What Are the Best Bedsheets?

“As I got older, I realized the importance of having quality sheets, and with these, I finally feel like an adult,” says Kai Avent-deLeon, founder of Sincerely, Tommy. That rings especially true if you invest in percale sheets, which are the kind of linens you probably associate with hotels. They’re the ultimate Goldilocks bedding: crisp and cool but soft and plush. And if you get them from Snowe, which uses long-staple cotton and a 500 thread count, “They’re breathable and low-maintenance, so I don’t have to constantly clean them, even though I buy an off-white color.”

Parachute? For linens? It may not be groundbreaking, but it’s true. No other brand has stonewashed sheets (which uses literal stones to break the fabric in, resulting in linen sheets that already feel lived-in) at a decent price. The sheets get softer over time — with minimal or zero piling after years — and come in soothing tones that say, “No, I didn’t pay an interior designer to refresh my space, but I fuck with Jersey Ice Cream Co.”

A good sateen set is luxe, soft, and shiny but can make you sweat and sometimes harbor bacteria. That’s because the textile is so tightly woven that it easily traps heat and sweat. That said, regular laundering of your bedsheets (which you should be doing anyway) is a small price to pay for ridiculously soft sateen sheets. What we love about Brooklinen is the Oeko-Tex certification (many manufacturers will use chemicals to get that classic sateen slip and sheen) and that these sheets are made of long-staple cotton. They’re incredibly durable and a great option if you don’t plan on having many in rotation.

Anishka Clarke, co-owner of Ishka Designs, says that after using one specific set of bamboo linens for a large project, she’s never going back. Her find? BedVoyage, which uses all-organic bamboo. “The quality of the product is excellent. Bamboo is one of the strongest and hardest natural materials, and yet when you feel the fibers on these sheets, they’re just incredibly soft. Softer than you’d imagine.” Clarke says these sheets are extremely durable (“They generally last about two times longer than cotton sheets”) and that though they’re a more expensive option, the overall quality and durability make them “the hands-down winner.”

If you’re a hot sleeper, the notion of getting eight hours a night is, in a word, absurd. Unless you create an environment that supports your scotch-bonnet body: a sub-68-degree room, little to no pajamas, and the perfect bedsheets. The first two are easy enough, but the last very important need? A pipe dream … until SlumberCloud entered the picture. The brand uses a combination of viscose and Tencel (two semisynthetic fibers) to create supersoft and breathable sheets that have a feel somewhere between percale and sateen. But the real draw is the engineered-for-NASA Outlast technology, which proactively keeps you cool at night (unlike reactive fibers like bamboo, which use moisture-wicking that often comes too late for hot sleepers).

“My favorite sheets are Matouk, mostly because everything’s customizable — from the color of the threading to the monogram and the ruffles,” says Sasha Bikoff, founder of Sasha Bikoff Interior Design. Matouk has been making luxury linens for more than 90 years, and though you can find more affordable (this is a relative term) sets at Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus, if you’re going to go for it, Bikoff suggests the Chain Scallop: “It’s this very Hollywood Regency scallop-shell pattern that’s kind of Miami-influenced. It’s very 1940s, 1950s glam.

You may not know the brand by name, but Cozy Earth has been on Oprah’s list of favorite things for five years. The product that started it all is the Bamboo Sheet Set, which isn’t just Oprah-backed; it’s a customer favorite. One look at the reviews section on the site and you’ll be sold. They’re epically soft and durable (thanks, bamboo), hardly wrinkle, and are moisture-wicking to keep you cool. Plus if you sleep on an absolute unit of a mattress, the fitted sheet on these will actually wrap around it and stay put.

“Bedsheets are the most important thing in the whole world. Good sheets should be like buying a couture dress — they’re worth the investment.” Sage words to live by from Bunny Williams. The interiors legend really likes fine-cotton percale like the ones Julia B. makes, nay, handcrafts: “She does couture linens with beautiful monograms and embroidery all done by hand.”

If you want to talk about customer-backed sheets, look to this Amazon Basics set with 317,000 five-star ratings and counting. Reviewers love how soft the microfiber sheets are and the fact that they’re versatile enough to sleep in year round. They’re not made of 100 percent natural anything, but they are made in a Green by Oeko-Tex certified factory. Plus they come in more than three dozen colors, so they’re basically couture!

Another Amazon find worth considering is this set from Mellanni, which has 15 mattress options you can choose from — including a deep-pocketed, extra-large twin for any IRL “Princess and the Pea” kids. Like the sheets from Amazon Basics, these are made of polyester microfiber but with 42 colors to choose from. If there were an award for best guest sheets, these would win — with many among the more than 240,000 five-star reviews stating they use these for every room in their home.