Do Wool Dryer Balls Actually Make a Difference on Laundry Day? We Tested 6 Sets to Find Out (2024)

Let’s face it: Most of us are more likely to procrastinate a mounting pile of laundry than look forward to working through it. So any product that promises to make the chore faster, more effective, and easier on my clothes has my attention.

The answer? Wool dryer balls. Once you see how a great set of wool dryer balls can speed up your laundry routine while leaving your clothes smooth and wrinkle-free, you’ll be hooked.

We put six best-selling sets of wool dryer balls to the test in our lab. After washing and drying dozens of bath towels, we concluded that all six dryer ball sets are worth tossing into your machine. Our testers discovered that the products helped their wet towels dry more evenly and, in several cases, significantly faster than a cycle without them.

Our Top Picks

• Handy Laundry Wool Dryer Balls, Set of 6, $11.99 (orig. $19.99); amazon.com
• Smart Sheep Wool Dryer Balls, Set of 6, $19.95; amazon.com
• Friendsheep Wool Dryer Balls, Set of 6, $32; amazon.com
• Everspring Wool Dryer Balls, Set of 3, $9.99; target.com
• Woolite Wool Dryer Balls, Set of 6, $18.46 (orig. $29.99); amazon.com
• Grove Co. Wool Dryer Balls, Set of 3, $19.99; grove.co

Handy Laundry Wool Dryer Balls (Set of 6)

The wool dryer balls from Handy Laundry are the least expensive set we tested and performed just as well as comparable pricier options. They’re also the top seller at Amazon, and after putting them to the test, we can see why.

Wet towels lost 3.38 lbs. after a 30-minute drying cycle with these dryer balls. The towels were still slightly damp, but they were static-free, and the dryer balls held up well — our tester reported them as looking “good as new” after the cycle.

These dryer balls come in a set of six for less than $15, and they proved to be durable and effective. We found the towels dried with these to be just a touch scratchy after the cycle — not incredibly fluffy or soft — but the texture wasn’t a deal-breaker.

Smart Sheep Wool Dryer Balls (Set of 6)

Smart Sheep's wool dryer balls performed similarly to the Handy Laundry set and cost just a few dollars more ($20 for a set of six). The dryer balls are sturdy and inflexible, even after a cycle in the dryer, which our tester took as a sign of long-term durability.

Compared to the Handy Laundry balls, Smart Sheep dryer balls are incredibly absorbent and slightly speedier, drying our towels by 90 percent in a 30-minute cycle. The dryer balls were slightly more damp than the Handy Laundry ones after the cycle, but otherwise looked and felt the same as when they went in.

The Smart Sheep dryer balls may not come in the flashiest packaging or have the special add-ons of some other products, like a storage bag, but given their reasonable price and effectiveness at drying a heavy load of wet towels, these are a smart buy that will likely last for years of laundry loads.

Friendsheep Wool Dryer Balls (Set of 6)

If you want to add some fun to your laundry routine, why not go with this set of six dryer balls printed with adorable sloth faces? Not only are they the cutest we tested, but the Friendsheep wool dryer balls also felt highly durable. They were a touch fuzzier after a dry cycle but otherwise came out looking brand new. They left our towels slightly damp after a 30-minute cycle, but the towels were lint-free and evenly dried.

The company claims that the dryer balls will last for up to 1,000 loads, and it makes a point of using sustainable materials and labor practices. Friendsheep is a member of 1% For the Planet and plants a tree for every product sold. If you want to invest in a set with a commitment to a noble cause, these sloth-faced dryer balls are a great choice.

Everspring Wool Dryer Balls (Set of 3)

Everspring, the eco-friendly cleaning line from Target, sells these wool dryer balls in sets of three. They’re in the mid-price range of the products we tested, at about $20 for six dryer balls, and also performed well in our tests.

