19 Best Tried and True Japanese Paper Towels in 2022 (Lion, Daio Paper, and More)

It's amazing how hard it is to tear these paper towels! In fact, they can even be washed and used again, almost like a real towel. Their smooth texture and elasticity comes from non-woven fabric. 

They also absorbed over 4 teaspoons of olive oil in our tests. You can use them to drain the oil from deep-fried foods, drain tofu, or a variety of other uses.

After using for cooking, rinse it and use it for cleaning up before tossing it in the trash. We recommend this versatile paper towel for anyone's kitchen!

These are super-thick, and in our tests, they absorbed 6 teaspoons of oil with room for more! It was the top-performing product in that category. 

They weren't incredibly strong when wet, but they're good enough for most cooking and cleaning needs. The size of each sheet is fairly large, so it's convenient for wrapping foods, too.

These paper towels are felt-like, large, and thick. They absorbed almost 5 teaspoons of oil, which isn't exactly top-class, but more than enough for most purposes. 

Because there are a lot of sheets per roll and it comes in a 2-pack, it's great value for your money; and it's convenient that it will last a long time.

These paper towels also have a felt-like texture and outstanding absorption. They're slightly smaller than other felt-type towels so they're good if you don't want to waste paper. 

However, they're not very strong when wet, so they would be better for draining oil from deep-fried food than scrubbing your counters.

These claim to be twice as strong as other products, and we agree that they're quite tough. They are embossed, slightly thick and stiff, and don't rip easily. They also are fairly absorbent and come in a cheerful floral pattern, and they're a good price.

This is a good choice for those who want to avoid products which use chemical bleaching. Although they are thin and not embossed, they're acceptably absorbent. The package contains 150 sheets, but they dispense in pairs, which means that they're stronger than they seem.

These are not super absorbent, so we can't recommend them for draining oil or liquids from food. But they are extremely thick, very strong when dry and have a stiffer texture. 

They're also really cheap, so we think they'd be great for cleaning projects like wiping counters or scrubbing the sink.

This product has poor absorption and we wouldn't use it for draining oil from foods. But it's very tear-resistant, and costs about a penny per sheet, so we would definitely use it for cleaning. The towels are shallowly embossed, and the texture is like stiff recycled paper.

These paper towels are acceptably absorbent, fluffy and thick. It's pretty cheap, so if you want to drain oil from your fried food but are on a budget, this is a good choice. However, they rip easily when they get wet, so we wouldn't use them for washing up or drying our hands.

Some rolls are just too bulky, but many people still prefer them to pack-types. If that's you, this is a good choice because they're quite compact. 

They're embossed and elastic, and have good absorption. But they're not particularly soft or thick, and tear easily when wet.