How Have Our Painted Countertops Held Up?
When we chose to paint our brown granite countertops to look like marble 3 1/2 years ago, most people thought it was a terrible idea. People said they wouldn't last and that we would regret it. Were they right? Or did our painted counters hold up well?
In this post, I'm answering all of the questions I have gotten about the durability of our painted countertops! I'm sharing photos and a video of how our countertops looked after 3 1/2 years of heavy daily use, who should consider painting their kitchen counters (and who shouldn't), and what I would do differently if I tackled this project again.
Why We Decided to Paint Our Kitchen Countertops
First, let me quickly recap how we got here for you. In early 2021, we gave our kitchen a budget-friendly makeover by painting the kitchen cabinets and painting the tile backsplash. Those two changes went a long way to making the kitchen fit our style much better. But the brown-speckled granite countertops still bothered me. We planned to eventually replace our countertops once we could afford it, but it was going to be a while.
In the meantime, we wanted to change the look of our countertops. We considered lots of different affordable DIY countertop ideas. We even thought about using the same DIY concrete overlay technique we have used in the past. But after considering all of our options, we ultimately painted our granite countertops to look like marble in April of 2021. And thousands of people on the internet and social media told me it was a huge mistake.
How to Paint Countertops to Look Like Marble
If you missed the original post that includes the list of supplies we used and the step-by-step tutorial, you can find it here!
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How Long Did We Expect Our Painted Counters to Last?
I think expectations are important to address when it comes to painted countertops. We never thought that painting our kitchen counters was going to be a permanent fix or that the paint would stay in perfect condition forever. I don't think that is a reasonable expectation (more on this later).
That said, we weren't sure how long the countertop paint kit we chose would last. Sure, the kit we purchased had thousands of positive reviews. But those reviews weren't left a year or more after the counters were painted. Most of the reviews were written shortly after the counters were painted and the results were perfect and brand new. So we really had no way of knowing.
The Painting Kit We Used
After doing lots of research and reading tons of reviews, this is the countertop painting kit we used.
We were beyond happy with how they looked when we finished this project. Though we painted our kitchen counters as a temporary fix until we could replace them, it was a lot of work and it cost about $300. I felt like if we got at least a year of wear out of them, it would be worth the work we put into it and would be worth the amount we paid for supplies. I would be thrilled if they held up for two years.
How Long Did Our Painted Countertops Last?
By far the question I am asked most is about how durable our painted countertops are and how long ours actually held up. This answer isn't entirely straightforward, but I'll do my best to explain. First, I must stress that we did not baby our countertops. We didn't put hot pots and pans on them (per the paint manufacturer's instructions), but otherwise, we weren't easy on them in any way. We rarely eat out and cook 95% of our meals at home, so our painted countertops were heavily used.
At the 18-Month Mark
Our painted counters held up beautifully for around 18 months. The only issue we had up to that point was that the caulk yellowed, but I suspect that had something to do with the type of caulk we used or user error. I was very, very happy with them for a solid year and a half. We didn't have any chipping, peeling or yellowing of the countertop paint.
That said, it was around the 18-month mark that I began to regret applying two coats of a satin finish Polycrylic topcoat over the epoxy resin that came with the kit we used. I had applied it to tone down the very high sheen of the epoxy resin.
The polycrylic didn't yellow, as many people thought it would, but it did get some stains. Once, some orange peppers sat on it for a while (courtesy of one of my daughters), and we couldn't get the faint orange stain out. And more than once we set a magazine down on the countertop when it was damp, which caused the text and color from the magazine paper to transfer onto the countertop. I do not think either of those things would have happened if we had left the epoxy finish alone and not applied the polycrylic top coat.
Around the 2-Year Mark
Sometime around the 2-year mark, we started to see chipping around the edge of our under-mount sink. I think the biggest reason for this is that it's really difficult to get a good coating of the protective epoxy resin on the edge of the under-mount sink cutout. I think if we had a drop-in sink, this wouldn't have been an issue. That said, the chips around the under-mount sink were noticeable because there were enough of them that they bothered me.
We also started to see a few small chips along some of the countertop edges that frequently got banged/dinged with pots and pans. But if you came into our kitchen and looked around, you would really have to search for them. They didn't really bother me.
After 3 Years 5 Months
We lived with our painted countertops until August of 2024–that's 3 years and 5 months for anyone doing the math. We ultimately decided to do a full gut renovation of our kitchen instead of just replacing the countertops.
The video below gives you a good look at how the countertops looked after nearly 3 1/2 years of heavy use!
The photo below was taken of the chips around the sink the day before our kitchen was demoed in August of 2024. There were definitely fewer chips at the 2-year mark, but they were still noticeable.
And you can see a few chips along the edges of our painted counters below. Again, the photo below was taken of in August of 2024, which was 3 years and 5 months after we painted them.
Would I Paint Our Kitchen Countertops Again?
Yes, without hesitation. As I mentioned earlier, we did not expect painted kitchen counters to be a permanent fix that would remain flawless for years and years. But we were very happy with how they held up relative to what an affordable update it was.
In fact, we painted the countertops in our laundry room and both of our daughter's bathrooms after we painted our kitchen counters–that's how happy we were with them!
Who Should Paint Their Kitchen Counters? Who Shouldn't?
If you are looking for flawless and perfect kitchen counters for 2+ years, you probably should not paint your kitchen counters. I can't imagine any scenario where you won't eventually get some chips or imperfections, regardless of the products/kit/system you use. Your best option would probably be to replace your kitchen countertops.
But if you are looking for a budget-friendly way to give your countertops a new look for a couple of years until you find a more permanent solution, I highly recommend painting them.
I even feel like painting your counters could be a permanent fix if you are willing to repeat the process every couple of years. If we had planned to keep our old countertops when we started seeing chips around the 2 year mark, I would have bought another countertop paint kit and gone through the whole process again so they would look pretty and brand new again. But since we knew we would be ripping ours out, it didn't make much sense to repaint and coat our countertops again.
What Would I Do Differently?
I alluded to this above but I want to elaborate a bit. I would absolutely choose the same countertop painting kit again. But I would not apply satin polycrylic over the epoxy resin again. I loved that it dulled the very shiny surface and made it mimic a real marble countertop more, it did cause some issues that I don't think we would have had with the epoxy resin topcoat alone (I explain more in the “At the 18-month Mark” section above).
Instead, I would have applied an additional coat of epoxy resin and then lightly sanded it to get the honed marble finish I was after. The sanding required would not be nearly enough to compromise the thickness of the epoxy resin topcoat, especially if we applied an extra coat of it to be safe. So if you don't love the shiny finish of the epoxy resin, I would recommend you try this method and skip the satin polycrylic.
I hope this post has been helpful if you are wondering whether you should paint your counters or not. It's not the perfect solution for everyone, but it was an awesome option for us to update the look of our counters before tackling a larger renovation. I would do it again in a heartbeat!
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Thank you so much for the update! That really was a good investment to achieve what you wanted for 3.5 years. $100 a year is not bad at all. I’ve often wondered how these kits held up and now I know!! Thanks again, very much appreciated..
Glad you found it helpful Karolyn! Thanks for reading :)
Great info and follow up! I love how thorough and detailed you are about all of it, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
So glad you found it helpful, Kelly!