8 best winter duvets UK 2023: how to chose a duvet, synthetic, down or wool fill, and what tog do you need?

Best duvets for winter and how to chose from down, synthetic or woolBest duvets for winter and how to chose from down, synthetic or wool
Best duvets for winter and how to chose from down, synthetic or wool | Best duvets for winter and how to chose from down, synthetic or wool

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Darling, it’s cold outside: get under a cosy duvet and enjoy hibernating in bed. Here are the best about

Super cosy bedding is essential to make our beds as comfortable as they possible can be while we hibernate and wait for better weather.

That’s why we’ve rounded up the best duvets, all of which have been designed to keep us as warm as possible while we sleep, or read or watch TV in bed.

How often do you need to replace your duvet

The Sleep Council, advises you should replace your duvet once every five years - unless you’ve got a cheap duvet, in which case you’ll likely need to replace it after two years.

By contrast, expensive duvets - such as they have in luxury hotels - usually last ten years.

What is a tog rating?

A tog rating describes the warmth or thermal resistance of a duvet. A higher tog rating, means a warmer duvet.

If you’re a more fussy sleeper, you may wish to use a high-tog duvet in the winter and a duvet with a lower tog rating in the summer. The “tog” scale ranges from one all the way up to 18 (the warmest duvet available in the UK).

What tog rating is best for winter?

In the winter, you might look at investing in a duvet with a 10+ tog rating.

Luxury hotels tend to have feather/down duvets, which over that delectable, warm, cosy feel, at about 10.5 tog.

Best winter duvets at a glance:

What are the types of duvet filling?

Duvets have four main forms of filling: feather/down, wool, silk duvets, and synthetic duvets. Each type is available in a range of sizes, to match standardised bed frames - that is, single up to super king.

Different materials suit different lifestyles - some are better suited to allergy sufferers, while others are great if you want to stay cosy.

Feather/down duvets

These ubiquitous duvets are known for their warmth and opulent feel. If your duvet has a high down to feather ration, it will be lightweight. The reverse - more feather to down, is more dense. Down duvets are terrific at retaining heat - great for those who run cold, but can cause overheating (particularly an issue if you have night sweats).

Wool duvets

These dense, thick hypoallergenic are great for those with allergies. They also retain air well, perfect for keeping you warm in winter, cool in summer. Also, as it’s a natural material, they are sustainable and recyclable.

Silk duvets

One of the most luxurious (and sensual materials) - this is an indulgent choice, but also breathable, hypoallergenic and durable.

Synthetic duvets (i.e. hollowfibre or microfibre)

These emulate the qualities of feather/down duvets, but are cheaper. Easy to wash in a washing machine, they’re breathable and hypoallergenic.

What duvets do luxury hotels use?

Luxury hotels tend to have feather/down duvets, which off that delectable, warm, cosy feel, at about 10.5 tog.

For even more winter warmers for your home, check out our guides to the best electric heaters, the top weighted blankets, the best electric blankets for your bed, and also our advice for how to stay warm without using central heating.

Need a fabulous bed to lay your bedding on? Here are the best bed frames around, and our favourite mattresses for 2022.

THE SIMBA Hybrid® Duvet

Simba are manufacturers of some of the finest mattresses on the market, so it comes as little surprise that they’re equally adept at making duvets that are great for keeping you comfortable.

This duvet is double-sided - one side has ‘Stratos’ fabric - initially created by NASA to help astronauts regulate their temperature at night.

The other side has a breathable 300-thread-count cotton - a breathable material. Cannily, these two materials envelope a duck down filling.

What you end up with, then, is a 10.5 tog, extremely toasty duvet that’s nevertheless breathable and luxuriant.

Opulent, toasty, machine washable, and available in four sizes - this is a seriously impressive winter duvet.

Marlowe Brooke and Wilde

Yes, the price is eye-watering, but gosh, this is the epitome of luxury.

We try to avoid mentioning clouds when writing about bedding - quite clichéd - but gosh, if you were to wrap yourself in cumulus, this is what it would be like.

