The 4 Best Cotton Sheets for 2024

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These are some of the softest sateen sheets we’ve ever tested. However, they’re much more expensive than our top sateen pick, and rarely go on sale.

If you want sateen sheets that feel more luxurious and can hold their own against the most expensive sateen sheets we’ve tested, try Cuddledown’s 400 Thread Count Sateen Sheet Set.

They feel wonderful, and they come in lots of colors. Similar to the JCPenney Wrinkle Guard sheets, these have a silky feel, a nice drape, a nearly identical embroidered hem, and a subtle luster. On all counts, though, the Cuddledown sheets are just a little better than the JCPenney Wrinkle Guard sheets. They have an “it” factor that’s hard to explain. When I put the Wrinkle Guard sheets on the bed, my husband (who loves the feel of sateen) says, “Oh that’s nice.” When I put the Cuddledown sheets on, he says, “Ohhhh, that’s nice.”

The Cuddledown sheets also come in about two-dozen solid colors, more than any other set we recommend.

They’ve outperformed luxury sheets we’ve tried. These are the most expensive cotton sheets we recommend, so they may be worth it only if you’re particular about your sateen. But when we tested them against $1,000-plus luxury Italian sheets, they were so soft and smooth that some of our testers couldn’t tell the difference, which was a delightful surprise. The quality is outstanding.

They wrinkle less than any cotton sheets we’ve tested. We’ve tested four sets of Cuddledown sheets over the years, and I can confidently say they are some of the smoothest sateen sheets we’ve tried.

The sheets are mercerized, which means they’re treated with sodium hydroxide, to soften them and help prevent wrinkles. They’re not free of chemical finishes (none of our sateen picks are). But they are Oeko-Tex–certified, unlike the JCPenney Wrinkle Guard set.

They’re the only pick in our guide available in two fitted sheet depths. You can choose a 16-inch sheet (called “fitted”) or a 21-inch fitted sheet (called “deep fitted”), though I’ve only tested the 16-inch sheet.

If you have a college student who really wants to splash out for their dorm, this set is also our only cotton-sheet-set pick that comes in a dedicated twin XL size (not a twin/twin XL combo, like our budget pick).

As with the L.L.Bean percale sheets, with these sheets we also recommend the coordinating duvet cover made with the same fabric. You can buy these sheets by the piece, if you’re not looking for a whole set, or pick up extra pillowcases, but a set will save you about $15 to $30 depending on the size. And you can buy shams in the same fabric, which is unique among our picks.

Cuddledown offers the only unconditional guarantee of any of our picks, so you can return these at any time for any (or no) reason.

How the Cuddledown sheets have held up

I’ve been using a white set of Cuddledown sateen sheets since 2017 and a dark gray duvet cover in the same fabric since 2018, and I tested a teal set in 2022. I’ve compared the look and feel against each other, as well as against much pricier luxury sheets. It’s remarkable how well this fabric holds up and how splendid it still feels after years of use.

In 2023, one of our staffers did find a hole in a fitted Cuddledown sheet that was less than two years old. The company sent a replacement set, honoring its unconditional guarantee.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

• We blind-ordered these in April 2022, and we retested them after hearing from a reader who felt tricked, during the checkout process, into enrolling in a rewards program that cost money. We didn’t encounter any confusing requests for the company’s rewards program (which does indeed cost money; we do not recommend enrolling). We suspect Cuddledown has since updated its website to make this less confusing.
• Many colors and sizes tend to go in and out of stock. Our sheets were back-ordered for at least a month, but we did receive them eventually (with an apology email from the company).
• When we ordered a new set of Cuddledown’s sateen sheets in 2023, we noticed that the care label now says to launder in cold water (as opposed to warm). This is now our only pick that specifies washing in cold water. We’ll keep an eye on how this new set wears over time.