appliances and labor at 15% each, and prices replacing kitchen cabinets and countertops together at $6,000 to $21,000 for an average-sized kitchen — $4,500 to $15,000 for the cabinets and $1,500 to $6,000 for the counters. Its plain warning about the cheapest option is that laminate is the least durable and does not add value to a home.
The rest of the kitchen budget those counters sit inside: what a kitchen remodel costs.
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Questions people ask next
- How much would 20 ft of quartz countertop cost?
- The honest answer is that the question is asked in the wrong unit, and this page will not guess at the right one. HomeGuide prices countertops per SQUARE foot, not per linear foot — quartz at $50 to $200 per square foot installed — and it publishes no countertop depth to convert 20 linear feet into square feet with. What it does publish is the kitchen-size table: 30 to 40 square feet of counter in an average kitchen, which HomeGuide reads at $1,500 to $8,000 in quartz. Measure the depth of your own runs and multiply.
- How much do quartz countertops cost installed?
- HomeGuide publishes $50 to $200 per square foot installed for quartz, with the material alone at $40 to $170, and says higher-quality slabs have richer colouring, a smoother finish and no defects.
- What is the cheapest countertop material?
- Laminate or Formica, at $20 to $80 per square foot installed on HomeGuide's table. It also says laminate dulls and scratches easily, is the least durable of the common materials and does not add value to a home.
- How much of a countertop job is labor?
- HomeGuide puts fabrication and installation labor at $20 to $50 per square foot, which it states as 30% to 40% of the total project cost, against $30 to $100 per square foot for the materials and delivery.
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