The 6 Best Linen Tablecloths of 2025, Tested & Reviewed

wdc tv news staff

9 hours ago

The 6 Best Linen Tablecloths of 2025, Tested & Reviewed

A linen tablecloth is one of the easiest ways to uncomplicate a table setting. Draping your dining room table with linen elevates the atmosphere without hindering the natural, comforting vibe you created for a special meal. This balance between polished and rustic makes linen tablecloths more than just decorative fabric — they’re an essential dining tool.

Being easy to wash, linen helps you catch spills and protect your table without causing a fuss. It’s also organically elegant, lending itself to minimalist and maximalist tablescapes. Combined with cloth napkins and kitchen towels, a linen tablecloth sets the table for a quick dinner with friends. The best linen tablecloths blend well with extras, like an accent table runner, interesting placemats, and flatware for festive occasions.

With so many styles available, we narrowed down a list from top-rated brands, like Cultiver, Rough Linen, and Sferra, to find the best linen tablecloths. Including linens of various shapes, sizes, colors, and stitches, these are the linen tablecloths we’ve tested and love to use at home.

Our Favorite Linen Tablecloths

The Solino Home Linen Tablecloth is a long-lasting and well-priced choice for your dining room. It’s durable and available in 42 vibrant colors and 11 sizes to fit most tables.

Credit: Amazon

Solino Home’s linen tablecloth is valuable for its durability and longevity. The stitch is strong, ending in hemstitched borders and mitered corners. This tablecloth has the widest selection of sizes among those we tested, and it offers a diverse color spectrum, too. You can purchase the fabric in neutral colors, including ivory, light natural, and sage green, as well as lively colorways like avocado, cornflower blue, and pumpkin. Plus, the brand sells cocktail napkins, dinner napkins, placemats, and table runners in matching colors.

In testing, we noticed this tablecloth looked shiny and felt stiffer than others out of the box, but it softened greatly with the first wash. It produced tiny pills all over the surface, but nothing was visible without scrutiny. The fabric adopts a light wrinkle and soft luster you’d expect from pigmented linen. The cinnamon color is deep but mellows after each wash, making the tablecloth more and more versatile over time. This linen tablecloth also aced our heat test and has shown no signs of damage or loose threads. With its heat resistance, flexible size and color options, and washability, the Solino Home makes a great tablecloth for everyday dining and dinner parties alike.

Credit: Quince

Quince is a great place to shop if you’re looking for pure linen on a budget. We tested this soft, garment-washed tablecloth in color “flax” and were highly impressed. The tablecloth’s texture, size, and softness didn’t change in the washing process, bar the wavy border that may need ironing for a smooth look. Up close, we noticed the individual flax fibers are inconsistent as they should be, helping the tablecloth appear textured and rustic. Slight pilling occurred in testing, so we will be monitoring for wear quality over time. Nonetheless, you’d still get your money’s worth at this very affordable price. Grab the matching napkins to complete your table linen set.

Credit: Rough Linen

The Smooth linen tablecloth by Rough Linen is made from close-woven, midweight fabric. At 190 GSM (grams per square meter), the flax fibers are technically heavier than those of any other tablecloth on our list. Yet, we felt that the weight and stitch of the tablecloth were light compared to other table linens. With its deeply mitered borders, the Smooth hangs from the table in a loosely rumpled fashion reminiscent of something you’d see at a European villa.

This linen tablecloth is meant to dress the table on its own or complement the colors of other linens, such as the brand’s heavier-weight Orkney line. We fixed the Smooth onto a tabletop in straight and diagonal positions, and each looked great. During our tests, the tablecloth softened after washing and didn’t pill at all. If you love the fabric but don’t prefer the mitered borders or full tablecloth, Rough Linen offers an all-encompassing Smooth linen line — table runners, napkins, placemats, and more — with raw-edge options, as well.

Credit: SFERRA

The Sferra Festival tablecloth is not your average table linen. Made in a strong plain weave and hemstitched with mitered corners, this luxury tablecloth can take a beating — several beatings. This tablecloth remained firm after washing, and we observed no pilling or loosened threads. The plain weave texture gives the fabric personality and a rich texture, while the hand-threaded hemstitch prevents the tablecloth from feeling stuffy. It drapes off the tabletop voluptuously and works great on its own or topped with a runner and placemats.

