The best gym towels to help you work out better

We've rated our favourite gym towels for when you need to get your sweat on.

Best gym towels - towels rolled up on a yoga mat - with a drink bottle and medicine ball in the abckground

by Lily Anderson |
Updated on

Have you gone back to the gym and realised you need a new gym towel? Don't worry, we've all been there. We've got the best options for you to keep you cool and dry throughout your entire workout - whether you’re doubling up your living room as a studio or investing in a new gym routine, right down to the best protein powders.

A proper gym towel is compact, easy to wash, and super absorbent, making it the essential tool for keeping cool and comfortable during an intense workout. In order to make sure that you remain dedicated, there are lots of fitness accessories that you can treat yourself to – which should make you spring out of bed to get your push-ups and burpees done. Or, if you're looking to get back into exercise but hate going to the gym? Here are the best stepper machines for your home.

The best gym towels at a glance:

Best microfribre gym towel: Eono by Amazon Microfibre Towel - View on Amazon

Best large gym towel: Adidas Towel Large - View on Adidas

Best personalised gym towel: Personalised Ladies' Gym Towel - View on notonthehighstreet

Best gym towel pack: Cooling Towel (40"x12"), Ice Towel - View on Amazon

If you’re asking yourself why you should invest in a gym towel rather than grabbing one from the cupboard here’s why: these towels are usually super absorbent so that you can dab away sweat easier. They're usually cheaper than beach or bathroom towels. If you're taking a towel into the garden, you might end up getting it dirty and could ruin your good towels.

Now that you’re totally convinced that gym towels are for you, here’s everything that you need to know about them before buying one (or more).

The best gym towels of the year:

All prices are correct at the time of writing. Prices, stock and deals are subject to change without notice.

Best microfibre gym towel

Expert rating:
4.0

Whether you're practising yoga in the garden or lifting weights in your living room, this fantastic towel will support you every step of the way. We love that it will mop up any amount of sweat and because it's a microfibre towel it folds up easy - efficient but compact. This also comes in a variety of colours so you can chose your fave.

Size:140 x 70cm
Colour:Multiple available
Material:Microfibre
Features:Super absorbent and quick drying

Best large gym towel

Expert rating:
4.0
adidas towel largeadidas
Price: £18 (was £30.00)

www.adidas.co.uk

Fitness fanatics will love this large towel from Adidas. This versatile number is not only made of lightweight fabric, but it will also dry quickly, which is good news for those warmer days.

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Size:140 x 70cm
Colour:Blue, black or pink
Material:100 per cent cotton
Washing:40-degree wash / tumble dry on low heat

Best personalised gym towel

Expert rating:
4.0
personalised ladies gym towelnotonthehighstreet

Are you looking for a cute towel just for you? This personalised towel literally has your name written all over it. Available in a variety of colours for you to choose from and so you know it's yours.

Size:30 x 90cm
Colour:Black, navy, grey, pink, purple or white
Material:100 per cent cotton
Washing:Machine wash at 40 degrees

Best gym towel pack

Expert rating:
4.5

Are you looking for a bunch of gym towels? Then this cool set is everything. And, we mean everything, as it will cool you down - all you need to do is wet it and then benefit from the lower temperature. Three towels made out of quick-drying microfibre you won't have to worry about popping them back in your gym bag.

Size:101.6 x 30.5cm
Colour:Multiple colours
Material:Microfibre
Features:Instant cooling, multipurpose

Best choice of gym towel

Expert rating:
3.5
Fit Flip microfibre towelsAmazon
Price: £13.99

Another microfibre set we're crazy about. Want to use this to mop up a sweat or to jump in the shower? Then this ticks all the right boxes. In two sizes - a bathing towel and a hand towel - this comes with different uses perfect for the gym. Use the hand towel as a personal hand drier and use the bathing towel for heavy-duty cleaning up. For just under a tenner, its a bargain.

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Size:Multiple sizes
Colour:Various colours
Material:Microfibre
Washing:up to 60 degrees

Best luxury gym towel

Expert rating:
4.0

If you're going to work out at home, you should do so in style with this fabulous facecloth. Made from Egyptian cotton, this is for the luxurious athlete looking to treat themselves. At only an £8 price point, this is chic but affordable. It's a smaller face cloth, but its perfect for having around you at the gym when working out.

Size:30 x 30cm
Colour:Various colours
Material:100 per cent cotton
Washing:60 degrees colour wash

Best for quick drying

Expert rating:
4.0
Lifeventure HydroFibre Quick Dry TowelLifeventure
Price: £67.16

If you're looking for lightest and most compact option available, Lifeventure has done it again with this Hydrofibre Quick Dry Towel. Lifeventure says that this is its lightest, most compact and quickest drying towel – perfect if you are going to be using it on the go.

It can absorb up to five times its own weight, and dries an impressive 15 times faster than a normal towel. It is also particularly good for folding up small, so if you are trying to travel light, this is a great option for squeezing into your bag. Like other Lifeventure products, this towel uses a silver salt odour control treatment to inhibit bacterial growth, helping stop your towel from smelling before you can get it into the washing machine.

