Best Cooling Sheets in Australia (2026): Bamboo, Linen and Cotton Compared

It's 11pm, the bedroom is still sitting at 26 degrees, and the fan is just moving warm air from one side of the room to the other. If that sounds like your January, you already know sheets matter. They won't fix a heatwave. But the fabric against your skin decides whether you wake up dry or damp, settled or kicking the whole doona onto the floor.

Australian summers aren't getting gentler. The Bureau of Meteorology ranked 2025 as Australia's fourth-warmest year on record, 1.23°C above the long-term average, with minimum temperatures (the ones that decide how warm your nights are) 0.98°C above average.

So we compared eight sheet sets sold in Australia across the four fabrics people actually choose between in summer: bamboo, linen, cotton percale and a synthetic cooling knit. We looked at fibre, weave, feel, fit, returns and price.

A note before we start: ettitude publishes this guide, and our sheets are on the list. For every other brand we've used what that brand publishes on its own Australian website. Below is exactly how we compared them, so you can judge for yourself.

Quick comparison: 8 cooling sheet sets sold in Australia

Queen sheet set at full price on each brand's Australian website, checked October 2026. Most of these brands run regular sales, so check current prices before you buy. All prices in AUD.

How we compared

We looked at six things:

• Fibre: what the sheet is made from, and how clearly the brand tells you.
• Weave: percale, sateen, linen or knit, because weave changes how much air moves through.
• Feel: crisp, silky, textured or stretchy. On a hot night, preference matters.
• Fit: fitted sheet pocket depth, where the brand publishes it.
• Returns: what happens if they don't suit you, as each brand states it.
• Price: Queen set, full price.
  

We didn't lab-test other brands' sheets, and we haven't made performance claims about them. Where a brand publishes its own test results, we say so.

The 8 cooling sheet sets, reviewed

1. ettitude Signature Bamboo Sheet Set: best overall for hot, humid nights

Queen: $359 | Available at: ettitude.com.au | Sleep trial: 60 nights (final sale items, protectors, comforters and non-bedding items are excluded)

These are made from CleanBamboo®, ettitude's bamboo lyocell. Many bamboo sheets sold in Australia are bamboo viscose. Lyocell is made differently: the bamboo pulp is dissolved in an organic solvent inside a closed-loop system, so the solvent is captured and reused rather than released. (There's more on that below.)

In the hand, it's a smooth, silky sateen that feels like a 1,000 thread count sateen. It's cool to the touch, temperature regulating, and breathable by design, which is what you want when the bedroom won't drop below 24 degrees.

Key features

• 100% CleanBamboo® bamboo lyocell in a sateen weave.
• Cool to the touch. Temperature regulating. Breathable by design.
• STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® (SH025 285270 TESTEX), Product Class I, its most stringent class. In plain terms: the fabric has been independently tested for over 1,000 substances that could harm your health.
• In a third-party sleep study by SleepSpace (n=32), participants gained 7.2 minutes of sleep per night, about 43 hours a year. 94% preferred ettitude over their cotton sheets.
• Queen set includes a fitted sheet, flat sheet and two standard pillowcases. Queen and King fitted sheets are 43 cm deep.
• Made by a Certified B Corp and a member of 1% for the Planet.

Pros: silky and smooth without feeling heavy; clear about its fibre and how it's made; OEKO-TEX® certified; backed by a third-party sleep study.

Cons: the most expensive bamboo set here; sateen drapes closer to the body than percale, so if you love a crisp sheet, look at percale or linen; can wrinkle if left in the dryer.

How it compares: the pick if you want a silky sheet and want to know exactly what it's made from.

Shop the Signature Bamboo Sheet Set

2. Ecoy Cooling Bamboo Sheet Set

Queen: $250 | Available at: ecoy.com.au

Ecoy describes this as a 400 thread count bamboo sateen with 45 cm extra-deep pockets, and it's OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 certified. Ecoy doesn't say on the product page whether the bamboo is lyocell or viscose.

Returns: the product page advertises a 90-night trial, and the refund policy sets out separate conditions, so read both before you buy.

How it compares: one of the deepest pockets here at a lower price than ours. If fibre type matters to you, ask Ecoy which bamboo fibre they use.

3. Ecosa Bamboo Sheet Set

Queen: $260 | Available at: ecosa.com.au

A 400 thread count bamboo sateen with 43.2 cm pockets, certified to STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®. Ecosa's product page describes the fabric as bamboo viscose, while its help centre describes it as bamboo lyocell, so it's worth asking Ecosa directly.

