A countertop’s area is each run’s length times its depth, added up: a 10 ft run at the standard 25½ in depth is about 21¼ sq ft. Most kitchens have 30 to 40 sq ft (Fixr). Installed, that comes to about $1,050 to $1,400 in laminate at HomeAdvisor’s $35 average a square foot, or $3,000 to $4,000 in quartz at a mid-grade $100 (our arithmetic).
Calculate your countertop
The countertop calculator needs JavaScript, which is turned off in this browser. The prices it uses are in the tables below.
Measure each straight piece along the wall. At a corner, count the corner square once: run the first piece into the corner and measure the next one from its front edge. The standard depth is 25½ in.
40½ in deep with stools at a 36 in counter, 25½ in without.
Along every run. Full height is 18 in, up to wall cabinets at 54 in.
A slide-in or freestanding range needs no cutout.
Every exposed front and end. Empty: the front of each run plus the island’s four sides.
Keep one direction if the slab’s veins or pattern should run the same way on every piece.
Left free at each slab edge and between pieces. Ask your fabricator what it allows.
| Line | Amount | Low | Middle | High | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The calculator needs JavaScript, which is turned off in this browser. | |||||
| The same countertop in | Planning estimate | Low to high | Slabs in this layout |
|---|
US national prices per square foot, installed, times your area, plus the edge, cutouts and removal you chose. The planning estimate is modeled: each line’s middle price times your quantities. The middle price is a source’s own average where it gives one, otherwise the middle of a price range (the Source column says which). It prices one example, not a typical or quoted price; local quotes decide.
How the calculator works
- Area is each piece’s length times its depth, in square feet, the way fabricators and cost guides price countertops. The backsplash counts when it is the same material.
- The finished edge is the length you measured or, if you leave it empty, the front of every run plus the four sides of the island (our estimate: it adds no exposed run ends and takes off no island side against a wall). A fancier edge profile is priced per linear foot.
- Slabs are one possible layout (our arithmetic), not a fabricator’s cut plan. The pieces go on the maker’s listed slab size, deepest or largest first, turned when that fits better unless you keep them one direction; of the layouts it tries, the calculator shows the one with the fewest slabs. The trim allowance you choose stays free at each slab edge and between pieces, because not all of a listed slab can be used: Laminam’s usable porcelain slab is 1620 × 3240 mm out of an untrimmed one at least 1630 × 3250 mm, and Cambria asks buyers to check the largest size their fabricator can cut against the size listed. The default, ½ in, is our planning allowance.
- Seams are counted where a piece is longer or deeper than the usable slab and has to be split, into equal parts or into full slab lengths and the rest (at least 12 in). Not counted: the joints where two runs meet at a corner (one per corner when the runs are cut separately, as you measure them here) and seams a fabricator places for veining, flaws or access. The layout doesn’t plan around veins or the sink and cooktop either, so a fabricator’s count can be higher or lower.
- Low, middle and high. Each line has the lowest and highest price its sources give and a middle price: a source’s own average where it gives one, otherwise the middle of a price range (our arithmetic; the Source column says which). The planning estimate adds up the middle prices. Low and high price every line at its lowest or highest, so they bracket the estimate rather than predict a quote.
- Prices are national installed ranges from Fixr and HomeAdvisor, the same ones our kitchen remodel cost calculator uses. Edges, cutouts and removal are one allowance for every material; see below.
Countertop cost per square foot, by material
| Material | Low | Middle | High | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laminate | $15 | $35 | $60 | Fixr range; middle: HomeAdvisor’s average |
| Butcher block | $40 | $70 | $100 | Fixr |
| Solid surface | $40 | $70 | $150 | Fixr; HomeAdvisor high; middle of Fixr’s $40–$100 |
| Granite | $40 | $95 | $150 | Fixr |
| Quartz | $50 | $100 | $200 | Fixr grades; HomeAdvisor; middle of Fixr’s mid-grade $75–$125 |
| Marble | $50 | $125 | $200 | Fixr |
| Quartzite | $60 | $130 | $220 | Fixr low; HomeAdvisor high; middle: HomeAdvisor’s average job |
| Soapstone | $50 | $85 | $120 | Fixr |
| Porcelain | $50 | $60 | $70 | HomeAdvisor |
| Concrete | $50 | $85 | $120 | Fixr |
| Stainless steel | $80 | $140 | $200 | Fixr |
Installed, per square foot of countertop: Fixr kitchen countertops (28 January 2026) and quartz (29 January 2026); HomeAdvisor’s laminate (20 June 2026), solid surface, quartzite and porcelain pages (19 June 2026). The middle is HomeAdvisor’s average for laminate ($35) and quartzite ($130, its $3,950 average job over about 30 sq ft), the middle of Fixr’s mid-grade range for quartz and of Fixr’s $40 to $100 for solid surface, and the middle of the range shown for the rest (our arithmetic). The guides price different jobs, so these are planning figures, not what a typical kitchen pays. Material alone is about $15 to $70 a square foot, and installation labor $10 to $30 on top (HomeAdvisor). More on the two most asked-about on quartz countertop cost and granite countertop cost.
