Why do quartz prices vary so much?
Why do quartz worktops vary so much in price? Given this is a man-made material, who such a price range? Granite worktops vary in price according to the beauty, rarity value and difficulty of extraction of the stone – but but why does factory-produced engineered stone give such a spread of quotations for a typical kitchen worktop layout?
Classic Quartz Misterio in an East Sussex farmhouse kitchen
Caesarstone Bianco Drift
Quartz Prices: 1 Cost of Raw Materials
Some quartz stones use more expensive raw materials than others. What actually goes into quartz can be a bit of a mystery, but variety in ingredients between different styles is obvious. It is also obvious to us that different manufacturers use ingredients of differing quality. Cheap or poorly-made quartz can be chalky or plasticky, though we can never be sure why.
That raises another issue which is becoming increasingly significant in the kitchen countertop market – the provenance of the raw materials. Where do they come from? What environmental or health and safety issues lie behind exceptionally cheap prices? We are finding more and more consumers becoming sensitive to these issues, quite rightly. The bigger suppliers can tell you far more about raw material provenance.
Quartz Prices: 2 Cost of technology
Different quartz worktops require quite different technologies in their manufacture. Some are simply a matter of mixing quite coarse granular ingredients, others require far more processing of the ingredients before they reach the Breton slab machine, yet others have dyes injected at a late stage to create complex vein patterns. Even quite economical manufacturers now offer very good large-veined marble copies, and they cost more than inexpensive quartzes from the biggest, priciest brands. It’s all down to technology.
Silestone Blanco Stellar
As a rule of thumb, putting together both raw material and technology costs, you can expect quartz prices to go up on a scale as in the diagram below.
Bear in mind, though that there will be big overlaps and other factors (like brand – see #3) will have a big effect too.
Classic Quartz Fiji in an Uckfield farmhouse kitchen
Quartz Prices: 3 Branding
As with everything else, brand counts for a lot when it comes to quartz worktops. We have our Dacias and our Audis, our Waitroses and our Aldis just like every other industry. In principle, buying from a bigger name gives you:
- Greater confidence in the provenance of the stone – the environmental and health and safety standards which have applied at all stages of its production.
- The latest and best in research and development – cutting edge designs
- Confidence in the consistency of the product
- Confidence in the technical support and after sales care that come from the manufacturer
- Greater value added to your home through using a known brand of quartz
For more on quartz branding, please see our FAQ article.
The atrium at the Cosentino – Silestone – HQ in Southern Spain
Quartz Prices: 4 Bespoke versus Stock Materials
The last, but by no means the least important, factor in our quartz worktop pricing is the difference between Stock and Bespoke material. Any stone which we buy in bulk for stock will always have a price advantage over against bought-in materials. Our price on some Silestones and Caesarstones, for example, is extremely competitive as we are able to sell them, from a leading brand, at the price of a mid-range granite. Before stocking them on a regular basis, we would not have been able to come close to that.
For a fuller explanation of stock and bespoke pricing, please see our article.
