Patios · 5 min read · Updated October 2026
Porcelain vs sandstone: which patio should you choose?
Honest comparison from a firm that lays both: looks, upkeep, cost, winter, and which suits which house.
We lay both every month and will quote both for the same garden. There is no right answer, only a right answer for your house, your shade and how much you want to look after it.
Looks
Sandstone has natural variation: no two slabs the same, colour that shifts in the wet, a warmth porcelain cannot fake. Porcelain is consistent, crisp and comes in large formats that make a small garden look bigger. Traditional house, sandstone. Contemporary house or extension, porcelain. Cottage with a modern kitchen, either, and we will show you samples on the site visit.
Upkeep
This is where porcelain wins outright. It does not absorb water, so it does not stain, does not go green in shade and does not need sealing. Sandstone needs sealing on installation and every few years, and in a north-facing garden it will green up and need a pressure wash each spring.
- Porcelain: hose or mop, no sealing, ever
- Sandstone: seal at install, re-seal every 2 to 4 years, clean annually in shade
Winter
Porcelain is frost-proof and most ranges are rated anti-slip wet. Sandstone copes with frost if it is properly laid and sealed, but a cheap, poorly calibrated slab can delaminate. Buy good sandstone or buy porcelain.
Cost
Porcelain is £140 to £220 per m² installed; sandstone £110 to £170. Over ten years the gap narrows once you count sealing and cleaning, but on the day porcelain costs more.
Laying
Both go on a full mortar bed over compacted stone. Porcelain also needs a slurry primer on the back of every slab or it will not bond, and it has to be cut with a proper blade. If a quote for porcelain is suspiciously cheap, ask whether they prime.
Our honest steer
Shaded garden, dogs, kids, or you do not want a maintenance job: porcelain. Period property, sunny garden, you like a bit of character and do not mind a seal every few years: sandstone. Not sure: get us out and we will quote both.
Written by the White Cottage Landscapes crew, Daventry. Prices are our own installed rates in Northamptonshire, updated October 2026.
