---
title: "Paper Towels — £1.4M/yr Amazon UK Niche (2026) - Flapen"
canonical_url: "https://flapen.com/research/uk/business-industry-science/paper-towels"
last_updated: "2026-07-31T07:21:55.354Z"
locale: en
meta:
description: "Niche score 62/100 · £1.4M/yr market. A failed launch gate (market size, growth, or returns) keeps it on the watch list. Data updated Jul 2026."
"og:description": "Niche score 62/100 · £1.4M/yr market. A failed launch gate (market size, growth, or returns) keeps it on the watch list. Data updated Jul 2026."
"og:title": "Paper Towels — £1.4M/yr Amazon UK Niche (2026) - Flapen"
---
# **paper towels**
**Worth a look**
Shows low returns (0.1%), but a failed launch gate (market size, growth, or returns) keeps it on the watch list.
Market size 85Growth 14Conversion 99Competition 60Returns 100Price range 41Avg price 54Brand share 67Review moat 24Quality gap 58
**Returns**
**Incredible****0.1%**
return rate — above 5% kills the launch gate
**Conversion**
**Incredible****18.5%**
search→purchase rate — share of searches ending in a sale
**Market size**
**Great****£1.4M**
£1.4M/yr · 626K searches
**Brand share**
**Good****65%**
top-5 brand share — brands hold most of the demand
**Competition**
**Good****49%**
top-5 click share — leaders hold, buyers still browse
**Quality gap**
**Good****4.4★**
avg incumbent rating — lower means beatable quality
**Avg price**
**Good****£12.44**
avg listing price — sweet spot $15–$100
**Price range**
**Okay****£1.15–£24.53**
cheapest to priciest tracked listing — scored on the share inside $15–$100
**Review moat**
**Bad****6,452.22**
avg incumbent reviews — the moat a new listing must climb
**Growth**
**Bad****-21.7%**
90-day search growth — must beat 0% to launch
According to Flapen's Amazon United Kingdom niche tracking, paper towels is a £1.4M/yr Amazon United Kingdom market (626K searches/yr). The top 5 brands hold 65% of demand. Verdict: Worth a look — 62/100.
Data updated Jul 21, 2026 · scored weekly · [~~How we score niches ~~](https://flapen.com/research/methodology)
## **paper towels market data**
- **Units sold / yr**
- **100K–125K**
- avg 3,000–4,000/product
- **Revenue / yr**
- **£1.2M–£1.6M**
- units × avg price
- **Conversion rate**
- **18.5%**
- **Avg BSR**
- **#67**
- **Page quality**
- **0%**
- **Prime**
- **72%**
- **Sponsored**
- **84%**
- **Out of stock**
- **0.6%**
- **Avg brand age**
- **60 months**
- **Avg seller age**
- **169 days**
## **Competition & brand share**
The top 5 products take 49% of clicks — established leaders, but buyers still shop beyond them.
**Brands**
**19 **▼falling
**Sellers**
**141**
**Top-5 brand share**
**65%**
Top 20: 100%
**Top-5 click share**
**49%**
Top 20: 88%
**Open market**
**29%**
- by Amazon21% - AmazonCommercial15% - Paper Hand Towels13% - Scott10% - PLENTY7% - Regina6%
## **Demand & seasonality**
Weekly Amazon search volume, last 104 weeks — -21.7% search growth over the last 90 days.
15K10KSpike '24Prime Day '25Spike '25Prime Day '26 seasonSepDecMarJunAugNovMarMay
No pronounced peak months · busiest ÷ quietest = 1.8×
[**Open Trend **](https://flapen.com/research/uk/business-industry-science/paper-towels/trend)
## **Top paper towels search terms**
- **paper towels**310K/yr-8.9%16.5% conv. - **paper towel**65K/yr-30.2%17.8% conv. - **paper hand towels**67K/yr-35.2%13.3% conv. - **z fold paper towels**26K/yr+5.7%15.8% conv. - **paper towels for dispenser**16K/yr+7.4%12.6% conv. - **disposable hand towels**16K/yr+10.1%3.9% conv. - **hand paper towels**33K/yr-55.7%10.9% conv. - **paper hand towels for dispenser**14K/yr-3.3%10.9% conv. - **hand towels disposable**27K/yr-67.4%10.9% conv. - **paper hand towels for bathroom**9K/yr-38.9%8.1% conv. [**All search terms **](https://flapen.com/research/uk/business-industry-science/paper-towels/search-terms)
## **Top paper towels products on Amazon**
Each bubble is one product — market share against review moat; bubble size tracks estimated sales, color grades how beatable the incumbent looks.
0%4%£58K8%£115K12%£173K16%£230K101001K10K100K Reviews — right = deep review moatMarket share (90d) ≈ est. sales
Beatable (≤4.3★) Contested Strong incumbent (>4.7★)
All 24 tracked products in this niche — three views at once, no toggling.
