The Very Best Bath Mats

Material: Cotton | Absorbency: High (2600 GSM) | Size: 17” x 24”, 21” x 34”, 24” x 40”, Contour, 24” square | Style: 30 colors

Perhaps the most impressive feature of the Company Store’s bath mat is its absorbency. At 2,600 GSM, the mat is more absorbent than any other mat on this list, and it’s a difference that you can feel: When I laid out all of the bath mats that I’ve tested for some side-by-side comparison, the Company Store’s bath rug felt the thickest and most substantial by far. When stepping out of the shower, I found that the mat easily dried off my feet, and because of its high loft, I was able to dry my arches, which can sometimes be difficult. I also appreciated that the mat has two different textured sides, a chunky looped one that feels squishy to the touch and a fluffier tufted side that is soft enough that you could comb through it. In theory, you could flip the mat over when you’ve deemed one side too dirty, but I’d recommend first throwing it in the wash and air drying, which typically takes about a day. If you’re just letting it dry after a shower, you should expect it to take between three to six hours to dry, on par with most of the cotton mats I tested.

This mat is also compatible with many kinds of bathrooms. It’s available in five sizes — including a contour option for the toilet — and 30 colors that range from basic white to deep raspberry and lime green. Molly Torres Portnof, a designer and the founder of design studio Date Interiors, says the Company Store bath mat is “always one that I have in my back pocket for a space that’s not calling for a special moment.”

Material: Cotton | Absorbency: Medium | Size: 20” x 30” | Style: 22 colors

Target’s Threshold bath mat is one of the most handsome and absorbent bath mats that I’ve seen for this price. It alternates between a tight weave and slightly lofted loops that give the mat a nice, uniform ribbing. While it only comes in one size, it’s available in a variety of solid colors, including olive green and sky blue, as well as in patterned options, such as a dainty floral and a few different stripes. The mat was able to quickly dry off my feet when I stepped out of the shower.

Material: Cotton with non-skid gel backing | Absorbency: Medium | Size: 16” x 23”, 20” x 33”, 23” x 39”, 23” x 59”, Contour | Style: 9 colors

Out of all the bath mats, kitchen mats, and standing-desk mats that I’ve ever tested, this bath mat is one of the sturdiest mats that I’ve come across, barely budging even when I try to push it with my foot. It came recommended by Strategist staff writer Lauren Ro, who has been using her Lands’ End bath mats since 2017. She’s had to throw out a couple over the years because of regular wear and tear, but she just replaces them with the same Lands’ End mats, a testament to how much she likes them. If you’re considering a non-skid mat, just note that it’s more difficult to wash. Ro recommends washing on cold and air drying as putting them in the dryer will crack the gel backing.

Material: Bamboo | Absorbency: High | Size: 24” x 18” | Style: One color

You might consider a bamboo bath mat if, like New York deputy editor Alexis Swerdloff, you don’t want to worry about maintenance. “It never gets gross,” she says. “I never have to wash it, and it looks just as good as it did when I bought it about seven years ago.” (If you do want to clean it, you can just wipe it down with warm water.) Swerdloff’s mat also dries so quickly that, she told me, “I don’t even realize it’s wet.” When not using it, you can keep the mat out or fold it in half for easy storage.

Material: Diatomaceous earth | Absorbency: High | Size: 23.5” x 15” | Style: 3 colors

Stone bath mats are another option for folks who don’t mind sacrificing on coziness for ease of care. For Schwartz, a stone mat like this one from Sutera “avoids the moist pitfalls of the squishy-and-soft mat,” such as a long drying period and never-ending cleaning cycle.

While some stone mats can run up to $100, the Sutera strikes a balance between price and effectiveness, and also comes in a few colors. I tested the charcoal gray colorway, which has a textured wavy stripe pattern on it, but the mat is also available in granite and slate. In terms of performance, the Sutera was able to absorb water as quickly as the pricier stone options that I tested. In just a couple minutes after I stepped onto the mat when getting out of the shower, the mat had absorbed all of the water I had dripped onto it, leaving behind just a shadow that felt dry to the touch (and disappeared in less than two hours). To clean the mat, you can just wipe it off with a damp washcloth.

