Home Improvement Kitchen Remodel & Repair Countertops

Solid Surface Manufacturers for Kitchen and Bath Countertops

Solid surface kitchen countertop

The Spruce / Kevin Norris

Solid surface material gives your kitchen or bathroom counter the solidity and general appearance of stone. Yet unlike stone or quartz, solid surface material is so easy to work with that even a homeowner can do it. While solid surface is considered to be a quality material, ever since DuPont's patent on Corian expired, numerous brands have rushed in to produce solid surface material—for better and for worse.

Often described as plastic countertop, this is not true. It is true that 33-percent of the countertop is composed of binding resins, but the other 66-percent is minerals (a bauxite derivative, along with aluminum trihydrate, a fine white powder that helps the material maintain its smooth consistency).

With this guide, learn about major manufacturers of solid surface countertops that have been around for years, even decades—half a century old in the case of Corian.

  • 01 of 07

    Avonite

    Volcanic Copper Canyon custom design by Gene McDonald (2009)

    Gene McDonald / thefabricatornetwork.com forum

    Operating for over three decades, Avonite is a relative old-timer in the world of solid surfaces. Avonite's parent Aristech has an impressive pedigree in the world of plastics, having invented something called continuous casting (vs. cell casting) of acrylics, allowing incredibly large sheets to be produced by pouring acrylic on a continuously moving belt.

    Avonite, part of a large, established family that produces all manner of surfaces, offers either polyester (Studio Collection) or acrylic (Foundations) solid surfaces. Both can be finished to matte, satin, and high-polished (glossy) sheens.

    Why You Might Like It

    Avonite is a favorite of professional kitchen designers. Avonite 100 percent acrylic Foundations' "Right Size Capability" program works with contractors and designers to produce massive sheets up to 204-inches long, reducing seams to next-to-nothing and eliminating trim waste.

    Avonite, too, excels at providing vertical-ready solid surfaces for wet areas such as showers and wet walls, both residential and commercial.

    Like Corian, Avonite is another U.S.-made product, coming from factories in New Mexico and Kentucky.

  • 02 of 07

    Corian

    Corian countertop

    The Spruce / Kevin Norris

    The oldest of all solid surface materials, DuPont's Corian is the product that, in 1967, kicked off the revolution. No more would synthetic residential kitchen countertops be limited to laminate.

    The point of chemist Dr. Donald Slocum's invention was a surface that is solid through and through. Laminate is composed of layers; the solid surface is homogenous, which means that it can never de-laminate.

    Why You Might Like It

    Corian provides a wealth of information and support for its product. Unlike other solid surface companies, which rely on designers to clue in consumers, Corian is very transparent about its product, from start to finish. 

    Corian will never be the cheapest solid surface on the market, but the selection is copious. Corian is made in the U.S. at its Buffalo, New York plant.

  • 03 of 07

    Staron

    White Countertop in Kitchen

    Alessandro De Carli / EyeEm / Getty Images

    Even if you have never heard of Staron, you may have heard of the ultimate parent company that helped develop Staron—Samsung.

    When Corian's patent ran out, Samsung was one of many solid surface companies to rush in and begin duplicating DuPont's successful Corian formula. Only as the Staron brand matured did Samsung attempt to branch away from that initial Corian-but-cheaper formula and try new things.

    Staron is now owned by Lotte Chemical USA, the U.S.-based division of Seoul-based Lotte Chemical. Lotte acquired Staron from Samsung in 2016.

    Why You Might Like It

    Because of Staron Tempest. The Tempest collection is especially striking, with its sparkly metallics combined with true depth and translucency. Tempest is a solid surface that has the three-dimensional quality of quartz countertop surfaces or even real stone.

    A Top En-counter, a Huntington Beach, California-based designer, concurs, saying that Staron's Tempest "has blown away the others in competing in the new arena of engineered quartz products...Tempest looks like engineered stone but applies all of the most important elements in solid surfacing, which are integral sinks, inconspicuous seams and the ability to repair, refurbish and resurface."

  • 04 of 07

    Swanstone

    Kitchen

    YinYang/Getty Images 

    Like many other solid surface companies, St. Louis-based Swan has a long history with other types of home-related surface products. It invented a doorless, curtain-less shower unit called the Shell Shower, which, if viewed from above, is shaped like a nautilus shell.

