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Connie Chen/Business Insider
We all look forward to crawling into bed at the end of a long day to be enveloped by a cozy, fluffy comforter. The right combination of the best comforter, paired with a cushy pillow and a crisp set of sheets, will make your bedroom feel like a luxurious hotel room.
We spoke to four experts in bedding and hospitality and tested multiple comforters on their performance, durability, and return policy to find the best comforters for various needs. The best comforter, also commonly referred to as a duvet, should have features like a baffle-box construction to keep filling evenly distributed and loops to secure one of the best duvet covers, while filling and shell material can come down to personal preference.
Our best comforter overall is Brooklinen's Down Comforter; it's a great pick to use year-round and has a fluffy, well-made construction. If you are looking for a budget option, Target's Room Essentials Comforter is a down-alternative option that is notably soft and a fraction of the price of Brooklinen.
Find out more about how Insider Reviews tests and reviews home products.
Best overall: Brooklinen All-Season Down Comforter - See at Brooklinen
Best budget: Room Essentials Down-Alternative Comforter - See at Target
Best down-alternative: The Company Store Conscious Down-Alternative Comforter - See at The Company Store
Best for hot sleepers: Lands' End Essential Down Comforter - See at Lands' End
The Brooklinen comforter gives the true wrapped-in-a-cloud feeling. It's light and compressible, and the down inside stays evenly distributed thanks to the baffle-box construction. Brooklinen's comforter felt the most luxurious and comfortable of all the contenders.
The outer shell is soft and stays quiet as you move in bed. While the comforter may compress quickly depending on how you sleep on it, it re-fluffs easily if you give it a shake.
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On the downside, it had the most noticeable down smell. I had to fluff it in the dryer a few times for the smell to subside.
Because of the high fill power, it may be too warm for some sleepers. One of my testers, who normally sleeps with a thin silk blanket, thought it was too warm and liked the Lands' End option better. For those with different temperature preferences, Brooklinen also has lightweight and ultra-warm options you can try.
Our senior home editor, Jaclyn Turner, has slept with the Brooklinen all-season down duvet for nearly three years. It's been a comfortable mainstay from hot Georgia summers through colder-than-average winters. It's still going strong overall, with a few clusters coming through, but it does need a good shake every few days to help redistribute the fill.
Read our full Brooklinen All-Season Down Comforter review.
The comforter from Target's budget-minded Room Essentials brand is made from polyester with a brushed percale cotton shell. Many down-alternative fill comforters with a similar construction tend to be thin and flat.
Still, this model surprised me with its moderate thickness and fluffiness, rivaling more expensive comforters. It's not as airy or compressive as down, but it's undoubtedly cushiony and comfortable.
Connie Chen/Business Insider
The shell is exceptionally soft — the softest of all the products in this guide. While it's still best to use a duvet cover to preserve the longevity of a comforter, Target's is the only one I'd consider sleeping under without a cover because of how soft and cozy it feels.
Though it's marketed as a mid-weight, all-season comforter, I think it works best for warm or mild seasons. It provided comfortable, breathable insulation for spring nights in California, but I don't see it being warm enough for a winter's night in the Midwest.
We'll continue to monitor this model for long-term durability to see whether the quality matches the price.
The Company Store's down alternative comforter is thoughtfully constructed from a mix of traditional and environmentally conscious materials, resulting in a duvet that's both comfortable and ethical.
The fill is made from polyester spun from recycled plastic bottles and Tencel lyocell, a naturally breathable and cool material made from wood fibers. Meanwhile, the shell is half cotton and half Tencel lyocell woven into a smooth, silky sateen weave.
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Overall, the comforter feels very similar to down: fluffy, soft, and compressible. It's a good middle-of-the-road option that's neither too warm nor cool. The main difference I noticed is that the shell is a little stiffer and crinkly. Another significant difference is there's no down smell.
Whether you prefer not to buy animal products or want to be more environmentally friendly, this is one of the best comforters when it comes to comfort and warmth.
Those who sleep hot should look for a comforter with a lower fill power. The Lands' End comforter has a fill power of 550, which makes it less insulating than the 700 fill power of the Brooklinen duvet. At the same time, it's cushiony and fluffy enough that you won't miss out on the luxury of sleeping with a down comforter. It also compresses well, but again, less so than a product with a high fill power. We named it the top down pick in our guide to the best cooling comforters.
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Out of all the down models I tested, the Lands' End has the least amount of down smell. That's because the down and feather filling is washed a couple of times to eliminate odor and dust. The International Down and Feather Lab labeled it "hypoallergenic," making it one of the best comforters for people with allergies and sensitivities.
My testers who regularly sleep hot found this lightweight comforter the least stifling of all the contenders. In addition to being a great year-round option for warm sleepers, it's suitable to put on your summer bedding rotation (along with the best linen sheets).
The best comforters can be made of down, cotton, wool, polyester or a combination. Depending on your preference for fill and shell materials, comforters can vary when it comes to price and weight.
Comforters are typically filled with down, synthetic materials, or wool.
