If you are new to yoga, you might be surprised to see and hear fellow yogis and your yoga instructor referencing using a yoga towel.
After all, unless you’re doing hot yoga, you don’t necessarily get particularly sweaty with yoga, so a yoga towel might seem unnecessary.
However, yoga towels can be quite handy and can be used in several different ways when you practice yoga, not just when the studio temperature is cranked up.
In this article, we’ll run you through the many uses of a yoga towel before moving onto our picks for the best yoga towels. Whether you’re looking for the best hot yoga towel, the best yoga mat towel, or the best budget yoga towel, we have you covered.
The Many Uses Of Yoga Towels
Yoga towels aren’t just a must-have for Hot Yoga.
For example, you can use a yoga towel instead of a yoga mat when you’re traveling and don’t have the space to bring a large, rolled-up yoga mat.
A yoga towel can also be used on top of a yoga mat when you use a communal mat at a yoga studio to provide a degree of sanitation, or just to augment grip and prevent slipping on your yoga mat when you sweat.
Yoga towels can also be rolled up and used to prop up body parts or cushion joints when you hold poses that require weight-bearing through areas of your body that are bony or otherwise sensitive.
Unlike a beach or shower towel, the best yoga towels are designed specifically for yoga.
This includes being sized to match most yoga mats, as well as improving grip and absorbing sweat as you flow through poses. Some yoga towels even have small grips to ensure they don’t slip on your yoga mat.
The 8 best yoga towels of 2022
#1: Best Budget Yoga Towel: Shandali GoSweat Non-Slip Hot Yoga Towel
If you’re just dipping your toes into the metaphorical pool of yoga and don’t want to spend a ton of money on a yoga towel, you’ll be pleased to learn that you can get an excellent yoga towel even on a tight budget.
Costing as little as $7.00, the Shandali GoSweat Non-Slip Hot Yoga Towel is fully functional and will serve your needs as a durable yoga towel.
Made from soft microfiber, this inexpensive yoga towel is highly absorbent, yet it sticks to your yoga mat, ensuring you won’t slip even as you press up into Downward-Facing Dog Pose.
At 26.5 inches wide by 72 inches long, the Shandali GoSweat Non-Slip Hot Yoga Towel is perfectly sized to fit most standard yoga mats, but it’s also cushy enough to be used in place of a yoga mat when you’re traveling or want to practice yoga outside.
This affordable yoga towel is machine washable for easy cleaning, lightweight and compact so you can stash it in your yoga bag, and comes in a variety of colors.
#2: Best Yoga Mat Towel: Gaiam Yoga Towel
Some yoga towels claim to grip well to your yoga mat, but they seem to underdeliver. One of the best grippy yoga mat towels is the Gaiam Yoga Towel, as it goes on top of your yoga mat and stays securely in place, thanks to the stay-put corner pockets that lock onto the mat.
You’ll get superior grip both in terms of your body on top of the yoga mat as you hold yoga poses as well as the yoga towel gripping onto the yoga mat below. Plus, the stay-put corners prevent the yoga towel from bunching up or shifting around on your yoga mat.
Instead of worrying about slipping and sliding on your yoga mat, you can focus on your poses and feel safe and stable on this yoga mat towel.
The Gaiam Yoga Towel is made from hypoallergenic microfiber, which makes it an ideal hot yoga towel or yoga towel for those who sweat a lot because it wicks moisture and sweat away, staying dry to the touch.
The material also repels bacteria, keeping odors at bay. The yoga towel is 26 inches wide and 70 inches long, so it should fit over most standard yoga mats.
#3: Best Extra Large Yoga Towel: Lululemon The Big Towel
When you use an oversized yoga mat, you need an extra large yoga towel, which is where the Lululemon The Big Towel shines.
This large yoga towel is made from 100% polyester, and is highly absorbent with clean-cut edges to prevent fraying.
You can spray the underside of the towel before you place it down on your yoga mat to enhance the grip between the mat and towel.
At 28 inches wide and 84 inches long, this was the best extra large yoga towel we tried.
#4: Best Premium Yoga Towel: Manduka Yogitoes Yoga Mat Towel
When you have a little more to spend and you want the highest-quality, premium yoga towel, you can’t go wrong with the Manduka Yogitoes Yoga Mat Towel.