This linen tablecloth is available in just over 100 colorways, categorized by tone: bold, cool, earth, neutral, and warm. You can choose between eight sizes, although availability varies by color. The fabric weave is durable, and the flax fibers are marvelously variegated with visible strands of lighter- and darker-hued linen. Not to mention, the same stitch and color options are available in napkins, placemats, and runners. For events, gifts, or personal preferences, Sferra also offers a monogram service, wherein you can select up to three letters to be satin-stitch embroidered into your tablecloth.

Credit: Cultiver

Thick, 165-GSM fabric feels light and lavish in Cultiver’s linen tablecloth, which looks amazing on the tabletop. We tested this tablecloth in navy blue, a moody and delicate color among brighter options, including blush, pinstripe, and sky. Like the Sferra, this tablecloth washed well and didn’t stain from coffee and milk. However, we did see tiny, mostly unnoticeable pills across the surface after it dried. It also became rougher after drying, which boosted its natural texture. We like the understated, 5-centimeter border on this tablecloth. The fabric itself is lightweight and eye-catching, so we love that the tablecloth is made with an understated, 5-centimeter border at the edges.

The Cultiver is more heat-sensitive than other tablecloths on our list. Not only does the manufacturer instruct you to wash it at 104°F or lower, but our heat test also minimally damaged the fabric. A wash cycle made the fabric look good-as-new, but we encourage using drink coasters and trivets on this tablecloth for heat protection. This tablecloth’s smallest available dimension is 71 inches, so it’s appropriate and highly stylish on larger tables or as a floor-length tablecloth on smaller surfaces.

Credit: Quince

This linen tablecloth walks the line between raw and tassled. Its edges are hand-frayed and trimmed so the exposed edges appear refined. The fabric is garment-washed, and further washing revealed small pills and other slight imperfections that play into its rustic appeal. One thing to note is that it wrinkles more easily than other linens. If you want a fringed tablecloth that remains crisp and sleek, this particular linen might not be for you.

Quince is known for its impressively low prices. It explicitly lists this linen tablecloth as comparable to the Jenni Kayne, which costs $225. With the Quince version, your tablecloth will be made of European flax, larger by eight to 10 inches on each side, and available in fun colors like blue fog and olive. Pick your color and go full-fringe at your tablescape with Quince’s matching frayed napkins.

How We Tested Linen Tablecloths

We started our linen tablecloth tests by choosing several models from our favorite dining retailers and other internet-favorite linen manufacturers. Our editors used the tablecloths in their everyday lives as much as possible, evaluating them through several tests.

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Setting test: We used the linen tablecloths to set tables for formal and informal dining. We observed how the tablecloth draped over our dining tables, how well it paired with other tableware and dinnerware, and whether it fit as expected.
Durability test: Following the manufacturer’s instructions, we washed and cared for the tablecloths to evaluate durability and ease of cleaning. This step included looking for pilling, fraying, discoloration, and wrinkling. We also attempted to stain the tablecloth with substances like wine and coffee to assess its resistance to stains and water.
Heat test: We placed hot dinnerware, such as freshly plated foods, microwaved stoneware, and cookware over trivets, on top of the tablecloths to evaluate heat-resistance and note any damage endured by the linen.

The linen tablecloths we tested ranged in price from $45 to $256, averaging $134. After using each piece in our homes, we revealed and compared each tablecloth’s price with its performance to determine its overall value.

Factors to Consider

Fabric Quality

Mechanical looms are the modern standard for producing linen fabric, but computerized machines can still make mistakes. The best fabrics are made by discerning weavers with strict quality control on machine-woven linen. Most linen fabrics are checked for quality, then hemstitched, frayed, mitered, or altered at the edges in some way by designers to create consistent tablecloths. At the hems, corners, and throughout the flat cloth, you may notice natural pills, slight frays, and varying thread thickness; each of which contributes to the linen’s natural look. However, you should always avoid tablecloths with obvious patchwork, weak hand-threading, and excess pilling or fraying out of the box.

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Garment Washing

Garment washing (pre-washing) is a step taken in production to clear out excessive dyes and achieve a certain look or texture. Linen tablecloths are washed repeatedly by the manufacturer, oftentimes to soften or further dilute the color of the linen intentionally. Many linen tablecloths are garment-washed before you buy them, so they arrive already soft, luxurious to the touch, and pre-shrunk. Others are lightly garment-washed or not at all, so they may arrive more deeply pigmented, stiffer in texture, and with the potential to shrink. With every wash, these tablecloths slowly mellow in color and develop a softer feel, just like heavily garment-washed varieties. To purchase garment-washed or not is completely up to personal preference.

