The best blackout curtains in 2025, tried and tested

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4 hours ago

The best blackout curtains we tested
Best blackout curtains: Nicetown Living Room Shaded Draperies, 2-Pack To help people get better sleep at night, some sleep tips include outfitting your bed with a great mattress and comfy pillows and hanging blackout curtains on the windows in your bedroom to block out random light as you sleep. You can also wear a sleep mask for good measure, but the best blackout curtains can eliminate that extra light from outside, completely darkening your room so you can drift off. Blackout curtains are also a great solution for those who work night shifts and need to sleep during the day or for those with children who want to keep the nursery or living room pitch-black to help little ones nap.
Blackout curtains don't just block out unwanted light; they can also help to insulate a room, preventing heat from escaping in winter and keeping cool air in during summer. This may help reduce home energy costs by keeping indoor temperatures steady. Therefore, the initial investment in quality blackout curtains could pay for itself in as little time as a few months.
To find the best, I tested sets of blackout curtains from brands such as Nicetown, Eclipse and Town & Country, and I found one attractive model that's easy to hang and completely blocks out unwanted light.
Nicetown Living Room Shaded Draperies, 2-Pack
The Nicetown Living Room Shaded Draperies, available in this pack of two panels, were the best at completely blocking out the sunlight from our tester's window. At 52 inches wide by 84 inches long, they're easy to install, fit perfectly with no gaps and look beautiful. I tested the Nicetown Living Room Shaded Draperies over a few days and nights and remained impressed with their performance throughout the testing period.
The Nicetown curtains, measuring 52 inches wide by 84 inches long, fit perfectly over my large sliding glass door and were easy to hang on the wall-mounted rod above the door. They also did a great job of keeping out any sunlight during the day and the nearby streetlights at night. The curtains come in a variety of widths and lengths, so be sure to measure your windows to find the exact fit you need.
They also came neatly folded in a sealed bag and were easy to remove and hang. I hung both panels of the curtains using the included grommets and slid them on my wall-mounted rod with no problem. They were sturdy and held snugly in place, draping nicely without leaving any gaps for light to peek through. The curtains completely covered the window frame, and their thickness was noticeable and made for an elegant look as they hung.
During my flashlight test, for which I held a large flashlight behind the curtain with one hand and held the curtain's material close to the beam, I could see no trace of light shining through. The Nicetown curtains were the only ones I tested that passed this test successfully; other curtains didn't block the flashlight beam at all, which turned out to be indicative of their inability to completely shut out any light during the day as well.
During my movie and nap tests, I was able to watch TV and take a nap, respectively, with no problem; the curtains made the movie-watching experience enjoyable and the nap restful, as no outside light peeked through the curtains at all.
Overall, I love the look of these curtains, which are classy and elegant while also being functional and doing the job of keeping out all outside sunlight during the day. When I turned off the interior lights of my kitchen and living room, I enjoyed complete darkness thanks to these curtains' ability to cover the window and block the light.
I searched the web for the most popular and highly rated blackout curtains, ultimately choosing five to include in my testing pool. I hung each set of blackout curtains on my large sliding glass door in my kitchen, which is adjacent to my living room where I watch television or nap on the couch.
All the curtains I tested were 52 inches wide by 84 inches long in order to completely cover the glass door, and every curtain tested had grommets with which to hang it on the wall-mounted rod above said glass door.
The full testing process took a few weeks, and I spent several days and nights with each curtain installed in my home. While testing the curtains, I evaluated each according to the following criteria.
Ease of setup
Unboxing: I noted the packaging each curtain came in and how easy each was to remove. I also considered how neatly any additional accessories, such as grommets or curtain rings, were packed.
Hanging: I hung both panels of curtains using the grommets to slide them on my wall-mounted rod, noting how snugly they held in place and how smoothly they slid on and off. I also noted how well the curtains covered the window frame.
Feel of material
Softness: I ran my fingers over each curtain to get a sense of the material's softness or roughness.
Heaviness: When I hung each curtain on the rod, I noted how heavy or thick each panel was and whether the weight or thickness made it difficult to handle.
Style
Grommet: I chose only grommet-style blackout curtains, which makes the curtains easy to install and slide onto my window's wall-mounted rod. I noted whether each curtain's grommets were sturdy or flimsy and how secure they felt overall.
Size variety: I chose curtains in the 52-inch-wide-by-84-inch-long size, which fit my sliding glass door, to test, but I ensured they also came in various widths and lengths to fit other window sizes.
Overall aesthetic
Beauty: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and so it can be subjective; however, I judged each curtain on its overall attractiveness in my home.
Other considerations: Did the curtain match the style in my house? Did I think the curtain looked classy and elegant, or did it look cheap and plasticky?
