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The Best Cooling Sheets for Hot Summer Nights, Tested and Reviewed (2024)

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My summertime sadness is waking up all night because I am too damn hot. Nothing makes me miserable like the heat, especially at night. Hot nights are unfortunately the price I pay for skipping winter down here in Southern California, but some folks are just hot sleepers no matter the temperature or where they live. Heat can adversely affect your sleep quality, which can affect your health, so it’s important to stay cool at nighttime; if you’re not about to splurge on a cooling mattress, it might be worth considering cooling sheets.

But what makes a good cooling sheet? What exactly is a cooling sheet? These bed sheets typically improve airflow, allowing your body to dissipate heat better than traditional cotton sheets. Linen is a popular choice and is quite breathable, whereas other materials have moisture-wicking and temperature-regulation properties. After sleeping on nearly every sheet there is for weeks, I’ve concluded that linen and cotton percale make some of the best cooling sheets. But if you want a softer material (or hate percale like me), there are other options too. (All the prices are for queen size.)

Looking for more bedding gear? Read our Best Cooling Mattresses, Best Pillows, Best Linen Sheets, Best Sheets, and Best Mattresses guides.

Updated August 2024: We’ve added Saatva’s Percale Sheet Set as a new pick, a few more cooling sheets to Honorable Mentions, and more notes on thread counts for all of our picks.

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What Are Cooling Sheets?

There’s a lot of terminology thrown around in the world of cooling sheets and cooling mattresses. Temperature regulating! Airflow! Moisture wicking! Phase-change material! Most of the time, these features come back to how breathable the sheets are. Breathability means moisture can better evaporate, and “temperature-regulating” usually means the sheets are breathable enough to release the heat and moisture from your body.

What makes sheets breathable? Cotton, flax linen, and bamboo have great breathability, but not all sheets are made equally, so material alone isn’t a guarantee. Weave, as in percale’s one-over-one threads versus sateen’s three-over-one, and weight (including thread count) of the bedding comes into play. Higher thread counts are less breathable, and tighter weaves will be less breathable too. The yarn within the fabric is also important, as well as how twisted it is—a higher twist makes for a smoother, cooler feel to the fabric, while a loose twist isn’t as smooth and can trap heat.

Some companies treat sheets with something called phase-change materials, or PCMs, which are substances that absorb and release energy to either heat or cool an area. “PCMs create a microclimate,” says Karen Leonas, a professor of textile sciences at the Wilson College of Textiles at North Carolina State University. Excess body heat is absorbed by these materials and then released to the body when it’s cool.

These treatments can raise the price of cooling sheets, but they’re not super popular yet, and it’s hard to determine how well incorporated it is into the fabric. “PCMs go through thermal cyclic testing and have shown to last a long time,” Leonas says. “If this is a surface treatment, there is the possibility that some of the microcapsules will be lost due to abrasion.” Parima Ijaz, CEO of Pure Parima, agrees and says these treatments sometimes only last up to 10 washes. There are only a handful of sheets on the market that tout their use of PCMs, and our guide focuses on breathable materials and weaves rather than these treatments. It’s worth noting that PCMs will last much longer on a foam mattress, according to Leonas. If you’re still sweating at night after switching to cooling sheets, try a cooling mattress.

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August 15, 2024
6 Best Mattresses for Back Pain, Tested and Reviewed (2024)

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Nearly a decade ago, I started waking up with back pain, or even full on throwing my back out at night. It turns out I have two permanent conditions in my spine: scoliosis, a sideways curvature in my spine that developed in my mid-twenties (usually teens develop it, but I’m just special), and spondylosis in my lower back, which is abnormal wear and tear on the cartilage in the spine. Both were causing me serious pain overnight and in the morning, but it turned out my flimsy mattress was the secondary culprit. It didn’t offer the support I needed.

I tried everything: a mattress pad, knee pillows, and mattresses that ranged from super soft foam to firm planks. Some of these things worked, some didn’t. I, or another WIRED reviewer, slept on the mattresses below for at least seven nights each, and monitored how they affected our back pain during the night and following morning. My husband also gave me his feedback, even though he isn’t plagued with chronic back problems.

After all these nights of sleeping on the job, I’ve found which mattresses left my back aches and pressure pains in the past. Below are our favorites to sleep on if you have back pain, plus advice for how to navigate back pain and sleep overall. While you’re here, don’t miss our related buying guides, including the Best Mattresses, Best Pillows, and Best Sheets, for an all-around best sleeping experience. All of the prices shown below are for queen-size models.

