There are a few household items most people have resigned themselves to buying over and over again: sponges, toilet paper and paper towels are among them. While you may not want to skimp out on changing your sponges, you can get away with alternatives to other single-use products... like paper towels.
Natalie D’Apolito, a communications coordinator at the American Cleaning Institute, says the benefits of opting for reusable paper towels include saving money and reducing waste. “While they are more expensive than paper towels initially, they can last longer. [...] They also often come in fun designs that can help give your kitchen character.”
Marlenyn Robles, a cleaning expert with Maid Sailors, adds that they can be used for more than just quick cleanups. “They’re versatile enough for kitchen spills, dusting, wiping down surfaces and even some personal care tasks, like drying hands.”
Luckily, there are thousands of reusable paper towels on the market — and in the interest of saving both money and the environment, four editors on the Shop TODAY team (including myself) tested 10 different options against a variety of spills: ketchup, chili oil, honey and water. Out of the collection, we found four favorites.
Each editor was assigned to one particular substance and tested each of the paper towels below on their respective spills. They also scored each paper towel visual aesthetic, the feel of the material (how stiff or soft) and ease of cleaning up the spills — all on a scale of 1 to 5. (Find out more about how we tested below.)
Read on to see the results of our tests, ranked.
Best for a kitchen aesthetic$undefined$15.00
Best for dinner napkins$undefined$19.00
Best overall reusable paper towel
Average visual score: 4/5 | Average feel score: 3.31/5 | Average ease-of-cleaning score: 4.25/5 | Overall score: 3.85/5
These reusable paper towels just edged out the others in our tests. They easily cleaned up every stain — including especially sticky ones, like honey — and rinsed easily after wiping up darker substances, like ketchup. However, when I rinsed the ketchup off, some light staining from the dark color was left behind.
Still, Kate McCarthy, the senior social media editor at Shop TODAY, cleaned a water spill with this option and said it was "incredibly easy to wipe up" and that the paper towel was "very absorbent."
Other testers were impressed with how much softer and more absorbent it became when wet and were overall impressed with the patterns available. This set also comes with a hook to hang the paper towels up when not in use.
How many swipes to clean spills?
- Ketchup: 2 swipes
- Chili oil: 3 swipes
- Honey: 3 swipes
- Water: 1 swipe
More reusable paper towels, tested by editors
Best for different types of spills:
Average visual score: 2.875/5 | Average feel score: 3.44/5 | Average ease of cleaning score: 4.63/5 | Overall score: 3.65/5
While testers were impressed with how easily these Swedish dish cloths cleaned up spills, their visual score is what kept this one from reigning supreme. Fama said the pattern was “pretty busy,” while Hoeger mentioned that it looked like the pattern was “starting to wear.”
Still, Hoeger said it “was the most impressive by far when cleaning up spills.” She noted that she didn’t feel the need to “grip” while swiping.
Plus, while cleaning ketchup, I only needed to swipe the paper towel once and no residue was left behind.
How many swipes to clean spills?
- Ketchup: 1 swipe
- Chili oil: 3 swipes
- Honey: 2 swipes
- Water: 1 swipe
Best for a kitchen aesthetic:
Average visual score: 4.63/5 | Average feel score: 4.31/5 | Average ease of cleaning score: 2.38/5 | Overall score: 3.77/5
While these paper towels immediately caught the eye of the testers and were soft to the touch (so they soared above the rest for visuals and feel), ease of cleaning is where they fell short. It was a little difficult to completely clean stains, as the paper towel left residue behind on stained areas. Also, while I was wiping up ketchup, I noticed that the grippers within the material made it hard to swipe.
Sierra Hoeger, an associate editor at Shop TODAY, was on honey-cleaning duty and said these "picked up the honey but not without leaving residue behind." Hoeger also said that she "didn’t have to use a lot of grip strength, however."
Still, these are ideal for the person who cares more about curating their ideal kitchen aesthetic.
How many swipes to clean spills?
- Ketchup: 2 swipes
- Chili oil: 3 swipes
- Honey: Multiple swipes, plus cleaning spray
- Water: 6 swipes
Best for dinner napkins:
Average visual score: 4/5 | Average feel score: 3.63/5 | Average ease of cleaning score: 2.13/5 | Overall score: 3.25/5
Boasting beautiful prints, these eye-catching reusable paper towels arrive on a roll that’s easily set up in the kitchen. While they’re also pretty soft, they fell short in the cleaning department, particularly when it came to wiping up a water spill.
That tester (McCarthy) said it “did not absorb water at all.” She continued, “I could actually see the water rolling off the cloth. It pushed the water around and made an even bigger mess.” Fama also noted that it “just kind of pushed the oil around.”
While they may not be best for cleaning spills, they’re pretty enough to use as dinner napkins or the like.
How many swipes to clean spills?