Light-blocking ability
Sunlight test: I noted each curtain's ability to block out the sunlight during the day, turning off the interior lights of my house to ascertain how dark the room became.
Flashlight test: I held a large flashlight behind each curtain, holding the material close to the beam to gauge whether any light was shown through the material.
Movie test: I turned off the interior lights during the day to see how dark each curtain made my kitchen and living room areas. This simulated the feel of a home theater type of environment. I observed how dark the room got using each curtain.
Nap test: With a different curtain hanging in place, I took a 15-minute nap on my living room couch, which is 20 feet away from the sliding glass door on which I hung each curtain. I noted how dark the room became and how well rested I felt after the nap (which, of course, is subjective but still worth considering).
Overall value
Price: Some of the curtains are sold by the set (two panels in each set), while other curtains are sold by the panel. This can affect the overall price, which is something I kept in mind as I chose which curtains to test.
Eclipse Kendall Solid Textured Blackout Curtains
These curtains from Eclipse did not block out all the light; they were too narrow, so they didn't completely cover my window; and they felt rough and looked too much like plastic for my taste. The Eclipse Kendall Solid Textured Blackout Curtains were disappointing since they did not block out all the sunlight from outside. They also have grommets, so they're easy to slide onto a curtain rod, but I found that once installed I had trouble keeping the two panels hanging together, as they hang rather stiffly. As a result, gaps of sunlight would shine through between the panels. Even during the moments when the panels did manage to hang together, it was apparent that my room was not dark at all. I also did not like the rough and plasticky feel of the material of these curtains.
H.Versailtex Room-Darkening Curtains
These curtains from H.Versailtex efficiently blocked most light from my window, felt soft to the touch and were easy to install, but the Nicetown Living Room Shaded Draperies, my winning pick, blocked light more fully than these did. The H.Versailtex Room-Darkening Curtains are easy to install and have grommets that easily slid onto the curtain rod I used for testing. Though these block out most sunlight well, they didn't pass my flashlight test at all, fully letting the beam of light shine through the fabric.
Sun Zero Easton Energy-Saving Blackout Curtains
These curtains from Sun Zero are easy on the budget but don't block sunlight completely. They are soft, though, and suitable for providing privacy from prying eyes outside. That said, these Sun Zero Easton Energy-Saving Blackout Curtains were the least expensive of any curtains I tested. They would be fine for someone who wants privacy, but they did not pass my flashlight test. They did block out more sunlight than I thought curtains at this price point would, though — plus, they feel soft. However, if you want more quality curtains, I suggest investing in my winning pick, the Nicetown curtains.
Town & Country Luxe Talia Blackout Curtains, 2-Pack
These curtains from Town & Country do a good job of blocking out most sunlight, and in my opinion they're the prettiest of all the curtains I tested. But my overall winner, the Nicetown curtains, edged them out because of their ability to block out more light overall. The Town & Country Luxe Talia Blackout Curtains come in a pack of two panels, which are the only curtains, aside from my winner, that come in a pair. I think these curtains are the prettiest looking in my entire product pool, and they have two layers — one color with one sheer white on top — that can both be tied back with the included colored tiebacks.
They did a good job of blocking out most sunlight but didn't pass my flashlight test, during which I could see the beam easily pass through the material.
Do blackout curtains keep out heat?
Do blackout curtains keep out heat?
Yes, blackout curtains can keep out heat because they block the sunlight and its heat from entering through your window.
Do blackout curtains hide light from inside?
Do blackout curtains hide light from inside?
Yes, blackout curtains can hide inside light from showing on the outside of your home. You can enjoy a certain degree of privacy as a result.
How do I wash blackout curtains?
How do I wash blackout curtains?
Always check the manufacturer's care label before washing blackout curtains. Some blackout curtains can be machine-washed on the gentle cycle, while others are dry clean only.
How do I install blackout curtains?
How do I install blackout curtains?
Install blackout curtains by first measuring your window to ensure you're buying the correct width and length needed. Check that you have the correct rod type installed on your window to hang the curtains, as some curtains have grommets and others require rings or hooks.
CNN Underscored editors thoroughly test all the products we cover and provide full transparency about how we test them. We have an experienced team of writers and editors with many years of testing experience who ensure each article is carefully edited and products are properly vetted. We talk to top experts when it makes sense to ensure we are testing each product accurately and speaking about the pros and cons of each.
This guide was written by testing editor Suzanne Kattau, who has tested many other home, sleep and kitchen products, including the best dehumidifiers, the best robot mops, the best leaf blowers, the best mattresses for side sleepers, the best nonstick pans and some of the best cordless stick vacuums. For this guide, she tested five popular blackout curtains by cooking, eating, watching movies in the adjacent living room and taking naps on the couch to determine which sets blocked out the most light.