    Solid surface is not Swan's main line of business, but it has been doing it for a long time: since 1987. Many consumers look to Swanstone as a less expensive alternative to Corian or Avonite.

    One benefit of Swan's diversified product lines is that they are a good source of solid surface integrated sink countertops, especially bathroom vanity tops.

    Swanstone stands up well against high heat. It is rated to withstand heat up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. This means that the countertop will not singe or melt when you place a hot pot or tea kettle of boiling water on it.

    Why You Might Like It

    Swanstone solid surfaces are often less expensive than those offered by other companies. If you're a U.S. customer and prefer to purchase U.S.-made products to reduce the carbon footprint of shipping overseas, all Swan products are made in the United States in Centralia, Illinois.

    Continue to 5 of 7 below
  • 05 of 07

    Formica Everform Solid Surface

    Modern Kitchen with Formica Countertops

    Gnangarra / Wikimedia Commons BY AU 2.5

    The brand name Formica is synonymous with laminate counters. For many people, Formica is laminate and laminate is Formica. Long a mainstay of restaurant tables, bars, and kitchen counters, Formica laminate still surfaces the world. But what about solid surfaces?

    Even though most efforts go toward the laminates, solid surfaces remain a tidy side business for Formica Corporation. The former Formica Solid Surfacing division, now called Everform Solid Surface, offers 38 colors of its unique seamless, non-porous material.

    Nearly 30 of Everform Solid Surface's colors and styles are manufactured at U.S. plants, with the remainder being made in China.

    Why You Might Like It

    Formica is transitioning its solid surfaces from polyester to 100-percent acrylic. Lately, some exciting products have come out, such as Bottle Glass Quartz, Bleached Concrete, Argento Terrazzo Matrix, and Tumbled Glass. Offerings like these make solid surfaces look less homogeneous and more like real stone.

  • 06 of 07

    Wilsonart Solid Surfaces

    Kitchen

    Sisoje / Getty Images

    Venerable surfaces company Wilsonart has existed for more than a half-century now. Starting in 1956, Ralph Wilson Sr. began producing a high-pressure laminate in Texas. Only much later did Wilsonart enter the burgeoning field of solid surfaces.

    The company had a brief bump in the road when it introduced solid surface veneer (SSV), a 1/8-inch slice of material that fabricators were expected to glue to a particle-board base.

    When that didn't work, Wilsonart pre-bonded the SSV to the board and fixed a polymer sheet to the bottom to protect it from moisture. SSV was a failure, resulting in cracked counters and a 2004 class-action lawsuit that brought in a $23 million settlement to plaintiffs.

    Why You Might Like It

    SSV issue aside, Wilsonart is known for being attentive to customers. Currently, Wilsonart has dozens of dedicated showrooms in the United States and Canada. Historically, too, Wilsonart has been innovative. While most of its creativity is still going in the direction of laminate surfaces, Wilsonart's solid surfaces division is still a strong contender, producing a wide variety of stone and woodgrain-inspired materials for the kitchen and bath.

    Wilsonart offers wide format solid surface materials. On most projects that require countertops wider than the industry standard of 30 inches, two sheets of solid surface are bonded together. While skilled installers can make invisible or nearly invisible seams, what could be better than having a single piece of solid surface that fits the required dimensions? Wilsonart offers Wide Sheet Solid Surface to avoid the added time and expense of bonding sheets.

  • 07 of 07

    Hanex Hyundai L&C

    Kitchen

    herksi / Getty Images

    Hanex Hyundai L&C, headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, may fly under the radar for most homeowners looking for solid surface material, but it's a favorite of designers and commercial builders. Hanex has a large international presence, with two large manufacturing plants in South Korea, smaller factories in the U.S. and Canada, and a handful of showrooms in Asia, the U.S., and Europe.

    Hanex offers four collections that represent a wide range of colors and styles: Cascade, Venato, Stratum, and Bellassimo:

    • Cascade: Delicated veined with minimal color contrast
    • Venato: Richly veined to resemble Calacatta marble
    • Stratum: Deep earthen colors
    • Bellassimo: Patterned grays and browns "inspired by the beauty of the night sky and twilight"