Choosing The Right Duvet

There is no one-size-fits-all duvet.

Given this, I’m hoping to simplify the purchasing process for you by linking product specifications with your personal needs and preferences so you know exactly what to look for.

Let’s dive in!


4 white duvets on a blue background representing 4 different duvet weight options

 

 

WARMTH


How warm do you want your duvet to be? If you sleep in tropical temperatures, it’s best to go with a light, summer weight duvet. If you’re one of those people who’s always cold or you like to turn the heat down at night, look for a down duvet in an all season or winter weight.

For a deeper look at Duvet Warmth, click here.

2 white duvets on weighing scale with cartoon flamingos on a pink background

 

 

WEIGHT


Do you love the feeling of sleeping under a heavy blanket? You may want to look for a feather or microfiber-filled duvet. These fill types don't have great insulating properties, so these duvets contain a lot more fill and are much heavier. Down is very warm per ounce, so less fill is required to achieve the desired warmth level. If you like a light duvet that won’t weigh you down, a down duvet is for you!


White duvet on orange yellow background with drawings of laundry detergent, coat hanger and dry clean only sign

 

CARE


If you anticipate your duvet will require frequent cleaning, look for a synthetic fill, like microfiber. These duvets can be machine washed as needed. Duvets filled with natural down and/or feather should be dry cleaned or professionally washed.

white duvet on bed on green background with spool of thread

 

THREAD COUNT


The higher the thread count, the softer and less noisy a duvet’s shell will be. While noise isn’t a deciding factor for most people, if you are very sensitive to sound, you may want to avoid lower thread count shells, which can rustle more loudly.

Read more about thread count here.

Wallet and dollar bills on light green background

 

BUDGET


Down is the most costly fill type (more about that here). If you’re shopping on a budget, look for feather or down alternative duvets. If you want a down duvet without the hefty price tag, consider a duck down duvet or a down and feather mix. If you’re looking to splurge, treat yourself to a luxurious goose down duvet.

Before you begin shopping for a duvet, take the time to consider what’s important to you and define your budget. This will help you focus your search and find a duvet that will serve your needs and lifestyle well!

Read more about the difference between down and feather or the difference between duck down and goose down.

duvet with bow on it surrounded by mirror, lipstick, comb and tie on a purple background

 

APPEARANCE

I would encourage you not to get too hung up on the appearance of your duvet insert. It’s important to use a duvet cover at all times, so your insert shouldn’t be visible (except on laundry day!).

Ready to start shopping?
See our Duvet collection
Compare all duvet specs

Did we miss anything? Have additional questions? Let us know below!

 

Illustrations by Amanda Nguyen

63 comments

Hi Patricia, We don’t currently, but there are some on the market! Hopefully in the future :)

Canadian Down & Feather Company January 10, 2023

Hi Georgia, I would imagine you’d need a Winter Weight duvet for those cold temps. We have 2 duvets in Winter Weight – see the product comparison chart for which ones! I can’t speak to wool duvets – wool is not as powerful an insulator as down, but it’s possible that a very heavy wool duvet could work. You’re correct that down needs to be lofted fully in order to provide its maximum insulation. I don’t think that a dog lying in one area should have too much an impact, as the parts of the duvet over the body should still be lofted up.

Canadian Down & Feather Company January 10, 2023

Hi. We don’t heat our bedroom in winter because we sleep with a window open (unless it gets below -20C outside). The bedroom usually stays above 4C but I presume it’s colder than you’d recommend for an All Season down duvet or would an All Season plus wool blanket keep me warm enough? I like to be toasty warm and am not a hot sleeper.
Second concern: would the duvet be crushed or damaged with a large dog sleeping on it? If the loft is flattened during the night would it let cold air in? Thanks.

Georgia January 10, 2023

Do you make customized duvets? My husband is always too cold and I am too always too warm. We would need a duvet that is warmer on one side and cooler on the other.

Patricia Karman January 10, 2023

Hi Wolfgang, we certainly do :) Click ‘Covers’ in the top menu.

Canadian Down & Feather Company November 22, 2022

Do you sell the duvet covers, I want to purchase a duvet but also want the covers on the same purchase.

WOLFGANG SCHWANDT November 22, 2022

Hello Commenters! We would like to update you that we do now offer duvet covers that fit our duvets! We hope you love them :)

Canadian Down & Feather Company November 18, 2022

Hi Kirsten, A weighty Summer Weight duvet would be pretty hard to achieve! The more fill weight we add to the duvet, the warmer it becomes! All Summer Weight duvets are fairly thin and light, however, the heaviest one we offer is the White Down Duvet. The lower the loft, the heavier the duvet will be, because the down is lower performance. Therefore, more down is needed to achieve the same warmth level. However, the difference is minimal, and you’ll still find the White Down Duvet in Summer Weight to be quite light!

Canadian Down & Feather August 29, 2022

Hi Cyndy, Yes, all of our king size duvets have the same size boxes. For a duvet that’s not too warm, we would recommend Summer Weight! However, these will not be overly fluffy, but rather thinner-style, light duvets. Fluffiness and warmth go hand-in-hand. The more fill we add to a duvet, the fluffier it becomes and the warmer it becomes! Warmer duvets will be puffier and less warm duvets will be flatter.

Canadian Down & Feather August 11, 2022

Hi Bruce, Summer Weight duvets are recommended for room temps 22C or above (or very hot sleepers!)

Canadian Down & Feather August 11, 2022

Hi, the best purchase of my bedding life was two twin white goose down duvets for a king bed. They are perfection as I adore the weight and manifest perfect body warmth, especially in freezing temps. I would like to transition to summer duvets as they are getting a bit too warm and we are facing heat extremes soon. However, I do like as much weight as I can get. Which duvet would you recommend for summer, with weight? Thank you

Kirsten Trost August 11, 2022

Another question, are all baffle boxes the same size on your duvets (down), King size?

