Best weighted blankets in the UK: Dunelm, Emma and Sensory Direct compared

What should you compare when choosing a weighted blanket?

Compare weight options, size, washing and returns before price, because those decide whether you keep using it.

Weight options. Dunelm sells one 7kg blanket. Emma offers 7kg or 13.5kg. Sensory Direct offers 2.5kg, 3kg, 3.6kg, 4.5kg, 6kg, 7kg and 8kg. If you are not near 70kg, a single-weight blanket is a gamble. The guide to picking a weight is in our guide on how heavy a weighted blanket should be, so this page sticks to the products.

Size. The Dunelm and Emma blankets are both 150 by 200cm. The Sensory Direct Classic is 138 by 106cm. That is a real difference: one covers a single bed, the other covers you on a sofa.

Washing. Dunelm says machine washable, low tumble dry, no ironing. Sensory Direct says machine washable at 30 degrees. Emma says its blanket exceeds household washing machine limits, and suggests a blanket cover or hand washing.

Returns and trials. Dunelm says free returns, with exclusions. Emma mentions a home trial. Sensory Direct's lap pad page gives 30 days for unused items.

How much does each weighted blanket cost per kilo?

Dunelm is cheapest per kilo at about £5, and Sensory Direct is dearest at about £20 for a 7kg blanket.

The Emma figure uses the price in our data. Emma's own page showed £104 when we checked, which would make it nearer £15 a kilo, so take that line as provisional. The Sensory Direct price is the VAT-inclusive one. The page also shows £116.66 for people who qualify for VAT relief, which would be about £16.70 a kilo.

Which weighted blanket is best for which person?

Dunelm suits someone testing the idea, Emma suits someone who wants a cotton cover, and Sensory Direct suits someone who needs an unusual weight.

Dunelm for a first try. At about £35 you are risking little. It is a single-user blanket in one weight, with glass beads in polyester fibre under a 100% polyester cover. Dunelm lists warnings that are worth reading before you buy: not for under-3s, not for pregnancy, and not for people with respiratory or cardiac conditions.

Emma for a cotton cover. The cover is cotton, the beads sit in 10 by 10cm quilted pockets, and Emma says the weight range suits adults of 55 to 80kg. Its page gives a 13.5kg option as well, but that sits well beyond the weight range Emma states, and the page does not explain who it is for. Ask Emma before choosing it.

Sensory Direct for smaller or lighter bodies. Seven weights from 2.5kg means a 45kg teenager can be matched properly, which a 7kg-only blanket cannot do. You pay for that, and for the UK manufacture and the OEKO-TEX certified polycotton cover.

What if the blanket you want is not listed here?

Check the same four things on any other blanket: weight, size, washing and returns. If a seller will not tell you the weight of the filling, the size of the pockets or how to wash it, that is a reason to look elsewhere. Also look for the safety mark on the label, and keep the packaging until you are sure you are keeping it, because a returns window usually asks for the original box.

Is a blanket the right shape for you?

If you want weight at a desk, on a train or in summer, a lap pad or shoulder wrap is the sensible shape.

The Sensory Direct lap pad comes in 1kg (60 by 30cm) and 2kg (66 by 51cm), starts at about £44, and is made in the UK. The Sleepymoon wrap is 1.35kg and drapes over the shoulders. Neither covers your body, so neither holds heat the way a full blanket does.

Things to know

• Night use. The Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) guide for therapists says that if a weighted blanket is used at night, it should not hang over the sides of the bed and should be removed when the person is asleep. That is the professional guidance, and you should know it exists before you buy a blanket for bed.
• Evidence. RCOT summarises the research as mixed: people like using weighted blankets, but the evidence that they make a difference to sleep is limited. We make no claim that any blanket here does anything beyond being heavy.
• Safety marks. RCOT says a blanket should meet relevant safety standards, usually shown by a mark such as CE. We did not verify the marks on each product, so look for it on the label.
• Damage. Replace a blanket whose seams or cover have torn. Dunelm's warning about the beads applies in spirit to all of them.
• Not for babies. The Lullaby Trust advises against weighted bedding for babies under 12 months. See our guide on weighted items and children for more.
• What we have not done. We have not tested any of these. Details come from the maker pages named in the sources, checked on 20 October 2026. Prices move, so confirm at checkout.