I used tile in my entry way at my last home, it's high maintenance and I will never use it again. I sealed it like the instructions said, but it still got a dirty look. In this home I used linoleum that looks like wood and it is fine. People have asked me if it is wood.

They are labor intensive to keep the grout clean, no matter what color it is. Gunk just collects on the grout over time from wiping off the tiles. Also, tile counters seems to have been a thing of the 70s and early 80s. I had tile counters and they tore up the sponge I liked to use, so I had to keep a cloth to wipe off the counters.

Eons ago, when I had counters with white grout, I would float a thick film of water and Clorox bleach over the counters and leave them overnight, and it did whiten the grout. The edge tiles were higher and slanted in toward the counter, and so I had no problem with the bleach dripping off to the floor.

Any changes I make at this stage in my life is going to be as easy as I can make it. I am tired of cleaning and cooking. I can control the cooking part, but cleaning will be here until I die. So, no ceramic tile, no wood floors, etc..

ask the tile setters about using a synthetic grout that isn't absorbent like the old style cement-based grouts.