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Heat Resistance

Made of flax plant fibers, pure linen is naturally heat-resistant. Some linen tablecloths, however, are made from a blend of linen and synthetic materials like polypropylene (plastic), which is susceptible to melting and burning from intense heat. A synthetic blend often constitutes fewer wrinkles, lower prices, and consistent texture. Meanwhile, 100%-linen tablecloths look natural, feel softer with every wash, and can last a long time if taken care of. Our tested picks are made from pure linen, making them easy to tumble dry and iron at low temperatures.

Table Size and Shape

We generally prefer tablecloths to hang 12 to 20 inches off the edges of a dining table. This is just enough room for the cloth to hit a person’s lap or knees without impeding movement. Before selecting a tablecloth size, measure the dimensions of your table and add 24 or more inches to the width and length to determine a size that might work for you. Use your best judgment here: If you have a high-top table with bar-height chairs, adding more length can make for a more stylish tablescape. If you want to hide the legs of your table entirely, look for floor-length tablecloths by adding the height of your table, plus a few inches, to the dimensions of your dining table.

Also, keep in mind the shape of your table. You can dress a round or square table with either round or square tablecloths, depending on the flowy shape you prefer to create. For oval-shaped or rectangular tables, stick to rectangular tablecloths, and play around with placing the tablecloth diagonally to expose part of your tabletop for chic dinners.

Linen Source

Many brands tout their linen as “100% European flax” or only as “linen.” However, all linen, regardless of origin, is made from the same plant: flax. European flax — as opposed to American, Chinese, Egyptian, or other flax — has gained the reputation it currently has from centuries of mass production and marketing by linen weavers across European countries like Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. Therefore, you can easily find high-quality linen from any region, but you can trust that some European weavers have been in the game for a long time.

If you’d like linen from companies monitored for chemical substance usage, look for certifications like the Oeko-Tex 100. This certifier checks manufacturers to ensure they’re limiting or omitting their use of potentially harmful substances like heavy metals, formaldehyde, flame retardants, and even PFAS (so-called forever chemicals).

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are the benefits of a linen tablecloth?

Linen fibers are durable and long-lasting, yet they maintain a slightly rough, natural texture and appearance that you don’t get with synthetic fabrics. Linen tablecloths are also exceptionally versatile. They can also be lightly stitched enough to layer with another tablecloth and understated enough to complement various tableware.

How should you pick a tablecloth?

Will you use your tablecloth occasionally or every day? If you’re looking for an everyday tablecloth, buy it in a neutral color or a color that fits your dining space’s usual aesthetic. Stick to a tablecloth that hangs no more than 20 inches from the edges of the table to ensure you have space for regular cleaning below. For occasional use, determine if the tablecloth is for an event or decorating a space long-term. If it’s a formal event, choose something longer or floor-length, and grab a color that fits the season or holiday. When setting a dining room table not used for everyday meals, play around with lengths and keep a close eye on return policies.

How do you remove stains from a linen tablecloth?

Linen is easy to care for, but it’s not completely stain-resistant. If you spill coffee, red wine, fruit juice, or another highly pigmented beverage on your linen tablecloth, immediately spray or blot it with an effective stain remover. Afterward, get the tablecloth into your washing machine as soon as possible.

How do you remove wrinkles from a linen tablecloth?

Throw your linen over a tall surface like the upper ledge of a door. Pulling the linen taught and shifting the tablecloth as you go, use a fabric steamer to slowly loosen the wrinkles with heat. You can also use an iron on a low-heat setting to iron out the wrinkles on a flat surface. We do not suggest using a de-wrinkling function on a dryer, as this will usually facilitate wrinkling in linen, rather than smooth it out.

Our Expertise

Food & Wine update writer Dillon Evans is a lifelong home cook and baker who loves to host intimate gatherings for friends and family in his apartment. He has extensively researched and tested dining products like cloth napkins, flatware sets, and placemats. He used his research and insights from our rigorous tests to recommend linen tablecloths in this roundup. Dillon's work can also be found at EatingWell.

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