If you buy a down comforter, you'll want to consider fill power, which is the amount of space, measured in cubic inches, that one ounce of down occupies (e.g., a 700-fill power pillow takes up 700 cubic inches of space). You may also see fill power referenced as weight, where brands describe their products as lightweight, heavyweight or all-season. If you tend to sleep hot, you want a product with a lower fill power. The higher the fill power, the lighter and fluffier the comforter is, and, somewhat counterintuitively, the warmer it is. A lower-fill-power comforter won't feel as fluffy and cloud-like, but it'll be less insulating. It's also a good idea to switch comforters based on the season unless you live somewhere with mild weather year-round.
We recommend opting for a duvet cover. Most comforters also come with corner loops or tabs so you can put a duvet cover over it. A duvet cover protects your comforter from your body oils and is easier to wash. If you aren't looking to cover yours, the shell or exterior fabric will be important to you. You'll want something that feels comfortable, smooth to the touch, and fits your sleeping needs. The main shell materials to look out for are natural fabrics like cotton or bamboo.
Comforter construction is important because it gives you insight into the durability of your comforter. Depending on the weave it will reflect how the stuffing will lay inside and how warm you will be.
If you are looking to clean your comforter at home, make sure you buy a comforter that isn't dry clean only. Maintenance can vary depending on the materials your comforter is made of or filled with, so make sure you pick a comforter that is accessible to you and your needs. If it's made from a synthetic material, it's OK to wash it in the machine with a gentle detergent. If it's made from down, it's best to only air dry or put it in the dryer on air fluff.
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I spoke to four experts to learn more about the most important features of a comforter: Chelsea Nightengale, the general manager of The Restoration Hotel; Dale Fox, the founder and CEO of Foxden Hospitality; Sarah Abitbol, the CEO of bedding brand Riley; and Katie Elks, the Director of Design and Product Development at Brooklinen.
I evaluated each of our comforter contenders on the following criteria:
Performance: I slept with each contender in the same duvet cover (Casper's Hyperlite Duvet Cover) for at least three nights. I paid attention to the comfort and feel, breathability, and sizing. I noted whether the inside material shifted during the night, whether the comforter had corner loops and any other special features. I also had family members test each product for at least one night.
Cleaning and durability: I washed and dried each product according to brand instructions and noted whether the filling bunched up or fell out and if there were any loose threads. We didn't consider any dry-clean-only products since we believe you can get a great comforter that is machine washable.
Return policy: Beyond comfort and durability, I looked at each brand's return policy and only considered products with a minimum 30-day return policy. Since bedding purchases are very personal, you must have the freedom to return your comforter if it doesn't meet your expectations.
A comforter and duvet are similar, and the terms are used interchangeably today. Technically speaking, a duvet is just the insert and doesn't have a fabric shell over it. It requires a duvet cover for both protection and aesthetic purposes.
A comforter contains both the insert and a fabric shell, so you can lay it directly on your body if you want.
Couples may want a king-sized comforter, even if you sleep on a smaller bed. A king-sized comforter offers ample coverage for two people and limits blanket hogging throughout the night.
If blanket hogging remains an issue, or if you and your partner have vastly different sleeping temperatures, we recommend getting two separate, smaller comforters so each person can sleep exactly how they like.
We recommend the "burrito" method: Turn your duvet cover inside out, then lay your comforter on top of it. Fasten the duvet cover ties to the comforter's corner tabs.
Roll the duvet cover and comforter together like a burrito towards the duvet's zipper or buttoned opening. Fold the duvet cover opening around each corner and zip or button it. Unroll the burrito bundle back towards the opposite end.
For another method, start with the same steps of turning your duvet cover inside out, then lay your comforter on top of it. Fasten the duvet cover ties to the comforter's corner tabs. Reach into the opening, grab the farthest corner on either side, and pull it out of the opening. Repeat this step with the other side.
Down is the soft, light, and fluffy clusters of fiber from the underbelly of a duck or goose. It's highly insulating, breathable, and lightweight, which is why it's used to make bedding like comforters and pillows, as well as outdoor clothing.
According to the American Down & Feather Council, a comforter must contain at least 75% down cluster to be labeled as a down product. The remainder of the bedding usually has feathers, and you can check the label of your comforter to find the exact percentage breakdown of down and feather.
Duck and goose down are both insulating and durable, but duck down is generally cheaper and less fluffy. Because geese are larger birds than ducks, they have larger down clusters, which loft more, take up more space, and compress to a smaller size.
Goose down also doesn't smell as much as duck down.
If you want the lightest, fluffiest, and warmest comforter — and you don't mind paying a little more — look for goose down. Still, duck down is an effective option that we also love and recommend.
Since down comes from birds that are already being raised for food, it is a sustainable byproduct. As we mention in our guide to the best down pillows, you can look for the Responsible Down Standard (RDS) logo on down products.
The certification ensures that the Five Freedoms of animal welfare (which include access to fresh water and food, comfortable shelter, and freedom of movement) are followed; prohibits live-plucking and force-feeding; and evaluates the entire process from farm to final product.
Down is natural, while down alternative is made from synthetic materials like polyester. Down alternative mimics the feel and insulation of natural down and is ideal if you don't want to spend as much money or if you avoid animal products.