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August 8, 2024
The Best Travel Mugs to Keep Drinks Hot or Cold

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One way to quickly ruin a morning is to take a sip from your mug expecting hot coffee or tea only to be met with freezing-cold liquid. Or, on the flip side, desperately wanting ice cold water only to find it warm. For those moments, you need an insulated travel mug. There are tons of stainless steel mugs, bottles, and tumblers on the market. These are our favorites.

We tested each bottle with both cold water and hot coffee, sitting outside in indirect sunlight and inside in the AC. During testing, none of the bottles has failed to roughly match up to their claims of how long they’d keep cold liquids cold and hot liquids hot. It’s rare to run across an insulated bottle that’s a total failure at doing that these days, but it’s also rare to find one that truly stands out. Rather, I’ve noticed the features that tend to make or break a bottle are leak-proofing, exterior coating, and the cap. While all these bottles can keep cold drinks at temperature, you may prefer getting a dedicated insulated water bottle if that’s all you need.

Be sure to check out our guides to the Best Coffee Subscriptions, Best Coffee Grinders, Best Espresso Machines, Best Portable Coffee Makers, Best AeroPress Coffee Makers, and How to Make Better Coffee at Home.

Updated June 2024: We made the Hydro Flask mug a top pick and added Owala’s SmoothSip and W&P’s Porter to the honorable mentions. We’ve also moved all bottles that use lead soldering to the avoid section and updated prices and links throughout.

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A Note on Lead Soldering

Since we first started testing water bottles and coffee tumblers, it’s come to light that some brands use lead soldering to seal their insulated bottles. The lead is on the bottom of the bottles encased in stainless steel. While it’s unlikely it would become exposed, we think it’s an unnecessary risk given that enough of our favorite brands use other methods to seal their bottles. We’ve noted which brands have confirmed they use lead in our “avoid” section below and will keep this guide updated as we hear from the others.

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June 26, 2024
The Best Instant Coffees (2024): Tested and Reviewed

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There is no coffee preparation method more widely maligned than instant coffee. Even its name conjures up memories of bitter, acrid coffee that tastes too thin and too thick all at once. It’s the province of motel lobbies, red-eye flights, and 5 am commutes. But it’s also one of the most popular ways to drink coffee.

There’s more to the world of instant coffee than a packet of Folgers crystals dissolving at the bottom of a Styrofoam cup. About half the world even prefers it to other coffee preparation methods, and there’s a good reason for that: Most of the world is getting pretty good instant coffee. Indonesia, Japan, China, Mexico, Colombia, and Cuba all have instant coffee products on their shelves that can seriously rival the rich, flavorful brew you get from fresh beans. So, to find out which of these crystals actually gives your fresh-roasted, home-ground coffee a run for its money, I’ve been drinking my way across the world to find the best instant coffees.

Be sure to check our other coffee guides, including the Best Espresso Machines, Best Cold-Brew Coffee Makers, Best Coffee Grinders, Best French Presses, and Best Electric Kettles.

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What Is “Good” Instant Coffee?

You will always get more depth and breadth of flavor out of a cup of coffee ground and brewed fresh, the same way a loose-leaf tea will be more flavorful than even the most thoughtfully prepared tea bags. But when testing instant coffees, I wasn’t looking for coffees that reproduced the fresh-brewed flavor profile or drinking experience. That’s a trap coffee lovers fall into when drinking instant coffee. It’s a different medium than fresh-brewed coffee—like comparing a watercolor to an oil painting. Each has things it does well, but they don’t both do the same things well.

The coffees on this list each provided memorable and enjoyable drinking experiences. Instant coffees that are made well shine a spotlight on a coffee’s fruity flavor notes, tartness, and roasty warm flavors like cinnamon and caramel. It can be difficult to find whole-bean coffees that produce these flavors when freshly roasted. Instant coffees that don’t try to be something else are, in my experience, the best-tasting. The ones trying too hard to replicate the fresh-roast experience are what end up tasting weak, too astringent, and full of off flavors. They’re pale imitations because they’re exactly that: imitations.

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June 25, 2024
Neoplants Neo Px Review: This Plant Isn’t as Good as an Air Purifier

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Neoplants has an attractive pitch: a living alternative to an air purifier bioengineered to rid the home of those toxic vapors known as volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. Its first product, the Neo Px, claims to be 30 times more efficient at air purifying than a regular houseplant. It arrived at my home in a sturdy cardboard box.

