Choosing benchtops: stone, timber or terrazzo

For a decade the default Australian benchtop was engineered stone: crushed quartz bound with resin. That changed on 1 July 2024, when a national prohibition on engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs came into force to protect the workers who cut and install them from silicosis. If you’re planning a kitchen now, the choice is wider and more interesting than it used to be.

First, what the ban covers

Under the work health and safety regulations, engineered stone means an artificial product that contains 1% or more crystalline silica, is made by combining natural stone with other ingredients such as water, resins or pigments, and becomes solid through a process like hardening. All three conditions have to be met.

• The prohibition applies to engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs.
• Natural stone, concrete and cement products, ceramic tiles, and porcelain and sintered stone that contain no resin are not engineered stone.
• Engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs have also been prohibited imports since 1 January 2025.
• Work on engineered stone installed before the ban, such as repair, removal or disposal, is allowed under strict controls.

Natural stone

Every slab is unique, and that is the appeal. Choose the slab yourself at the stone yard if you can, and ask to see how the joins and vein direction will fall on a layout drawing.

• Marble is soft and calcium-based, so lemon juice, wine and vinegar will etch it. A honed finish hides etching far better than polished. Many people come to love the patina; if that sounds stressful, choose something else.
• Granite is hard and heat-tolerant, and much more forgiving of daily kitchen life. Modern selections are far quieter than the speckled granites of the 1990s.
• Quartzite is hard and dense, with marble-like looks. Be careful: some stones sold as "soft quartzite" behave more like marble. Ask your supplier for a scratch and acid test on an offcut.

Cutting natural stone still creates silica dust, so fabricators must control it under WHS rules. Natural stone isn’t banned, but expect your stonemason to cut with water and extraction.

Porcelain and sintered stone

These are large, thin slabs fired at very high temperatures. They resist heat, scratches and stains very well, and they’re outside the engineered stone definition when they contain no resin. The pattern is printed on the surface, so pay attention to how edges and mitres are detailed. A mitred edge looks like a thick slab, while a square edge can show the body colour. Chips are harder to repair invisibly than on natural stone.

Timber

Nothing makes a kitchen feel warmer. Australian hardwoods such as Tasmanian oak, spotted gum, blackbutt and blackwood all work well, and a timber top can be sanded and refinished many times over its life.

• Penetrating oils are food-safe, easy to touch up and look natural, but they won’t stop water marking if spills are left to sit. Re-oil regularly.
• Hardwax oils and polyurethanes give more protection, but refreshing them means sanding back first. Expect to recoat every year or two on high-use areas.
• Around the sink, either choose a more protective finish or put the sink in a stone run and keep timber for the island or eating end.

Terrazzo

Terrazzo is stone, marble or glass chips set in a binder, then ground and polished. It’s a good fit for a playful kitchen, a laundry or a café counter, and it can include recycled aggregate.

• Cement-based terrazzo falls under the concrete and cement products exclusion. It’s tough and repairable but porous, so it needs sealing, and acidic spills can etch the marble chips.
• Resin-based terrazzo needs more care when you choose it. Depending on its silica content and how it’s made, a resin-bound product can meet the engineered stone definition, so get written confirmation from the supplier.
• Slabs are heavy and joins need planning, so involve your fabricator early.

Mixing materials

You don’t have to choose just one. A common, practical combination puts a hard-wearing stone or porcelain run along the sink and cooktop, timber at the end of the island where people eat and work, and terrazzo in the laundry. It’s often both the nicest-looking and the most practical answer.

Questions to ask your fabricator

1. Can you confirm in writing that this product isn’t engineered stone, and whether it contains resin?
2. How will joins, mitres and vein direction fall on my layout?
3. What sealer do you use, and how often should it be reapplied?
4. What’s the lead time from templating to installation?
5. How do you control dust when cutting on site?