Cyndy August 11, 2022

Hi, I have read and re-read all the comments.
I have a duvet cover that is 108×92, would like a duvet down fill to fit it without any baggy sides/ends.
I live in GA and I am a super warm person, so I tried to decifer all the info above and I still can’t figure out which one to buy, as previous people have mentioned they don’t want it to be flat, however I read, loft does not equate to temperature??? please help. I use percale sheets year round for coolness and I can always add a light blanket if were ever needed. I like to layer my bed anyways. Thank you

Cyndy August 11, 2022

what is the recommended temperature range for sleeping with a summer weight duvet. I have seen 19 – 21 deg for a regular and 16 – 18 deg C for an all season.

Bruce Johnson August 11, 2022

Hi Sam, Fluffiness and warmth go hand-in-hand! The more fill we add to a duvet, the fluffier and warmer it becomes. The fluffiest and warmest weight we carry is Winter Weight. The White Goose Down Duvet and 650 Loft White Goose Down Duvet come in Winter Weight – but beware – Winter Weight is way too warm for most people!

Canadian Down & Feather Company April 22, 2022

Hey !!! I just wanted to know what duvet was the fluffiest and warmest ??

Sam April 22, 2022

Hi Adrienne, You’ll find the difference explained on each product page in the product description. All Season Weight contains more fill and therefore is warmer than Regular Weight. All Season is best for cooler room temps (around 16-18C) and Regular is better for moderate temps (like 19-21C). You’ll find the exact difference in fill weight in the Dimensions & Fill Weights section of each product page.

Canadian Down & Feather January 20, 2022

I am confused between the all season and regular weight Hutterite goose down duvet? Could you explain?

Adrienne January 20, 2022

Hi Dianne, You can find our product features and specifications on every product page. All of our duvets come with corner loops to suit duvet covers with ties! You can find our product dimensions on every product page and on our Standard Dimensions page. The best size for your cover would be XL Queen. I wouldn’t recommend getting a super fluffy duvet in this case. The more fill we add to a duvet, the fluffier it becomes, but also the warmer it becomes! A very fluffy duvet will be too hot for the person who sleeps warm. It’s generally best to cater to the warmer sleeper, as it’s easier for the cooler sleeper to add an extra blanket as needed.

Canadian Down & Feather March 11, 2021

Looking to buy a queen size duvet that will look fluffy but will also address two sleepers who sleep hot and cold. No heat on in bedroom. Also, correct size to fit a 92×96 duvet cover with insides ties for anchoring.

Dianne Hillier March 11, 2021

Hi Anne, 1. Higher thread count doesn’t really = denser fabric. Higher thread count fabric does have more threads per sq in, but each thread is thinner. Lower thread count has thicker threads but fewer threads. So the density is roughly equivalent. All of the fabric we use is down and feather-proof, meaning it meets a minimum standard for down-proofness. However, for fabrics that meet this minimum, there is variation in how well/tightly the threads interlock. It just so happens that the thread thickness (decitex) and number of threads in 233TC fabric allows for really tight interlocking, compared to the decitex used in a higher TC. The higher TC is still meets the criteria for being down-proof and preventing leakage, but the interlocking is quite as perfect. 2. Lower thread count does contribute to noise, as does the type of weave. For example a twill weave is always noisier than a sateen weave. 3. Feathers are not as delicate as down, due to their springy, resilient quills. It’s not generally advisable to sleep on top of any duvet – they’re fairly delicate products that won’t hold up well to that kind of use. But if you do plan to sleep on one, a feather one will provide more support and cushioning…but you will be able to feel the quills beneath the fabric. Down duvets are more soft-feeling, but will flatten down completely with the weight of the body. I hope this helps! – Heather

Canadian Down & Feather Company January 27, 2021

1. Shouldn’t duvets with feathers (due to their quills) have a higher thread count, i.e. denser fabric to keep them in? Your feather + feather-down mix duvets have lower or same thread counts as the solely-down ones.
2. Does a lower thread count automatically result in a noisier duvet or are there other factors? (Interestingly, US sources say the higher the TC, the quieter, whereas German ones say the exact opposite.)
3. Are feathers as delicate as down, as one shouldn’t sleep on down duvets? I like to sometimes sleep either completely or half-way on top of my duvet and wonder if the higher amount of feathers in a mixed or pure-feather duvet would keep it from getting too smashed.

Anne January 27, 2021

Hi Alex, That’s a tough one! Fluffiness and warmth go hand in hand. The more fill we add to a duvet the fluffier it becomes, and the warmer it becomes! Winter Weight is our warmest and fullest/fluffiest weight, but it will be far too hot for you. You may want to go with a Regular Weight or Summer Weight duvet. These are not the fluffiest versions of our duvets, but I suppose you’ll want to think about what’s more important to you – appearance or function!

Canadian Down & Feather Company January 18, 2021

Hi Eve, Loft is the measure of down quality. The higher the loft, the higher the quality! It will not affect the warmth or fluffiness of the duvet. For warmth level, you’ll want to check the warmth rating. If two duvets have the same warmth rating, they are the same warmth level. All Season is one of our warmth ratings. I wouldn’t recommend All Season Weight if you run hot. All Season is best for cooler sleepers or cooler room temperatures. You may want to opt for Regular Weight or Summer Weight. You can see which duvets come in which weights in the Product Comparison Chart!

Canadian Down & Feather Company January 18, 2021

Hello, I have often been hot while sleeping and are looking for a duvet accordingly. We would like to have a duvet that is not too thin and not too light, which product do you recommend?

Alex January 18, 2021

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