These are big claims in a little box. At around a foot tall, the plant system is touted as “the first bioengineered air purifier for your home.” From the company’s Instagram and marketing materials, I thought Neoplants had genetically modified the Pothos plant, supercharging its phytoremediation ability to remove pollutants from the air. Scientists have done this, but the Neo Px uses a regular Marble Queen Pothos. It’s the “Power Drops”—the microorganisms that are meant to live in the soil—that are bioengineered.

A Self-Sufficient Plant

Photograph: Lisa Wood Shapiro

The beige shell that comes with the plant is made out of a thermoplastic polyester polylactic acid (PLA) and has an unobtrusive design that easily blends with a variety of interior styles. PLA is derived from natural sources, and the Neo Px’s shell comes from flax.

It’s biodegradable in industrial composting settings, like the ones offered to New York City residents, but it won’t break down in a backyard compost and PLA rots at about the same pace as plastic in landfills. The planter is engineered for maximum airflow both from the top and the vents at the shell’s bottom, though every time I moved the Neo Px, a small amount of soil escaped through those vents.

As per the instructions, I filled the water well and coaxed the delicate water gauge back into the planter. Next, I cosplayed a botanist, mixing the water and Neoplants’ Power Drops in my Neo Px glass beaker with the glass wand, and then I poured the potion on top of the soil. The entire process took about half an hour.

I had to move the Neo Px to several different locations to keep my cats from nibbling the leaves. The Pothos is toxic to pets and can cause irritation in the mouth, trouble breathing, and gastrointestinal pain. I ended up putting aluminum foil around the plant to keep them at bay.

Photograph: Lisa Wood Shapiro

The Claims

Is the Neo Px an alternative to an air purifier? To start, the plant is unable to filter particulates out of the air. Unlike a HEPA filter that employs regulated accordion folded filters, the plant cannot remove smoke, pollen, and dust along with those invisible small particulates, PM 2.5, that can turn the sky orange and get into the deepest parts of the lungs. (A regular HEPA filter cannot capture vapor or gases, but it can when combined with a carbon filter.)

The Neo Px is touted as having the ability to filter out VOCs, targeting three vapors: benzene, toluene, and xylene. This is done through the use of the company’s bioengineered Power Drops. Each Neo Px is promoted as having the air cleaning ability of 30 plants, and in the company’s press materials, website, social media, and emails to me, Neoplants cites the nearly four-decade-old NASA plant study as proof. In short, the NASA plant study found that plants in a closed chamber, smaller in size than a bathtub, were able to rid the air of VOCs over a certain amount of time.

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June 23, 2024
We Put Air Conditioners to the Test, and These Are Our 7 Favorites

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Portable air conditioners aren’t as energy efficient or effective at adequately cooling a room. You’ll need to spend a lot of money to get adequate cooling, and the three models below are the ones we like. They’re often louder, and uh, not very portable.

Dreo Smart Air Conditioner for $460: The Dreo Smart Air Conditioner not only cools a large bedroom effectively and quickly, it also can be controlled by the app in my iPhone. And, as my son pointed out, the Dreo is a dead ringer for Eve from the movie WALL-E. It even rolls, making for easy moving; something I can’t say about window units. Along with the Dreo’s easy-to-use app, it can be paired with Amazon Alexa or Google Home. It has an easy-to-read LED display and control panel, along with a magnetized place for the remote, and louvers that open and close, adding to its robotlike aesthetic. The setup was easy, and I didn’t drill in a single screw, as I was able to close the window on the expanders. It’s not entirely clear how I was supposed to snap the hose into the window hole, but I shoved it in and it seems to fit in there. It’s not super airtight, which is fine. One of the issues with portable air conditioners is the single hose. It can create a vacuum in an airtight space; think pressure in your ears like an airplane. And it can create enough negative pressure that the room can potentially suck in hot air from the outside. So, leave the window open a crack. —Lisa Wood Shapiro

EcoFlow Wave 2 for $1,299: The EcoFlow Wave 1 has cooled down my wife’s office for more than a year just fine—we can’t use a window AC there because it would block the fire escape. Lo and behold, there’s a new version that’s slightly cheaper (8/10, WIRED Recommends). It’s a little lighter than its predecessor at 32 pounds, yet has a higher 5,100 BTU rating (up from 4,000). New here is a heating mode rated at 6,100 BTU, so you can keep using it in the winter to warm up a room. The company says it’s best for rooms up to 107 square feet. You do need to place it near a window to have one of the included ducts connected to the vent to take hot exhaust from the back of the unit out of the room. What makes this unit versatile is how you can power it. You can use a standard AC outlet, but you can buy the version with a battery to keep it working when you don’t have access to power, or you can hook it up to solar panels.

