Consumer Reports' Top-Rated Bath Towel Isn't From Target Or Costco

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When buying bath towels, you have plenty of options. Brands sold at Target are often recommended for soft, absorbent linens, and Costco bath sheets have gone viral in the recent past. Despite the popularity of these stores for luxurious-feeling towels, Consumer Reports (CR) is actually touting an online retailer for having the highest-rated bath towels. In CR's Bath Towel Ratings, the Tens Towels Soft Bath Towels, from Amazon, were the top-ranked terry cloth-style towels. Consumer Reports gave them the highest marks when tested and compared against 14 other options. The following two bath towels are available on Amazon as well. So, if you've been meaning to go out and buy new bath towels, it may be worth it to take a look online first.

CR evaluated bath towel brands on five quality and performance metrics. They were tested for their ability to dry, their softness, and whether they shrank. The options were also rated on how their softness changed and how much energy they used to be dried in the dryer. In all of the categories, Tens Towels had high or perfect scores, putting them above other brands. A Pack of Four Tens Towels Soft Bath Towels are about $32, and the combination of their good qualities and low price led the organization to list Tens Towels as a CR Smart Buy. 

Though some people may prefer different weights and textures for their bath towels, the Tens Towels 100% cotton towels showed promising performance, according to Consumer Reports. In the categories of shrinkage and softness, these bath towels had very high scores. Even better, Tens Towels received perfect scores in softness changes, drying ability, and energy use in the dryer. 

Besides being at the top of Consumer Reports recommendations for terry cloth bath towels, these linens have good ratings from online customers as well. On the Amazon listing, the four pack of Tens Towels soft bath towels received 4.1 stars out of over 1,200 reviews. Over 60% of the reviewers gave 5-star ratings. Many of the customers praised how lightweight and absorbent the towels are, while others mentioned enjoying the softness. If you're someone who prefers bath sheets over bath towels, Tens Towels could still be a good option. The brand also sells a Set of Two Extra Large Bath Sheets for about $32.

Though many Amazon reviewers loved the Tens Towels, other customers were unfortunately not satisfied, according to the listing. Most Amazon reviews claimed the towels could at least dry well, but others complained that they should be more absorbent. Various comments noted that the linens are not good quality and are overly thin. Some customers complained that the budget-friendly towels left behind lint or strings. 

One recent purchaser said, "Bought these because of Consumer Reports rating them as excellent... But this time I have no idea how they gave these towels such a high score. They are very thin (see-through), and become soaked just from drying your hands, let alone after a shower. I am definitely returning them." Another customer stated that they also purchased the towels because of the publication's suggestion, noting that the linens worked well for about a month before starting to fall apart.