Returns: Ecosa's help centre says the 100-night trial doesn't apply to the sheets, and that sheets can't be returned once opened or washed unless faulty.

How it compares: a convenient add-on if you already sleep on an Ecosa mattress. The return terms are the strictest on this list.

4. Sheridan Byren Percale Sheet Set

Queen: $299.99 | Available at: sheridan.com.au

A percale blend of 65% cotton and 35% TENCEL™ lyocell, designed in Australia and made in India. Sheridan describes it as lightweight with a cool feel. A 50 cm deep-pocket version is $329.99.

Returns: 30 days (45 for Sheridan Rewards members), unused and in original packaging.

How it compares: the pick if you like the crisp, matte feel of percale. The TENCEL™ adds some smoothness to the cotton.

5. Bed Threads Organic Cotton Sheet Set

Queen: $250 | Available at: bedthreads.com.au

100% organic cotton percale at 200 thread count, GOTS-certified organic and OEKO-TEX® certified.

Returns: 45 days, unused and in original packaging.

How it compares: a lightweight, breathable percale with strong organic credentials. Cotton absorbs moisture well, but on very humid nights it can be slow to dry.

6. Bed Threads 100% French Flax Linen Sheet Set

Queen: $420 | Available at: bedthreads.com.au

100% French flax linen at 170 GSM, OEKO-TEX® certified.

Returns: 45 days, unused and in original packaging.

How it compares: linen is a good summer fibre. University of Sydney sleep researcher Dr Chin Moi Chow told ABC News that "linen has a wicking action" (ABC News, January 2025). The trade-off is texture: linen feels slubby rather than smooth, and it costs more.

7. Cultiver Linen Sheet Set

Queen: $620 | Available at: cultiver.com.au

100% European flax linen at 165 GSM, crafted in Portugal, OEKO-TEX® certified, with 35 cm pockets.

Returns: 30 days from delivery, unused and unwashed.

How it compares: the most expensive set here. The pick if you want linen made in Europe. Check the 35 cm pocket depth against your mattress.

8. Rest Evercool+ Cooling Starter Sheet Set

Queen: $265 | Available at: au.rest.com

A different approach: a knit fabric made with silver-ion fibres and engineered to feel cool. The product page doesn't list the full fibre composition. Rest publishes its own cooling test results on its site. The starter set includes a fitted sheet and two pillowcases, but no flat sheet (sold separately). Queen dimensions are listed as 142 x 193 x 46 cm.

Returns: 30 days from delivery, in original packaging, with a $15 return fee.

How it compares: worth a look if you like a stretchy knit and an engineered cooling finish. If you'd rather sleep on a plant-based fibre, the other seven are a better fit.

Bamboo, linen or cotton: which fabric sleeps coolest in an Australian summer?

There's no single winner. It comes down to how you like a sheet to feel and how humid your summer is.

Bamboo: check whether it's viscose or lyocell

"If it's marketed as bamboo, it's viscose," Dr Rebecca Van Amber of RMIT University's School of Fashion and Textiles told ABC News in January 2025. For most of the market, she's right. Most bamboo sheets are bamboo viscose (sometimes labelled rayon), made by dissolving bamboo pulp with chemicals including carbon disulphide in a process where those chemicals aren't fully recovered.

Bamboo lyocell starts from the same bamboo pulp but is made differently. The pulp is dissolved in an organic solvent in a closed-loop system, which captures and reuses the solvent. To be clear, both are regenerated cellulose fibres, not raw plant fibres like linen. The difference is in how the fibre is made, which is why it's worth asking any brand selling "bamboo" sheets which process they use. We explain it in more detail in Bamboo Viscose vs Bamboo Lyocell: What's the Difference.

On a hot night, good bamboo sheets feel smooth and cool against the skin and drape lightly over you.

Linen

Linen comes from flax. It's breathable, it moves moisture, and it gets softer with every wash. It also feels textured and creases easily, which some people love, and others don't. If you're weighing the two, read Bamboo vs Linen Bed Sheets.

Cotton percale

Percale is a simple one-over, one-under weave that feels crisp and matte, like a good hotel sheet. It moves a lot of air. Cotton sateen, with its denser, silkier weave, tends to sleep warmer. If you buy cotton for summer, buy percale.

