Seriously though, aren’t they fraternal twins? Nope, they’re absolutely not. The differences between quartzite and quartz seem to befuddle everyone from design-savvy clients to industry experts. Some people even use the names interchangeably which is a huge mistake because it only adds to the confusion. While hunting down the perfect quartzite for Whitney Port’s bathroom, we discovered that a quartz vs quartzite showdown is overdue. We partnered up with Aria Stone Gallery to share all the deets – scroll on!

Natural vs Manmade

Quartzite is a natural stone that must be extracted from the earth whereas quartz is an engineered, or manmade, composite.

This difference is crucial because it has an effect on the look and singularity of your surface. As the team at Aria Stone explains it, “quartz is man’s attempt to replicate the veining of natural stone, but we all know nothing can possibly be as beautiful as Mother Nature’s own creation!”

We love using natural stone because no two slab designs ever look alike and the stone patterns don’t repeat. That means when you want to get a little wild and bookmatch or quadmatch, you’ll end up with a nicer look when using natural stone than when doing so with manmade quartz.

Bookmatched quartzite slabs in the Aria Stone Gallery showroom

Hardness

Both quartzite and quartz offer up durability. Aria shares that “…quartzite in its natural form can, at times, be harder than granite. However, since it goes through compression with sandstone and other minerals, there is often variation in the stones hardness.”

Taj Mahal Quartzite is considered a hard quartzite – Marie Flanigan Interiors

The nifty fact above means it’s super important not to assume that any one particular stone is highly durable. Share your individual needs with your stone supplier to be sure that you’re getting exactly what you’re looking for.

Stain and Heat Resistance

In addition to hardness, most people are concerned with whether a stone will resist heat and staining over time, especially if you’re talking about an enthusiastic entertainer or a bustling family with young children!

We know, it seems like you can’t have it all but that’s not necessarily true. If you’re looking for something nearly indestructible, Aria suggests sealing your quartzite slabs to prevent staining and you should be all set!

Scratching and Etching

We hear from clients time and time again that they’re looking for a kitchen countertop that can stand up to the fiercest cooking habits, so this one’s a biggie!

Although neither material is susceptible to etching (read up on etching here), quartzite tends to be more scratch-resistant than quartz. We learned that’s due to its dense mineral composite which measures around a 7 out of 10 on the Mohs Hardness Scale (FYI granite rates a 6), which is awesome news and all of that research left us feeling like straight up scientists…

Port Family Counter Selection

At the end of the day, we knew Whitney and her fam would prefer a natural stone that’s highly durable and easy to maintain which explains why we ended up going with a quartzite, and Aria Stone Gallery made the selection process a total breeze!

We were actually able to shop their selection with Whitney online and landed on their Arizona Quartzite which looks amazing in our latest concept:

Whitney Port Kitchen Design – Marie Flanigan Interiors

Here’s a closer look:

Arizona Quartzite from Brazil – Aria Stone Gallery

We’ll be making a trip to LA soon and we can’t wait to show you how everything is coming together – stay tuned for more from Whitney’s kitchen remodel!

Before we go, here’s another one of our fave quartzites:

Taj Mahal Quartzite Counters and Backsplash – Marie Flanigan Interiors

Quartzite – Marie Flanigan Interiors

Taj Mahal Quartzite features highly bonded minerals that make it a super durable option and we can’t get over that veining!

Click here to check out more quartzite options available through our friends at Aria Stone Gallery.

We’re off to a site visit but leave us your thoughts – are you a fan of quartzite or quartz? We’d love to hear from you!