Best Shower Curtains Not Made in China

Best Shower Curtains Not Made in China

Last Updated 1/17/23 to reflect changes in Bean recommendation thanks to Carolyn’s comment. Updated 11/1/23 to reflect the bankruptcy of Bed Bath and Beyond and the rebranding of Overstock.com. Also added Schoolhouse as a top source.

Shower Curtains? Who Cares About Shower Curtains?

When I look at at the categories of things made in China that people request most often, one I see come up are Shower Curtains. But if you dig deeply into how China came to dominate manufacturing of shower curtains, it fully reveals how brilliant the Chinese Communist Party was and how utterly foolish and myopic American corporations were–and still are.

In the original version of this blog post, I wrote a few paragraphs on how too many consumers don’t hesitate to buy made in China products from seemingly trivial categories like shower curtains. “A few dollars aren’t going to make a difference”. But the

Why Google Still Sucks at This

I originally wrote this post in 2022. When I updated this list in 2023, I Googled “Shower Curtains Not Made in China” and you can see to the left what they showed me.

I notice that their #1 and #2 picks are the same as mine (you’re welcome, Google) while their third pick is a Wayfair page. At one point I’d rated Wayfair as the best site on the Web for communicating country of origin. Sadly, Wayfair got sloppy and removed this information for consumers. But they kept their search results page for “Shower Curtains Not Made in China” up, and Google is foolishly continuing to trust them.

Sure enough, when I clicked on the Wayfair listing and clicked on the first search result for “shower curtains not made in China”, there was no country of origin listed on the product at all.

I opened a chat with their customer service. The good news is that the agent was very friendly, and appeared to have access to a database that gave definitive country of origin information. She was able to tell me that the product I was on was, sure enough, made in China despite that information being hidden from consumers.

When she asked me if that worked for me, I told her no, and politely asked her to find other options.

To her credit, she gave me options that were made in India and Pakistan. I asked her if there was a way I could search myself, and she said no.

By the way, this is a good reminder that even if a retailer or manufacturer Web site not NOT disclose country of origin, that doesn’t mean that they don’t know it. To the contrary, usually they’ll have the physical product sitting right in front of them, or access to a product database that shows them this information that their foolish marketing managers chose to hide from us.

So don’t be shy about reaching out to them and asking, politely and respectfully, if they can provide you with country of origin information for any product you’re searching for. And when you find out, I’d appreciate you leaving a comment on this site (if it’s a category I already covered) or on the forum.

How I came up with this list

I went through a slightly different process for this list. Normally I’ll review a large number of manufacturers and retailers. The problem, of course, is that the category of shower curtains is so commoditized and saturated that it’s practically impossible to go through thousands and thousands of products to find ones that are not made in China. I was able to find a handful of basic curtains and liners made in the USA on Amazon. But for the more traditional, decorative curtains I turned to BedBathandBeyond.com (formerly Overstock.com), where it’s much easier to spot the brands that choose to look for producers outside of China.

1. Multiple Items on Schoolhouse

I came across Schoolhouse when I was researching my article for Best Furniture Not Made in China. Schoolhouse does two things that I love.

First, as of this writing they’re sourcing their shower curtains from one country (Portugal). Second, they actually aren’t afraid to say it.

As you can imagine, I’m so sick of retailers that hide country of origin. It’s not like they don’t know this information—it’s right on the box! But they deliberately keep it off and/or replace it with the single word “Imported” because they think we’re idiots and can’t handle the truth. Let’s reward those retailers that actually do. (West Elm, 1888 Mills, Snowe, and MadeTrade are another brands that do this).

2. Kent & West – Best Clear Shower Curtain Liner

If you’re like me, you don’t really need a fancy shower curtain with lovely flowers or designs. You just want something functional that will keep your floor from getting drenched when you shower. And that’s why I appreciate this shower curtain liner from Kent & West (they say “liner”, so you can place it behind a decorative shower curtain, but of course you can use it by itself as well if you don’t care too much about privacy).