Edges, cutouts and removal
| Extra | Price |
|---|---|
| Eased or square edge | Included |
| Bevel or bullnose edge | $10–$15 per linear foot |
| Ogee or mitered edge | $20–$25 per linear foot |
| Dupont edge | $20–$40 per linear foot |
| Sink or cooktop cutout | $100–$200 each |
| Removing the old countertop | $50–$300, plus $20–$25 to dispose of it |
Edges and cutouts from Fixr kitchen countertops (28 January 2026), its prices for countertops of any material; removal from HomeAdvisor countertop replacement (17 June 2026). The calculator prices every material’s edges, cutouts and removal with these. Quartz’s own edge prices run higher on Fixr’s quartz page: $10 to $30 a foot for a half bullnose, $20 to $50 for a full bullnose or bevel and $30 to $60 for ogee or Dupont (more on quartz countertop cost). Fixr says an eased or square edge is usually included at no extra cost, so check what a quote already includes before adding these. Moving the sink or adding a cooktop also means plumbing, gas or electrical work by a licensed pro, which these prices leave out.
How to measure for a countertop
- Sketch the counter from above and mark each straight run, the island and any peninsula.
- Measure each run along the wall to the inch, at the back where the backsplash will go. Walls are rarely square, so measure at both ends and keep the larger number.
- Measure the depth from the wall to where the front edge will be: 25½ in on standard 24 in cabinets (see standard counter depth).
- Count the corner once. At an inside corner, the first run goes into the corner and the next starts at its front edge.
- Add the seating overhang to the island’s depth: 15 in at a 36 in counter (NKBA); see countertop overhang.
The whole kitchen, walls, windows and openings, is on how to measure a kitchen. The fabricator measures again with a template before cutting; that is the measurement that counts.
Questions people ask
How do I calculate countertop square footage?
Multiply each run’s length by its depth in inches, add them up and divide by 144. A 120 × 25½ in run is 3,060 square inches, or 21¼ sq ft.
How many square feet of countertop is in an average kitchen?
About 30 to 40 sq ft, 35 on average (Fixr); HomeAdvisor uses 55 sq ft for an average kitchen.
How much do countertops cost per square foot?
Installed, from $15 to $60 for laminate to $50 to $200 for quartz and $60 to $220 for quartzite (Fixr, HomeAdvisor). The table above has eleven materials.
How much do concrete countertops cost?
$50 to $120 a square foot installed (Fixr), about $1,750 to $4,200 for a 35 sq ft kitchen (our arithmetic).
Is the backsplash included in countertop square footage?
When it is cut from the same material, yes: a 4 in backsplash along 16 ft of counter adds about 5.3 sq ft. A tile backsplash is priced separately.
Sources
- Fixr: kitchen countertops (updated 28 January 2026: price per sq ft by material, edges, cutouts, a typical 35 sq ft) and quartz countertops (29 January 2026: grades, quartz edge prices)
- HomeAdvisor: countertop prices by material (17 June 2026: material prices, labor, a 55 sq ft average kitchen), countertop replacement (17 June 2026: removal), laminate (20 June 2026), solid surface, quartzite and porcelain (19 June 2026)
- Slab sizes: Cambria, slab product information (2024: standard 122 × 55½ in and jumbo 132 × 65½ in quartz slabs; check the largest size your fabricator can cut); Arizona Tile, granite slabs (a standard slab generally 9 to 10 ft by 5 to 6 ft); Laminam, technical guide for furnishing and design (2023: porcelain slabs 1620 × 3240 mm usable, at least 1630 × 3250 mm untrimmed). All read 27 October 2026
- Caesarstone: the standard depth of kitchen countertops, 25½ in (24 in cabinets plus a 1½ in overhang)
- NKBA’s free Kitchen Planning Guidelines with Access Standards: work aisles (42 in for one cook, 48 in for two), walkways (36 in), the work triangle (each leg 4 to 9 ft, 26 ft in all), landing areas beside the sink, cooktop and fridge, the dishwasher’s place and standing room, and seating clearances. This is the older free edition; the paid 5th edition (June 2026) may change some numbers.
Prices checked 20 October 2026, and Fixr’s again on 27 October 2026; slab sizes checked 27 October 2026. Totals, square feet and slab layouts are our arithmetic from these figures.