6 Signs You Need to Replace Your Towels ASAP, According to Pros

Towels are a household item that certainly get plenty of use each and every day, and with that, you may be wondering if it’s time to replace your set of go-tos.

As it turns out, there are some clear signs that indicate that your towels are on their last leg, according to experts. Below, cleaning pros share five telltale signs that your towels are better off being used as rags.

Read on and use this guidance as an opportunity to treat yourself to a plush new set.

Your Towels Have Lost Their Absorbency

The whole point of using a towel is to dry off, so when yours stop feeling as absorbent—which is typical over time—it’s time for them to go, Nahoum Houri, the director of products at Riley, says.

Kristina Toner, operations manager at home cleaning service Spekless, explains that absorbency can decrease due to products including detergents, fabric softeners, and body oils.

To that end, experts recommend cutting back on using so many of such cleaners.

“Reducing your use of these products not only helps your towels last longer but saves you money, too,” Sara San Angelo, a professional housekeeper and founder of Confessions of a Cleaning Lady, explains.

Your Towels Are Starting to Fade

No one wants to stare at faded towels if they don’t have to do so.

“Compare the color of your towels to their original shade,” Toner says, who notes that fading generally stems from sun damage or exposure to harsh cleaning materials.

Why not use this as an opportunity to play with your current design style, too? It may finally be the time to say goodbye to those towels you’ve owned since your college years and introduce some new, more adult-like options into the mix.

“Updating your towels can be a simple way to refresh the look of your bathroom and enhance its aesthetic appeal,” Houri says.

Think of it this way: Spending some money to invest in new towels is significantly cheaper than tackling any sort of bathroom makeover, and you’ll surely get plenty of use out of these linens.

Depending on the season or an upcoming holiday, consider switching them out for pastel-colored ones for Spring or something festive for Christmas. When guests come over, it’ll be a nice touch to make a great first impression.

Your Towels Are Fraying or Matted

If your towels also exhibit fraying or matting, that isn’t a good sign, Jennifer Rodriguez, chief hygiene officer at Pro Housekeepers, says. When fraying begins to happen, this means the towels are either damaged or thinned out from rough wash cycles which will cause them to become weaker in quality.

Additionally, she says, towels in this state don’t feel great on the skin, either.

Your Towels Persistently Smell

If your towels retain musty or mildewy odors, that’s a sign that they should be replaced. No one wants to smell an unpleasant scent after getting nice and clean, after all.

“Persistent odors, even after washing, indicate that mold and bacteria have built up within the fibers,” Toner says. She adds that washing your towels may resolve this issue to some degree but isn’t a foolproof method overtime since it may come back.

Your Towels Are Not Super Soft

There’s nothing like stepping out of the shower and enveloping yourself in a plush towel, but over time, that feeling may start to feel like more of a rarity. The more you wash your towels, the less soft they’ll feel.

“If they feel rough, scratchy, or less plush than before, it’s a sign that the fibers have worn down,” Toner says.

Go ahead and replace these itchy towels with brand-new ones to bring a hotel-like quality back to your bathroom in no time.

Your Towels Have Been Shrinking

Shrinking towels is a clear sign that it’s time to buy some new ones, Rhonda Wilson, a quality lead cleaner at FreshSpace Cleaning, says.

“They might still serve their function in terms of absorbency, but if they no longer wrap around your body, then it might be time to buy new ones,” she says.