viceroy bedding 500 Thread Count Luxury 100% Egyptian Cotton White, Super King Bed Size, 16" EXTRA DEEP Fitted Sheet

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Sateen sheets, meanwhile, offer a silker, glossier appearance, although for this you may forfeit some of the light airiness associated with percale. The finer weaving of sateen means a thread count in the region of 300 to 600 is ideal for this refined fabric.

Thread count is a measure of the number of threads woven into one square inch of fabric. Essentially, it’s a measure of how tightly woven a fabric is. The longer fibres certainly help give this bedding longevity, which is a real plus. "The key attributes to look for are that the bedding you choose is made from natural fibres that supports breathability and allows for air circulation next to the skin," Farah continues. "That will support you to have the most comfortable night’s sleep." Preethi Gopinath, director of the Textiles MFA program at Parsons and one of the writers of our cotton sheets guide, and Shannon Maher, chairperson and assistant professor of the Home Products Development department at the Fashion Institute of Technology, both weighed in on the best thread counts for each weave:When you see counts above 300 for percale or 600 for sateen, that sometimes means the manufacturers are using ply—the number of single threads twisted together in yarn—to artificially inflate the thread count, namely counting two-ply yarns as two yarns instead of one. That means a 500-thread-count sheet made with two-ply yarns might be advertised as 1,000 thread count. Single-ply yarn is more pliable and lends itself to softer fabrics than those containing multiple plies of yarn. As Maher told us, “This is a marketing effort.” She added that manufacturers raise the number to capture customers’ attention, since people tend to perceive a higher-thread-count sheet as better. In 2005 the Federal Trade Commission issued an opinion (PDF), but not a firm set of rules or guidelines, advising against this practice. But our experts noted that although many manufacturers have stopped, they do still see it happening. Of course, remember that thread count is not an end-all, be-all measurement. The quality of the yarns, the manufacturer’s production process, the weave type, and many other factors all contribute to the performance of a set of bed sheets. When it comes to sheets, you often hear thread count tossed around as a marker of quality. People will bristle at a 200 thread count sheet but moon over a four-figured counterpart. But what really is a thread count? In which contexts does thread count really matter? Read on for everything you need to know about thread counts for sheets. What does thread count mean? Keep in mind that certain materials are not measured using thread count. Some notable ones include: When it comes to thread count, most people forget that the quality of threads is far more important than the quantity." —Missy Tannen, co-founder of Boll & Branch

Gopinath and Maher agreed that good-quality sateen sheets ranged from 300 to 600 thread count. The number could creep higher, but this would create a very heavy sheet.READ NEXT: Our round-up of the best mattresses available The best sheets to buy for every recommended thread count 1. White Company Essentials Egyptian Cotton range: Best everyday thread count sheets

When people talk about thread count, they’re talking about the number of horizontal and vertical threads woven into a singular square inch of material. Essentially, it’s how densely the fabric is populated with thread. A lower thread count means there are fewer threads, a higher thread count means the bed linen is rich with individual threads.It is calculated by adding together the numbers of lengthwise (warp) and widthwise (weft) threads within a certain area. For example, a cotton sheet with 100 warp threads and 100 weft threads in each square inch of fabric would have a listed thread count of 200. Higher-thread-count sheets are made with finer (thinner) yarns. The more yarns that fit into a square inch, the smoother, denser, and more durable the fabric. Fiber content. 100% cotton is the most popular, and there are premium (i.e. “long-staple”) cottons, like Egyptian and Pima, that make the fabric even softer and more durable. Just keep in mind that these sheets may be more expensive, and there have been instances where brands mislabel regular cotton sheets as Egyptian.