Porcelain or Indian sandstone: which patio should you choose?
By Terry O'Reilly, owner, 17 years on the tools. Updated . 4 min read.
Porcelain costs more but needs almost no looking after, does not stain or fade and stays the colour you chose. Indian sandstone costs less, looks warmer and more natural, but it marks, greens up in shade and wants sealing and a wash each year. If you want low upkeep and a crisp modern look, choose porcelain. If you want a natural, softer patio for less money and do not mind a jet wash each spring, choose sandstone.
What is the real difference between porcelain and sandstone?
Indian sandstone is natural stone, cut from a quarry, so every slab is slightly different in colour and texture. Porcelain is a manufactured tile, fired hard, dense and almost non-porous, made to look like stone, slate, wood or concrete. It arrived later and it is now a common choice for new patios.
Neither is wrong. They suit different people, and the honest way to choose is to look at how you will live with it for the next fifteen years, not just how it looks on the day.
Porcelain vs Indian sandstone: side by side
| Compared | Indian sandstone | Porcelain |
|---|---|---|
| Cost band, laid | Lower | Higher |
| Look | Natural, warm, every slab different | Uniform, crisp, large format |
| Colour over time | Fades a little in sun, greens in shade | Does not fade or change |
| Stains | Oil, wine and rust mark it. Sealing helps | Wipes off |
| Upkeep | Seal after laying, jet wash each spring, reseal every few years | Sweep and hose. That is it |
| Slip when wet | Riven surface grips well, smooth sawn less so | Textured outdoor grade grips well, smooth indoor tiles do not belong outside |
| Frost | Good quality stone is fine; thin or poor stone can flake | Absorbs almost no water, so frost proof |
| Cutting and laying | Easier to cut, more forgiving of a slightly uneven bed | Needs a diamond blade, a full mortar bed and a primer or it lifts |
I price every patio on a visit rather than from a table, because steps, drainage and levelling move the price more than the slab does. The written quote covers the dig out, the base, laying and pointing, and anything that changes is agreed with you first. If you want a rough idea first, WhatsApp me a photo of the garden from the back door with your postcode and I will reply the same day. The cost guide explains what else changes it.
Why does porcelain cost more?
Partly the tile, but mostly the laying. Porcelain is so dense that mortar will not grip it on its own, so every slab is primed on the back and laid on a full bed of mortar, not dabs. It has to be cut with a diamond blade and a wet saw, and it is unforgiving: an uneven bed shows as a lip you will trip on. That is a slower, more skilled day than sandstone, and it is where cheap porcelain patios go wrong. If a quote for porcelain is close to a quote for sandstone, ask how it is being bedded.
Would you rather just ask Terry?
A photo and a question on WhatsApp gets a straight answer, usually the same day.
Which one looks better?
That depends on the house. Sandstone in a raj green or autumn brown suits older brick houses, cottage gardens and anywhere you want the patio to look like it has always been there. Porcelain in a grey, a pale stone effect or a wood plank suits newer houses, bifold doors and a garden where the patio runs level with the kitchen floor. Porcelain also comes in 600 by 900 or larger sizes that make a small garden feel bigger because there are fewer joints.
One honest warning on colour: sandstone is natural, so the samples in the yard will not match your patio slab for slab. That is the charm of it. If you want every slab the same, that is porcelain.
Which one is safer when it rains?
Both are fine if you choose the right finish. Riven sandstone has a natural grip. Smooth sawn sandstone and polished porcelain are the ones people slip on. For an outdoor patio we only lay porcelain with an outdoor slip rating, and it grips at least as well as stone, even with algae, because algae does not take hold on it in the first place.
What is under the patio matters more than what is on top
Milton Keynes clay moves. A patio laid on a thin bed over soil heaves in winter and drops in summer, and the slabs rock and crack whatever they are made of. Every patio we lay sits on 100mm of compacted stone, on a full mortar bed, with a gentle slope (about 1 in 80) away from the house so the rain runs to a drain or a border rather than sitting against the wall. Porcelain is less forgiving of a poor base than sandstone because it will not flex, so the base is even more important there.
If you are also thinking about a raised patio or steps, read does a patio need planning permission, because height changes the rules. And whichever you pick, sealing and a yearly wash keeps sandstone looking new; there is more in how to clean and reseal block paving, which applies to stone too. You can see both finishes in our work.
