Are coverless duvets a good idea? I'm a sleep and bedding expert – here's what I think

Have you encountered the trend for coverless duvets yet? If you're wondering what one is, then a coverless duvet is a duvet that doesn't require a separate duvet cover. It's an all-in-one affair, if you will.

The idea is that this saves the faff of putting on and taking off a duvet cover, and you can pop the entire duvet in the wash when you need to. Yes indeed, coverless duvets are machine washable – often at 30ºC or 40ºC.

But should you be replacing a traditional duvet with its coverless cousin? Let’s get into it. As a sleep-product reviewer, I've tested plenty of the best duvets on the market, and I'm here to spill the beans on the pros and cons of a coverless duvet.

Are coverless duvets a good idea?

So, having tested a whole range of normal duvets, and my fair share of coverless duvets – I recently put the Night Lark coverless duvet through its paces – are coverless duvets worth it? First up, the benefits.

Benefits

1. Faff-free bed changing

A coverless duvet is great if you find putting on or taking off a duvet cover difficult for mobility reasons. After all, despite there being plenty of tips and tricks on how to put a duvet cover on in existence, we all know that changing a duvet cover can still be a workout and require a lot of dexterity and physical gymnastics to achieve.

You might even just loathe changing duvet covers full stop. As a mum of three, I'm with you here. The joy of a coverless duvet is that you can just pull the duvet off the bed and stick it in the washing machine. No faffing with fiddly buttons, poppers, or ties, and no heaving a duvet out of the cover.

2. Less bed linen to store

Another great feature of a coverless duvet is that it will streamline your bed linen situation. If you're wondering how many bedding sets the average person has, experts say two to three per bed. In my household of five, that adds up to a *lot* of bedding.

Opting for coverless duvets for my household would reduce my bed linen requirements massively. This is particularly useful if you lack storage or just hate clutter. Even if you don’t opt for a coverless duvet on your own bed, they are really great for kids' rooms and guest bedrooms.

3. No ironing of duvet covers

These days most of us weigh in on team 'no' in the should you iron bedding debate, and no duvet cover means no duvet cover to iron – hallelujah! So if you're someone who doesn't have the time or patience to carefully press their bed linen, but you also dislike the look of crumpled bed sheets, a coverless duvet is a hassle-free solution that's always going to look good on the bed.

Disadvantages

However, there are some drawbacks to a coverless duvet. It may be you just don't like the look of them – I find they can elicit very 'marmite' reactions from people who either love or hate the aesthetics – but there are some other considerations to bear in mind.

1. Limited style options

Firstly, you're going to have a more limited choice of designs to choose from. That’s not to say coverless duvets aren't visually appealing – this is far from the case. You are just more limited in the choice you’ll have in terms of prints, patterns, and textures.

Whilst the coverless duvet market appears to be growing, there are still far less options than there are duvet *covers* on the market, so you'll be more limited in the styles you can choose from.

2. Limited fill options

You'll also be more limited in your duvet fill options. All the coverless duvets I've encountered are synthetic and filled with polyester microfibre or hollowfibre.

Hot sleepers in particular can often find these materials cause overheating. There's also generally less choice of duvet tog ratings available.

3. May require a large-capacity washing machine

Plus, a coverless duvet's main selling point – the fact you can bung the whole duvet in the washing machine – only works if your washing machine is big enough.

You should be fine with a single-size duvet – which is why they can make a great option for a kids' bed or a chair bed for the odd overnight guest – but a double or king-size duvet can get trickier to wash.

And you don't want to overload your washing machine as it may damage your washer and mean that the duvet doesn't have space to be properly rinsed.

4. Longer drying times

If you don't have a tumble dryer – or your coverless duvet requires line drying – it can be a bulky item to find room to hang up and dry.

Plus, drying times are likely to be longer than for a duvet cover. So if you need to get the duvet washed and back on the bed the same day, this could prove more stressful than simply changing a duvet cover.

Verdict

So, all in all, do I think coverless duvets are a good idea? Yes, and no. If you struggle with the faff of changing a duvet cover, then a coverless duvet is a brilliant solution as you can bung the entire thing in the washing machine in one go.

However, this is also the coverless duvet's main flaw in my opinion. If you opt for a single duvet it may not be so much of an issue, but a double or king duvet is a large item to fit in most average-sized washing machines.

Plus, you then have drying times to factor in. And whilst a coverless duvet will dry quickly hung outside on a sunny day, if you don't have an outside drying area or a tumbledryer for the winter months, it's going to take a lot longer to dry than your average duvet cover.

Personally, I wouldn't want the hassle of washing an entire duvet every week or two weeks, depending on how often you choose to wash your bedding. So for me, I'll be sticking to my regular duvet and duvet cover for the time being.

Shop coverless duvets

Hopefully, that's helped you to figure out if a coverless duvet is right for you. If you've decided it is, these are three of my favourites.

FAQs

Does Dunelm sell coverless duvets?

Yes, Dunelm stocks coverless duvets, although the collection is mainly focused on single duvets and children's designs. However, there are a handful of more grown-up sizes and styles.

Does M&S sell coverless duvets?

While M&S don’t currently stock their own-brand coverless duvets, they do sell a select range of Night Lark coverless duvets. This includes a kid's Percy Pig Coverless Duvet, if your child is a big fan of the brand!