Best Vape Cotton 2025
The best cotton available for vaping and how to wick a coil properly.
Cotton has become the universal wicking material for vapes. Vapers have experimented with silica, mesh, hemp, and rayon, but then almost universally, cotton was embraced and heralded as the best. Why? It's inexpensive, easy to use, and it has a neutral taste. Even if you're using a pod vape or a vape tank, most pre-made coil heads come standard with organic cotton wicks.
If you are going to use rebuildables like RTAs or RDAs, cotton is by far one of the most important vape supplies in your arsenal. This list compiles the best cotton available right now for vapes and everything you need to know about wicking your atomizers.
What is vape cotton?
Vape cotton is untreated cotton, often in organic varieties that provide absorbent wicking for vape coils.
There wasn't always a market for "vape cotton.” Originally vapers had to use the best option they could find, which was typically organic (unbleached) cotton balls from corner pharmacies. But a lot of store-bought cotton isn’t advisable to use. Much of it is processed with bleach and dyes. Previously, vapers would boil and dry their cotton, but it's so much easier to just buy a pack of cotton designed for wicking.
Eventually, Japanese organic cotton became the gold standard. Vapers figured out they could purchase these small pads of cotton, which were inexpensive and perfect for wicking. Originally marketed for skincare purposes, it wasn't long before Japanese cotton was being marketed to vapers.
Today there are literally dozens of brands that sell cotton specifically for vaping. Companies have been getting more creative lately with products like Cotton Bacon which come in strips that make it easier to get that perfect wick.
Now the latest trend is agleted organic cotton wicks that we have been seeing coming from Wotofo, Geekvape, and COTN Threads. They are pre-measured to fit in the most popular coil sizes, with typically a 3 mm inner diameter.
How to wick a coil
Does the choice of cotton really matter?
You might be thinking, is it really that serious? It’s just cotton. Right? Not all cotton is the same! If you’re using low-wattage MTL devices, cotton pads might work just fine for you. But if you’re using low-resistance coils, you can benefit from a more heat-resistant wick like Cotton Bacon.
In an era of pre-built Claptons, many vapers are gravitating towards pre-built cotton wicks. It just makes the process easier by eliminating the guesswork. Strips and pads are a bit more cost-effective, so many vapers are still doing it the old-school way.
Last but not least, there’s the flavor. Everybody has a slightly different sense of taste and may prefer one brand of cotton over another. Just like e-juice, it’s very subjective, so you should experiment with a few and see which one you like best.
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