Black granite is the largest single colour family in the dimension-stone trade: dark igneous rocks from India, Brazil, China and southern Africa that range from a flat, patternless black to speckled, flecked and dramatically veined blacks. It is the default stone for memorials worldwide, a staple of commercial cladding and paving, and one of the most common kitchen counters ever installed. Polished 2 cm black granite slabs trade at roughly 30 to 80 dollars per square foot ex-warehouse in Western markets, based on our market estimates (August 2026).
Because the family covers stones as different as Absolute Black and Titanium, the band is wide and a single number is meaningless without a variety name. This hub page lays out the named varieties — Absolute Black, Black Galaxy, Black Pearl, Cosmic Black, Titanium and their relatives — in a price ladder, explains the geology and the supply chain behind each, and covers grades, dyed slabs, installed and cut-to-size pricing, comparisons with black marble and quartz, and factory-direct economics.
What Black Granite Is: Geology and Appearance
Very few black granites are granites in the geological sense. Most are gabbros, dolerites, basalts, norites or charnockites — dark igneous rocks dominated by plagioclase feldspar, pyroxene and amphibole with little or no quartz — and the veined blacks are usually gneisses or migmatites that were folded under heat and pressure. The trade calls all of them granite because they are hard, dense and take a polish. Hardness sits around 6 to 7 on the Mohs scale, porosity is low to very low, and none of them react with household acids.
The family sorts by pattern. Uniform blacks — Absolute Black, Shanxi Black, Zimbabwe Black — are patternless. Flecked blacks — Black Galaxy, Black Pearl, Emerald Pearl — carry mineral flecks that glint under light: bronzite gold in Black Galaxy, blue-grey and silver labradorite in Black Pearl. Speckled blacks — Impala Black, Nero Africa, Cosmic Black at the fine end — show a salt-and-pepper grain. Veined blacks — Titanium, Cosmic Black at the bold end, Via Lattea, Black Fusion — flow with white, grey, gold or copper movement and are the closest black granite gets to a marble look.
Quarries and Supply: India, Brazil, China, Africa
India is the largest producer. Absolute Black in its many trade names comes from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Telangana; Black Galaxy from Chimakurthy in Andhra Pradesh; Black Pearl from Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Indian mills export slabs and enormous volumes of memorial blanks, tile and cut-to-size. Brazil supplies the veined and speckled blacks — Titanium, Cosmic Black, Via Lattea, Preto São Gabriel — from Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais and neighbouring states, mostly as slabs for North America and Europe.
Southern Africa supplies the deepest uniform blacks and some of the classic speckled blacks: Zimbabwe Black from Mutoko, Belfast Black and Impala Black from South Africa, Nero Assoluto Africa. Output is smaller and logistics harder, so African blacks generally price at the top of the uniform-black segment. China supplies Shanxi Black — the volume budget uniform black — plus Mongolia Black, Fuding Black and Hebei Black, and its mills in Fujian import Indian, Brazilian and African blocks in volume, processing them alongside domestic stone and re-exporting finished slabs and cut-to-size worldwide.
For a buyer, this means a Chinese factory-direct quote can cover almost any named black. Shanxi Black and other Chinese domestic blacks are the budget alternative for large tile, paving and memorial programmes; imported blocks processed in Fujian give Absolute Black, Black Galaxy or Titanium at factory-direct pricing.
Black Granite Price Ladder: Named Varieties Compared
Within the family band of 30 to 80 dollars per square foot for polished 2 cm slabs (market estimates, August 2026), the named varieties sort into a consistent ladder. At the bottom, from roughly 30 to 45 dollars per square foot, sit Chinese Shanxi Black, Mongolia Black and commercial-grade Indian Absolute Black — commodity uniform blacks in abundant supply. Impala Black and other African and Indian speckled blacks sit at similar levels.
In the middle, from roughly 35 to 70 dollars per square foot, sit the flecked and premium uniform blacks: Black Galaxy at 35 to 70, Absolute Black at 30 to 75 spanning both segments (market estimates, August 2026), with Zimbabwe Black and select Indian Jet Black at the upper end, and Black Pearl — the Indian black with blue-silver labradorite flash — usually in the 40 to 65 range. Above that, from roughly 55 to 80 dollars per square foot and at the top of the family, sit the Brazilian veined blacks: Cosmic Black with its grey-white and copper movement, and Titanium with bold white and gold veining on a deep black ground, which is the most sought-after black in designer kitchens and prices at the ceiling of the band, occasionally above it for exceptional lots.