The towels were still slightly damp after 30 minutes in the dryer but were evenly dried. After the cycle, the dryer balls looked “essentially brand new,” according to our tester, with just a slight fuzziness but no major pilling. Everspring makes no claims about how many loads you can expect from these dryer balls, but they come in recyclable packaging and are biodegradable, which is a big plus.

Woolite Wool Dryer Balls (Set of 6)

This set of six wool dryer balls from the trusted cleaning brand Woolite dried our towels by about 75 percent in 30 minutes. The towels were evenly dried, and no lint or fabric accumulated on the surface of the dryer balls. They did, however, come out of the dryer slightly stiffer than when they went in.

We also noticed that most of the lint in the lint trap after the drying cycle was the same color as the dryer balls, leading us to believe that they were shedding a bit. This could be a sign that the Woolite dryer balls aren’t quite as durable as the others we tested. That said, the effective drying and moderate price make these a great buy for anyone looking to speed up their dry times.

Grove Co. Wool Dryer Balls (Set of 3)

If you have a more compact dryer or only do small loads, you may appreciate that these Grove Co. wool dryer balls come in sets of three rather than six. For consistency’s sake, we tested six of these dryer balls.

During their first use, they dried our towels by 90 percent in one 30-minute cycle. However, on their second cycle with the same wet towels, the fabric was still quite damp after the same dry cycle. Our tester estimated that the towels, though not dripping wet, still needed another 30 minutes or more to dry fully.

Still, the towels dried more evenly than without the dryer balls. We also noticed some light fuzzy pilling on the surface after their cycle, but otherwise, they had the same shape as when they went in.

What to Know About Wool Dryer Balls

Types of Dryer Balls

There are three main types of dryer balls: wool, plastic, or rubber. One major benefit of wool dryer balls over plastic and rubber is that they’re quieter when tumbling around in your machine. In addition to noise level, Sokolowski prefers wool dryer balls for a few reasons. “Wool softens fabrics without the need for chemicals, reduces static, and absorbs moisture. Wool dryer balls are also very environmentally friendly because it’s a renewable, biodegradable material,” she says. Of course, if you’re allergic to wool, rubber or plastic dryer balls are a solid alternative.

Quantity

We tested sets of six wool dryer balls for this test. Sokolowski recommends using at least three dryer balls and up to six per load of laundry. If you’re running smaller laundry cycles with a more compact apartment-sized dryer, for example, three may be sufficient, but Sokolowski says “using multiple dryer balls in a load improves their effectiveness.”

Sustainability and Materials

One of the main benefits of using dryer balls is that they increase the efficiency of your drying cycles, reducing energy usage at home. Several brands we tested go a step further by using sustainable packaging and materials. Sokolowski recommends avoiding dryer balls made with synthetic materials or chemical additives such as fragrances. “Additives can cause skin irritation and reduce the eco-friendliness of the product,” she says.

Behind the Scenes

We tested six sets of wool dryer balls from popular cleaning and laundry brands like Grove Co., Everspring, and Woolite, as well as dryer balls from smaller brands with many positive customer reviews.

We used six dryer balls from each brand, and our testers followed a standardized procedure that included washing towels and weighing them before and after the drying cycle. Our testers used the same household LG washer and dryer and bath towel sets for every test.

Each product was graded using a standardized rubric to assess noise level, performance, durability, and value. The testers who use dryer balls or sheets regularly also compared the tested products to their at-home experiences.

All of the wool dryer balls were noisy when run through the dryer without clothes. The sound level was reduced to what most testers described as white noise when we added towels. Noise level was therefore not a highly weighted metric for scoring.

Why Trust PEOPLE?

Lizzy Briskin is a contributing commerce writer for PEOPLE and a freelance writer and product tester for Wirecutter, Best Reviews, The Kitchn, and other outlets. She’s a former editor at Real Simple and Food Network magazines. For this article on the best wool dryer balls, she interviewed laundry experts and synthesized testing results from four different testers who spent hours laundering, weighing, and assessing towels with each set of dryer balls.

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