### **Top sellers**
by 90-day click share
[1**by Amazon Super Absorbent Kitchen Towel 3-ply 3 Rolls (1 Pack of 3) 80 Sheets per Roll FSC Certified**by Amazon**£2.43**4.5★11,038 rev](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CR6BLD1L) [2**3000 x Z Fold WHITE Paper Hand Towels (23.5cm x 24cm) 2 Ply**Paper Hand Towels**£13.88**4.3★903 rev](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B009G5CPBW) [3**AmazonCommercial Singlefold (V-Fold / ZZ-Fold) Paper Hand Towels 2-ply Cellulose 3990 Sheets (15 packs of 266) Sheet Size: 22 x 21 cm H3 Dispenser Compatible**AmazonCommercial**£23.51**4.4★1,503 rev](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07XRG36NG) [4**Plenty Kitchen Roll 6 Rolls 2-Ply Tissue**PLENTY**£6.32**4.7★12,361 rev](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FHBLML5L) [5**Scott Essential Hand Towels Narrow Fold White Paper Towels for Bathroom Soft Strong Eco-Friendly Highly Absorbent 12 Clips x 220 N-Fold Paper Sheets (2 640 Sheets Total) model nr. 6636**Scott**£23.49**4.1★1,021 rev](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09MJFH87F)
**~~View all top sellers →~~**
### **Newest**
by launch date
[**Our Essentials by Amazon Kitchen Towel Jumbo Roll 1 Pack 2-Ply 240 Sheets**by Amazon**£1.27**809 rev9mo ago](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FH77SN1L) [**Pack of 400 (2 Packs 200 Per/Pack) 1Ply Z-Fold Hand Paper Towels Sheets White 210cm x 210cm. Dispenser Compatible | Ideal for Kitchen Catering Bathroom Restroom**RE-GEN**£4.94**29 rev10mo ago](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FR8DGZ2H) [**Plenty Kitchen Roll 6 Rolls 2-Ply Tissue**PLENTY**£6.32**12,361 rev1y ago](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FHBLML5L) [**Pack of 1000 (5 Packs 200 Per/Pack) 1Ply Z-Fold Hand Paper Towels Sheets White 210mm x 210mm. Dispenser Compatible | Ideal for Kitchen Catering Bathroom Restroom**RE-GEN**£8.31**160 rev1y ago](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FB9XH96C) [**Selpak Professional Z Fold Paper Towels 2ply Paper Hand Towels Disposable 12x200 (Total 2400) Absorbent White Paper Towel Ideal for Individuals/Businesses Paper Hand Towels for Dispenser**Selpak**£18.25**175 rev1y ago](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0D5MQPGD9)
**~~View all new products →~~**
### **Trending**
90-day click momentum
[**3000 x ZFold Paper Hand Towels White 2Ply Paper Towels 23cm x 23cm High Absorbency Soft Hygienic Disposable Paper Towel for Washrooms Kitchens and Commercial and Home Use**carebymail**£14.57**4.6★**▲ 290%**](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0GYJQX31F) [**Our Essentials by Amazon Kitchen Towel Jumbo Roll 1 Pack 2-Ply 240 Sheets**by Amazon**£1.27**4.3★**▲ 119%**](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FH77SN1L) [**Scott Essential Hand Towels Narrow-Fold 2-Ply White Paper Towels Soft Absorbent FSC Certified Compatible with Multifold Dispensers 12 Clips x 220 Sheets (2 640 Sheets Total) Model Nr. 6603**Scott**£21.50**4.1★**▲ 109%**](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0D817V1KB) [**Select Z Fold 2 Ply Paper Hand Towels - 14 Packs of 214 (3000 Sheets - 22x24 cm) Thick Quick Dry Quality Multifold Tissue Paper - Perfect Disposable Hand Towels for Kitchen Bathroom Restaurant**Farla Medical**£20.57**4.3★**▲ 98%**](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CQKDWS4C) [**Plenty Kitchen Roll 6 Rolls 2-Ply Tissue**PLENTY**£6.32**4.7★**▲ 64%**](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FHBLML5L)
**~~View all trending →~~**
## **What buyers say about paper towels**
What buyers praise and complain about, mined from review topics.
### **What buyers love **
**Value For Money**29%
*“Amazing value”*
**Quality-Overall**25%
*“Amazon affordable quality product”*
**Absorbency**9%
*“Absorbent enough”*
**Advertised Vs Actual Product**4%
*“Does the job just fine”*
**Thickness**4%
*“Lovely and thick”*
**Strength**3%
*“Very powerful”*
**Durability**3%
*“Super durable and great at cleaning spills”*
**Ease Of Cleaning**3%
*“absorbing helps cleaning”*
**Soft Feel**3%
*“Soft and absorbent”*
**Size-Overall**3%
*“Nice and big”*
### **What buyers complain about **
**Thickness**21%
*“My toilet paper is thicker than this”*
**Quality-Overall**18%
*“Reduced quality”*
**Size-Overall**12%
*“Large”*
**Value For Money**8%
*“Waste of money”*
**Absorbency**7%
*“aren't as absorbent”*
**Strength**2%
*“These are so flimsy”*
**Thin**2%
*“Too thin”*
**Advertised Vs Actual Product**1%
*“so its deceiving”*
**Durability**1%
*“keeps falling apart”*
**Functionality-Overall**1%
*“so it doesnt do its job at all”*
### **Top return reasons **
**Quality-Overall**20%
**Size-Overall**19%
**Value For Money**8%
**Thin**7%
**Advertised Vs Actual Product**6%
**Leak-Proof**5%
**Thickness**5%
**Moist/Dry**4%
**Smell**4%
**Dispensing Mechanism**3%
## **Common questions**
- **Is paper towels profitable to sell on Amazon United Kingdom?**
- The niche generates £1.4M/yr across 32 tracked products. 1 of 3 products launched in the last 360 days are still selling. 90-day search growth is -21.7%. Flapen's verdict: Worth a look (62/100).
- **How competitive is the paper towels niche?**
- 19 brands and 141 sellers compete. The top 5 products take 49% of clicks and top 5 brands hold 65% of demand.
- **What do buyers complain about in paper towels?**
- Top complaints mined from reviews: Thickness, Quality-Overall, Size-Overall. The return rate is 0.1%.
- **When does demand for paper towels peak?**
- Demand is steady year-round — the busiest month runs 1.8× the quietest.
- **What does it cost to enter the paper towels niche?**
- Listings span £1.15–£24.53; the average listing price is £12.44 (sweet spot $15–$100). The average incumbent carries 6,452 reviews — the moat a new listing must climb.
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