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How to Wash a Wool Sweater (by Hand or Machine) Without Shrinking It

Check the label, use a wool cycle or lukewarm hand wash with wool detergent, then dry it flat away from heat. The Woolmark Company’s method, step by step.

By SHOP & SPOT EditorsLast reviewed Nov 9, 2026Research-based guide · 2 sources

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A person wearing a grey knit sweater.

Photo: Valna Studio on Unsplash

This guide is for anyone who owns a wool or merino sweater and wants to clean it at home without shrinking or stretching it.

Wool shrinks and felts when it gets hot, wet and agitated all at once. Wash it gently, keep the temperature down and dry it flat, and a good sweater lasts for years.

Step 1: read the care label

The Woolmark Company says to check that your garment’s care claim allows machine washing before you put a wool sweater in the machine.1 If it says hand wash, hand wash. If it says dry clean, follow that. Our laundry symbols guide explains the icons.

Option A: machine wash

If the label allows it, Woolmark says to set the machine to the wool setting.1 If your machine doesn’t have one, it suggests the cold water wash or the cycle for delicates.1

Our advice: turn the sweater inside out and wash it with similar colors, or put it in a mesh laundry bag.

Option B: hand wash

Woolmark’s hand-wash steps: fill a tub with clean, lukewarm water and add a wool detergent.1

Our advice for the rest:

  1. Submerge the sweater and press it gently. Don’t rub or twist.
  2. Let it soak a few minutes, then drain and rinse in water of the same temperature.
  3. Press the water out against the side of the tub. Don’t wring.
  4. Roll it in a dry towel to soak up more water.

Drying: flat, out of the sun

Woolmark recommends drying wool sweaters flat, out of direct sunlight, and avoiding direct heat or magnified sunlight near a window.2 It says to tumble dry only if the care claim says the sweater can be tumble dried.2

Lay the sweater on a dry towel or a flat drying rack and gently pat it into shape. Hanging a wet sweater stretches the shoulders.

How often to wash

Our advice: wool doesn’t need washing after every wear. Air it out between wears and spot-clean small marks. Wash it when it looks or smells like it needs it.

Quick checklist

  • Check the care label first.
  • Wool cycle, or lukewarm hand wash with wool detergent.
  • Press, don’t wring.
  • Dry flat, away from sun and heat.

Sources & method

How we researched this

  • This is a research-based guide, not a hands-on product test.
  • Every measurement and safety figure is attributed to the source it comes from. Where we give our own advice, we say so.
  • We don’t rank or recommend specific products in this guide.

Sources

  1. How to wash a wool sweater, The Woolmark Company. Accessed Nov 9, 2026.
  2. How to dry a wool sweater, The Woolmark Company. Accessed Nov 9, 2026.

Review history

  • Published Nov 9, 2026.