This is how much toilet paper you should use every time you go to the bathroom

It’s not something that comes up in conversation with friends or loved ones, but you may have wondered whether you’re being efficient with your toilet paper usage. Experts in the hygiene and sanitation industry have crunched the numbers, and you might want to take another look at how much toilet roll you’re consuming.

How much t-roll does the average person use?

Toilet paper and flushable wipes manufacturer, Cottonelle did some market research to understand the needs of consumers and some of the findings may come as a surprise to you. According to the research, the average person uses the toilet at least five times a day, using nearly 7 sheets per wipe – women use approximately 6.4 sheets while men use 8 sheets.

So, if we’re using the toilet 5 times per day and using an average of 7 sheets per wipe, then one person uses about 35 sheets per day. One person will go through a regular roll of 150 sheets in about 4.3 days.

If you do the maths right, you’re probably using 85 rolls of toilet paper in a year. The responses in this Reddit thread asking people how many squares of toilet paper they use each wipe are not too far from the research findings. One such Redditor wrote:

I start with like 8 and fold it in half but almost diagonally to allow for more surface area, then incrementally go down for every subsequent wipe; adjusting depending on the level of damage.

Read more:

⋙ This is the strange reason why toilet paper is pink

⋙ Hygiene: Here’s why you should never put toilet paper on a public toilet

⋙ One mum's toilet paper hoard is destroyed as her kids threw them in the bath

What the experts say

In a piece published in The Sun, Martin Richards, Director of Hygienic Technology Experts at SMARTi Environmental, explained that ‘the average person should only need 10 sheets of toilet paper per visit’.

Obviously, this can depend widely on whether it’s a number one or number two, but essentially try not to wrap yarns of toilet roll round your hand to use as this can be a waste.

The article goes on to say that if you should start with fewer sheets of toilet and work your way up to 10 sheets.

Sources used:

Cottonelle: How Much Toilet Paper Should a Person Use? Get the Most out of Your Roll

Reddit: How many squares of toilet paper do you use each wipe?

The Sun: Expert reveals exactly how much toilet paper you should be using – but do you agree?