| Item | Children | Women's | Men's |
|---|---|---|---|
| T-shirt | ~80 g (~3 oz) | ~150 g (~5 oz) | ~250 g (~9 oz) |
| Cotton jumper | ~500 g (~1.1 lb) | ~500 g (~1.1 lb) | ~900 g (~2.0 lb) |
| Jeans | ~200 g (~7 oz) | ~500 g (~1.1 lb) | ~700 g (~1.5 lb) |
| Smart trousers | ~250 g (~9 oz) | ~400 g (~0.9 lb) | ~650 g (~1.4 lb) |
| Shorts | ~200 g (~7 oz) | ~350 g (~12 oz) | ~400 g (~0.9 lb) |
| Light jacket | ~1 kg (~2.2 lb) | ~1.2 kg (~2.6 lb) | ~2 kg (~4.4 lb) |
| Socks (pair) | ~30 g (~1 oz) | ~60 g (~2 oz) | ~70 g (~2 oz) |
| Trainers (pair) | ~400 g (~0.9 lb) | ~600 g (~1.3 lb) | ~900 g (~2.0 lb) |
Laundry Weight Calculator
Build a load, check what fits your machine, or count how many of one item fits — all from sourced dry weights.
This is an interactive tool — enable JavaScript to build a load, size a machine and more. The full per-item weight table is just below.
Choosing a machine rather than weighing a load? Take the washing machine size quiz.
Load sizes at a glance
What a typical mixed wash looks like, from Tide's load-size guidance. Counts are illustrative — fabric, brand and size all vary.
Medium
~2.7 kg · 6 lb
6 t-shirts, 1 pair of socks, 2 skirts, 1 women’s sweater, 1 men’s sweater, 3 pairs of trousers, 3 pairs of underwear.
Large
~5 kg · 11 lb
12 t-shirts, 6 pairs of socks, 3 skirts, 1 women’s sweater, 1 men’s sweater, 5 pairs of trousers, 4 pairs of underwear.
Extra-large
~9.5 kg · 21 lb
12 t-shirts, 12 pairs of socks, 6 skirts, 8 women’s sweaters, 7 men’s sweaters, 6 pairs of trousers, 6 pairs of underwear.
How to weigh a whole load
For a quick figure without the calculator, stand on a bathroom scale holding the laundry basket, note the number, then subtract your own weight. The result is the load's dry weight — the figure your machine's kg rating refers to under EU Regulation 2019/2023. Wet laundry weighs more, and a bulky duvet can fill the drum before it reaches the weight limit, so size bedding by the room it needs, not its mass.
The full background — why capacity is a dry-weight figure, dry vs wet, and machine sizing by household — is in How Much Does Laundry Weigh?
Per-item dry weight reference
Approximate dry-weight estimates from inthewash.co.uk (a secondary UK reference) — estimates, not certified specifications. Also available as a machine-readable dataset — JSON or CSV.
Clothing
Household linen
| Item | Dry weight | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cotton bath towel | ~700 g (~1.5 lb) | a standard cotton towel |
| Double quilt cover | ~700 g (~1.5 lb) | cover only |
| Cotton tea towel | ~300 g (~11 oz) | a standard cotton tea towel |
| Cotton pillowcase | ~250 g (~9 oz) | varies by thread count |
Quick questions
- Is this dry or wet weight?
- Dry. A washing machine's kg rating is the maximum mass of dry textiles (EU Regulation 2019/2023), so load and weigh laundry before the wash — wet laundry weighs noticeably more.
- How accurate are the item weights?
- They're approximate dry estimates (inthewash.co.uk) — actual weight varies with fabric, cut and size. Use them as a guide, or weigh a real load on a bathroom scale.
- Does the machine size work for any washer?
- The recommendation matches your load to a machine's rated dry capacity. Leave a little room and load loosely so clothes can tumble — Tide suggests filling to about three-quarters for a large load.
- What about a duvet or bulky bedding?
- Bulky items fill the drum by volume before they reach the weight limit, so size them by the room they need, not their mass. See How to Wash Bed Sheets and the full laundry weight guide.