The best Christmas tablecloths, and the drop arithmetic nobody does before buying

How we ranked these

Published dimensions first, against the tables people actually own, because the drop is the one figure that decides whether a cloth works. Then weave, because a woven jacquard and a printed polyester look different at the hem where you see the reverse. Then the spill finish, because this is the one piece of holiday decor that has gravy on it.

We have not laundered or tested any of these. Everything in the table is a figure a listing prints, and every drop figure below is ours and labeled as such. Live prices under every buy button are refreshed daily and stamped with the date they were read.

The drop, which is the whole decision

The drop is how far the cloth hangs below the table edge. It is not published by anybody, because it depends on your table — but it is one subtraction away from two figures that always are.

That last point is why the Kadut cloth naming the 8 foot table is worth more than it looks: it removes the subtraction entirely for the one table size people most often get wrong, the long folding table that comes out for a crowd.

Length, and the end overhang

Width decides the drop at the sides; length decides the overhang at the ends. A 120 inch cloth is 10 feet, which is longer than most people picture.

On a standard 72 inch six-seat dining table, a 120 inch cloth leaves 24 inches hanging at each end. That is a lot — it will brush the floor on a low table, and on a table with carvers at the ends it lands in the sitter’s lap. On an 8 foot (96 inch) table the same cloth leaves 12 inches at each end, which is right. If your table is 60 or 72 inches long and you only ever seat it to the sides, the overhang is cosmetic; if you seat the ends, buy for the length first and accept a smaller side drop.

Jacquard, printed or wipeable

Three different fabrics are on this page and the difference shows most at the hem, where you see the reverse of the cloth from a seated position.

Cloth, runner, placemats or all three

A full cloth is the bottom layer, and whether anything goes on top of it is a real decision rather than a matter of taste.

A patterned cloth with a patterned runner on top is one pattern too many; a plain or woven tonal cloth takes a runner happily. Placemats over a cloth protect the cloth and break up a large pattern, and they are the reason a figurative print survives a dinner at all. The figures for each layer live on their own pages: Christmas table runners is ranked on overhang against table length, Christmas placemats on depth against the strip a runner leaves, and Christmas table centerpieces on the height that keeps sightlines open across the table.

The practical order: cloth for the drop, runner for the center line, placemats for each setting, centerpiece last and under about 6 inches tall if people have to talk across it. If the table is a Thanksgiving-through-Christmas proposition rather than a single dinner, the cloth is the layer to buy well and the runner is the layer to change — Thanksgiving table decorations covers the handover.

So which one

For a standard rectangular dining table, the Romanstile jacquard at 60 by 120 — woven pattern, waterproof finish, 12 inch drop on a 36 inch table. For an 8 foot table or a long folding one, the Kadut 70 by 120, which names the table. For a lighter palette in a small room and the only published fiber content here, the HOMEPEAK red and cream. For a 42 to 48 inch round table, the 70 inch round jacquard. For a kitchen table that gets wiped rather than laundered, the fitted elastic cover. And for a children’s table or a buffet, the snowman print, which is the skip on a dinner table.