As a general rule, buy above a 200-thread count sheet, and know that anything over an 800-thread count really doesn't matter. To help protect consumers from inflated thread counts, the Federal Trade Commission does its best to crack down on deceptive techniques and technology designed to increase thread count, as well as deceptive advertising and marketing.
Does thread count actually matter?
High thread counts can certainly make for better sheets, but the quality of the thread matters more than the number. In fact, a better-quality fiber with a lower thread count will feel softer and stand up to washing better than a lower-quality fiber with a higher thread count.
What is an acceptable thread count?
Generally, the higher the thread count, the softer the sheet, and the more likely it will wear well — or even soften — over time. Good sheets range anywhere from 200 to 800, although you'll occasionally see numbers over 1,000.
How important is thread count?
A higher thread count is more important for sateen because it reduces the likelihood of snagging the longer floats—the weft yarns that skim across several warp yarns. Higher-thread-count sheets are made with finer (thinner) yarns.
Are 1000 thread count sheets worth it?
No, probably not. Anything with a thread count nearing (or above) 1000 thread count is almost certain to be significantly lower quality than sheets with a more reasonable number. Most fabrics with a thread count over 600 are a sign of deceptive marketing tactics at work.
What thread count is Egyptian cotton?
The thread count for luxury quality Egyptian cotton, is from 200 threads per cm². Cotton sateen is a weave that offers a lighter, silkier, shinier fabric on one side and a more matte one on the other. For an extreme luxury drape, the weave can reach up to 1,000 threads.
Why is Egyptian cotton better?
Egyptian cotton is stronger than regular cotton, therefore longer-lasting. It's partly thanks to the extra-long fibres that Egyptian cotton plants produce, making yarns tougher yet oh so soft.
Is 1500 a good thread count for sheets?
Sheets with a thread count between 600-800 are considered very high quality. A 1500 thread count is through the roof.
What thread count is hotel sheets?
Around 300 to 500 thread countHotel Sheet Thread Count Around 300 to 500 thread count is ideal for soft, durable, and breathable bed sheets. Lower thread counts feel rougher and can wear down quickly.
Is Egyptian cotton the best for sheets?
Among the most luxurious sheets you can buy are those made from Egyptian cotton, which are known for their breathability, durability, and softness that only gets better with age.
How do hotels keep their sheets so crisp?
One of the most well-known secrets of the hotel industry in keeping their sheets enviably is peroxide-based detergents. Bleach is also added to the mix. While these chemicals are truly effective in preventing white linens from greying or turning yellow, they do require some level of expertise.
Is Supima or Egyptian cotton better?
Supima cotton stands for “superior cotton,” which is a step above Egyptian cotton in quality and feel. The fibers have superior durability and can stand up to washings easily. You will find that because supima cotton is so soft, your night's sleep will be comfortable and easy.
What thread count is softest?
The general range of 200 to 400 is what to look for, though counts in the range of 300 to 360 will likely be the softest.
Is 1500 a good thread count for sheets?
Sheets with a thread count between 600-800 are considered very high quality. A 1500 thread count is through the roof.
Which is better 200 or 400 thread count?
A fabric with a thread count of 200 high-quality fibers can have a better hand, or feeling to the touch, than a thread count of 400 inferior-quality fibers or twisted threads.
What is best thread count for bed sheets?
What is the Best Thread Count for Sheets?Cotton: 200-400.Egyptian Cotton: 300-400.Percale Weave: 200-400.Sateen Weave: 300-600.Bamboo: 300-500.Linen: 80-140. Thread count is less of a useful indicator for linen sheets and rarely listed. Avoid higher thread counts for linen sheets.
What's the best thread count for bedding?
Also, for good-quality bedding, look for a thread count between 180-300. Anything higher than a 300-thread count means the sheets and duvet covers will start to feel heavier. This will result in suffocating the airflow around your body while you sleep.
What is thread count, anyway?
Thread count is simply a measure of how many threads are woven into one square inch of fabric. The idea—promoted by marketing executives for years—is that the higher the thread count, the softer and more durable the sheet will be. But it’s not that simple.
Why is thread count so misleading?
To start, thread count doesn’t take into account factors such as the material and yarn used, which have a much bigger impact on quality than thread count. Then there’s the fact that some suppliers use cheaper, multi-ply yarns in their sheets to artificially increase thread count.
What is the difference between percale and sateen sheets?
Then choose the weave that’s right for you: percale feels cool and crisp, while sateen is exceptionally soft and smooth. But, that said, a good sheet is one that feels great to the touch, and that’s something only you can determine.
Why is higher thread count better?
