How Often Should You Be Changing Out Your Bathroom Hand Towels?

You're probably well aware of how important it is to wash your hands regularly. But it's not just what you do at the sink that matters; it's what you do afterward, too. If you dry your freshly washed hands with a towel that hasn't been washed recently, you're just adding new germs back into the mix.

There's no hard-and-fast rule for exactly how often you should change out your hand towels, but medical professionals often advise washing after every one or two uses, while cleaning professionals say every three or four uses is fine. But one thing is clear: the longer you wait to change them, the more germs are present on your towels. Once a week is the absolute minimum, and that's assuming your towels dry thoroughly between each use and no one in your house is ill.

Drying with a clean towel is a key part of hand washing, according to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Wet hands spread more germs, which prompt drying prevents. But drying with a towel also physically removes more germs from the hands. Thousands of germs are transferred onto your hand towel with every use (and many people don't wash their hands well enough to begin with), plus soap residue and skin cells. Add in the typically dark, damp bathroom environment, and you've got a recipe for a germ extravaganza. Most of these germs are harmless to your health, and it's impossible to eliminate germs completely. But since some can cause illnesses or skin conditions like warts, it makes sense to reduce the spread where you can. Changing and washing your hand towels frequently is an important step.

In some circumstances, you can get away with doing the bare minimum and changing your hand towels once a week. But at other times, changing your hand towels as often as possible is a good call. For example, if someone in your home is currently sick, washing towels more often will help prevent reinfection. Additionally, if multiple people share the same bathroom and hand towel, more frequent washing makes sense — every one to two days to avoid spreading too many germs back and forth. Avoid sharing a hand towel when there's an illness in the house; assign each person their own instead. Some medical pros even recommend this as a general practice.

Similarly, when you host guests, it's best to provide a fresh, clean towel for each person and wash it afterward. Got a bunch of people over? Try providing a stack of small hand towels for one-time use in the bathroom, then washing them all afterward. You'll also benefit from washing your hand towels more frequently if you're immunocompromised or have a skin condition, skin injury, or just sensitive skin. Some people prefer to opt for disposable hand towels in situations like this, especially if frequent towel washing isn't possible.

As for the best way to wash your hand towels, recommendations also vary a bit. Many health pros recommend using hot water, at least 140 degrees Fahrenheit, because it's better at killing bacteria than cold water. But some towels wear out quickly in hot water, so you may not be able to use it every single wash. And even hot water doesn't kill all germs — a laundry sanitizer will catch more of them, and activated oxygen bleach is also helpful. One solution is to opt for hot-water-safe, durable hand towels next time you add to your supply, and in the meantime do the most thorough wash your towels can handle. Keep a few towels on hand for each person in your family so it's easy to swap for a clean one regularly.

Always wash your towels in a separate load, as washing clothes and towels together can be too rough on your clothes. Avoid overloading the washing machine, and never use fabric softener, as it will decrease the absorbency of the material. Before you hang your bathroom's hand towels back up, allow them to dry completely to prevent bacterial growth, using high heat for drying if it's safe for the fabric. (Pro tip: If you manage to keep your bathroom on the dry side so your hand towels stay dry, you don't have to wash them as often.) Lastly, if you're having a hard time washing your hand towels often enough, stick to air drying as a safer option.