Do You Need a Sauna Towel?

Yes — you need a sauna towel, and really you want two: one to sit on and one to dry off with. The sitting towel is the important one, because it stops your sweat soaking into the wooden bench, which is both basic hygiene and what protects the wood. This is true in a traditional sauna and in an infrared cabin, because you sweat in both. A towel is the cheapest, most useful sauna accessory there is. Here is exactly why it matters, how many to bring, and what makes a good one.

The main reason: hygiene and protecting the bench

The single most important reason to bring a towel is to sit on it. When you sweat in a sauna, that sweat has to go somewhere — and without a towel it soaks straight into the porous wooden bench. Over time that is unhygienic and it is hard on the wood. Sitting on a towel keeps the bench clean and dry, so it lasts longer and stays pleasant for the next person. In a shared sauna this is simply expected: you always sit on a towel, and you often put your feet on it too, so no bare skin touches the wood. It is one of the oldest points of sauna etiquette, and the traditional bathing culture documented by the Finnish Sauna Society treats it as normal practice rather than an optional extra.

In Finland this idea is so ingrained that there is a dedicated item for it: a small seat cover, often called a pefletti, that you sit on in a public sauna. It is essentially a compact, disposable or washable bench cloth — smaller than a full bath towel — whose whole job is to sit between you and the wood. You do not need to buy a special one at home; a regular towel does the same job. But it tells you how seriously the tradition takes the sit-on-something rule: a hot bench and bare, sweating skin simply do not mix in proper sauna culture.

Why a second towel to dry off

The sitting towel gets damp with sweat, so you want a separate, dry towel to dry yourself with after your session or between rounds — especially if you rinse or take a cold shower in between. Drying with the same towel you have been sweating onto is neither pleasant nor effective. Keep the drying towel outside the hot room, or on a cooler lower bench, so it stays dry until you need it. That is the whole logic of the classic two-towel rule: one lives in the heat and gets damp, one stays dry for you.

What makes a good sauna towel: material and size

You do not need anything special, but a few things make a towel better suited to the sauna:

• Cotton or linen. Natural fibers are the traditional and practical choice — absorbent, breathable and comfortable against hot skin. Cotton terry is soft and very absorbent; linen is thinner, dries fast and is prized in Nordic bathing. Both work well.
• Good absorbency, quick to dry. You want a towel that soaks up sweat and water and then dries out again between sessions so it does not stay damp and start to smell.
• The right size. For the sitting towel, a full bench-length towel is ideal so it covers the seat and where your feet go. For drying, a standard bath towel is fine. A large towel that covers the whole seating area is more hygienic than a small hand towel that leaves skin touching wood.
• Skip anything heat-sensitive. Very synthetic, plasticky or heavily embellished towels are less pleasant in high heat; plain, honest cotton or linen is the sauna standard.

You do not need to spend a lot. An ordinary large cotton bath towel you already own will do the job perfectly well as a sitting towel — the important thing is that it is big enough to cover the seat, absorbent enough to hold your sweat, and clean. If you buy specifically for the sauna, a couple of generously sized cotton or linen towels in a light, plain color are all most people ever need, and they double as beach or gym towels the rest of the time. Fancier is not better here; bigger and more absorbent is.

How many towels do you need?

Two is the sensible baseline: one to sit on, one to dry with. For a public sauna or spa you might add a third as a wrap or robe substitute for walking around, plus a small one for your face or hair. At home, two per person is plenty — you can always keep a small stack so there is always a clean, dry one ready. The point is never to have to sit on bare wood or dry off with the sweaty sitting towel. A wool hat aside, towels and water are the real what to bring to a sauna essentials.

Caring for and washing sauna towels

Because sauna towels absorb a lot of sweat, they need regular washing or they turn musty:

• Wash them often. Ideally after each session, and certainly do not leave a damp, sweaty towel balled up — that is how mildew and odor start.
• Dry them fully between uses. Hang them to air out so they are properly dry before the next session, rather than sitting damp in the sauna.
• Go easy on fabric softener. Heavy softener can reduce absorbency over time; a clean, well-washed cotton towel stays more absorbent.
• Keep a sitting towel and a drying towel separate in your head — do not mix up which is which mid-session.

Do you need a towel in an infrared sauna too?

Yes. It is a common assumption that because an infrared cabin has no steam and often feels drier, you can skip the towel — but you still sweat in an infrared sauna, and that sweat still drips onto the bench and floor. So the same logic applies: sit on a towel to keep your sweat off the wood, and have a second towel to wipe down and dry off. Some infrared users also lay a towel down to catch sweat and wipe the bench afterwards, which keeps the cabin cleaner. If anything, an infrared cabin is used more casually and more often — a quick session before work, another in the evening — so a rotation of clean towels is worth keeping nearby, and wiping the bench down after each session stops sweat from working into the wood over time. Whether your sauna is traditional or infrared, the towel earns its place; the wider care routine is in sauna maintenance and cleaning.

The honest bottom line

A sauna towel is not optional — it is the most basic piece of sauna kit, and you want two. Sit on one for hygiene and to protect the bench, dry off with the other, choose absorbent cotton or linen in a bench-length size, wash them often and dry them fully, and use one in an infrared cabin as well as a traditional sauna. It costs almost nothing and it is the single habit that keeps a sauna clean and pleasant. Round out the rest of your kit with the sauna accessories checklist.