How about copper countertops? I always liked the look.
Marble countertops? Sandstone countertops? Quartz? Shale?
I seem to remember that granit had a wide range of prices depending on the exact type/look/finish etc. Soapstone was equivalent to the highest-end, nicest looking granite countertops.
It will definitely be in the top tier as far as cost goes. If you have a Home Depot nearby, they should have a sample. Once I decided on soapstone, HD placed the order for me but I had the option of driving to the local stone yard and picking out the slab that they cut my countertop from… Which I did. When looking at untreated (no finishing oil applied) soapstone, you can use saliva (lick your thumb and rub it on the stone) to see what color the stone will turn when oiled.
I used a place called Granite Transformations. What they do is install an “engineered stone” product directly over your existing countertops. I liked it a lot. The appearance is more uniform than real granite (maybe a plus, maybe not) and there is a fair choice of looks. It was about seven years ago, but there was at least a small price advantage over granite (not a whole lot if I remember correctly). Installing it over existing countertops only makes sense if that is all you are doing, but it does make for less mess.
Also, when they installed it they made a small mistake which, quite frankly, I would have let slide. They said no and did it over.
We went with Corian. I like it a lot, but it scratches kind of easily. However, the scratches are easily buffed out.
Granite horror story from just this week. My s-i-l had granite countertops put in about two years ago. Her family re-discovered making popcorn on the stove top. Placing a very hot pan on a granite countertop is a bad idea. 14 inch crack to the side of the counter. And apparently you can’t repair granite. They’re just going to have to live with it.
I put in a new Ikea kitchen last summer and used their oak butcher block counter top. I love it - it’s not “cold” like other surfaces, it’s quiet, and it seems very durable. You have to give it a good few coats of tung oil before use, and occasionally thereafter, but it now looks gorgeous and spillages just bead up and wipe off easily. If it ever does get stained or damaged, I can just sand it down and re-oil.
Downsides: you can’t put very hot pans straight down on it (I keep a couple of metal trivets next to the stove), and you can’t cut on it, but I always use a chopping board anyway.
To make a matching chopping block, I just took the square I cut out for the hob and sanded down the edges to curve them off a bit, then attached little rubber feet. That made a nice solid chunky butcher block that ought to last for years.
Had granite installed for my wet bar in the basement. Looks nice, but is not practical. Noticed a small chip a week after it was installed. Now I’m paranoid about setting things on it, else I might chip it. 
I’m probably going to use formica for my countertop upgrade - if you go to a home reno store and take a look, they have a huge range of colours and patterns at this point.
My concern with copper counters is the smell - we went to a restaurant that had copper table tops, and they really stank. I don’t know if they just weren’t sealed properly or what, but it was really bad.
I love the look of butcher block countertops, too, but I’m just afraid that they’ll be too easy to damage for my clumsy ways (dropping knives and dishes on them, etc.).
I LOVE my Ikea laminate countertop. Available in a gazillon designs, affordable, and a breeze to clean. For hot pans, I have a stainless steel insert that runs off to the sink. Perfect combo.
Personally, I’d never have a granite counter top. I cook three meals a day, and need something I don’t have to worry about. I have Silestone counters and they look great, clean up perfectly and are rugged enough to actually, you know, cook on.
I actually have an IKEA kitchen now. I put it in when we first bought the house, and it is starting to show its age. I’m half toying with getting a new countertop, backsplash and floor to freshen it up and leave the rest alone.
My counters are part butcher block, part formica, and if we redo the kitchen I’m going with more butcher block. It’s fairly old (looong before we moved in five years ago- I have no idea exactly) and has a few scratches here and there, but I think that adds to the charm. If I keep up on oiling the wood, the scratches aren’t that noticeable anyway.
Nobody ever told me granite was fragile. I cook on mine every day and set down hot pans on it and it’s still perfect as far as I can tell. I don’t cut on it because it’s hard on knives. It was there when we moved in - I don’t know if we would have got the same countertop on our own - but it’s worked out great. It’s gray and black speckles with some round cranberry drops here and there.
We have butcherblock now, we put it in as a cheap stop gap until we decided what we wanted but they’ve been awesome. It’s been 5 years of me very irregularly oiling them and they are marvelous.
It’s not the look we want for the new house (so far, 22 months to go, many things will change) so right now I’m looking at granite or corian for coloured options but we’re also considering concrete. I love the way it looks.
If there’s any chance you might sell you home in the next 5 - 10 years, don’t put in formica. Very few people like that, and a kitchen is a huge selling feature in a house. If you don’t like granite or other natural stones, Corian or something like CaesarStone are good substitutes.
But I don’t get this “don’t like granite” stuff. There are so many different types of granites and other natural stones out there, that there’s something for everyone.
Meganite is less expensive than granite, but perhaps too similar looking for your taste. I can’t imagine keeping stainless steel clean looking is very easy.
Have you looked at unpolished or honed granite. That’s the new trend.
I have experience with both quartz and granite. When we remodeled our kitchen 4 - 5 years ago, we went with quartz. We just had our bathrooms remodeled and used granite.
Now that I’ve had experience with both, I would choose quartz.
Quartz advantages: it requires NO additional care, other than sponging it clean. No sealers are necessary. It is scratch resistant, heat resistant, and it doesn’t absorb anything. We haven’t had any problem with chipping in our kitchen.
Granite pros / cons: granite is pretty, but I really didn’t realize how much granite can absorb liquids. When it was first installed, I noticed a dark discoloration blob where water had sat on it for an hour. Luckily it was just water, and not something with a pigment. The dark discoloration went away within a day as the granite dried out. You have to use a sealer on granite to prevent this. “Normal” sealers allegedly only last about a year, which wasn’t long enough for me. I ended up spending $150 on 12 oz of Senguard granite sealer. The manufacturer claims that Senguard is a “permanent” sealer, with only one application required. We’ll see.
Personally, I think granite looks prettier than quartz, but I always choose practicality over appearance. So I’d recommend quartz if you’re like me. If aesthetics are more important, and you aren’t worried about sealing your granite every once in a while, maybe granite would be better for you.
J.
Thanks for the inputs. My dislike of granite countertops is purely aesthetics, I simply don’t like the look, plus I’d like something a little different.