Percale vs Sateen

If you’re buying a new set of bedsheets, it’s smart to do some research on what kind is the best for you before you make an investment that will affect your comfort level and sleep quality. There are many different things to consider — fabric type, thread count, color, size, and weave. 

When choosing your QuickZip Sheets, you have two great options: Sateen and Percale. Both our fabrics are 100% long staple cotton. They are also OEKO-TEX certified which means no harmful chemicals are used, making our sheets safe and sustainable. The difference between percale and sateen comes from the way the cotton is woven. Each style has many benefits and gives options to best fit your needs.

Percale

Percale is a classic sheet fabric, with a matte finish and a crisp, cool feeling. This feel is accomplished by the simplest weave style — one thread over, one thread under. The fabric is durable, getting softer with each wash and provides great breathability. These are a great choice if you tend to run warm at night.

Click here for our Percale starter pack

Sateen

If you prefer softer, more luxurious feeling sheets, sateen is for you. Sateen sheets have a silky feel because of the weave: one thread over, three threads under, which exposes more thread, making it feel softer. Sateen tends to be heavier in weight and perfect for year round use. It has a slight lustre look to it, and drapes beautifully. Plus, sateen is less prone to wrinkling, so you don’t need to worry about ironing them. Your bed will look, and feel, like it’s in a five-star hotel. 

Sateen fabric is perfect for those who prefer silky fabric, but without the cons of satin or silk sheets. Satin and silk sheets may be toosilky, and you risk slipping around in your bed. Satin is also known for making your hair staticy, especially satin pillowcases. You can opt for silk sheets to avoid the hair static, but the prices of silk sheets run high, and the sheets are not very durable. Sateen will provide you with a luxurious feel without the slipperiness, and with the durability of high-quality cotton sheets.

Click here for our Sateen starter pack.

Thread Count Explained

We’ve gone through how important weave style is to the look and feel of sheets — now let’s discuss thread count. A fabric’s thread count is measured by the number of vertically and laterally running threads per square inch of fabric. Usually, sheets with a higher thread count feel softer and more luxurious, and might come with a higher price tag. They’ll get softer every time you wash them, and last a long time. Sheets with a lower thread count might feel scratchy and will start to pill with each wash. The sweet spot for thread count is 300 to 500 threads per square inch. Go any higher than that, and you’ll end up with sheets that wear out more quickly and are more likely to rip or snag. They also tend to be less breathable. 

Why We Love Cotton Sheets

Whether you opt for percale or sateen sheets, we recommend you always stick with cotton. Percale and sateen just describes the weave, so they can be any material — however, cotton is the most breathable and comfortable fabric. Because it’s a naturally breathable fabric, cotton sheets won’t trap your body heat at night. Cotton sheets, especially percale sheets, may even keep you cooler, which is great if you tend to run hot at night. It’s also the best material if you’re looking for sheets for all-season use. They’ll keep you warm in the winter, and cool in the summer.

We also carry flannel sheets, which can be a lifesaver for those of us enduring the harsh winters of the Northern Hemisphere. Made with 100% cotton, our flannel sheet sets are soft, breathable, and warm.

Fabric type, weave style, and thread count can have a significant impact on the ultimate feel of a set of sheets. Because everyone has their own distinct comfort preferences, there are a plethora of options from which to choose when it comes to bedding. At QuickZip, we believe in the importance of buying a set of sheets that feel the most comfortable to you. We’re always happy to answer any questions you may have about what makes our sheets unique and guide you to the right bedding type so you can have the best night of sleep ever.