Different Types of Stone and Their Popular Uses

Different Types of Stone and Their Popular Uses

That might seem like a long-winded title, but we have some very simple information to share today that should appeal to all lovers of stone. There are many different types of stone, and their popular uses may surprise you. Denser, “harder” types make great walking surfaces, like the floor tiles in a kitchen or bathroom. Softer, less dense types of stone can be great for use in cooking, like when they are made into baking sheets and pans. These are just a couple of quick and easy examples, but there are probably more uses for stone than you realize.


Granite is pretty much the go-to stone for kitchens across the globe. That’s because of the high versatility in the stone. It’s very dense compared to other types of rock, and because of that impressive density, it is also far less porous than most types of rock, which in turn means it holds onto bacteria to a lesser degree than things like wood, vinyl or linoleum. These are reasons why granite countertops are so popular.


Limestone is much softer than most other types of stone, and it can also be broken down by certain acidic compounds, so you probably won’t find it on floors or counters anywhere. But limestone is a very important ingredient in high quality cement. Even if you don’t see if inside your house, the odds are good you could find it in your foundation if you were to chop off a chunk and run some tests.


Sandstone is more of a mixture of several different ingredients than a solid stone type. Silicates, rock fragments, sand grains and other minerals can settle and become harder thanks to time and pressure. Sandstone is much easier to cut than even limestone, and its poor absorption rate makes it great for use in flooring, especially in environments which are often wet, like bathrooms.


You can find slate in all kinds of appliances, from refrigerators to ovens, stoves and ranges to microwaves. Slate is very dense compared to other types of stone on this list and it has a staying power which allows it to last for years in conditions where other rocks would start to crumble and come apart. Slate has uses outside of the kitchen too; just look it up if you want to find more practical applications.

The only thing we can’t recommend is shipping stone over long distances. Because most types of stone are much denser than wood, they tend to weigh more and therefore cost more to ship. If you have local quarries where you can buy raw stone, that might work out the best for you. You can take your samples to a mason or other stone smith and get them shaped into the fixtures that you want, and it will often cost you less than just buying those fixtures outright and then having them shipped to your home. We realize this isn’t viable for all of our readers, but some of you can save by taking this advice.