The logic behind why a higher thread count is better makes sense: all things being equal, higher thread counts require finer threads (the better to fit into a square inch), and the finer the threads you use, the softer, smoother, and more tightly woven (and thus, stronger) the fabric should be.
How to determine thread count?
To determine thread count, manufacturers calculate the number of both vertical (warp) and horizontal (weft) threads woven together in a square inch. So 100 vertical threads plus 100 horizontal threads produce a thread count of 200. Easy—and helpful in the conventional sense. Consumers can compare thread counts across brands to determine value and find the bedding that’s right for them.
How many plies are in a single thread?
Then they double, triple, or even quadruple the thread count to make the number more attractive to the consumer.” In practice, this means that a single thread might be four plies twisted together; a reputable company would call that one thread, while one that is trying to cut corners would instead call it four. The truth is, thread count generally maxes out at 500 because there is a finite amount of thread that one can weave into a square inch. Anything higher is fiction.
What is thread count?
What is thread count? Of all the factors that go into creating an amazing set of sheets, thread count seems to be the one that everyone talks about. But what is thread count anyway (technically, it’s the number of threads woven together in a square inch, a baseline devised by bedding industry insiders to help—and sometimes mislead—consumers looking to compare the quality of a sheet across brands, but more on that later), and how important is it really? Does a higher number automatically correlate to better sheets? In a word, no.
Why do manufacturers use creative math?
But according to exposés from New York Magazine and Consumer Reports, many manufacturers use “creative math” to inflate their numbers, advertising thread counts of 800, 1000, and 1200—and leading consumers to believe they are getting a luxury product when they aren’t. This allows manufacturers to sell degraded sheets disguised as quality ones, keeping their production costs down while upcharging for something no knowledgeable consumer would want and maximizing profits on the cheap. But here’s where that math falters.
What to be wary of when investing in sheets?
Be wary of excessively high numbers, but also take all four factors into consideration when investing in sheets. A good rule of thumb for navigating around false advertising: always be suspicious of a super-high thread count being offered for an extremely low price.
How Does the Ply Affect the Thread Count?
You’ve heard of two-ply toilet paper, right? That means that two layers of material are combined to form a thicker layer.
Does Higher Thread Count Mean Better Quality?
As you have gathered by now, the answer to this is not black and white. While you should be looking for a range to indicate quality, higher doesn’t always mean better.
Does It Matter?
Yes, it does matter, but it’s not the only factor you should consider. It’s one of many features of the product. Think of it like buying clothes. A suit manufacturer might list this on the label, too, but you should also be evaluating other things like the quality of the yarn, the type of material used, how it feels overall, and how and where it was sourced, for example.
What does ultra low mean in knitting?
When looking at the number of threads, think of it this way: an ultra-low figure means the fabric is woven loosely together and there could be holes or roughness. It could also be an indicator of overly thick yarn that doesn’t feel soft. So, yes, you still need to look at the overall measurement but be wary of figures that seem inflated.
How many strands of yarn are in one single ply?
There are single ply varieties, and there are also brands that combine two or three strands into one single yarn. Depending on the thickness of the original threading, the feel of the finished product will vary. When it comes to quality, this where a brand can and will inflate their figures.
What is the best number to check for bed sheets?
We recommend using it as a guide and quality check for your bed sheets. You should be looking for a range from 200 to 400. If the number is between 150 and 180, then the sheets are going to be rough and not at all soft. A number over 400 means that the fibers are likely woven together to get an inflated figure.
What is the highest number on a bedding package?
The highest number you’ll likely see on a package is 1,600 to 2,000. We’ve seen mixed reviews on bedding with these inflated numbers, so we encourage you not to believe the hype.
What is the thread count of Egyptian cotton sheets?
If you’re looking at a set of sheets made with a low-quality polyester material that has a thread count of 400 and a set of sheets made with very fine Egyptian cotton at a thread count of 200, those sheets with the lower thread count will still feel more luxurious because they’re made with the better fabric.
Why is thread count misleading?
Thread count can be misleading if the threads in question are very low quality. In this case, the manufacturer has no choice but to increase the number of threads in order to make the material feel stronger. You’re still getting sheets that are poorly-made in spite of the high thread count.
How many threads are in a sheet?
That’s vertical and horizontal. In fabrics speak, that’s the warp and the weft, respectively. In sheets with a 200 thread count, there are 100 vertical threads and 100 horizontal threads in every square inch of material.
Does thread count matter?
Thread count is real and in some ways, it does matter, but not as much as the material of the sheets themselves. So the next time you’re shopping for sheets, you can now do it just like a pro.
Is polyester thread thinner than cotton?
