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Nylon or cotton hammock

Updated: October 2026

You can already hang a bed, and the remaining choice is the cloth. A nylon or cotton hammock is not a small difference in colour. Nylon packs under a kilogram and UK reviews say it dries after rain. Cotton feels softer and holds water, so it comes indoors when the weather turns. If the anchors are still unknown, use the [2 person hammock buying guide](/hub/sun-loungers/2-person-hammock/sub/2-person-hammock-buying-guide). Listings and prices are on the [2 person hammock comparison](/hub/sun-loungers/2-person-hammock). The Products Compared editorial team read the amazon.co.uk files and UK retailer guides on 19 October 2026. This is not a mildew test. A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You can already hang a bed, and the remaining choice is the cloth. A nylon or cotton hammock is not a small difference in colour. Nylon packs under a kilogram and UK reviews say it dries after rain.

Our top picks

AnorTrek AnorTrek camping hammock ON-AT-0063

Best overall

AnorTrek AnorTrek camping hammock ON-AT-0063
9.4/10about £19.99
View offer
GOCAN GOCAN Brazilian double hammock (Grey)

Alternative

GOCAN GOCAN Brazilian double hammock (Grey)
9.0/10about £28.89
View offer
MOSFiATA MOSFiATA hammock with spreader bars

Alternative

MOSFiATA MOSFiATA hammock with spreader bars
8.8/10about £29.90
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What each cloth is for
  2. 2.What UK reviews on this set actually said
  3. 3.Gathered end or spreader bar
  4. 4.A direct choice

What each cloth is for

Choose nylon when the hammock must pack and survive a shower. Item weights here run from 590 g to 880 g, and those beds include tree straps. Simply Hammocks describes parachute nylon as quicker to dry and lighter to pack than cotton. That is a shop guide. It matches the direction of the UK reviews, and it is not a certificate. Choose cotton when the bed lives in the garden and you will store it dry. The grey GOCAN is 1.55 kg, the red GOCAN with a bar is 1.59 kg, and the MOSFiATA is 1.9 kg on the item line. UK reviews of the MOSFiATA take it down when rain is coming. The Mexican Hammock Company makes the same split: cotton if you will look after it, nylon if the trip may get wet.

What UK reviews on this set actually said

The useful rain line is one UK review of the larger AnorTrek, B07VSM1S9K. The owner left it out for almost a week and reports that it dried with no mildew. Another UK review says the seams frayed after two weekends. Nylon is not indestructible because it dried once. The Ovyuzhen has a separate report of an end fraying after 11 days, in a sample of four UK reviews. A MOSFiATA owner thought the bed stitching might fail, and the bag stitching came undone the first time it was opened. Another UK review reports daily use for years without a noticeable tear. Do not conclude that cotton always lasts longer.
AnorTrek AnorTrek camping hammock ON-AT-0063

Testsieger

AnorTrek AnorTrek camping hammock ON-AT-0063
9.4/10about £19.99
View offer

Gathered end or spreader bar

A gathered end pulls the cloth to a point, wraps your hips, and suits a diagonal lie. UK reviews of the AnorTrek still say the first entry is awkward. That movement is on the how to hang a double hammock page. A spreader bar holds the mouth open so the bed sits more like a bench. The MOSFiATA bars are listed at 15.7 inches on a 275 x 155 cm canvas bed. The red GOCAN bar is removable, and you supply the anchors. The VITA5 reviews are the UK version of the bar warning: people tip while getting in, and one partner was hurt. Two people fitting is also not a fibre question. The nylon Tyouki is 260 x 140 cm and UK reviews say two people sit.

A direct choice

Take nylon if you will carry the hammock or if it may see a shower. The top pick for that job is the AnorTrek ON-AT-0063, at 590 g and £19.99, with a 2.8 x 1.4 m bed and capacity lines that disagree. Take the 300 x 200 cm AnorTrek at £23.99 if you want more width and you have read the fray review. Take cotton if the bed stays in the garden and you will bring it in. The MOSFiATA at £29.90 is the canvas bed with the large review file. The grey GOCAN at £28.89 is the softer weave, with hooks extra in a UK review. Take spreader bars only when you want an open mouth and you will sit in the centre.

Common questions

Which cloth packs under a kilogram?
The nylon beds. The smaller AnorTrek is 590 g, the larger AnorTrek is 658 g on the item line, the Tyouki is 810 g and the Ovyuzhen is 880 g. A bullet on the larger AnorTrek says 0.81 kg, which does not match 658 g, so pack to the item weight. The cotton beds are 1.55 kg, 1.59 kg and 1.9 kg.
Which cloth should you bring in when it rains?
Bring cotton and canvas in. UK reviews of the MOSFiATA take it down if rain is coming, and Simply Hammocks says to store cotton indoors. Nylon is the cloth those reviews describe as dry after a shower. Pack it when you leave. Do not treat quick drying as permission to forget it until spring.
What is a spreader bar for?
It holds the ends open so the bed stays wide instead of gathering to a point. The MOSFiATA bars are listed at 15.7 inches. The red GOCAN bar is removable. You get a more bench-like seat, and you lose the wrap of a gathered hammock. The bar is a shape. It is not a strap, and it is not a stand.
Are spreader bars safer?
No. They make the bed tip more easily while you get in. That is the warning from Simply Hammocks and the Mexican Hammock Company, and it matches UK reviews of the VITA5, including a fall that hurt someone. A gathered end is fussier the first time and, in the camping reviews, steadier once you are in. Safer here means the entry, not a higher capacity number.
Does the fibre decide whether two people fit?
No. Width and the reviews decide it. The nylon Tyouki is 260 x 140 cm and UK reviews say two people sit, not lie together. The cotton MOSFiATA is 275 x 155 cm, the specification line says seating capacity 1, and a UK review says two people fit. The 300 x 200 cm AnorTrek is nylon and wide. One UK review also found the grey GOCAN narrower than its extra-large wording.

Related pages

Best double hammock UK

2 person hammock

2 person hammock buying guide: anchors, size, load

How to hang a double hammock: tree gap, sag, height

2 person hammock with stand: height, footprint, tip

Sources

Public UK sources named below. amazon.co.uk prices, stars and review counts on these ten listings were read on 19 October 2026. Page updated 21 October 2026.

  1. General Product Safety Regulations 2005, regulation 5 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK: General Product Safety Regulations 2005, Great Britain (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. BSI: BS EN 581 series, outdoor furniture (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. RoSPA: garden safety (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. DD Hammocks: setting up your hammock (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Decathlon UK: two-person hammock (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. UK Supreme Court press summary, UKSC 20 (21 May 2025) (retrieved 19 October 2026)