When you buy through our links, Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.

The most important reason to get a duvet cover is to protect your comforter, but it's also a great way to add some style and fun to your bedding. Beyond comfort and style, look for a duvet cover that's functional and durable. Ties that attach to the corner tabs of your comforter are a must to keep the blanket from shifting as you sleep.

We evaluated all these important considerations as we tested seven popular duvet covers. We chose the best covers for different sleeping temperatures plus a luxe option.

Below, we offer tips for one of the most annoying bedding challenges: putting a duvet cover on your comforter. In the FAQs section, you'll learn why you need a duvet cover and how often you should wash it.

Learn more about how Insider Reviews tests and researches home products.

Best duvet cover overall: Crane & Canopy Duvet Cover, $159 on Crane & Canopy Crane & Canopy's Classic Duvet Cover, which comes in many colors and patterns, is by far the softest and most comfortable cover you can sleep under. 

Best duvet cover for hot sleepers: Casper Hyperlite Duvet Cover, $59.50 on Casper The Casper Hyperlite Duvet Cover is made from breathable Tencel lyocell, making it great for summer nights and hot sleepers. It's soft, light, and airy but has a surprisingly resilient weave. 

Best duvet cover for winter: Brooklinen Heathered Cashmere Duvet Cover, $237.15 on Brooklinen The Brooklinen Heathered Cashmere Duvet Cover is brushed for extra softness and coziness. Not only is it comfortable, but it's also designed with extra long corner ties and larger-than-average buttons to make changing your duvet cover easy. 

Best luxury duvet cover: Matouk Bergamo Duvet Cover, $747 on Matouk The elegant Matouk Bergamo Duvet Cover feels like a crisp and clean white button-down. Though expensive, the brand is a favorite among interior designers, and you'll be able to create a magazine shoot-worthy bedroom with this cover. 

Crane & Canopy's Classic Duvet Cover, which comes in many colors and patterns, is by far the softest and most comfortable cover you can sleep under. 

Pros: Very soft, available in a large variety of colors and patterns

Cons: Additional shipping fee 

This duvet cover was the clear standout in our comfort tests. It was my favorite to sleep with because it's soft after just one wash and gets even softer as you use it and wash it more. It's breathable and doesn't run hot, so it's good for most people, and you could use it year-round. (I know I plan to.) 

There are four corner ties and a zippered closing. Neither of those features was specially designed in any way, but they're there, and they're durable. I haven't seen any fraying in the corner ties or experienced a broken zipper. 

With this comfortable duvet, you don't have to compromise on color and style. While many of our picks only offer a handful of colors, you have more than 100 colors and patterns to choose from on the site, including floral, striped, and tropical options. Some do cost more than others, so keep that in mind as you browse.

The Casper Hyperlite Duvet Cover is made from breathable Tencel lyocell, making it great for summer nights and hot sleepers. It's soft, light, and airy but has a surprisingly resilient weave. 

Pros: Thin, lightweight, soft, convenient interior button snaps instead of corner ties 

Cons: A little see-through (if it matters to you)

Linen is often the material we recommend for warm weather and hot sleepers, but its textured feel and wrinkly look aren't for everyone. The Hyperlite collection is a great alternative. It's made from Tencel lyocell, a type of rayon made from wood pulp. 

Part of the reason the duvet cover is so lightweight is that it's very thin — so thin that it's a bit transparent. However, the unique grid weave pattern is pretty strong and doesn't tear or snag at all in bed or the washing machine. 

The grid weave, along with the natural properties of Tencel lyocell, is also what makes the duvet cover breathable. I slept with it as summer began to heat up in southern California, and it felt airy and cool every night. The best part is that the Hyperlite material is very soft and cozy, unlike linen. 

I also liked that the interior fasteners were button snaps instead. They held onto the comforter just as well but were slightly faster and easier to use than tying knots. 

The Brooklinen Heathered Cashmere Duvet Cover is brushed for extra softness and coziness. Not only is it comfortable, but it's also designed with extra long corner ties and larger-than-average buttons to make changing your duvet cover easy. 

Pros: Cozy feel, long corner ties, large buttons

Cons: May pill over time, according to some reviewers

Brooklinen's cotton-cashmere blend duvet cover has a similar feel to flannel but is a bit thinner and more lightweight. With its super-soft, brushed construction, it's perfect for snuggling up on cold mornings and wintry nights. If you want to feel like you're sleeping in a cashmere sweater (but more breathable), then you'll love this cover. 

The other standout features of this duvet cover are the easy-to-use corner ties and buttons. The ties are longer and broader than most ties I've seen, while the buttons are larger. The result is less time spent wrangling your comforter into the duvet cover and more time enjoying its soft warmth. 

It's also worth noting that Brooklinen has the best return policy of all our top picks. You have a year to return the cover, plus there's a one-year warranty. 

While we didn't experience any pilling after washing the cover a few times, many reviewers have reported pilling issues. We'll be cleaning the cover many more times to track any durability issues. 