Filled with ethically sourced Hungarian goose down, it’s studs ensure the stuffing remains evenly distributed. The covering is 305 thread count Egyptian cotton - blissfully soft and breathable.

At 10.5, it will keep you roasty toasty in winter, but that cotton outer will ensure that you don’t overheat, even in summer.

Heavenly - and available in four sizes, from single up to super king.

Hungarian Goose Down Duvet

Fluffy as candy floss, but so much softer and cosier.

This is another superlative option (price point is cheaper than Brooke + Wilde but it’s still an investment piece), using sustainable, ethically sourced materials, including 90% Hungarian goose down and 10% small Hungarian goose feathers.

The natural materials used are moisture and temperature regulating - great for preventing dust mites, so a handy choice if you suffer from allergies. Usually allergy sufferers have to steer clear of natural-fill: no such issue here.

It’s quilted to ensure the filling is evenly distributed - that makes for a fluffy duvet, year after year (it comes with a 10-year guarantee).

Our favourite aspect of these machine-washable duvets is you mix and match tog ratings - i.e. combine a 3.5 tog duvet with a 9 tog duvet to create a winter duvet (both delicately fastened together with buttons). You can then separate out for use over summer and autumn.

Comes with a 60 day trial period.

Panda cloud duvet

We love Panda towels - delightfully fluffy, opulent, easy-drying bamboo numbers, and their duvet offering is similarly excellent.

It’s outer layer, too, is made from bamboo, while the filling is half bamboo, half nano microfibre.

What that makes is an eco-friendly duvet: bamboo can be grown without pesticides, uses less water than cotton, and absorbs louds of CO.

All of which would be moot if it wasn’t comfy: but it’s delightful, as soft as a down/feather duvet, but much more sustainably produced.

Bamboo is naturally antibacterial and hypoallergenic - great for allergy suffers. In a 10.5 tog, this is a toasty number, but breathable, too - no night sweats here. The whole package.

The Nectar duvet

A wee bargain, this one - high-end properties at a reasonable price.

Nectar duvets are filled with 20% modal (a derivative of natural wood pulp) - it’s properties include moisture-wicking and breathability. At the risk of repeating ourselves, that means - yes - cosy warmth, without over-heating and sweatiness.

This duvet runs thinner than some of the other options, which initially deceived us into thinking it wasn’t going to be soft - not at all, it’s a plumptious delight.

At 10.5tog, it kept ups deliciously warm, but it’s breathability makes it a year-round option.

All this, and it can be machine washed up to 60 degrees - great news for allergy sufferers.

A bargain.

Soak and Sleep 100% New Zealand Mitchell Wool Duvet

Much like bamboo, wool is another sustainable, recyclable material - also hypoallergenic, moisture-wicking, and breathable (hi, hot sleepers!).

This well-priced wool duvet from Soak and Sleep is filled with the super-fibre Mitchell wool, and provides cosiness without feeling dense and heavy.

It’s akin to down (but cheaper) - so it does need a shake down in the morning to redistribute the wool.

Machine washable at 30 degrees, this is an impressive, inexpensive, eco-conscious option.

The White Company Hypo-Allergenic Soft & Light Breathable Duvet - 10.5 Tog

Oh, the White Company know how to make you feel comfortable. You’ll not want to get out of bed with this number.

At 10.5 tog, it’s very cosy but not oppressive, and comes with a five-year guarantee. It was a fill of 80% Smartfil® polyester and 20% Modal micro-fibres, which is encased in 200-thread-count cotton percale. That makes for a breathable, soft, evenly-distributed duvet that’s also great for those with allergies.

The price point offers great value for money, too.

Jasmine Silk All Seasons Weight 100% Mulberry SILK Filled Duvet Quilt

As noted about, silk duvets are fabulous for allergy sufferers, and also luxuriant in feel. Breathable, this 9tog duvet is great if you don’t want to switch between seasons - the silk filling keeps you comfortably cool in summer, delightfully cossetted in winter.

Mulberry silk helps to regulate your body temperature while you’re sleeping - menopause sufferers, this is a great choice.

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