I love how they make a point to say that the material (PEVA, short for polyethylene vinyl acetate) is made in the USA. PEVA is healthier than regular “vinyl” (also known as PVC, or polyvinyl chloride) in that it doesn’t contain chlorine. When PVC is produced, used, or thrown out it releases dioxins into the environment, which are one of the world’s most persistent pollutants and a known cause of cancer. PEVC is produced without chlorine, dioxins, and phthalates. Bottom line, it’s better for you, it’s better for the planet.

The one thing that gives me pause when I read Kent & West’s product page on Amazon is that they seem to go completely out of their way to state that the PEVA is made in the USA, but they don’t come out and say upfront that their entire product is manufactured in the USA, which is something we care about just as much. It took a customer question in May 2020 to push them to say flat out that it’s also assembled in the USA.

So I’ll recommend them, but keep an eye on them. Usually when manufacturers are non-committal like this, it means they might be contemplating outsourcing their manufacturing. Which would be fine, as long as they don’t go to you-know-where.

3. Bean Shower Curtain – Best Basic, No-Frills Shower Curtain

If you search Amazon for “shower curtains made in the USA”, you’ll of course get mostly curtains made in China. But Bean Products was a welcome exception. If you’re in the market for a basic shower curtain that dries quickly, is machine washable, and made of all-natural materials, this is the product for you.

Unfortunately since I first posted this, Carolyn left a comment reporting that the cotton shower curtain I originally recommended is now evidently made in China, contrary to what they write on the Amazon listing. This is even worse news knowing that China cotton mostly comes from Xinjiang.

They do still make their hemp shower curtains in the USA, and so I’ll keep them on the list…for now.

As I originally wrote, I love that they use only use natural fabrics, and don’t have to deal with any chemical with “poly”, “ate” or “ine” in its name. Just cotton, organic cotton, hemp, organic hemp, or a blend.

Bean Products has been around for 33 years and prides themselves on using eco-friendly products, sustainably sourced and domestically produced. They’ve been based out of Chicago since their founding in 1987, when they invented the now-iconic Sleeping Bean Body Pillow. It’s great to see that they’re managed to continue to be successful making these in the USA, but keep an eye on them.

You can buy these from Amazon.

4. Decorative Things – Extra-Long Shower Curtains in a Variety of Basic Styles

I had to do a double-take when I saw Decorative Things curtains on Amazon. I’d literally clicked on hundreds of Amazon listings before I saw listing after listing of their products made in the USA.

Decorative Things has been based out of New York City since 1988. Their speciality appears to be “extra long shower curtains”, available in 84″ lengths.

In my opinion, the designs are elegant, classy, and simple, unlike a lot of newer, gaudy made-in-China shower curtains.

If you need an extra-long shower curtain, this one seems like a no-brainer.

5. Spirella Shower Curtains

Thanks to Paul for mentioning Spirella in the comments. This is a brand out of Switzerland and happily for American consumers it looks like there’s a growing number of third party sellers making them available to the US.

The Amazon product pages don’t mention country of origin, but Spirella’s Web site does confirm that these are made in Europe.

As with any time you buy from an Amazon third party seller, be sure to reach out to make sure they’re legitimate, and ask them to double-check the country of origin before you buy from them.

6. Pretty House Shower Curtains

If you need standard waffle weave or honeycomb weave shower curtains, Pretty House is a nice brand out of India that makes its products in India.

At under $20 they are extremely reasonably priced and reviews indicate that they are of very high quality.

They don’t shrink, are lightweight, and are machine washable. They come in a variety of sizes and 12 basic colors.

7. Multiple Items sold on Bed Bath and Beyond (formerly Overstock)

I tried searching Amazon for other shower curtains that were not made in China, but because Amazon doesn’t allow me to see Country of Origin (and deliberately shows false and misleading results when you try to search “not made in China), I gave up trying to find anything on Amazon.

