In order to decide the best window treatment for your house, you need to understand the differences between curtains and blinds. So you can determine what is right for your lighting management, isolation, and privacy, as well as for your decor and budget.

Window treatments enable you to adjust the lighting, privacy, and temperature of your space while matching your design. While there are many options, the most popular are blinds with adjustable slats and curtains or drapes made from fabric panels. Blinds and curtains have both benefits and drawbacks. We compared two options – blinds and curtains – and outlined six key differences that will help you decide which window treatment will be advantageous in your home.

Blinds require fewer materials and time to manufacture and take less time to install. A professional can place brackets into the window frame, install blinds, and connect mechanisms that move the slats in 10-20 minutes for a total cost of $ 90 to $200 per window. Plastic blinds will lower your material expenditures, but wooden and high-quality vinyl blinds will raise them. For eight windows, about the same as in two large living spaces plus two to four bedrooms, the cost of blinds ranges from $350 to $700.

Curtains are usually more expensive — from $ 450 to $ 2500 for eight windows because they require more material and time to make, as well as more time to install. It will take a professional an hour or more to install the flat brackets above the window, put the panels on the rod, hang and fix the rod on the bracket, and then decorate the curtains beautifully. To decrease expenses, choose cotton curtains over linen or silk.

The slats on the blinds, positioned vertically or horizontally (known as Venetian blinds), can be controlled in two ways to control the lighting. By pulling the lifting cord that hangs from the top, you can raise and lower the blinds and move the vertical blinds from one side to the other. You can also twist an inclined stick (a long stick-like device) to rotate the bars by changing the angle at which the light penetrates. While blinds offer more ways to control lighting, their lattice design means that some light will penetrate even when the blinds are completely closed. When the curtains are closed, they block almost all light.

When we look for the best treatment, blinds steps-out a little further since “easiness to clean” has high priority. Blinds have a hard, smooth surface, so dusting them with a microfiber cloth is quick and easy. To remove dust from both sides of the blinds, close the slats and wipe with a cloth from top to bottom or from one side to the other, then turn the slats 180 degrees and repeat in the opposite direction. To remove stubborn dirt and stains, moisten a soft cloth with ordinary water or a mixture of 25% white vinegar and 75% water, wipe the front and back of the slats, and then dry with a fresh cloth.

Cleaning curtains is a bit more complicated. To remove dust, vacuum from top to bottom using the dust collector nozzle. To remove dirt and stains, it is required to spray contaminated or stained areas with a mixture of 25 percent white vinegar and 75 percent water. Let the solution stand for a few minutes, then machine wash one or two curtain panels at a time, according to the care instructions, and air dry to prevent shrinkage. Iron according to the instructions, if necessary

There is nothing unusual in the fact that well-groomed blinds retain their appearance for 15 years or more. The synthetic material of the blinds, whether plastic, vinyl, aluminum, or wood with a polymer coating, makes them resistant to discoloration and staining. They are also tougher and more durable than curtains, so they are less susceptible to daily wear. Fabric curtains, whether cotton, linen, velvet, or silk, are more prone to tears, stains, and mildew, and they often have to be replaced within a decade.

Both curtains and blinds can increase the overall insulation of your windows by helping to keep warm, resulting in lower utility bills in cold weather. But it has been shown that curtains, because they lack slats through which heat passes, reduce heat loss by up to 37 percent in the colder months, compared with about a 14 percent reduction in heat loss that you could get from blinds. The thicker the curtains or blinds, the more insulating they are, while thermal curtains, which have acrylic foam between the layers of fabric, and honeycomb blinds, with their mesh of honeycomb-shaped air pockets, are the most insulating.

However, in warm weather, blinds are superior to curtains in terms of energy efficiency. Because blinds let more heat out of the room, they also more effectively reduce indoor heat flow by about 45 percent in summer, which can lower your air conditioning bills. In summer, curtains that let in less heat reduce the heat gain in the room by only 33%.

Both curtains and blinds also contribute to sound absorption, protecting from the noise of neighbors. So when it comes to isolation, best window treatment can be either But curtains, especially those made of heavy, tightly woven fabrics such as velvet or velour, work better than blinds because they are thicker and do not have slats through which sound penetrates.

You will find curtains made of a wide variety of materials, textures, styles, colors, patterns, and transparency levels, from cotton curtains in geometric style to transparent silk curtains. They look good in rooms with a classic interior style, whether it’s French country, mid-century modern, or Hollywood glamor. Curtains are also convenient for those who know how to handle a sewing machine. Blinds, as a rule, are available in a narrower range of materials and styles and only in solid colors; this minimalism makes them better suited to the modern look of Scandinavian, industrial and coastal interior styles.

To find out the best window treatment between blinds, shades or curtain, feel free to combine. Consider, for example, curtains in rooms with low humidity where mold is not a problem, such as living rooms and bedrooms, to maximize your design capabilities, insulation, and sound insulation. Install blinds in areas with high humidity, such as the kitchen or main bathroom, where mold growth is a concern. For durable, easy-to-clean window treatments with a high degree of lighting control, choose blinds. You can even place two treatments in the same room to increase privacy and create a more intimate environment by first installing blinds and then hanging curtains on a rod.