Many people need more than one down comforter, since this bedding varies in thickness, and a very thick down comforter is not appropriate in summer or in hot climates. Some people have a down comforter for winter and for summer with different thicknesses. Alternatively, you may want only one down comforter for all year and add extra blankets in the winter instead of buying an additional down comforter. The disadvantage of this is that blankets do not "breathe" the way a good down comforter does.

The best variety of down comforter is a hand-plucked Hungarian down comforter. For those who are concerned about fair treatment of animals, many companies have a guarantee that no geese were killed to make their down comforters and that all of the plucking was done by hand and humanely as possible.

For those who are concerned about allergies, a down comforter does not usually cause irritation, but one that is poorly cleaned may produce an allergic reaction. The best allergy-free down comforter is cleaned many times in phosphate-free soap and each feather is inspected for dust and particles.