Beloved by customers, the Yogitoes yoga mat towel outperforms most other yoga towels.
This premium yoga towel is super absorbent, giving you confidence that you won’t slip on your mat no matter how much you move or sweat. Plus, the Yogitoes Yoga Mat Towel has Skidless® Technology, a proprietary grip made from silicone nubs that both grip your mat and keep you in place.
It is lightweight and quick drying, making it ideal to take to a hot yoga class or just to stash in your yoga bag on your way to practice yoga at the studio, beach, park, or your own living room.
Lastly, we love how this durable yoga towel is eco-friendly. Each yoga towel is made from a minimum of four plastic water bottles, and all dyes are free of AZO, lead, and heavy-metals.
The standard-size Manduka Yogitoes Yoga Towel is 24 inches wide and 71 inches long, and there are super cute patterns to choose from.
#5: Best Yoga Mat Towel Combo: Yoga Design Lab Geo Yoga Mat Towel Combo
If you don’t want to use a separate yoga towel atop your yoga mat, or you’re worried your yoga towel will slip off the mat, you can use the 2-in-1 Yoga Design Lab Geo Yoga Mat Towel Combo.
This single product combines a yoga mat and yoga towel in one, eliminating the need to schlep both to yoga class or worry about your yoga towel bunching up and moving around on your mat.
Surprisingly lightweight for a combo yoga mat towel, the Yoga Design Lab Geo Yoga Mat Towel Combo is still super absorbent, with a natural tree rubber base and a luxurious microfiber top layer to wick away sweat.
#6: Best Hot Yoga Towel: Shandali Stickyfiber Yoga Towel
If you’re a lover of hot yoga, you need a yoga towel capable of keeping pace with how much you sweat.
Our pick for the best hot yoga towel is the Shandali Stickyfiber Yoga Towel. Perfectly sized for your yoga mat—at 24 inches by 72 inches—this grippy yoga towel will give you the confidence to flow through your poses, dripping in sweat, without fearing slipping or moving about your mat.
Yoga injuries can occur when you slip, and it can be frustrating to have to repeatedly wipe sweat off your forearms or legs as you practice, but we found this hot yoga towel to eliminate the risk of both of these issues.
The Shandali StickyFiber Towel has a silicone web bottom, with silicone woven right into the fabric of the towel, for ultra secure grip between your yoga mat and the towel.
The top aide of the towel feels just like a soft, absorbent microfiber yoga towel, and will give you all the traction you need to ensure your feet don’t slip on Triangle Pose.
The towel is also thick and durable enough to practice without a yoga mat if you’re on the go.
#7: Best Yoga Towel Set: Yoga Jaci Yoga Towel
Most yoga towels are designed to go on top of your yoga mat, but it’s also quite helpful to have a smaller yoga hand towel to wipe extra sweat off your face and body or to roll up and cushion or support your body during certain poses.
The Yoga Jaci Yoga Towel gives you both a yoga mat towel and yoga hand towel together in one affordable set.
Made from 100% premium microfiber for softness, absorbability, and odor reduction, these yoga towels are well made, slip resistant, brightly-colored and non-toxic, and extra soft.
We also love how fast they dry and the fact that they’re machine washable. The yoga mat towel measures 24 inches wide by 72 inches long, while the yoga hand towel is 15 inches wide by 24 inches long.
Both yoga towels are nice and compact, so they roll or fold up neatly without taking up much room in your bag.
#8: Most Absorbent Yoga Towel: Yoga Mate Yoga Mat Size Towel
If you’re a heavy sweater, you’ll want the most absorbent yoga towel, which is where the Yoga Mate Yoga Mat Size Towel comes into play.
This thicker, plush yoga towel will keep you dry and provide traction to prevent slipping no matter how much you sweat.
Because it’s a little thicker, it’s also a great yoga towel to use if you want to practice without a yoga mat because you’ll get the padding and grip you need.
It is made from durable microfiber and is odorless, easy to machine wash, and comes in fun, bright prints. This yoga towel is slightly oversized at 26 inches wide by 72 inches long.
Next up, Best yoga books . . .
Eager to advance your yoga practice on and off the yoga mat (and yoga towel!)? Check out our picks for the best yoga books here.
