How often should you clean a bath mat? Ensure you're keeping on top of cleaning this dirty bathroom item

Hopping out of a warm shower onto a soft bath mat certainly beats the feeling of stepping onto a cold tile floor. But have you ever paused to consider what’s lurking within those plush fibers?

The truth is that these well-used bathroom items are a breeding ground for moisture, mold, and bacteria. Not only is this unhygienic, but it can also pose a health risk – especially for those with allergies or compromised immune systems. So, giving your bath mat a little TLC is an essential part of cleaning a bathroom.

But how often should you be washing your fabric bath mats? The answer may surprise you...

How often should you clean a bath mat?

'Bath mats are notoriously unsanitary, and recent studies have even shown that most people will only wash them once or twice a year, leaving them completely covered in bacteria and with the potential to grow mold in the fibers,' says bathroom expert Warren Kinloch from UK-based Bathroom Deal.

You probably already know how often to wash towels and why regularly laundering your bathroom textiles is essential if you want to eliminate unpleasant odors, maintain their appearance, and keep them hygienic. But you may not know how often you must clean your bath mat.

Warren Kinloch advises washing your fabric bath mats once or twice weekly to keep them as bacteria-free as possible. Even when you know how to wash your bath mat and getting into a regular twice weekly routine, you should also look to replace them every year.

If that all sounds rather excessive, you may want to consider purchasing a wooden bath mat, which will last much longer, doesn’t cling onto as much bacteria, and therefore doesn’t need to be cleaned as often.

The trick to extending the life of your bathmat and ensuring it stays as sanitary as possible is to ensure that it dries thoroughly between every use. This might mean lifting it from the floor and hanging it over the side of your radiator, bath, or shower door to allow air to circulate underneath the mat. Running your bathroom extractor fan will also help to speed the process up.

Allowing the mat to dry will prevent the development of mold and bacteria, getting rid of musty odors in a bathroom and preventing discoloration.

There are several items and places in your bathroom you might be forgetting to clean. Try to establish a cleaning schedule and stick to it to maintain a hygienic space. If you're short on time, you need only commit to a 15-minute bathroom cleaning and organizing routine.