But happily, BedBathBeyond.com does display country of origin on all their products. It’s not 100% fool-proof, as I’ll detail below. And because they don’t have a way to filter by country of origin, finding a shower curtain not made in China is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. But the fact that they list country of origin at all is a big plus in their favor, and so I recommend them over sites that actively work to hide country of origin information.

Here are some of the more popular designs and US-based makers.

7a. Americanflat – Gorgeous Designs

1/4/24 update. Carolyn left a comment saying that she received a package marked “made in China”.

Based on her description, I’m going to guess that Americanflat is likely sourcing the raw materials from China, applying the silk screening here in the US, and selling it as “made in the USA”. That actually used to fly until the FTC started cracking down in 2022. I have a write-up that I’ll post on this shortly.

As of 1/4/24 their Web site still does say “proudly made in the USA”. I’m going to try to verify myself, but in the meantime I’ll withdraw them as a recommendation (I’ll keep my original review up and crossed out until I find out more one way or the other). Thanks to Carolyn for sharing your experiences.

I never heard of Americanflat before, but they make some of the best selling shower curtains on BedBathandBeyond.com. When I visited their Web site, I could see why. They sell framed art, but unlike companies like Bed Bath and Beyond that mass produce generic art pulled from a stock photo site, Americanflat sources from real artists. It tells their stories, and it ensures that artists are compensated fairly.

Their product listing goes out of its way to say “100% Made in the USA for best in-quality production supporting local artists”. The designs, not surprisingly, are stunningly beautiful works of art. They’re made from 100% polyester fabric, so they’re durable. They do suggest using a liner.

Their shower curtains are widely available not just at BedBathandBeyond.com, but also retailers like Walmart.

7b. Marimekko

Marimekko is a brand out of Finland that dates back to the 1950s. They’ve been a major influence on fashion and are known for their brightly colored fabrics and simple styles.

When I originally wrote this post Overstock.com had a number of products from them, but since their rebranding to BedBathBeyond.com they have unfortunately disappeared. But happily, you can find them on Amazon. Even better, Amazon does list the Country of Origin as Pakistan.

7c. Laural Home

Laural Home is a head-scratcher. On their site they say “We pride ourselves on our exceptional products, all of which are made in America”. And yet on their BedBathandBeyond.com product pages, many are marked with China as the County of Origin while others say the country of origin is the United States. In fact, some product listings say both.

My guess is that this means that the raw material (100% polyester) comes from China, but the final manufacturing is done in the US. It’s not ideal, and I wish Laural Home would work a little harder to find a source outside of China. But at the very least, it’s putting some artists and someone running the digital printer in New Jersey to work.

You’ll definitely want to avoid the product pages that say “County of Origin: China”. Even if they are using China and the United States interchangeably, you want to send a clear message to Overstock and Laural Home of what matters to you.

7d. OliverGal Shower Curtains

OliverGal has a number of beautiful designs at BedBathBeyond.com as well. They’re all 100% polyester and all say “Proudly made in the USA”.

It’s difficult to say where the polyester is sourced, but what we do know is that as with Laural Home the final artwork is done in the United States, so at least some workers and the company see some of the profits from it.

These designs are among the most beautiful I’ve seen on any shower curtain. Check them out.

Do you know of other shower curtain companies worthy of mention here? Let us know in the comments!

13 Comments

    1. Thank you so much, Paul!

      A lot of American brands are either not available here in Europe or very expensive- you’ve made my day by mentioning these 2 brands!

  1. Thank you sooooo much for this website! I feel the same way you do and try to avoid purchasing anything made in China due to their horrendous human rights violations. I will check out your recommendations for shower curtains. I also found this site which has pretty curtains that are made in the USA. Not sure yet where the source material comes from but they are comparably priced: https://www.heritagelace.com/store.cfm/Products/list/All-Brands/Curtains/Shower-Curtains. Thanks again and I will be bookmarking your website and sharing on my Facebook and LinkedIn.

  2. I hate buying anything made in f###### china because they work against American interest’s. Also I prefer to keep American’s working not the chinese. America come’s first.

