You might think the pattern and color are the most important considerations when choosing an upholstery fabric, but you would be surprised to find they are only secondary concerns. It's the fabric durability that is paramount since this is what determines the longevity of the material and how it will withstand the daily wear and tear of your household.

What Does Fabric Durability Mean?

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Upholstery material is available in a great range of fabrics, each with its own pros, cons, and durability rating. This rating determines the amount of wear and tear a fabric can withstand before starting to break down. In other words, materials with higher fabric abrasion ratings or double rub counts will last longer than those with lower numbers.

What Is the Double Rub Count?

The double rub count (also known as rub count) is a standard method used to measure the abrasion resistance of each material. The Wyzenbeek Method simulates the back and forth rubbing of a material against another surface until it starts to show signs of wearing. The number of abrasions required to achieve that wear is known as the double rub count. This emulates the regular friction and movement that occurs when using the furniture in real life, allowing you to determine what sort of durability will be best for your household.

How to Read a Double Rub Count

Upholstery material comes in different fabrics, each with its own double rub count rating – delicate-, light-, medium-, and heavy-duty. You should select your fabric based on how much usage that furniture piece receives. If you have children or pets, for example, a family sofa that is used daily would require a higher double rub count than a loveseat in a bedroom or office. As a point of reference, 3,000 double rubs is equal to about one year of use.

Delicate-Duty (Under 3,000 Double Rubs): This delicate fabric is typically used for throw pillows and curtains. Furniture is usually upholstered in materials with higher double rub counts.

Light-Duty (3,000–9,000 Double Rubs): Furniture placed in low-traffic areas where it will receive occasional usage requires only light-duty upholstery. This includes accent chairs, bedroom furniture like benches and vanity stools, and formal living room seating that is not used daily.

Medium-Duty (9,000–15,000 Double Rubs): Medium-duty is suitable for chairs that receive moderate but daily usage. It is fairly durable, budget-friendly, and can be used in family homes for furniture like dining chairs, ottomans, and sofas.

Heavy-Duty (15,000+ Double Rubs): Heavy-duty is best used on family couches and chairs that are sat on multiple times a day. If you have children and pets, you would do well to select a heavy-duty fabric for a long-lasting option.

Tip!

Fabrics with 50,000 double rubs are considered commercial grade and used in places like offices, airports, and theaters.

Fabric Types & Durability

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Now that you know how the double rub count works and what it means, you can move on to selecting the precise fabric you want. As you learn more about each fabric, make sure to consider your own needs and intended usage to better understand what will work best.

Polyester: This is one of the more durable and affordable manufactured fabrics since it is often tightly woven or blended with other fabrics like nylon. With a heavy-duty double rub count of between 15,000–30,000, polyester is suitable for furniture that will experience plenty of wear – making it ideal for homes with pets, kids, or high traffic. Polyester is fade-resistant and it also has a high stain-resistance, making it easy to clean. Be aware that it's not a very breathable fabric and may tend to gather pet hair or lint.

Tip!

Always read the manufacturer's cleaning instructions to ensure you treat your fabric correctly.

Microfiber: This is typically woven from synthetic fibers like polyester, creating a highly durable fabric that is resistant to abrasions, stains, and even tears. The tight weave prevents liquids and dirt from seeping into the fabric. With a double rub count of between 30,000 and 100,000, microfiber is a heavy-duty material that can stand up to ample usage and is great for busy households with children and pets. With that being said, this fabric can also hold on to oils and even develop water spots if not cleaned correctly.

Cotton: This natural fiber is breathable and doesn't trap heat, which is why it's so comfortable to sit on. Cotton is also hypoallergenic, has a casual appearance, and comes in a range of durability ratings depending on the weave and fiber blend. Upholstery made from 100% cotton has a double rub rating of 6,000–15,000, which is better for moderate traffic furniture like loveseats in formal living rooms, while cotton blends go up to 15,000–30,000+ double rubs, making them suitable for medium- to heavy-duty everyday use. Cotton is less durable than synthetic materials and can wrinkle, fade, and stain over time, so it does require a little more care than other fabrics.

Linen: This eco-friendly natural fiber comes from the flax plant and is renowned for its strength and breathability, which helps keep your furniture cool in the hot months. Linen is often selected for its textured feel and timeless aesthetic that works well with an array of styles. It comes in a range of double rub counts, starting at light-duty (3,000–9,000 double rubs) for decorative accents like drapes and reaching heavy-duty options (15,000–30,000 double rubs) for frequently used furniture like accent chairs. Linen itself is typically a medium-duty option (12,000–20,000 double rubs), though it can be blended with synthetic fibers for a higher count., Be sure to consider the rub count in relation to where you intend to use the furniture piece; linen does naturally wrinkle over time and can be susceptible to stains and fading in the sunlight. It also needs regular vacuuming, and spills should be spot-cleaned immediately.

Velvet: This luxurious textured fabric offers a diverse and rich appearance that is favored for dramatic statement pieces of furniture. Just like linen, velvet comes in an array of durability levels, depending on if it is blended with other fabrics or not. Many velvet decorative pillows have a light duty double rub count of around 3,000–9,000, while ottomans and other moderate daily use pieces have medium double rub counts of around 9,000–15,000. If you are looking for a heavy-duty velvet sofa, you want it to have a double rub count of between 15,000 and 30,000+. Velvet requires regular vacuuming and can show pressure marks. It requires quick cleaning of spills and should not be placed in direct sunlight.

Leather: Leather isn't a woven fabric, so it can't be measured by the double rub test. Instead, other specialized abrasion tests are used to assess its resistance to things such as wear and color transfer. Full-grain leather has a very high durability suited for high-traffic pieces like sofas, top-grain leather has a medium durability which is best for low-traffic pieces like benches, and bonded leather is the least durable and used for decorative pieces like throw pillows. High-quality leather is durable and timeless and requires little maintenance, with a simple damp cloth often being enough to clean the surface (and a leather conditioner required periodically). Leather is typically more costly and can be susceptible to scratches, so it's not ideal for pet owners. It has a temperature sensitivity and can feel cold to the touch in winter and warm in summer. It's also prone to cracking with too much sun exposure.

Tip!

For some extra sofa cleaning guidance, read Cleaning 101: How to Clean a Sofa and Cleaning 101: How to Clean a Leather Sofa.

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