3 Best Kitchen Towels of 2024, Tested and Reviewed

Tested by Beth Lipton

No kitchen is complete without a set or two of kitchen towels, and although there are loads of options on the market, it can be a challenge to find ones that actually work. We’ve been frustrated in the past with towels that don’t absorb well, that are too big or too small, or that stain easily. Ask anyone in our office and they'll tell you that finding the perfect kitchen towel is like finding a needle in a haystack. It's next to impossible. That is, until now.

Arguably a kitchen towel won’t affect the outcome of your kitchen efforts, since it isn’t used in the cooking process, but as we all know, meal preparation is more than just the process of cooking. There's inevitably cleanup after all is said and done. And we want every single tool we use in the kitchen, no matter its purpose, to do its job and do it well.

With that in mind, we set out to find the very best kitchen towels for cleaning everything from wine glasses to pots and pans. We tested 11 kitchen towels, drying wine glasses, plates, pots and utensils, and with our favorites, we also used them to pull hot items out of the oven, since many of us utilize our kitchen towels for that purpose, too. In the end we found three that are worth the money.

Note: We found that all the towels worked better after being washed, and even better after a few washes.

How We Tested

We purchased 11 popular kitchen towels, including fluffy terry, bar mops, flour sack towels, and cloth-style towels you see in professional kitchens, dual-sided and more, across brands and price points. We washed them and then used them to dry plates, pots, wine glasses and utensils multiple times over several weeks. We evaluated whether the towels dried the items, and if so, how efficiently. We looked at whether the towels left behind any lint. Of the best ones, we tried folding them and using them in place of oven mitts. We also took into account whether they are attractive enough to display.

This article has been reviewed since its original publish date for accuracy, pricing and availability. We stand by our list of top kitchen towel picks.

What to Consider When Buying Kitchen Towels

Before evaluating the features of kitchen towels, also called dishcloths, consider the most common functions you need the towels to accomplish. Do you live in a dishwasher-free household with a lot of dishes to dry? Do you need to dry a lot of glassware like wine glasses where prioritizing lint-free towels is a good idea? Are you constantly sopping up messes and spills where absorbency is important? If you plan to have the towels out on display, hanging on a hook or oven handle, do you care how the towels look in your kitchen? After determining the functions you need kitchen towels to perform, the factors below will help narrow down your options.

• Material and Weave: The material and weave will affect how absorbent a towel is, how it feels on the hands, how quickly it dries, whether or not it is likely to leave lint behind on glassware and the overall look of the towel. All of our recommended picks are cotton, but other popular materials include linen, which is thinner and dries quickly but doesn't absorb as much as cotton, and microfiber, which can be more absorbent than cotton but attracts a lot of lint in the wash and isn't very attractive. Most towels feature terry loops, a flatter, woven weave or a combination of both.
• Absorbency: When it comes to absorbency, terry towels feature loops, similar to most bath towels, that help towels soak up liquids. Towels with flatter, woven weaves are usually not as absorbent, but flatter weaves can be better for drying glassware as they're less likely to leave behind lint.
• Size, Style and Design: In addition to the material and weave and how absorbent the towel is, considering the size, style and design can help determine which towel to choose. Kitchen towels often measure between 10 x 10 inches and 32 x 34 inches. Smaller towels are often better for wiping up spills and cleaning tasks before tossing them in the laundry, while larger towels are better for drying dishes and hands and hanging on a hook or oven handle to air dry and use for multiple uses. Since larger towels will be more visible in the kitchen while hanging to dry, considering the color, pattern and overall style is more important to consider. A corner loop is a nice bonus feature to look for in larger towels since it makes hanging a towel on cabinet pulls and hooks easier if you don't want to drape it over an oven handle.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are bar mops?

Bar mops are super-absorbent terry kitchen towels, or dishcloths, that are often used in bars and restaurants to wipe down the bar, tables and glassware. They're typically white and utilitarian — they're not particularly stylish or worthy of draping over an oven handle.

What’s the best way to wash dish towels?

Beyond following the manufacturer's care instructions, washing kitchen towels and kitchen dishcloths on a cold-water cycle with detergent is usually sufficient for everyday use. For grease and oil stains, spot-treat with dish detergent before adding to a hot water cycle. For tougher stains and to keep white towels looking bright white, use chlorine bleach.

If possible, it's best to wash kitchen towels on their own cycle or at least in a separate delicates bag to prevent the towels from snagging or collecting lint from other fabrics that could then transfer to dishes and glassware the next time you use them for drying. Washing separately to prevent lint is especially important if you use microfiber kitchen towels. Washing alone also keeps them looking new and not dingy.

What's the best material for kitchen towels?

Generally, cotton is the best material for kitchen towels and dishcloths because it's a natural, durable fiber that's absorbent and dries relatively quickly.