I had Carrera marble counters installed about 18 months ago for $50/square foot. It is grade B marble, which means it has a lot of grey in it, but that was all the budget could afford.

To compare, I am in the Detroit area. When I was counter shopping, granite was starting around $38/installed. Most of the desirable granites started around $55-70.

Nicole

As Nicole pointed out, there are huge regional differences in stone pricing. Just like granite, marble prices could also vary depending on country of origin, quality of material (1st choice, 2nd choice etc.) and surface finish (i.e. honed, brushed antiqued etc.) to name a few.

Although pricing is understandably a very big consideration, I would advise that you shop for a good fabricator before you shop for a "good" price. There are still a load of unscrupulous shops out there offering dubious quality workmanship. A good stone guy will help guide you through the decision process and will also work with you as far as your budget is concerned. They might also offer suggestions of materials you had never considered (or been aware of - there are just so many out there these days!) A good fabricator really is a priceless commodity.

I strongly reiterate the importance of finding a good fabricator. We paid cash to a fabricator our contractor led us to, who had a much better price quote on our honed carrara countertops. The stone turned out to be 1. stained, 2. cracked and repaired. I didn't notice the problems until fabricator and money were gone. (We deducted the cost from our contractor's bill. He at first told us that we'd made the deal with the fabricator so it was our tough luck.) Now, we can either live with it or replace it, which would mean a lot of fuss and muss (and more expense) in the kitchen. Live and learn.

BTW, in NYC, I found that marble was generally cheaper than granite.

Stacey, Elemar North in MA has some beautiful Carrera marble and it is a lot less than $83 sq ft. They have it honed and polished. Calacatta marble will be more expensive than your granite price.

Here in the deep south, I've found marbles for $50/sq ft and granites for $120/sq ft - and the opposite. It depends on what kind of marble and what kind of granite. I wanted a neutral mostly white marble, and that cost more. I don't like granite, so I never looked seriously at it.

My honed Carrara was $50/sq ft. There were small additional charges for an upgraded Dupont edge and sink cutout. The polished Calacatta Manhattan I used on my backsplash was $90/sq ft.

I'm not sure where in New England you are, but I highly recommend Famar in Medford, MA. They are a wholesaler of marble only, no granite. They also fabricate/install but you can use your own fabricator, which is what I did. From what I saw, their marble is all of very high quality. The owner comes from the town of Carrara, and he travels to Italy several times a year to select and purchase stone directly from the quarries. He was extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Unlike many of the people at other stoneyards I visited, he spent a lot of time with me pulling out numerous slabs for me to view and making suggestions.

There are photos of some of their inventory on their website.

Good luck!

Erika

Here is a link that might be useful: www.thenewfamar.com