A stone restoration quote is easy to compare on price and hard to compare on anything else, because most quotes leave out the details that decide whether the job lasts. Here is what a good one says, and what should make you ask.
What a proper quote states
The area in square metres for a floor, or the piece for a benchtop or vanity. If nobody measured, nobody can price it. A quote per room is a guess.
The starting grit. This single number tells you what the restorer thinks is wrong with the surface. A floor that starts at 400 has light wear; one that starts at 50 has lippage, deep scratches or a coating to strip. If the quote does not say where the sequence starts, it does not say how much work is being done.
The finish you are getting. Honed, satin or polished are different amounts of work and different looks. It should be written down, and ideally shown on a test patch before you agree.
Whether sealing is included, and what kind. An impregnating sealer goes into the stone; a topical coating sits on top and will need stripping later. The quote should say which.
What it will not fix. Deep chips, resin burns in engineered stone, cracks and structural movement are not restored by polishing. A quote that promises everything is describing a job that has not been looked at.
Access, protection and time on site. Furniture moved or not, cabinetry masked, slurry contained, how many days. These are where surprises live.
Three lines that should make you ask
A shine with no grit sequence. If the quote offers a polished finish without any cutting back, the shine may be coming from a crystalliser or a coating. Both give a fast result and both make the next proper restoration harder. Ask how the shine is produced.
A sealer that stops etching. No sealer stops etching, because acid attacks the stone itself, not the pores. Only a film does that. A quote that promises an etch-proof sealer is wrong about the chemistry.
Engineered stone with no mention of dust controls. Since 1 July 2024, any repair, modification or polishing of an installed engineered stone benchtop must be notified to the WHS regulator beforehand and carried out with wet or extracted methods and respiratory protection. If the quote does not mention this, ask before anyone starts.
What ours says
Ours states the area, the starting grit, the finish, the sealer or film, the exclusions and the days on site, and it follows an assessment where a test patch was done in front of you. If a quote you are comparing does not, the price is not comparable.