How Much Linen Does a Hotel Need? A Simple Guide to Par Levels

Run out of clean towels on a full Saturday and housekeeping grinds to a halt. Overbuy, and you have money sitting on shelves. Par levels are how hotels find the right balance between the two.

Whether you are opening a new property, refreshing tired stock or moving away from linen hire, this guide walks you through working out exactly how much you need.

What is a linen par level?

A par level is the number of complete sets of linen you hold for each room. One par is one full set, enough to make up the room once.

The classic starting point is three par:

1. One set in the room
2. One set in the laundry
3. One clean set on the shelf, ready to go

Why many hotels hold more than three par

Three par assumes your laundry comes back quickly and nothing goes wrong. In practice, many hotels hold four or five par for reasons like these:

• Off-site laundry. If linen goes out to a commercial laundry, you can have a set in transit in both directions.
• High occupancy. When every room turns over every day, there is no slack in the system.
• Busy periods. Weekends, events and summer peaks put extra strain on stock.
• Losses and damage. Guests take things home, and some items get stained or damaged beyond saving.
• Rest time. Many housekeeping teams like freshly laundered linen to rest on the shelf before it goes back into use, which spreads wear more evenly across stock.

As a rough guide, a hotel with in-house laundry and same day turnaround may manage on three par. With an off-site laundry and next day return, four par is more comfortable. With a longer turnaround or very high occupancy, five par gives you breathing room.

Step 1: Define one room set

Write down exactly what goes into one room when it is made up. A typical double room might include:

• 1 bottom sheet (flat or fitted)
• 1 duvet cover
• 4 pillowcases
• 2 bath sheets or bath towels
• 2 hand towels
• 2 face cloths
• 1 bath mat

You might also include bathrobes and slippers, depending on your offer.

Duvets and pillows are not usually part of your par calculation, because they are protected by covers and are not laundered after every stay. You will still want a few spares for replacements and guests who ask for extra pillows.

Step 2: Count your rooms by type

List how many rooms you have of each type and bed size. A twin room needs two sets of sheets, and a king bed needs different sizes to a double, so group them accordingly.

Step 3: Multiply it out

Here is a worked example for a hotel with 30 double rooms running at four par:

Item	Per room	For 30 rooms	At 4 par
Bottom sheets	1	30	120
Duvet covers	1	30	120
Pillowcases	4	120	480
Bath sheets	2	60	240
Hand towels	2	60	240
Face cloths	2	60	240
Bath mats	1	30	120

Repeat for each room type and add the totals together.

Step 4: Plan for replacement

Linen does not last forever. Towels thin out, sheets go grey, and some items simply disappear. Rather than guessing, measure it:

• Do a stocktake every quarter. The difference between what you bought and what you can count tells you your real loss rate.
• Retire worn items as you go. Anything stained, frayed or thin should come out of circulation before a guest notices it.
• Replace little and often. Topping up stock regularly keeps quality even across the hotel, rather than having brand new towels in some rooms and tired ones in others.

Ways to keep your stock (and costs) down

Standardise. Use the same towel and the same colour in every room. The fewer different items you hold, the smaller the buffer you need for each one, and the easier the laundry is to sort.

Choose white for most items. White can be washed hot and bleached to remove stains, and new stock always matches old.

Pick a laundry-friendly weight. Heavier towels take longer to dry, which can slow turnaround and push you towards a higher par. Our towel GSM guide explains how to balance feel against practicality.

Buy from a consistent supplier. When you reorder, the new towels should look and feel the same as the old ones.

Store it properly. Keep clean linen on shelves off the floor, in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight.

Frequently asked questions

How many towels does a hotel room need?

A typical double room uses two bath sheets or bath towels, two hand towels, two face cloths and a bath mat per stay. Multiply that by your par level to get the total you need to hold per room.

What par level should a hotel use?

Three par is the minimum most hotels work to. Four or five par is common for hotels using an off-site laundry or running at high occupancy.

How often should hotel linen be replaced?

It depends on the quality of the linen and how it is washed. Track your stock and replace items as soon as they look thin, grey, stained or frayed, rather than waiting for a full refit.

Stock your hotel with Towels Direct

We supply towels, bed linen, robes and bath mats to hotels across the UK, with bulk pricing for full par orders. See our hotel range and wholesale options, or call us on 01246 293014 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm). If you send us your room count and par level, we can put together a quote for the full order.