Size:Large 110 x 65 cm, Extra-large 130 x 75cm
Colour:Grey
Material:Microfibre
Washing: Unspecified

Best basic gym towel

Expert rating:
3.5
Domyos fitness towel pinkDecathlon

Looking pretty in pink? Bag yourself a budget gym towel that is super soft against the skin and very absorbent. Available also in teal, dark grey or black, this medium towel is perfect if you want value for your money. It also has a little tag so that you can tie it up easily to pop into your bag.

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Size:90 x 50cm
Colour:Pink, teal, grey or black
Material:100 per cent cotton
Washing:30 degrees max

Best gym towel for sweat

Expert rating:
3.5
Gymshark Sweat TowelGymshark

Gymshark call this the Sweat Towel – giving you a good idea of what it's designed to do. It's another microfibre towel, making it highly absorbent. That makes it ideal if you're doing something particularly intense – we're thinking of a HIIT session, or maybe some hot yoga.

Microfibre towels also dry faster than cotton towels, so if you go to the gym regularly, you'll be able to wash it and dry it ready for your next session with ease. This particular towel is extremely light, and folds up small, so you'll have no problem fitting it in your bag.

Size:Unspecified
Colour:Light grey
Material:80% polyester, 20% polyamide microfibre
Washing:Unspecified

Best eco friendly

Expert rating:
4.0
Lifeventure SoftFibre Recycled Towel with Andaman patternLifeventure

If you want to wipe the sweat from your brow and be environmentally friendly, Lifeventure's Recycled SoftFibre Towel is the perfect choice for you. Made from 66 per cent recycled bottles, this towel can absorb nine times its own weight in water and dries eight times faster than a conventional towel.

Odour control technology uses silver salt and helps reduce the growth of bacteria and fungi, making it more hygienic as a result. It's also incredibly lightweight and compact, so you can easily squeeze it into a bag.

SizePocket size 37 x 37 cm, large 110 x 65 cm, extra large 130 x 75 cm, giant 150 x 90 cm
ColourMultiple patterns available
MaterialPolyester microfibre
WashingUnspecified

Buying guide: The best gym towels

Different towel materials explained

There are a wide variety of gym towels available, and a few different materials, including cotton and microfibre. There are pros and cons whichever material you're considering. Here's a few things to think about with each.

Microfibre

Microfibre towels are usually made from nylon or polyester. This makes them both extremely lightweight, and highly absorbent. Microfibre towels can often absorb several times their own weight in water – perfect if you're doing a workout where you're going to sweat a lot. Microfibre is also naturally hypoallergenic, so if you have any allergies or particularly sensitive skin, this might be helpful. These towels feel extremely soft as well.

There are some downsides, though. Microfibre towels are generally more delicate than cotton towels, so need more careful washing and drying. It's often recommended to hand wash or cool wash these towels, or to limit how much detergent is used, or to avoid putting them in a tumble dryer, for example.

They are also less environmentally friendly because they are made from synthetic fibres. These fibres don't degrade as quickly as cotton. But because the towels themselves are more delicate, the likelihood is you'll be replacing a microfibre towel more often than a cotton towel.

Cotton

Cotton towels benefit from being slightly cheaper (in general) and more durable than microfibre towels. They are also easy to wash and dry, and can withstand a wash cycle, or time in the tumble dryer, far more than a microfibre towel can. Cotton is also a natural fibre, and has a slightly smaller environmental impact than the synthetic materials used in microfibre. Cotton still requires plenty of water to grow, and is often treated with pesticides, however.

Compared to a microfibre towel, a cotton towel is bulkier and will therefore take up more room in your bag. It will also typically take longer to dry after use.

©What's The Best/Steven Shaw

FAQ: the best gym towels

What's the best gym towel?

Ultimately, the best gym towel for you will depend on a few factors – price, material, and size, for example, are all likely to play a part in your choice. Our top choice – the Eono Microfibre Towel – offers a variety of sizes and colours, and the microfibre material means it's highly absorbent, but also dries quickly. These are incredibly useful features for any gym towel. If you prefer natural materials, then the Adidas Towel is 100 per cent cotton.

What should I do with a gym towel?

This is a bit of a tricky question because what you do with your gym towel is completely up to you… Here are some ways we think you should use your gym towels:

• To help you dry off after doing cardio
• Use to cover a bench while you use weights
• Wipe away sweat when working out to avoid drips
• Extra support while practising yoga
• For jumping in the shower after working out

What size should a gym towel be?

There is no right answer when it comes to the best-size gym towel. Whether you’re looking for a towel to mop your brow with or something to throw around you, then there are lots of choices out there. We’d recommend choosing the size depending on what you want to use your towel for.

When to wash a gym towel?

According to The Guardian, you should wash yours after every use along with your gym kit. Nobody wants a sweaty towel full of bacteria, so make sure you wash it to get rid of all those germs.

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Lily Anderson is a Senior Commercial Content Writer at Bauer Media, where she tests products for titles such as Heat, Closer, What’s the Best and Mother&Baby.

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