Toilet Paper - The Bottom Line

Consumer NZ put toilet paper to the test and found that a higher price doesn’t always equal higher quality.

The top-scoring toilet paper was EarthSmart 100% Recycled Toilet Paper, closely followed by Soft Touch Ultra Soft Toilet Tissue. At 2.43¢ and 2.09¢ per metre respectively, these rolls were not the priciest packs on offer.

At the bottom of the pile was Value Strong & Soft Toilet Tissue. It was the cheapest paper tested, at 1.34¢ per metre, but its overall score was still respectable for the cost.

According to Consumer test manager Paul Smith, “the toilet papers which came out middle of the pack will set you back more than the top performers”.

Toilet paper testing is conducted by an independent laboratory where rolls are rated for softness, puncture resistance, ease of separation and disintegration time.

This independent testing found there isn’t a correlation between the price of a product and the quality of its performance.

"People have different priorities when it comes to toilet paper,” Smith said. “For some, the length of the roll matters the most; for others the softness of the paper is the top concern. Or it could come down to the product’s price.”

“All the papers we tested stand up well to the job in hand. We are not worried about consumers getting a bum deal.”

How much paper is on a roll?

Consumer measured the length of each toilet roll but those findings did not factor into the overall scoring.

If length matters most to you, it’s worth checking out the information on Consumer’s website to see how much this varies between products.

“Of the ‘long' rolls we measured, one was just over 28 metres and another was just under 40 metres. That's a big difference,” said Smith.

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