Zero Breeze Mark II for $1,698: With its 2,300 BTU, you won’t be able to get the same cooling power as with the EcoFlow Wave, but the Zero Breeze (7/10, WIRED Review) is much lighter at 17 pounds. This bundle includes a battery that will make the whole thing weigh about 30 pounds, but you’ll get four hours of use without needing to be near a wall outlet. Like the EcoFlow, you get a few vent pipes to direct exhaust away and direct cool air to a specific area, but unlike the EcoFlow, you can’t charge the battery and use the AC at the same time.

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June 20, 2024
6 Best Toasters (2024): Tested and Reviewed

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An essential appliance, the toaster makes breakfast prep easy, adds flair to lunch time sandwiches and takes care of the three billion Pop Tarts we consume each year in America. Let’s face it, few things in life are more delicious than a piece of hot buttered toast, well, apart from maybe toast with eggs, bacon, hash browns and a brew made with one of the best coffee makers. But not all toasters are made equally, which is why we’ve been carb loading in the name of research, so you can get the best for your bread, bagel, muffin or crumpet.

If perfect toast alone wasn’t a good enough reason to upgrade your toaster, it’s worth noting that toasted bread also comes with health benefits. Studies show that toasted bread has a lower glycemic index compared to bread, in fact. This can mean a slower release of sugar into the bloodstream, provided you go easy on the PB and J.

The latest toasters do well to accommodate a range of bread types and sizes. Gone are the days when a square loaf was all that was on offer. Tall artisan sourdoughs, soft ciabatta, delicate sprouted whole grains and perfectly formed English muffins can now all be toasted effortlessly. With long and wide toasting slots, good variable temperature ranges and tailored shortcut settings for various bread types, the best toasters will keep us content.

Check out more of WIRED’s top kitchen tech and accessory guides, including the Best Electric Kettles, Best Chef’s Knives, and the Best Gear for Small Kitchens.

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June 19, 2024
My Favorite Affordable Sheets Are Discounted Right Now

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Sheets aren’t cheap. Well, the good ones aren’t. Having spent the past year testing bed sheets at prices ranging from $100 to $500 for our guide to the Best Bed Sheets, I can confirm that if you want sheets that will hold up over time and are made with better materials than rayon and microfiber, you’re going to have to shell out anywhere between $150 and $300. Crazy, right? But like anything else, once you invest in the good stuff, you realize spending a little more is worth it. Especially since you spend at least six hours a day on your sheets (when my doctor asks, I say eight hours).

Quince makes several of our favorite high-quality sheets and pillowcases that don’t break the bank. Their European linen is a better price than you’ll find almost anywhere, and softer than cheaper linens, too. I also love Quince’s silk pillowcase, which has a better weight and price than you’ll find elsewhere.

Don’t miss your chance to get these great sheets for even cheaper than usual. Quince’s sale is for today only starting at 8 am ET, so don’t sleep on it—buy these sheets and sleep on those instead.

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WIRED Featured Deals

Quince Sheet Set Deals

Photograph: Quince

Quince makes our favorite affordable linen sheet set, full stop. Many other linen sheets we liked cost anywhere from $300 to more than $400, but Quince’s linen is much lower priced, at usually only $170. These sheets are softer than other linen we tried, but they run a little warmer than other linen. Still, you should be plenty comfortable unless you’re a superhot sleeper. Quince also has a bamboo linen sheet set ($150) we like, but it’s sadly not on sale.

Former WIRED reviewer Haley Sprankle raved about these sheets being the perfect combination of lightweight and sumptuous. WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano liked these too, and she doesn’t usually like sleeping on sateen sheets. These sheets weren’t too hot, either, which can be an issue with sateen’s three-over-one weave pattern, which gives it its silky texture. We tested the signature set, but Quince’s border version is on sale and adds a light blue, gray, or black trim to the sheets.

Photograph: Quince

Quince’s bamboo sheets are lovely to sleep on. They’re cool without being icy, and warm up as you lie in them without becoming super hot. Bamboo is known to be a little cooler than other materials, and these sheets have a nice weight to them without feeling like there isn’t any airflow. Quince’s bamboo sheets use a sateen weave pattern, which makes them silky but not as airy as other sheets. These sheets come in a ton of gorgeous colors and are made with bamboo viscose.

