Japanese towels are not cut to Australian sizes. One of ours matches what you already own, two are close but not the same, and two sit outside the Australian bath linen categories altogether.
Below is the comparison, with our measurements taken from our own specification tables and the Australian figures taken from two retailers' published size guides.
The Australian sizes
Australian bath linen is sold in four sizes. Two published guides, Bed Bath N' Table and Tontine, give these figures:
| Category | Bed Bath N' Table | Tontine |
|---|---|---|
| Face washer | 33 × 33 cm | 33 × 33 cm |
| Hand towel | 40 × 60 cm | 40 × 65 cm |
| Bath towel | 68 × 137 cm | 69 × 137 cm |
| Bath sheet | 86 × 168 cm | 80 × 170 cm |
Bed Bath N' Table notes that its figures are general and that sizing varies between styles — some of its hand towels run 45 × 65 or 50 × 70. Treat the numbers as the middle of a range, not a standard.
Our sizes
| UCHINO | Size | Against the Australian categories |
|---|---|---|
| Bath Towel | 70 × 140 cm (most of the range) | Bath towel — within a few centimetres |
| Bath Towel, large | 90 × 180 cm | Bath sheet |
| Bath Towel, large | 75 × 150 cm | Between a bath towel and a bath sheet |
| Small Bath Towel | 50 × 100 cm | Not an Australian bath linen size |
| Face Towel | 34 × 85 cm | Narrower and longer than a hand towel |
| Guest Towel | 34 × 40 cm | Slightly longer than a face washer |
| Towel Handkerchief | 23 × 23 to 25 × 25 cm | Smaller than a face washer |
| Hooded Bath Towel | 110 × 70 cm | Baby bath towel |
The 50 × 100
These dimensions do exist in Australia — several gym and sports retailers sell a 50 × 100 towel, including Empulse, Wovii and World Gym Shop — but in microfibre, sold as training gear. None of the bath linen guides above list it as a bathroom size.
What the dimensions give you is a towel half the length of a bath towel and roughly twice the area of a hand towel. It will dry an adult, it fits in a bag, and there is half as much of it to wash and dry. If you have a small bathroom, or towels that are still damp when you next want them, that ratio is the argument for it.
The Face Towel at 34 × 85
Narrower and considerably longer than the 40 × 60 or 40 × 65 of an Australian hand towel. Folded in half it is roughly 34 × 42, which is about a face washer's footprint with twice the pile behind it; hung full length it takes less rail width than a hand towel.
Used as a hand towel it does the same job in a different shape.
The Guest Towel at 34 × 40
A face washer with a few extra centimetres of length. The name follows the Japanese retail category it was made for; nothing about the towel restricts it to guests.
Which to buy
Replacing like for like: the 70 × 140 Bath Towel for an Australian bath towel, the 34 × 40 Guest Towel for a face washer, the 34 × 85 Face Towel where you would hang a hand towel.
If you are willing to change how the bathroom works, try the 50 × 100.
Any of them can be embroidered with a name, which settles the question of whose towel is whose.
Questions
Is a Japanese bath towel the same size as an Australian one?
Close. Most of ours are 70 × 140 cm; Bed Bath N' Table gives 68 × 137 and Tontine 69 × 137 for an Australian bath towel.
What is a Small Bath Towel for?
At 50 × 100 cm it will dry an adult, it fits in a bag, and there is half as much of it to wash and dry. You can buy the same dimensions in Australia as a microfibre gym towel, but not as cotton bath linen.
Can I use a Face Towel as a hand towel?
Yes. At 34 × 85 cm it is narrower and longer than the Australian 40 × 60 to 40 × 65, so it hangs differently and takes less rail width.
What is the difference between a Guest Towel and a face washer?
About seven centimetres of length. A Guest Towel is 34 × 40 cm; both published Australian guides give 33 × 33 for a face washer.
Sources. UCHINO measurements are from the specification table on each product page. Australian sizes: Bed Bath N' Table, Bathroom size guide and Tontine, Towels size guide. 50 × 100 cm gym towels in Australia: Empulse, Wovii, World Gym Shop.