Synthetic and "cooling tech" fabrics

Standard polyester sheets tend to trap heat and moisture. Engineered cooling knits, like Rest's, are a separate category built to feel cool to the touch. They're a different choice from plant-based fibres rather than a version of them.

What are the best sheets for humid nights in Brisbane, Sydney or Darwin?

In dry heat, airflow does most of the work. In humid heat, the air is already full of moisture, so sweat evaporates slowly and you feel sticky. On humid nights, look for:

• A fibre that moves moisture, such as bamboo lyocell or linen, rather than one that holds it.
• A light weave. Percale, lightweight sateen, or linen, never a heavy, high-thread-count sateen.
• Light layers. A flat sheet on its own, with a light quilt folded at the end of the bed for 4am.
• A cool room. The Sleep Foundation recommends a bedroom temperature of around 18°C for sleep. You won't hit that every night in January, but a fan, blockout curtains in the afternoon, and a cross-breeze all help.

Do cooling sheets actually work?

Yes, within limits. Sheets can't cool a hot room. What they can do is stop making it worse: breathable fibres let heat escape, and fabrics that move moisture keep you from lying in sweat. For a hot sleeper, that's the difference between waking up once and waking up four times.

Be wary of anything that promises a temperature drop in degrees. Look instead for a clear fibre, a sensible weave, and independent certification.

How to choose cooling sheets

Why we rank ettitude first

You know exactly what you're sleeping on. The sheets are made from CleanBamboo® lyocell, produced using a proprietary process in a closed-loop system that captures and reuses the organic solvent and recovers most of the process water. No guessing whether "bamboo" means viscose.

It's independently certified. STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® (SH025 285270 TESTEX), Product Class I, its most stringent class. That means the fabric has been independently tested for over 1,000 substances. You can look up the certificate at oeko-tex.com/standard100.

People sleep better on it, and prefer it. In a small third-party sleep study by SleepSpace (n=32), participants gained 7.2 minutes of sleep per night, about 43 hours a year. 94% preferred ettitude over their cotton sheets.

The company behind it is held to a standard too. ettitude is a Certified B Corp, recertified in August 2024 with a score of 123.30, and a member of 1% for the Planet.

The trade-off is price. At $359 for a Queen, it's the most expensive bamboo set here, though below both linen sets. If budget comes first, Bed Threads' organic cotton percale and Ecoy are the value picks. If you want silky, smooth and clear about its fibre, this is the one we'd choose.

Our picks

• Best overall: ettitude Signature Bamboo Sheet Set ($359).
• Best-value bamboo: Ecoy Cooling Bamboo Sheet Set ($250, 45 cm pockets).
• Best crisp percale: Sheridan Byren Percale ($299.99).
• Best-value cotton: Bed Threads Organic Cotton ($250).
• Best linen: Bed Threads French Flax Linen ($420).

The bottom line

For an Australian summer, start with the fibre, then the weave, then the fit. Bamboo lyocell, linen and cotton percale are all good choices, and the right one depends on whether you like your sheets silky, textured or crisp.

The coolest sheet is the one that lets heat and moisture leave your body, and that comes down to fibre and weave far more than thread count.

Looking for more? Read Best Bed Sheet Materials for Hot Sleepers and How to Wash Bamboo Sheets.

Sources

• Bureau of Meteorology, Annual Climate Statement 2025 (released 9 February 2026): https://www.bom.gov.au/news-and-media/bureau-of-meteorology-releases-annual-climate-statement-2025

• ABC News, "Which bed sheets are coolest on hot summer nights?", 3 January 2025 (Dr Rebecca Van Amber, RMIT University; Dr Chin Moi Chow, University of Sydney): https://www.abc.net.au/news/health/2025-01-03/coolest-summer-bed-sheet-fabrics-hot-nights-linen-cotton-bamboo/104490086

• Sleep Foundation, Best Temperature for Sleep: https://www.sleepfoundation.org/bedroom-environment/best-temperature-for-sleep

• Sleep study: third-party randomised crossover study by SleepSpace, n=32, 2022.

• STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®, SH025 285270 TESTEX, Product Class I: www.oeko-tex.com/standard100

• B Corp: recertified August 2024, score 123.30.

• Competitor prices, fibres, pocket depths and return terms: each brand's Australian website, Queen size at full price, checked October 2026.

Last updated: October 2026. Prices and availability subject to change.