• Value: 19/20

• Durability: 18/20

• Quality: 19/20

• Aesthetics: 18/20

• Softness: 20/20

• TOTAL: 94/100

For the past year and a half, I ignored the hype. Sure, people were raving about Mellanni Fine Linens’s $33 sheet set but I brushed it off as the media snowball effect: The more outlets wrote about it—we’re talking everyone from traditional lifestyle magazines, like Good Housekeeping and Real Simple to less-expected brands, like People and The Today Show—the more attention would be paid to this random Amazon product. Just because something’s buzzy doesn’t mean it’s worth your money, my inner curmudgeon proclaimed.

But then the reviews hit a tipping point: The sheets got a four-and-a-half out of five-star rating, based on more than 101,000 reviews? And 55,000 of them gave them a full five stars? This bedding brand had a truly loyal following, and I was ready to investigate what made them so special.

In true Amazon Prime fashion, a set was shipped to my door in record time. The packaging seemed pretty run-of-the-mill: serif-y font touting the sheets’ luxury status, all housed in rectangular, plastic casing. But, as soon as I pulled the sheets out, I was surprised by their softness. Most sheet sets under $50 have a certain starchiness right out of the package (unless they’re jersey); these were borderline velvety.

The Sheets Are Tightly Woven, Making Them Surprisingly Durable

The secret to that softness is all in the fabric: These are woven out of double-brushed microfiber, which is a fancy way of saying polyester fibers that have been smoothed on both sides. (Ever touch a sheet that’s scratchy on one side? That could be due to a printed pattern…or because it’s brushed on one side only.)

The threads on the Mellanni sheets are actually so tightly woven together that stains can’t seep in easily, making them durable, too. And the fabric is pretty wrinkle-resistant—even if you’re guilty of leaving them in the dryer for a while before swapping out your bedding, as I am. It’s the type of linens that you’ll want to use in guest bedrooms, kids’ rooms and the vacation condo, since it feels high end but won’t cost you a fortune if you have to replace it down the road.

Making the Bed Is Oh So Easy

Each Mellanni set comes with two pillowcases, a fitted sheet and a flat sheet. And while the set lacks my favorite feature I’ve ever seen on bedding—a tag denoting the “long” and “short” sides, so there’s no fumbling to readjust—it has another “why don’t all fitted sheets come with this?!” feature: elastic all the way around the sheet, not just on the corners. Plus, the regular fitted sheet is deep enough to fit a 16-inch-tall bed, great for plusher mattresses and cushy mattress toppers. (The company also recently released Extra Deep Pocket Fitted Sheets, which can fit mattresses up to 21 inches thick.) Even with a three-inch mattress pad on my queen-size bed, the regular sheets slid on easily—no fighting or tugging.

But They’re Not Ideal for Hot Sleepers

For all of the benefits of those aforementioned tightly woven polyester fibers, there’s one downside: They’re not as breathable as cotton, which means you’ll stay warm and cozy in the winter…but might wake up with night sweats mid-summer. If you tend to be a hot sleeper, you may want to change out your sheets in the warmer months (or stick with a cooling comforter).

It took me a while to finally give Mellanni a shot, but I’m so glad I did. You can’t beat the durability and softness of the sheets that cost just $33 a pop.

BUY IT ($33)

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