  3. Recently bought a new Spirella curtain and Spirella curtain rings.
    Both are made in Switzerland.
    I’m impressed by the quality.

    1. Paul, can you tell me if you are in the US, because I tried to buy one of these shower curtains and was told the company does not ship to the USA. I would like to purchase one, if I can find someone who ships to the USA – Thanks – Caroline

  4. I use Spirella since 1994. Their shower curtains are machine-washable and last long (I bought my second one in 2012). Every cent you spend on Spirella is just worth it!

  5. I recently purchased an American Flat shower curtain at Bed Bath and Beyond. At the purchase site it was stated that all American Flat products are made in the USA. When I received the shower curtain it was clearly labeled on the packaging containing the shower curtain, as well as the shipping package – “made in China”. I contacted Bed Bath and Beyond, and they told me it was just the packaging that was made in China, which I do not believe. I also contacted American Flat directly – attaching photos of the the packaging and my order information. They told me that their products are made in the US, (which I now also do not believe), and that they have no record of my order – that I should contact Bed Bath and Beyond, which I already did. American Flat should be removed from “not made in China.

    1. I appreciate your sharing your experiences, Carolyn. I’ve removed them as a recommendation. My guess is that they’re getting the raw material (a blank shower curtain) from China, applying the design in the US, and selling it as “made in the USA”. If that’s the case, it may be more ignorance than maliciousness on their part, but given how the FTC has been cracking down on such practices, they’d better work on fixing how they represent their products on their Web site, as well as to customers like you.

      I’ll keep the original review up (but crossed out) for now to serve as a bit of education and a reminder. I’ve been thinking of posting an article I wrote about the FTC’s recent crackdowns, and this situations convinced me to do so. I wish your outcome turned out better than it did, but I thank you for bringing this to my attention and the attention of all the readers of this site.

      As for me, I’ll continue to do research from time to time to update this page with more options. I definitely welcome everyone to provide suggestions. China’s strangehold on the supply chain often leaves companies like this with limited options for sourcing, but I know there are suppliers out there.

  6. I finally got the truth out of American Flat. The following is a copy of part of an email I received from American on 1/9/2024. So, you really do not know what you are getting from this company. Also, in order to return a purchase you will have to pay for the postal fees, as American Flat will not reimburse.

    Dorien Wheatle (Americanflat)

    Jan 8, 2024, 3:32 PM EST
    “Hi Caroline,

    Thank you for reaching out to us with your inquiry. We appreciate your attention to detail and the opportunity to clarify.

    While our shower curtains are designed and made in America, we must acknowledge that due to the nature of our production process, we have a mixed inventory that includes items produced both in the United States and imported from China.”

  7. Bean shower curtains are not all made in USA as stated at purchase site.
    Only the hemp shower curtains are made in the U.S.A. – other Bean shower curtains are made in China. I sent an email to Bean about this and they responded – admitting that only the hemp shower curtain is made in the U.S.A.
    Unfortunately, I had already purchased a Bean shower curtain through Amazon – I will be sending it back. Companies really need to be fully honest about their products. To my understanding, misrepresenting something for monetary gain is called fraud.

    1. Thanks for reporting this, Carolyn. It’s sad to see when a manufacturer abandons its principles—they STILL say “Made in the USA” on their Web site and that “the vast majority of our catalogue is made here in Chicago, Illinois”. Worse, if they’re sending their cotton shower curtains to a China manufacturer, there’s a good chance the cotton came from Xinjiang. I’m surprised at this bone-headed move on their part.

      I appreciate your update—I updated the listing to recommend only their Hemp curtain, but if they move that too, they’re off the list completely. Thank so much.

  8. This reply is from Oliver Gal Artist Co. to my email about their shower curtains.

    “The shower curtain (fabric) is from China, but the art design is printed and constructed here in the U.S.”

    Oliver Gal Artist Co.

    Customer Service

    a: 2590 Hollywood Blvd. | Hollywood, FL 33020

    I am still investigating before I buy.

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