The ladder is indicative. Fleck density, depth of black and vein drama vary block by block, and a poor Titanium lot can price below a superb Black Galaxy lot. Use it as a starting point for comparison, not as a valuation of a specific slab.
Grades and the Dyed-Slab Problem
Grading rests on depth and uniformity of black, consistency of fleck or vein pattern, and absence of defects — hairline cracks, white or brown spots, iron staining, grey haze. Premium slabs are deep black to the edge with even pattern; commercial grade tolerates faint greying, uneven fleck or an occasional inclusion; third grade goes to tile, paving and low-visibility memorial stock.
The one issue every black granite buyer must know about is dyeing. Some processors deepen a greyer, cheaper black with dye or dark resin during polishing. It looks perfect at delivery, then fades in sunlight, transfers to a fabricator's acetone cloth or shows a lighter core when an edge is cut. Wipe a corner of every lot with acetone; check that a fresh-cut edge matches the polished face; where possible leave a sample in sun for a few weeks. Reputable mills in every producing country will put no-dye in writing. Veined blacks are rarely dyed but are frequently resin-filled along veins — ask about the resin process and check filled areas under grazing light.
Black Granite Prices in 2026: Slab, Cut-to-Size and Installed
Polished 2 cm black granite slabs run 30 to 80 dollars per square foot ex-warehouse in Western markets — market estimates (August 2026) — with the ladder above showing where each variety sits inside that band. 3 cm slabs price roughly 30 to 45 percent above 2 cm. Honed adds 10 to 20 percent over polished and, on black stone, reads much lighter and greyer than buyers expect; leathered keeps the depth with a low sheen and has become the preferred residential finish; flamed and bush-hammered are for exterior paving and cladding.
Installed pricing in the US follows the granite pattern: fabrication and installation typically adds 30 to 60 dollars per square foot on a standard kitchen, so installed black granite counters commonly land in the 60 to 140 dollars per square foot band as a typical US market figure — Shanxi Black or commercial Absolute Black at the bottom, Titanium at the top. Cut-to-size — tiles, vanity tops, treads, kerbs, memorial blanks — is priced per finished piece and per square metre and generally lands well below slab-plus-fabrication for repetitive formats. Memorial stock is a market of its own, priced by the piece and by carving complexity.
Factory-direct sourcing typically comes in 30 to 60 percent below Western warehouse prices for equivalent variety and grade, from Indian, Brazilian, African or Chinese mills. Uniform blacks are the most transparent commodity in the stone trade, so factory-direct margins are thin and the saving is reliable. On veined blacks the saving is larger in absolute terms because warehouse margins on designer stones are widest. Compare like with like — a factory-direct Titanium quote against a warehouse Titanium quote — in square metres at FOB or landed terms.
Black Granite vs Black Marble, Nero Marquina and Quartz
Black Marble as a family — Spanish, Chinese and Indian blacks from pure jet to white-veined — trades at 30 to 80 dollars per square foot, and Nero Marquina specifically at 40 to 90 (market estimates, August 2026). The price ranges overlap almost fully with black granite, so the choice is about behaviour, not money. Black marble gives a deeper, softer black and sharp white veining that no granite matches, but it is calcite: it etches with acid, scratches more easily and needs sealing and care. Black granite is harder, effectively stain-proof and acid-proof, and never etches. For a bathroom wall or a fireplace, marble; for a working counter or anything outdoors, granite.
Engineered quartz in solid black or black-sparkle patterns typically prices at 50 to 100 dollars per square foot installed in the US. It is perfectly uniform and repeatable — a genuine advantage for multi-unit projects — but it is less heat-tolerant, shows scratches as light marks on a dark ground, and cannot be used outdoors without discolouring. For memorials, cladding, paving and outdoor kitchens there is no contest; for a minimalist indoor black counter, quartz is a real alternative to Absolute Black and the decision comes down to whether the buyer wants stone or a manufactured surface.
Where Black Granite Works Best
Kitchens and vanities are the largest residential market: hard, dense, heat-tolerant black that takes a mirror polish and never etches. The honest caveat is appearance maintenance — a polished uniform black shows every fingerprint, water spot and crumb; flecked and veined blacks hide them, and honed or leathered finishes largely solve the problem on any of them. Titanium and Cosmic Black have taken the high-end kitchen market for black; Absolute Black and Black Galaxy dominate the volume market.
