How to Find the Best Hemp Sheets [2022]

Hemp has been going through an enormous revolution in popularity for the last few years. It went from being a very obscure fabric to one that is fast becoming one of the most popular options for bedsheets. 

Hemp is a great alternative to cotton. They are more sustainable and are very durable. The fabric also feels very soft on the skin. This is why it is an amazing option for your sheets. They are very absorbent and are breathable, so they are a great option to use year-round. 

Since hemp sheets have become so well-loved, you now have a ton of options online to get a new hemp sheet. So picking the best one is going to be hard. Hemp is extremely durable. So it can last over 20 years if you take care of it. If you buy one, you can use it for decades, so getting the right one is going to make you happy for a very long time. This is why I am writing this guide – not to talk about thread count. 

I am going to start off with the benefits of hemp sheets, then I am going to compare them to a couple of very similar fabrics. Since it is hard to pick amongst so many options, even with a guide like this, I am going to recommend a couple of options. These are hand-picked and well researched. So getting one of these is surely going to be a great pick. At the end of the article, I am going to discuss and answer some of the most frequently asked questions about hemp sheets. 

What is good and bad about hemp sheets for your bed

Not a lot of people are familiar with hemp. So it seems like a good idea to me to talk a bit more about hemp itself before I start comparing it to other fabrics. Hemp has had a pretty bad reputation. This is pretty unfair since it is a normal plant that is very suited for making fabrics. 

These are the good things about hemp Sheets

Durable – Hemp is very durable, even more so than cotton and polyester, so it’s easy to machine wash. This makes it a great fabric if you are looking for sheets that you want to use for many years. It will last up to more than 5 years compared to cotton and longer than 15 years compared to satin. So it is a great investment in the long term. 

Absorbent – Hemp is very absorbent. This makes it very useful for in the summer when you sweat more. People who sweat quite a lot will enjoy hemp more than cotton and satin. It will is also a lot more breathable. This helps to get rid of sweat odors and prevents bacteria and molds from forming on the bedsheets. 

Insulation – Hemp is pretty decent for insulation. You will keep pretty warm in the winter. Hemp is decent in the summer, but not as good as satin. Hemp is very breathable and absorbent, but it insulates a bit too much in the summer during a warm day. You are better off buying satin sheets if you want to have a cool summer night. 

Good for the environment – Of course, this depends on the brand and the origin of the hemp sheets. However, in general, hemp is better for the environment than cotton and polyester. It does not need as much water and nutrients as cotton to grow.

These are the bad things about hemp sheets 

Expensive – Hemp is not cheap at all. Since it is not as mass-produced as for example polyester and cotton, it is still pretty expensive to manufacture. That extra cost is going to be passed on to the consumer. You will need to budget more than for example cotton when you want to buy hemp sheets.

Creasing – Some people – like me – don’t really care about this, but hemp fabric does crease quite a lot. This does not have any negative influence on the quality of your sleep. You will need to iron it a bit more than satin and cotton if you want to avoid creasing. 

Extra care – Compared to cotton, hemp does need a little bit of extra care. You can not wash it on as high a setting with very hot water. You also need to avoid a couple of cleaning products that might damage the hemp in the long term. 

The color – Hemp sheets – on average – don’t have as bright a color as cotton sheets have. So you might want to pick something else if you want to have bright colors that do not fade easily. 

cotton sheets in dimly lit root

Comparison: Hemp bedding versus sheets out of other popular fabrics 

Hemp vs Cotton

Odds are these are the two fabrics you are trying to choose from. I am going to discuss these two the most in-depth. 

Durability – there is not that much difference between the durability of cotton and hemp if the stitching is good. However, between the two, hemp clearly is the stronger. It will last you a couple of years longer. Hemp does not show wear and tear even after years of using it. Cotton does feel pretty decent for the first couple of years, but it starts to unravel a bit. 

Insulation – Cotton, and hemp are both very good at insulating body warmth. I would put them at about the same level. So you are not going to get cold in the winter with either of them. However, Hemp does breathe a bit better, so I am giving this fabric the edge. It is a good fabric to use in the spring when the temperature is getting a bit warmer. Due to it being more breathable, you will not develop a sweat smell as fast if you forget to wash the sheets

Hypoallergenic – Both cotton and hemp are great at preventing your allergies to act up. While they are not as hypoallergenic as polyester, they are both very good options. I do think cotton is a little better to prevent allergenic reactions. Of course, you will need to figure out first if you are allergic to cotton or hemp. 

Feeling – Hemp and cotton both feel pretty soft. However, I do think cotton is a bit softer. Some people think cotton is a hard fabric. If you wash it a couple of times, it does become a lot softer. Hemp also becomes a bit softer, but not as soft as cotton does. 

Ease of cleaning – Cotton is easier to clean than hemp. Due to cotton being so popular and one of the most used fabrics for bedsheets, there are a lot of cleaning products that are specially made for cleaning cotton. Hemp is easy to clean, but cotton is just that bit easier to clean.

Price – Hemp is much more expensive than cotton. This is mainly due to it being less popular. The price can be a lot higher than a cotton sheet, even more so if you are comparing cheap low cotton with high-quality hemp that is as organic as possible. Hemp is a bit more durable, so it evens out a little, but hemp does remain more expensive. 