The elegant Matouk Bergamo Duvet Cover feels like a crisp and clean white button-down. Though expensive, the brand is a favorite among interior designers, and you'll be able to create a magazine shoot-worthy bedroom with this cover. 

Pros: Light and crisp feel, comes in many stitching colors, timeless look

There's no getting around it — this is quite the investment for a duvet cover. But there's a reason why luxury designers love Matouk. Its bedding is simple, sophisticated, and comfortable, the kind that will never go out of style. 

The brand claims that the Bergamo bedding is "the silkiest and lightest in our collection." Made from extra-long-staple cotton, the softest and strongest cotton you can find, the duvet cover is lightweight and has the perfect balance of soft and crisp. Though it's thin and breathable, it still feels durable, and it holds up well after many washes. 

The cover is bordered by satin stitching, and you can choose from various colors. You can also add a monogram to personalize your cover (but keep in mind, it's an extra $99). 

I was most surprised that the cover didn't come with interior corner ties, given the high price. My comforter didn't end up shifting much inside the duvet cover, but I still prefer corner ties to lock it in. I spoke with a Matouk representative, who said the brand is working on adding ties to all its covers. In the meantime, if you purchase this duvet cover soon, you can put in a special request to have ties added. 

You don't have to spend $750 for a great duvet cover. Our other top picks are a fraction of the price. However, if you are willing and able to splurge a bit, the investment is worth it because every night will feel like you're staying at a luxe hotel. 

Bed Threads Linen Duvet Cover: If you do prefer linen, I love the flax linen duvet cover from Bed Threads. It's soft, accessibly priced, and comes in many beautiful colors. 

Brooklinen Luxe Duvet Cover: Like the heathered cashmere duvet cover, expect user-friendly features in this cover. It's comfortable but not quite as soft as our other picks. One of the best parts is that it fulfills the duty of duvet-cover-as-decor, available in various eye-catching, limited-edition prints and colors. 

Tuft & Needle Percale Duvet Cover: While I'm a big fan of Tuft & Needle's mattresses and pillows, its duvet cover missed the mark this time. It wasn't that soft, and it felt a bit heavy — not light and crisp as percale should feel. 

In our first significant update to this guide, we tested each of the seven duvet-cover contenders with our favorite down alternative comforter and looked at the following criteria: 

Comfort: I slept with each duvet cover for a minimum of three nights and noted the feel and breathability and whether the comforter shifted inside. 

Design: I noted the sizing and the inclusion and arrangement of features like corner ties and the bottom closure. 

Durability: I washed each cover three times and noted any loose threads, pilling, and durability issues. We'll continue sleeping with and washing the duvet covers to evaluate long-term quality. 

We also spoke to the following bedding and hospitality experts for more insights into duvet covers and the buying process: Liana Thomson, an accessories product developer for Canadian home store EQ3; Chelsea Nightengale, the general manager of The Restoration Hotel in Charleston, SC; and Karen Leonas, a professor of textile sciences at the Wilson College of Textiles, NC State University. 

Although comforters are designed with fabric shells so you can technically lay them directly on your body, a duvet cover prevents body oils from touching your comforter and increases its longevity.

Duvet covers are also thinner and a lot easier to wash than a puffy comforter. Lastly, a duvet cover makes it easier to switch up the look of your bed. You can switch out the duvet cover rather than buying new comforters every time.     

The most important features to consider when shopping for a duvet cover are the materials, how it keeps the comforter in place, and how it closes (zippered or buttoned):

"It's important to wash your duvet cover as often as you wash your sheets," said Chelsea Nightengale, the general manager of The Restoration Hotel. She added that oils from your body transfer to the cover, so you should wash it every two weeks. 

However, if you sleep with a top sheet and don't come in contact with the cover regularly, you can wash it less often. 

The experts recommend two ways to put on a duvet cover: the burrito method and the Y method. 

Thomson recommended using a colorful throw for visual interest. But, instead of laying it at the foot of the bed, she suggested spreading it on top of the duvet to the pillow line."This is an easy way to style for different seasons," said Thomson.

I also spoke to Bengt Thornefors (a former designer at Saint Laurent and Acne Studios) and Nina Norgren (a former florist and graphic designer). They are the founders of Magniberg, a Stockholm-based bedding company. They recommended a unique tactic that probably works best during colder seasons: "We like the idea of having two duvet covers, one single and a king/queen, and dress them in different fabrics. It adds depth to your bed, and it's also very comfortable."

According to Karen Leonas, a professor of textile sciences at the Wilson College of Textiles, NC State University, thread count only applies to cotton fabrics, and brands often manipulate the definition and exaggerate the importance of thread count.

All our cotton duvet cover picks fall in the 300-to-500-thread-count range, and you don't need anything higher. What matters more is the quality of material used for your duvet cover. Long-staple (or even better, extra-long-staple) cotton is the type of cotton to look for because it's smooth, strong, and abrasion-resistant. 

Sign up for Insider Reviews' weekly newsletter for more buying advice and great deals. You can purchase logo and accolade licensing to this story here. Disclosure: Written and researched by the Insider Reviews team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our partners. We may receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at reviews@insider.com.