How to Choose the Right Sofa Fabric for Your Space

If there’s one question we get asked the most, it’s this. Choosing a fabric for your sofa or armchair isn’t just an aesthetic decision; it’s a practical one too. 

With so many options out there, we understand it can be a pretty overwhelming choice. In this guide, we’ll highlight some of our most popular fabrics and debunk some upholstery myths to help you decide what’s right for your living space. 

Take our fabrics for a test run: tap here to order a free swatch box.

What’s the best material for a sofa?

The best material for a sofa is one that meets your needs. If you've got a style in mind, your sofa fabric should match this, and if you've got other requirements like durability and ease of cleaning, you'll want to take this into account when picking a sofa fabric. Ultimately, there isn't one 'best' material for a sofa; it's all individual. Need help? Here are a few pointers.

Linen sofas

Linen sofas are one of our most enduring fabrics, and for good reason. This woven option is really popular with our customers and interior design clients alike. Sofas are all about relaxing, and linen is great for people who prefer a more laid-back, textured finish. This sofa fabric gives a cooling feel, perfect for lazy lounging year-round. If you're wondering about durability, choose stain-resistant linen sofas for busier households. Even the lighter colours hold up well against daily family life.

Velvet sofas 

Velvet works well in bold colours like red, yellow and blue, but can also be used in neutrals for an equally impactful look thanks to its unique sheen. If you want something more textural, go for mottled velvet to create more interesting accents in your interior.

Leather sofas

Nothing says luxe like a leather sofa, and real leather only gets better with age. From compact 2-seaters to spacious corner sofas, leather works across a wide range of silhouettes and interior styles.

Whether you're drawn to warm maple tones, classic brown, or something bolder, leather brings an effortless elegance to a room that few other fabrics can match. It's a timeless investment piece that holds up beautifully over time and develops its own character with every year of use. Leather sofas are also surprisingly practical: easy to wipe down and naturally resistant to everyday wear.

Boucle sofas

When we introduced boucle to our range, we loved watching it take off. As a relatively new fabric to the scene, boucle has grown in popularity, and fast. Boucle sofas have a looped yarn effect, giving them the most tactile feel of all the sofa fabrics available right now. Boucle is great for introducing another layer of soft texture to living rooms, which is why we're seeing boucle chairs and ottomans everywhere at the moment. This cloud-like fabric works just as well across larger statement pieces as it does on smaller accessories.

Although it might be slightly trickier to clean, good quality boucle is surprisingly durable and can withstand lots of everyday use without any issues. At the moment, creams, beiges, whites and greens are among the most popular boucle fabric colours, but we're also set to see other tones enter the interior design space very soon. Watch this space.

Faux Leather sofas

Gone are the times when faux leather sofas meant a 3-piece reclining suite. Faux leather has a new, softer, matte look that really does feel like the real thing, without any hide needed. It's soft, supple, and surprisingly warm to the touch. Perfect for lazy lounging and a brilliant option if comfort is at the top of your list.

Faux leather sofas have a timeless quality to them, making great investment pieces that hold up as styles change. Choose a sofa silhouette that works for your interior, whether that's a classic mid-century look or a boxy, straight-edge contemporary shape.

Chenille sofas

If velvet is on your radar but you're after something with a little more texture, chenille is worth a serious look. Made by weaving short sections of yarn between two layers of fabric, chenille has a tufted, characterful feel that's distinctly tactile without being too showy. It's soft, comfortable, and holds its shape well over time.

Chenille sofas sit comfortably alongside both neutral and bolder interior palettes, making them a versatile choice for most living rooms.

Cord sofas

Cord is having a moment, and it's easy to see why. The soft-touch corduroy texture adds warmth and character to any space, while the fabric itself is surprisingly durable for everyday use. Cord sofas work particularly well in modular configurations, where the ribbed texture adds visual interest across larger pieces.

Whether you're after a snug 2-seater or a sprawl-worthy corner sofa, cord strikes the right balance between comfort, character, and versatility.

Cotton sofas 

We're really excited about cotton as a sofa fabric. It's about time this material made its way out of our wardrobes and into the interior design world. Cotton is a naturally derived fabric that puts comfort at the top of its agenda, ideal for sofas and armchairs. Cotton upholstery is surprisingly soft with a fresh, breathable quality due to its natural fibres, making it perfect for everyday living rooms.

But how about durability? Cotton sofas are naturally very good at handling daily use. Anyone with cotton soft furnishings can attest to how well this understated fabric stands up over time. If it's something different you're after, a cotton accent chair or sofa should definitely be considered. With our Model 18 collection, covers are replaceable if you fancy a new look.

Aquaclean sofas

Life happens on your sofa. Wine gets spilled, snacks get dropped, and muddy paws find their way onto the cushions. Our Aquaclean sofas are built for exactly that. A revolutionary stain-release technology means most household stains (wine, ink, oil, chocolate, sauces, and more) lift away with nothing but water. Just dab, rub, done.

If you've got children, pets, or simply a busy household, Aquaclean is one of the most practical fabric choices available right now, without any compromise on style. Whatever you spill, whatever life throws at it, your sofa stays looking the way it should.

What sofa fabric is the most durable?

The most durable sofa fabrics are those with a high rub count. Fabric durability is measured on the Martindale scale, which tests how fast the fabric wears down over time. To choose the most durable one for your sofa, opt for fabrics with a rub count of 40,000 or more. If you’re not sure what the count is, ask the retailer for details.

What sofa fabric is the easiest to clean?

The easiest sofa fabrics to clean are those treated with a stain-resistant coating. Aquaclean sofas are the simplest of all, with most household stains lifting away with nothing but water. Stain-resistant velvet and linen are also great options and can be easily spot-cleaned with just water too. If you've got pets, opt for easy-clean sofas in flat or short-pile fabrics like velvet, which have less texture for pet hair, dander, and mud to get caught in.

Is cotton or polyester better for a sofa?

It depends on your lifestyle. Cotton is a natural material that feels great to the touch, though it can be slightly harder to clean tough stains. Polyester offers better stain resistance but lacks the natural feel of cotton. Both are solid choices, and the right one depends on how you use your sofa day-to-day.