Quince Pillowcase Deals

Photograph: Nena Farrell

You might be thinking to yourself: eight bucks off? That’s not very exciting. But you’re wrong! Silk is measured by momme, which is the weight of the silk, rather than thread count. Quince’s silk pillowcase is 22 momme, putting it at a middle range, since you usually find silk pillowcases between 19 and 25 momme. But other silk pillowcases I tried that were only 19 momme cost more than Quince or charged the same amount. So you get a better weight for cheaper than you’d find worse silk pillowcases. Silk pillowcases didn’t solve all my hair problems, but they’re great at helping your hair and skin retain moisture at night.

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June 18, 2024
10 Best Beard Trimmers (2024): Full Beard, Stubble, Body

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WITH EACH YEAR that passes, a beard sounds like a better idea. Forget fashion for a moment—a beard can help hide the destruction of a jawline, and distract people if you’re follicularly challenged up top. But whether your beard is a mitigator or a fashion statement, it’s a good idea to keep it in check with one of the best beard trimmers available.

WIRED has tested beard trimmers from all the top models to highlight the standouts at every budget. And in doing so we’ve compiled a list of all the things you need to think about when shopping for a beard trimmer in 2024.

Unlike many areas of beauty technology, beard trimmers are relatively simple devices. Yes, we’re sure someone is working on an “AI beard trimmer,” but mercifully that day is not today, and designs from respected brands including Panasonic, Braun, and Philips should serve you well for years. Cheap beard trimmers will prove a false economy, with blades that dull faster and disappointing battery life. And not every design will work well with every type of hair, style of beard, or even temperament of user.

Updated June 2024: We’ve added a new design from Philips, plus updates from Panasonic and social media favorite Manscaped.

For more grooming guides, check out the Best Creams and Tools for Removing Hair, the Best Hair Dryers and the Best Hair Straighteners.

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June 7, 2024
Razer Iskur V2 Review: The Best Gaming Chair

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I have, perhaps, a deep-seated distaste for gaming chairs. I bought one in 2016, got tired of the race-car-seat-like design, and grew frustrated at how poorly it managed heat. Then the back pain came as I began working remotely (right before the pandemic). One of my first pandemic purchases was a proper office chair since I spent more than eight hours at my desk. Lo and behold, the back pain slowly disappeared after a few weeks.

This launched my interest in testing office chairs—I have since put my behind on more than 50 models, from active seating to Herman Millers. An office chair is better than a gaming chair in almost every way—they often have more adjustments you can make to personalize the chair to your body; they typically do a better job of keeping you cool with breathable materials; and they usually have better back support. But that doesn’t make gaming chairs less popular. They’re the seat of choice for many creators and streamers, and something many gamers seem to yearn for to complete their gaming battle station. So here we are with the Razer Iskur V2.

I went into this review process knowing the Iskur would not right some of the problems I initially had with the gaming chair I sat on for many years, but I tried to keep an open mind. The verdict after a month of sitting on it? It’s OK! I wouldn’t choose the Iskur V2 as my WFH throne, but if you do not want an office chair, it’s probably the best gaming chair around.

Big and Tall

Assembly was fairly quick and easy, like many of the office chairs I’ve tested, and the tools you need are included in the box. I initially thought the installation instructions were missing from, but it turns out they’re on the back of a giant piece of paper, which is the first thing you’ll see when you open the box. You can also scan a QR code to watch the assembly video on YouTube.

The build materials are nice—I tested the PVC-free faux-leather model (the black-and-green version), which feels well-constructed with durable stitching. There’s also a fabric model that’s available only in gray. My initial impression after moving the Iskur V2 from my living room to my office upstairs was that it’s heavy and bulky, plus the casters don’t roll well on hardwood floors. Seriously, I have seven office chairs in my room right now (send help), and the Iskur is the tallest and widest, taking up the most space.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

It’s black with some neon-green accents and looks quite sleek—most gaming chairs typically have flashy designs. I still don’t care for the race-car-seat design—I genuinely prefer the look of office chairs like the Branch Verve, Steelcase Gesture, and Herman Miller Embody to this bulky, thick Iskur, but that might also be my back holding a grudge.

The Iskur V2 has a wider backrest than its predecessor. I’m 6’4″, and it fits my wide shoulders perfectly; the corners don’t dig in as on some chairs. The seat was wide enough for my frame, too; however, you cannot adjust the seat depth (you can’t pull the seat out at all). This meant I had no room for alternative sitting positions—I couldn’t sit with one leg tucked under the other, something I can do on the Embody and the Haworth Fern I’m currently testing.

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June 7, 2024