Outdoors and in commercial work black granite is close to ideal: no fading, no freeze-thaw spalling, decades of finish life. It dominates the memorial trade worldwide — Absolute Black, Shanxi Black, Black Galaxy and Impala Black are the standard monument stones — and it is a staple for building plinths, cladding, kerbs, paving, lobby floors, reception desks and elevator surrounds. Flamed black granite is the classic exterior paving finish. The only place to be careful is a large polished floor under bright daylight, where any grey cast or dye fade becomes visible across a wide plane.
Fabrication, Finishes, Care and Sealing
Uniform and flecked blacks are the easiest stones in the trade to fabricate: consistent hardness, no soft veins, deep polish, routine edge profiles and cut-outs. Veined blacks need more care — some Brazilian veined blacks have softer or resin-filled zones along veins, and a good fabricator checks and reinforces where needed. Standard thicknesses are 2 cm and 3 cm; 2 cm with a laminated mitred edge gives a thick look at lower cost and weight. Always view a honed sample before committing on a black stone; it reads charcoal, not black.
Care is minimal. Porosity is low, so a single application of penetrating sealer at installation covers several years; some dense African and Indian blacks barely absorb sealer at all. Test annually with a few drops of water. Clean with pH-neutral cleaner or dish soap; avoid abrasive powders that dull the polish. Acids are not a concern. Edge chips are repairable with colour-matched epoxy, and a stone restorer can re-polish a dulled surface in place. The main long-term risk on black stone is not the stone but the finish on a dyed slab, which is why the acetone test at purchase matters more than any warranty.
Sourcing Checklist for Buyers and Importers
Verify five things. First, exact variety and origin in writing — Zimbabwe Black, Kuppam Black, Shanxi Black, Titanium from Brazil — because names drift, lookalikes are common, and origin drives price. Second, no dye and a described resin process, in writing, verified with the acetone test on samples and on the loaded slabs at inspection. Third, uniformity or pattern consistency: daylight photos or video of the actual bundle with slab numbers, and all material for one visual area from one block in sequence.
Fourth, thickness and calibration to a stated tolerance, and for cut-to-size, chamfer and calibration standards. Fifth, terms: FOB or landed per square metre with a realistic freight estimate — an ex-works number in India, Brazil or China is not a price. Black granite is the most transparent, most competitive colour family in the trade, with four producing regions; a volume buyer with these checks in place should be sourcing at factory-direct levels, not warehouse levels.
Frequently asked questions
How much does black granite cost per square foot?
Polished 2 cm black granite slabs run roughly 30 to 80 dollars per square foot ex-warehouse in Western markets, based on market estimates (August 2026). Shanxi Black and commercial Absolute Black sit at the bottom, Black Galaxy and Black Pearl in the middle, and Brazilian veined blacks like Cosmic Black and Titanium at the top. Installed US kitchen counters typically land between 60 and 140 dollars per square foot.
What is the cheapest black granite?
Chinese Shanxi Black and Mongolia Black, and commercial-grade Indian Absolute Black, typically 30 to 45 dollars per square foot for slabs (market estimates, August 2026). Shanxi Black is the volume budget choice for tile, paving and memorial programmes worldwide.
What is the most expensive black granite?
The Brazilian veined blacks — Titanium above all, then Cosmic Black — sit at the top of the family band at roughly 55 to 80 dollars per square foot and can exceed it for exceptional lots (market estimates, August 2026). Among uniform blacks, Zimbabwe Black is the premium.
Absolute Black vs Black Galaxy vs Black Pearl — what is the difference?
Absolute Black is a patternless uniform black at 30 to 75 dollars per square foot. Black Galaxy is black with gold bronzite flecks at 35 to 70. Black Pearl is black with blue-grey and silver labradorite flash, usually 40 to 65. All are Indian, all perform the same, and all figures are market estimates (August 2026). The choice is aesthetic.
Is black granite dyed?
Some lower-grade uniform black is dyed or resin-darkened to imitate premium stone, and it fades or wipes off later. Reputable mills do not dye. Test by wiping a corner with acetone — if black transfers to the cloth, walk away — and check that a cut edge matches the polished face.
Is black granite good for outdoor use?
It is one of the best stones for it: no fading, no freeze-thaw spalling, and a finish that lasts decades, which is why it dominates memorials, exterior cladding and paving. Use flamed or bush-hammered finish for paving and steps.
Can I buy black granite factory-direct?
Yes. Indian, Brazilian, African and Chinese mills export slabs and cut-to-size worldwide, typically 30 to 60 percent below Western warehouse prices for equivalent variety and grade. Chinese mills in Fujian process imported blocks alongside domestic Shanxi Black, so one factory-direct quote can cover the whole family.