Yarn Count Explained: Ne, Nm, Tex and Denier on a Fabric Specification

What is yarn count?

Yarn count is the number a spinner uses to say how fine a yarn is. There are two families of count, and they run in opposite directions. Indirect systems such as English cotton count and metric count measure length per unit of weight, so a finer yarn, which gives more length for the same weight, gets a higher number. Direct systems such as tex and denier measure weight per unit of length, so a finer yarn gets a lower number. The word "count" on a woven cotton spec almost always means English cotton count.

English cotton count (Ne)

English cotton count is the number of 840-yard hanks that weigh one pound. A 20s yarn gives twenty hanks to the pound and a 40s gives forty, so the 40s is half the weight for the same length and twice as fine. Written as 20s or 40s, and on a card as warp × weft, such as the 20 x 20 on our Piece Dyed Texture Dobby 9072G. Shirting cottons are commonly spun in the 40s to 80s range, and the heavier cloths for trousers and jackets in the 10s to 30s.

The other three count systems

Metric count (Nm) is the length in metres of one gram of yarn, so it rises with fineness like Ne and converts at Nm = Ne × 1.693. Tex is the weight in grams of 1,000 metres and denier the weight in grams of 9,000 metres, so both fall as the yarn gets finer, and denier is always nine times tex. European mills tend to quote Nm, laboratories quote tex, and filament yarns such as viscose and polyester are quoted in denier.

Plied yarns and blends

A single yarn is one strand. A plied yarn is two or more singles twisted together, written 60/2 or 2/60 for two 60s singles. The ply is roughly as thick as a 30s single but stronger and more even, which is why fine shirtings are often woven from two-ply yarn in the warp. On a blended cloth the count line still gives warp and weft the same way. The tag on our BTC-9112 sample garment, an 80% viscose and 20% linen cloth, reads 12 x 12.

Count and construction together

Count on its own does not say how dense the cloth is. That is the job of construction, the number of warp ends and weft picks per inch, and the two are read together. A 40s yarn at 132 x 72 is a fine, close poplin. The same 40s yarn at 60 x 50 is an open, light cloth. How count and construction combine into the weight and hand of a fabric is covered in how to read a woven fabric specification.