The Controversial Material Coming for Your Kitchen Countertops, According to Designers

All home renovations come with their own set of challenges, but kitchens tend to be the most difficult spaces to redo. The reason for this can be boiled down to two words: high expectations. A brand-new kitchen not only has to meet current kitchen design trends around form and function, but it must also satisfy personal visions of celebrating holidays and reaching milestones. That’s a lot of pressure! So it’s no surprise that many people seek out as much kitchen renovating advice as possible, hoping their choices will stand the test of time. 

Selecting a great kitchen countertop material can bring all this stress to a fever pitch, since it’s often the most tactile, visible material in a kitchen — which can mean the difference between a cohesive design and one that falls flat. So what are the pros loving these days? Soapstone.

In Apartment Therapy’s annual State of Home Design survey, we asked 154 designers about the material they think will gain the most popularity in 2025, and 71% said soapstone. We also asked about the most popular kitchen countertop trend to consider, and while the majority said warm-colored marbles (54%), soapstone was the runner-up at 19%. You can see some of those designers’ projects featuring soapstone here — the above kitchen by designer Julie Kantrowitz of JK Interior Living even has a soapstone apron sink!

“I love that people are slowly becoming more and more comfortable utilizing natural materials and living finishes, such as marble, soapstone, unlacquered brass, and nickel,” says designer Sara Swabb of Storie Collective. “I hope it sticks around!” 

Made of metamorphic rock — specifically, a talc-schist that’s incredibly dense yet softer than alternatives (quartz, as an example, is much harder) — soapstone’s density makes it impenetrable. That means it doesn’t need to be sealed like marble does, even though it can scratch. For this reason, it can be lower maintenance than other popular stones. 

Unlike marble, though, soapstone tends to have limited shades that are on the darker end of the color wheel. Think lots of blacks and dark grays — nothing near bright white. That palette speaks to an overall shift toward more dramatic shades and textures in the kitchen, which can be controversial simply because counters do take up a lot of visual real estate. And darker shades are seen as riskier and at odds with the ever popular light, airy, all-white kitchen.

Surface and shade trends are shifting, though. “2025 is the year of saturated color, velvet fabrics, and bold stones,” says designer Liz Goldberg of Carolyn Leona. The uptick in soapstone use is proof of the first and last parts of Goldberg’s statement. 

One way soapstone is like Calacatta, though? It still works like a neutral, albeit a more maximalist one. Perhaps walnut cabinetry would make a strong pair, or a backsplash shimmering in emerald, eggplant, or mauve, as shown just above in this space by Susie Novak Interiors. When you embrace this moodier mindset, you’ll create the perfect conditions for the one trend designer Lina Galvao of Curated Nest wants to sustain: “Statement stone with dramatic veining,” she says.

Soapstone surely is a material that can meet these high expectations in style — just look at any of the striking, stunning kitchens shown above.