Size and cost your countertop
Counter run in feet, depth in inches. Add the island separately if you have one.
How this calculator works
- Counter area = run (ft) × depth (in) ÷ 12. A 10 ft run at 24 in is 20 sq ft.
- Island area uses the same depth, entered as a separate run so a peninsula or island is not double-counted in the edge charge.
- Upstand area = run × upstand height ÷ 12. A 4 in upstand along 10 ft is 3.33 sq ft and is cut from the same slab.
- Slabs = ceiling(area × 1.18 ÷ slab size). The 18% covers the saw kerf, the cut-outs and the offcuts that cannot be used elsewhere.
- Edge run = counter run + (island run × 2), because an island is finished on both long sides.
- Total = area × material rate + edge run × edge rate + cut-outs × ₹2,500. GST at 18% is shown separately.
| Material | Rate used | Market band | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Granite — Indian | ₹450 / sq ft | ₹280 – 900 | Hardest wearing, joints visible, needs sealing |
| Quartz — engineered | ₹1,100 / sq ft | ₹650 – 2,200 | Non-porous, consistent, not heat-proof |
| Corian / solid surface | ₹1,800 / sq ft | ₹1,400 – 3,000 | Seamless joints, repairable, scratches |
| Italian marble | ₹2,200 / sq ft | ₹1,200 – 6,000+ | Stains from turmeric and lemon — think hard |
Rates are for the slab, before fabrication. Fabrication — cutting, polishing, edge profile, cut-outs and fixing — is charged separately and is what the edge and cut-out lines in this calculator cover.
Design and build under one accountable roof
Worked example — the default kitchen
| Step | Arithmetic | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Main counter | 10 ft × 24 in ÷ 12 | 20.0 sq ft |
| 4 in upstand | 10 ft × 4 in ÷ 12 | 3.3 sq ft |
| Total finished area | 20.0 + 3.3 | 23.3 sq ft |
| Area to buy | 23.3 × 1.18 | 27.5 sq ft |
| Slabs at 55.1 sq ft | ceiling(27.5 ÷ 55.1) | 1 slab |
| Quartz material | 23.3 × ₹1,100 | ₹25,667 |
| Bullnose edge | 10 ft × ₹180 | ₹1,800 |
| Two cut-outs | 2 × ₹2,500 | ₹5,000 |
| Supplied and fixed | sum | ₹32,467 |
Why you pay for a whole slab
A quartz or marble slab is bought whole. If your counter needs 23 sq ft and the slab is 55 sq ft, the remaining 32 sq ft is yours — but only in the shape the offcuts allow. Good fabricators will get a matching windowsill, a small vanity top or a chopping insert out of it; poor ones will quote you the whole slab and keep the remainder. Ask, in writing, whether the price is per sq ft of finished counter or per slab, because the two can differ by 40%.
The other place cost hides is the joint. A 10 ft run is longer than a granite slab, so it will have a joint somewhere — and where that joint falls is a design decision, not a fabrication accident. Put it at a natural break, never through the sink cut-out, and never in the middle of a clear run where you will look at it every day.
Depth, overhang and the details that get missed
Twenty-four inches is the standard counter depth because a 600 mm base carcass plus a 20–25 mm overhang lands there. Going deeper sounds generous and is usually a mistake: anything past 26 inches puts the back of the counter beyond comfortable reach, and the extra strip becomes a permanent shelf for appliances you never move. Going shallower, to 21 or 22 inches, is worth considering in a narrow Mumbai galley kitchen where the walkway matters more than the worktop.
The overhang itself is a detail worth specifying. A 20 mm overhang with a drip groove underneath keeps water running onto the floor rather than down the shutter face — a small thing that decides whether your kitchen shutters look new in year three. On an island, the overhang for seating needs to be 250–300 mm, and anything over 300 mm needs a steel bracket or the slab will crack at the unsupported edge.
Finally, the sink. An undermount sink in quartz is straightforward; in granite it needs a polished reveal, which is skilled work and is charged for. In Corian the sink can be thermoformed into the top with no joint at all, which is the main reason people still specify it in kitchens despite the price. Decide the sink type before the slab is templated, not after.
Slab prices, edge profiles and cut-outs here are what the stone fabricators charge, not Greenbox trade rates, so we have left them as the market sets them. The one audited figure on the page is the complete built-in platform, ₹5,300–7,950 per running foot of kitchen counter and ₹3,250–4,900 for a bathroom top, taken off jobs we measured and invoiced and held at October 2026. Treat the output as a planning figure: accurate enough to brief a landlord, a bank or a family, and not accurate enough to sign a contract against.
What this tool does not cover
- Sub-structure. A stone counter needs a plywood or MS support frame over the carcass, typically ₹180–300 per running foot.
- Transport and hoisting. A full slab up to the fourteenth floor with a booked service lift is a real cost in Mumbai — ₹3,000–8,000 per slab.
- Templating, where the fabricator makes a physical template of the run before cutting. Standard on Corian, optional on granite.
- Book-matching and vein matching on marble, which needs the slabs selected together and priced accordingly.
- Sinks, hobs and taps themselves — only the cut-outs are costed here.
- Backsplash tiling above the upstand, which the backsplash tile calculator handles.
Selected work by Greenbox Design Studio. Tap any image to enlarge.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate countertop square footage?+
Multiply the run length in feet by the depth in feet — 24 inches is 2 feet. A 10 ft run at 24 in deep is 20 sq ft. Add the upstand, add the island, and allow 18% on top when buying the slab.
How many slabs do I need for a kitchen countertop?+
One quartz slab at 3200 × 1600 mm covers 55.1 sq ft and handles most single-run kitchens. An L-shaped kitchen with an island typically needs two. Granite slabs at 8 × 4 ft cover only 32 sq ft, so the same kitchen may need two or three.
Is quartz better than granite for an Indian kitchen?+
Quartz is non-porous, so turmeric and oil do not stain it, and it needs no sealing. Granite is harder and takes heat better — you can put a hot kadai straight down on it. For an Indian kitchen that sees both, we usually specify quartz on the prep run and granite around the hob.
What does countertop fabrication cost?+
Edge profiles run ₹180 per running foot for a bullnose and ₹420 for a mitred 40 mm edge. Each cut-out is about ₹2,500, more for an undermount sink with a polished reveal. Templating, transport and hoisting are extra and should be listed separately in the quote.
Where should the joint in a countertop go?+
At a natural break — a corner, the end of an appliance, the edge of a cooking zone. Never through a sink or hob cut-out, where the stone is already weakened, and never in the middle of an uninterrupted run, where you will notice it every day.