- Ketchup: 5 swipes
- Chili oil: 3
- Honey: Multiple swipes, plus cleaning spray
- Water: 5 swipes, plus traditional paper towels to wipe excess
Best for absorbency:
Average visual score: 3/5 | Average feel score: 3.25/5 | Average ease of cleaning score: 4.25/5 | Overall score: 3.5/5
These practical dish cloths exceeded testers' expectations when cleaning up spills. While they were stiffer than anticipated when dry, they softened immediately once wet and cleaned up even the stickiest of spills without the help of a cleaning spray.
Amanda Fama, an editor at Shop TODAY, was cleaning chili oil with this paper towel and said it was "very absorbent." However, she continued, "but I wish it was larger so there was more room to pick up extra bits of the spill without a second swipe."
McCarthy, who was cleaning up water, was also impressed: "[This paper towel] immediately absorbed the water and stopped it in its tracks as it was traveling across the table."
Other testers also noted that they were easy to rinse and weren't heavily stained afterward.
How many swipes to clean spills?
- Ketchup: 3 swipes
- Chili oil: 1.5 swipes
- Honey: 4 swipes
- Water: 1 swipe
While the original dishcloths we tested are no longer available, we found a similar option on Amazon that is highly-rated.
Best bang for your buck:
Average visual score: 3.13/5 | Average feel score: 3.13/5 | Average ease of cleaning score: 4.13/5 | Overall score: 3.46/5
This microfiber cloth has that staticky feel that one tester (Hoeger) recognized from a rag she’d find in her dad’s garage. However, it cleaned up most spills in less than two swipes, performing the best for water. “One quick swipe was all it took to clean the water, which was a first for the ‘soft’ cloths,” said McCarthy.
They arrive attached together in one roll (you have to physically tear them away), but there’s no way to reattach them, so you’re left with a stack of cloths to find a home for by the end. You don’t have to worry about value with these, though, as it comes out to about $0.33 per paper towel in this roll.
How many swipes to clean spills?
- Ketchup: 3-4 swipes
- Chili oil: 1.5 swipes
- Honey: 2 swipes
- Water: 1 swipe
Frequently asked questions
Aside from their material, D'Apolito notes that you have to clean and dry reusable paper towels. But don't let that deter you: "Some reusable paper towels actually get better with use and are able to hold more liquid after a few washes."
Jessica Ek, senior director of digital communications at the American Cleaning Institute, outlines three different ways to clean reusable paper towels, all based on the method that's recommended by the individual brands:
- Put them in the washing machine with other kitchen towels, napkins and aprons.
- Put them in the top rack of the dishwasher.
- Hand-washed with soap and warm water before rinsing.
"Even if it looks clean, if you’ve been using it regularly, you’ll likely need to wash it every few days. Letting the towel dry completely between uses can help extend the time between these washes," Ek advises.
If you're using them to clean messes or surfaces in the kitchen, Robles advises washing them after each use to prevent bacteria buildup.
There's a list of messes you'll want to avoid using reusable paper towels to clean, if possible:
- Grease and oil. "Oil can be hard to wash out completely and may leave residue that affects absorbency," says Robles.
- Paint or dye. "These can permanently stain reusable paper towels and may not wash out fully," she notes.
- Raw meat juices. "Risk of bacterial contamination makes it safer to use disposable towels for cleaning up after raw meat," she shares.
- Harsh chemicals. "Cleaners with bleach or strong chemicals can damage the towel’s fibers and reduce longevity," she says.
- Anything rough or sharp, like broken glass. Ek adds this can tear the towels.
How we tested reusable paper towels
We gathered the top 10 highly-rated, highly searched paper reusable paper towels across the internet and put them to the test against four types of spills: water, ketchup, chili oil and honey. There were four testers — one assigned to each substance — who poured out, wiped and cleaned each reusable paper towel they tested.
They then recorded their scores on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being worst, 5 being best) in the categories of visual appearance, feel (how stiff or soft) and ease of cleaning. If an additional cleaning spray (other than water) was needed for cleanup, the tester made of note of it.
See more of our process here:
Why trust us
Kamari Stewart is an associate editor who started out writing and reporting for Shop TODAY back in 2021. One of her earliest beats (aside from beauty) was home — and she covered topics such as cleaning supplies, laundry do's and don'ts and the like. Plus, she was thoroughly involved in the testing process for this piece and can be seen pictured in the white T-shirt above!
Meet the experts
- Natalie D'Apolito is the communications coordinator at the American Cleaning Institute.
- Marlenyn Robles is a cleaning expert with Maid Sailors, a New York City-based cleaning service.
- Jessica Ek is the senior director of digital communications at the American Cleaning Institute.
How do you add Shop TODAY as a Preferred Source on Google?
Google’s new Preferred Sources feature allows users to manually select their favorite publishers and news outlets for a more customizable experience tailored directly to the reader. Once you’ve opted to receive our content, you’ll begin seeing more of our recent and trending articles displayed within your Top Stories news feed.
The easiest way to add us as a preferred source is to click here and type in “TODAY.com.” Once the box is checked and you’ve refreshed the page, Shop TODAY content will start appearing in your feed.
