Matelassé, Jacquard and Quilted: What Is the Difference?

Jacquard is a pattern woven into a single layer of cloth by controlling each warp thread, so the design is part of the weave. Matelassé is also woven, but as a compound cloth that raises a padded, quilted-looking surface without any wadding or stitching. Quilted is not a weave at all: it is three separate layers, a face, a filling and a backing, held together by stitch lines. Getting these three confused is the most common reason a buyer specifies one thing and receives another.

This guide is for buyers choosing a construction for coverlets, bedspreads, duvet covers, shams and cushions, where the difference decides the price, the weight and the look on the shelf.

The one distinction that matters

Everything else follows from a single question: is the texture made by the loom or by the sewing machine?

• Jacquard and matelassé are woven. The pattern and the relief come off the loom, built into the structure of the cloth itself. There is no separate padding layer and no quilting stitch.
• Quilting is a making step, not a weave. You take a finished face fabric, lay a wadding behind it and a backing behind that, then stitch through all three. The pattern is the stitch line and the loft is the fill.

Hold that distinction and the rest is detail.

The three, side by side

	Jacquard	Matelassé	Quilted
How the effect is made	Woven pattern from individually controlled warp threads	Woven compound or double cloth that puckers into relief	Face, wadding and backing stitched together
Layers	One	One woven cloth, two or more thread systems	Three separate layers
Padding or fill	None	None, the loft is an illusion of the weave	Yes, a wadding or batting
Stitching	None	None	Yes, the stitch is the pattern
Feel	Flat with tonal or textured pattern	Raised, embossed, softly quilted look	Padded, lofted, warmer
Reversible	Often, pattern reads as a negative on the back	Usually presentable both sides	No, face and back differ
Typical use	Patterned sheeting, duvet covers, damask looks	Coverlets, bedspreads, cushions, a light padded look	Bedspreads, coverlets, mattress protectors

Treat the table as a map, not a verdict. Within each construction the yarn, the sett and the finish change the result, which is why you sample before you commit.

Jacquard: pattern built into the weave

A jacquard loom controls each warp thread on its own, rather than in the fixed groups a plain or dobby loom uses. That control lets the weave itself draw a design: large florals, medallions, logos, damask motifs, anything that repeats. The pattern is not printed on and not stitched on. It is the cloth.

Because the design comes from the interlacing, a jacquard is usually flat to the hand, with the pattern showing as a play of matte and lustre, or as a subtle raised texture where the floats sit. Turn it over and you generally see the same motif in reverse, the light areas dark and the dark areas light. Damask is the classic single-cloth jacquard.

The cost of a jacquard sits mostly in setup. Building the design into the loom is real work, so jacquards carry a higher entry point and a minimum that reflects the effort. Once it is running, though, you have a woven-in pattern that cannot rub off or wash out. This site keeps a separate guide on what a jacquard repeat costs in setup and minimums.

Matelassé: the woven look of quilting, with no quilt

Matelassé is the one buyers most often misread, because it looks quilted and is not. It is a woven compound cloth, typically two sets of warp and weft, sometimes with a heavier wadding weft carried inside, arranged so the surface puckers into a raised, embossed relief. The result reads as a soft, padded, quilted texture, but there is no batting layer and no quilting stitch anywhere in it.

That gives matelassé a particular commercial place. You get a three-dimensional, textured surface in a single piece of cloth: no separate fill to shift or clump in the wash, usually a cleaner presentation on both faces, and a lighter weight than a true quilt. It suits coverlets, bedspreads, shams and cushions where you want the look and the texture of quilting without the loft and warmth of an actual padded quilt.

The concession: matelassé is a genuine woven speciality, so it is not the cheapest way to get a raised surface, and the depth of the relief is a property of the weave that you set at development, not something you adjust later. If you want real padded warmth, this is the wrong construction and you want a quilt.

Quilted: three layers and a stitch

Quilting is a construction step you apply after the face fabric exists. A top cloth, a wadding or batting, and a backing are layered and stitched through, so two things happen at once: the stitch lines draw a pattern, and the wadding gives loft and warmth between the seams.

This is where a plain or a printed cloth becomes a bedspread, a padded coverlet or a mattress protector. The stitch pattern can be a simple diamond or square grid or a fully computerised motif, and the density of the stitching changes both the look and how much the fill can move. More stitching holds the wadding more firmly and reads as more structured. Less stitching gives bigger, softer pillowed sections.

Because there is a real fill, a quilt is warmer and heavier than either a jacquard or a matelassé, and it is not reversible: the face and the backing are different cloths doing different jobs. If the brief calls for warmth, loft or a padded hand, quilting is the answer the other two constructions cannot give.

How to choose, and how to specify

Work back from what the product has to do.

• Want a woven-in pattern that reads flat and refined? Jacquard. Specify the motif, the repeat and the colourway, and expect the cost and minimum to sit in the setup.
• Want a raised, quilted look that stays light and clean? Matelassé. Specify the relief you want and confirm it on the sample, because the depth is set in the weave.
• Want real padding and warmth? Quilting. Specify the stitch pattern, the stitch density and the finished weight, and remember it is a separate making step on top of a face fabric.

H & J Exim runs jacquards and matelassé on its own woven programme and runs computerised quilting in house, so a single supplier can carry all three off related cloths. See the woven capabilities for the constructions each suits, and the wider product range for how coverlets, duvet covers and cushions sit together. Woven widths run to 136 inches, so wide bedspreads and coverlets can be made without a centre seam where that matters.

Whichever you choose, sample the exact construction rather than a lookalike, since a jacquard swatch tells you nothing about a matelassé relief or a quilting loft. For minimums and sampling, see private label, or get in touch with the product and the look you are aiming at.

Common questions

Is matelassé the same as quilted?

No. Matelassé looks quilted but is a single woven cloth with no wadding and no stitching: the raised, padded effect is created entirely by the weave. A true quilt is three separate layers, a face, a filling and a backing, stitched together, which makes it warmer, heavier and not reversible. If you need real padding, you need quilting, not matelassé.

What is the difference between jacquard and matelassé?

Both are woven, but a jacquard is usually a single, largely flat cloth carrying a pattern made by controlling each warp thread, while a matelassé is a compound or double cloth engineered to pucker into a raised, quilted-looking relief. Jacquard is about pattern, matelassé is about three-dimensional texture. A cloth can be both, with a jacquard-figured matelassé.

Which is more expensive, jacquard, matelassé or quilted?

It depends on the specifics, but the cost drivers differ. A jacquard carries setup cost in building the design into the loom. A matelassé is a specialist weave that sits above plain cloth. A quilt adds a wadding and a separate stitching step on top of a face fabric. Compare finished pieces on a like-for-like basis rather than by construction name alone.

Can one supplier make all three?

Yes, if the mill runs jacquard and matelassé weaving and has quilting in house. A vertically integrated maker with its own looms and computerised quilting can develop a coverlet, a jacquard duvet cover and a quilted bedspread off related cloths under one specification and one approval process, rather than splitting a range across factories.