Does a High Price Guarantee High-Quality Countertops?

Price is one of the main factors considered when choosing a contractor to make countertops. But does a higher price always guarantee better quality? This is the question we tried to answer by analyzing customer reviews and data from our ranking of the best countertop contractors.

So, we decided to analyze whether the high prices charged by some contractors reflect their impeccable quality of work. To prepare this analytical article, we chose to use price data gathered through our Secret Shopper method. I don't think I need to explain to you what this method is, but if you want to learn more about how we perform this type of research, you can read our article about it at the link.

In this article, we will briefly explain where we obtained our data. So, our secret shopper, after speaking with the contractors, requested prices for the fabrication of a specific countertop with precise measurements. All the contractors we considered in this study received the same email with a request for a quote for our countertop:

For this research and the preparation of this article on "how high prices affect the quality of work," we selected only those companies that provided us with the highest prices for the fabrication and installation of our countertop. These prices ranged from $8,000 to $16,967 for our Calacatta Idilio countertop and from $7,500 to $16,600 for Carrara Morro!

After selecting the companies with the highest prices, we began analyzing their reviews from Google, Facebook, and Yelp, which were aggregated on our site. Our goal was to assess the feedback on these companies and understand how well those with higher prices fulfill their commitments and whether they meet customer expectations.

We have deliberately hidden the names of the companies in order not to accidentally tarnish their reputation. Additionally, we would like to note that Our Analysis is 100% independent and not affiliated with any of the contractors.

Review Analysis

It seems that we've covered everything we needed to in the introduction of our article, and now we can move on to the actual analysis and conclusions. We analyzed both positive and negative reviews on Google, Facebook, and Yelp for about 30 companies with the highest prices in cities such as Detroit, Adamo, Tampa, Raleigh, Seattle, Albuquerque, New York, Jacksonville, Indianapolis, Arlington, Denver, Mesa, Minneapolis, and Cleveland. In our research, we paid special attention to the negative reviews, as we believe they provide the clearest insights into the issues customers faced when working with companies that offered the highest prices for our project.

In the table below, we've highlighted the most striking negative reviews regarding the work of the contractors under consideration.

It is worth noting that only 21 companies were included in the table, as the remaining 9 had perfect ratings of 4.9 or 5 stars with no negative reviews. The companies featured in the tables had an average of 5 reviews with 1 or 2 stars.

Our analysis makes it clear that a high price doesn’t always guarantee flawless workmanship and service. For instance, a company with a high, or one might say, premium price can still make errors, whether during installation, fabrication, or, as is often the case, with communication, like Company 1 and Company 2. Seeing this, we concluded that even companies offering services in the premium segment can face unforeseen situations, which they may not handle perfectly when interacting with clients. These can include delays, installation issues, misunderstandings, and more. All of this stems from the human factor, which cannot be entirely excluded in this industry. Therefore, any arising issue should be met with understanding. A company that cares about its reputation will always offer the best solution!

However, what's important is that such companies are not afraid to acknowledge their mistakes and work on correcting them. In fact, some companies, in response to negative reviews, show that they addressed the unforeseen issues and didn’t leave the client stuck with the problem.

So, let’s summarize. Out of the 30 companies with the highest prices in the market that we analyzed, 9 have an impeccable reputation based on our aggregated reviews, with no 1 or 2-star ratings from clients. The remaining 21 companies, on average, have about 5 negative reviews with 1 or 2-star ratings. This tells us that 70% of high-priced companies do make mistakes, and despite their high pricing, they essentially operate similarly to other market participants. However, 30% of expensive companies perform flawlessly.

At this point, we're tempted to draw conclusions, but I don't want to rush it—let's first discuss a couple more points before we finalize our findings.

Can we fully trust reviews?

Here's what I can say: not all clients write reviews, but based on our experience and the opinions of global experts in internet marketing, I can confidently state that negative reviews are generally written more readily. This is because clients often feel that leaving a review is one of the few ways to influence a contractor who made mistakes. What's even more interesting is that customers typically decide to leave a review only when the contractor fails to resolve the issue amicably. Yes, it's possible that some reviews may be left by malicious competitors, but we are almost certain that the reviews we analyzed for the companies we investigated were left by their actual clients. This confidence is reinforced by the fact that, in most cases, the contractors didn’t respond to these reviews.

These factors give us reason to trust the reviews and consider them valid for our study.

Now it's time to summarize our research and draw final conclusions, most importantly to answer our key question: "Does a high price guarantee high-quality countertops?"

Our answer is as follows: In 70% of cases, a high price is not a reason to believe that the company offering it will deliver perfect work. In fact, the remaining 30% of companies with the highest prices can likely still make mistakes. The remaining 30% of companies with the highest price can certainly also make mistakes, but we are confident that these companies, while making mistakes, make every effort to eliminate problematic situations at their own expense. I can say this with 100% certainty, as I personally communicate with several contractors who work with enterprise-level clients.

So, what should you, the buyers, do if a high price on the market doesn’t always guarantee that the countertop fabrication and installation will be done perfectly?

My answer is quite simple! Take your time when selecting a contractor. If you’ve decided to find one yourself by searching online, carefully review customer feedback about the companies. Then reach out to the best ones, get price quotes, compare the different offers, review contracts, and discuss timelines. Yes, this will take a considerable amount of time, but by not rushing, you're more likely to make the right choice.

For those of you who value your time, I recommend visiting our rankings page, where you can assess the information we’ve already gathered and effortlessly send requests to the contractors you like. The key benefit you’ll get from using our ratings is the confidence that we’ve already done all the research and legwork for you—allowing you to make an informed and easy decision just by checking out our rankings!