Not All Egyptian Cotton Is Created Equal

If you want premium sheets, just buy Egyptian cotton... right? Not necessarily.

Cotton fibers are divided into three staple lengths: short (up to 1 1/8” long), long (~1 1/8”-1 1/4”), and extra-long (~1 3/8”-2”).

Cotton fibers are spun together to create yarn. Short staple yarn has more fiber ends, therefore feels coarser and can be pilled or frayed more easily. Long staple yarn has fewer exposed fiber ends than short-staple yarn, creating a more durable product with a softer hand-feel.

Egypt is famous for producing extra-long staple cotton. It doesn’t mean, though, that every cotton that comes from Egypt is extra-long staple cotton.

The problem is that the market is unregulated.

Some companies blend Egyptian cotton with inferior varieties and falsely claim that their cotton is purely Egyptian or include the word Egyptian in the product’s name.

To verify that extra-long staple Egyptian Cotton is authentic, make sure that the product has appropriate certificates, is made of a single ply yarn (and not from several strands twisted together), comes with a higher price tag, and being manufactured and sold by a reliable brand.