Material: Organic cotton | Absorbency: Medium | Size: 21.6” x 31.4” | Style: 7 colors

If you still want some cushion in between your bathroom floor and your feet but don’t enjoy the plushness of a high-pile mat, you might consider a waffle-weave mat. Strategist senior editor Winnie Yang has been using this one since 2020 and says that the subtle waffle patterning makes her bathroom feel more like a spa. Compared to other waffle towels, “It has a particularly pronounced depth to it that doesn’t get mashed flat with use,” she says, adding that this depth along with the mat’s rough texture feels massage-like on her feet. And because the textured fabric doesn’t sit completely flat against the floor, it dries quickly. To wash the mat, you can just throw it in the washer and dryer as usual. Yang says that over the years, “There’s probably been some shrinkage but I haven’t really noticed it.”

Material: European flax | Absorbency: Medium (261 GSM) | Size: 20” x 31” | Style: 12 colors

A linen bath mat is the closest you can get to stepping onto a bare bathroom floor without actually doing so, while still absorbing all that water you shed getting out of the shower (even at a lower GSM). And since it’s thinner than some of our other picks, the Rough Linen mat is actually one of the fastest drying fabric mats on this list. When I tested it, it dried completely in just over three hours despite holding the same amount of water as some of our thicker mats.

It’s the mat’s thin profile, subtly rustic texture, and ability to quickly dry that attract interior designer Leah Alexander. “I like something that’s simple. I don’t want anything with a waffle texture or anything that’s too puffy,” she says. “I’ve definitely seen some chunkier kinds of bath mats, and they really, to me, take away from the beautiful finishes that we go to great lengths to design.” Just note that if you want to go for this linen option, it’ll take a few weeks to ship as each mat is made to order by hand.

Material: Cairo long-staple cotton | Absorbency: Medium (625 GSM) | Size: 24” x 36” | Style: 12 colors, monogramming available

On the other end of the design spectrum from the Rough Linen option, you’ll find scalloped bath mats like this one. This mat comes from Matouk, the maker of our favorite bath towels, and has a hotel-style design elevated with the addition of scalloped edges. Munroe gravitates towards Matouk’s bath mats when working with clients because of the wide variety of styles and colors along with the ability to monogram each mat. She recommends this mat in particular because you’ll have “the chance to color match the room with the edge detail,” and like all Matouk mats, she says, these are thick, plush, and of great quality.

Material: Cotton | Absorbency: Medium | Size: 21” x 34”, 23” x 58”| Style: 6 color

While this bath mat has a similar pattern to the Nickey Kehoe option, it comes in more colors (including a golden yellow, sage green, and baby pink) while being a bit more expensive. It comes recommended by Strategist contributor Kiki Aranita, who owns five of them. “We have them in every bathroom, and I also keep a dark gray one by my back door to wipe feet on after gardening,” she says. When I tested the mat, I found that it brought some life into my small and windowless New York City bathroom and effectively absorbed excess water from my shower. Note, however, that it’s not very plush, so if that’s something you’re looking for I’d recommend checking out the Company Store or Coyuchi mats instead.

Material: Cotton | Absorbency: Medium | Size: 24” x 31”, 22” x 56”| Style: 35 colors

For a mat that feels like a work of art, consider Quiet Town’s cotton handwoven mats, which come in a variety of colors. I’m partial to this one, with its striking, high-contrast geometrical design, but you can also find a range of striped and abstract mats to fit a variety of styles. Design critic Alexandra Lange says her Quiet Town mat is thin enough that it doesn’t prevent the door from swinging, and yet it still feels substantial underfoot. She’s had it for about five years and says that it’s holding up well aside from some shrinking from the dryer.

It’s worth noting that the mat is a flatweave kilim, which means it doesn’t fold as easily and dries a bit slower than the other mats on this list that are primarily looped or cut piles (but Lange routinely drapes hers over the tub to help with this).