Hemp vs Polyester

Durability – Polyester is very durable. It is made out of synthetic materials so if left alone it is going to remain in very good shape as insects, bacteria, and moles do not enjoy eating this at all. Hemp is also very durable but is going to suffer from being stowed away in a damp place. If you use both normally and take care of them, they are about just as durable. Polyester does ages less well. Hemp gets softer while you are using, polyester just starts to stain. 

Insulation – Polyester is much better at trapping heat. Since it is synthetic it does not breathe well. So, you can use this in the winter when you want to keep warm, but you should try to avoid using it if you sweat. Hemp is a bit worse at insulating, but it is still very nice in the summer due to how breathable it is. 

Hypoallergenic – Since polyester is an inorganic synthetic fiber, not many people are allergic to this. Hemp is organic, but not many people are allergic to it. So both are going to be great if you are allergic to lots of things. Polyester is a bit better against pests like bed bugs and molds. 

Feeling – Polyester feels kinds of coarse and always stays that way. Hemp gets a little bit softer after using it. In general hemp, sheets feel much softer and pleasant against the skin. So most people prefer hemp. Of course, the feeling is purely subjective so you might enjoy polyester more. 

Ease of cleaning – While hemp is pretty easy to clean, polyester is by far the easiest to clean fabric that is commonly used for sheets. You can just throw it in the dishwasher on the highest setting, and add almost any cleaning product to it. Then it is going to be all clean without it damaging the sheets. Hemp is a bit less easy to clean and you can’t just use any cleaning product. 

Price – Polyester is really cheap. It is cheaper than cotton, and thus a lot cheaper than hemp. So if you are on a tight budget, polyester is a good pick. However, since you are using your sheets for many years, the price is not that that large if you compare it to the time you are using it.  

Hemp vs Satin

Durability – Hemp is a lot more durable than satin, satin starts to fall apart in a couple of years. Hemp stays good two times as long. So that is going to be about 15 years more use out of hemp. Which is quite a lot for sheets. 

Insulation – Satin is very bad at insulating your body heath. So hemp is going to be a lot be better in the winter if you want to keep your body warm. However, satin is going to be a lot better in summer. A good idea could be to buy a hemp sheet for in the winter and a satin sheet for the summer. 

Hypoallergenic – Some people are allergic to satin. So you need to be sure that isn’t before you buy it. Few people are allergic to hemp, but there still are some. Both are organic materials, so you need to look out for bed bugs and mold. 

Feeling – While hemp is pretty soft, satin is a lot softer. Satin has this silky smooth feeling so hemp can not really compete on this aspect. Hemp does get a bit softer after a few washes. 

Ease of cleaning – While hemp is not the easiest material to clean, satin is much harder to. You need to clean satin with either your hands and cold water, or you need to dry clean it. So that is quite the difference with hemp, which you can wash with the washing machine. 

Price – Hemp is expensive, but satin is playing in a different league. If you want to buy high-quality silk satin, you are going to have to pay a lot more than you will for a hemp sheet. Low-quality satin is going to be cheaper, but less durable. 

My 3 Favorite Hemp Sheets that Anyone Will Love

DAPU Pure Hemp Sheets

blue upholstered bed with grey bedding

Pros:

  • Made out of very high-quality hemp that is very soft and durable
  • Great for people who sweat a lot during the night due to the absorption and breathing of the fiber
  • Can be used during every season since the sheets are quite thin and breathe very well

Cons:

  • The color fades pretty fast, which is a problem many hemp sheets have.
  • Washing these sheets is pretty hard, the manufacturer recommends using cold water and a low setting for the washing machine. 

Bed Sheets Queen Size 30% Hemp 70% Cotton 

trendy room with grey sheets

Pros:

  • Best of both worlds, all the softness of cotton with all the durability of hemp
  • They look very nice and stylish, the soft colors fit into almost every decor really well
  • The sheets do not crease as hemp does due to them being part of cotton

Cons:

  • They aren’t all that durable, this often happens with blends, they wear and tear sooner
  • You need to take into account a couple of things when cleaning it, for example, you need to wash it under 60 degrees. 

Delilah Home 100% Hemp Bed Sheets, King Light Gray

neatly folded grey sheets with ribbon tied around

Pros:

  • Made out of very high-quality hemp sheets that feel very soft
  • They are great for almost every season, except for the hottest days of summer, since they are pretty durable
  • The colors fit into any decor very well due to them being soft and not standing out

Cons:

  • They are hard to machine wash, they can’t be washed at a very high temperature
  • They create a lot, this is pretty common with 100% hemp, however, this is just a minor issue and does not affect your sleep

Final thoughts about Hemp sheets

Hemp is a great material for the winter, spring, and autumn. It is a bit too warm for my liking in the winter, so you should take this into account. You can always use satin sheets in the summer, as they are pretty cool and don’t hold warmth as much as hemp.

If you are doubting between getting classic cotton or polyester sheets or getting hemp sheets, and budget is not that much of an issue, hemp is going to be the best pick. They are more expensive, but they are more durable, about as soft and they breathe better. So this is a great alternative for you if you want to try something else. 

Do you have any questions about hemp, or have you bought a hemp sheet and want to talk about them? If so, leave us a comment!

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