The thread count varies greatly depending on the material. Polyester threads can be made to be extremely thin, much thinner than cotton. This means that polyester and poly/cotton blend sheets can have very high thread counts and still not be as soft as sheets made with the only cotton.
Is thread count a real thing?
You should also pay attention to the material the sheets are made from because thread count is not just for cotton. Thread count can be found in polyester bed sheets. And no matter how high the thread count is, polyester is never going to feel like cotton. So thread count is a real thing…but it’s definitely not the only thing you need to be worrying about when you’re picking out your next set of sheets. This is just one factor, one feature to consider.
Is there more thread in a sheet than the thread count?
However, you’re about to find out that this isn’t necessarily true. There’s a whole lot more to sheets than the thread count. Even sheets with a super high thread count can be rough on the skin and low in quality, despite being priced like a luxury.
What is the best material to keep your sheets cool?
For sheets that will keep you cool and dry, blends made from silk, polyester, or Tencel might be more up your alley.
What is a single ply cotton thread?
Pure, high-quality, single-ply cotton thread can be woven in different ways to produce sheets with dramatically different textures, like smooth and luxurious sateen, crisp and breathable percale, and warm and cozy flannel .
What is a 1200-count sheet?
So, an 800-count sheet is actually a 400-count sheet but made with two-ply thread, and a 1200-count sheet is one made with three-ply. Ironically, this means that most high thread count sheets can be made of inferior materials, and their thick, coarse threads are not as soft, or comfortable, as the ones used in low-count sheets.
What is the truth behind thread count?
Because literally no person ever thought there could be any sort of drama in the world of bed linens, nobody thought to ask questions and accepted the thread count lie without so much as a bat of an eye. No one even wondered if it was scientifically possible to fit over a thousand threads into a single square inch ...
How many threads can fit in a square inch of fabric?
No one even wondered if it was scientifically possible to fit over a thousand threads into a single square inch of fabric. It’s not! The maximum number of threads that can fit in that amount of space is around 400; any more and the fabric would be stiff like cardboard, and similarly foldable.
What is thread count in bed linen?
In the world of bed linens, the term “thread count” refers to the number of threads woven together in one square inch of fabric, and conventional wisdom has held that the higher the number, the greater the luxury. Unfortunately, it seems as though we've been misled about the importance of thread count.
Is multi ply thread thicker than single ply?
Even though multi-ply thread is thicker, its short fibers will break down quicker than the long, durable fibers in single-ply threads. Fabrics woven from single-ply thread—even if made from synthetic materials—produce sheets that are soft, luxurious, and built to last.
What is Thread Count?
If you look up “thread count definition,” you’ll find it’s a count of the number of threads per square inch of fabric. So a fabric with a thread count of 250 should have 125 threads woven horizontally and 125 threads woven vertically per square inch.
Does thread count really matter?
The short answer is no. High thread count sheets do not mean better quality. Often threads are simply split to create a higher thread count, misleading the consumer that it’s better, when in fact it can weaken the fabric and cause pilling. For this reason, thread count should not be the deciding factor when purchasing high-quality sheets. We recommend looking deeper into the details when the thread count is higher than 600. What matters most in luxury bedding is the quality of the cotton.
What thread count is the softest?
Thread count alone does not determine soft features in bed sheets. Long staple cottons, especially with Egyptian cotton, are considered to offer the most luxurious feeling. Sateen woven sheets are recommended for a buttery smooth feel with a luminous sheen. We offer luxurious 500 thread count sateen sheeting in our Emily Egyptian Cotton Sheet Set.
What is the best thread count for sheets?
The truth is, ideal thread count needs to be taken into account with the quality of cotton, single ply vs. multi ply cotton, and the type of weave. If you're a fan of a heavier sheet, you might be a fan of our 600 thread count Virtuoso. If you prefer something a bit light weight and crisp, even a 200 thread count like our Boutique sheeting will have you in sleep heaven.
What is the most common weave for fine sheets?
Next, you’ll want to choose a weave that feels right to you. The most common for fine sheets are sateen and percale. Check out our guide to the differences between percale vs sateen for more details.
How to know which sheeting is right for you?
In the end, the best way to determine which sheeting is the right choice for you is to sleep on it. Different people sleep better with different weaves, weights, and textures of sheeting, so choose something that feels luxurious against your skin, and enjoy it!
Is 1000 thread count good?
No, probably not. Anything with a thread count nearing (or above) 1000 thread count is almost certain to be significantly lower quality than sheets with a more reasonable number. Most fabrics with a thread count over 600 are a sign of deceptive marketing tactics at work.
