How to Hang Bathroom Towel Hooks

Just me, or are towel bars the actual worst?! I’ve always hated them and drastically preferred to use towel hooks or robe hooks in my bathroom. I finally got around to replacing the old (falling out of the wall) towel bar in our primary bathroom with some adorable gold towel hooks, so I thought I’d share the process!

It’s a really easy project, but this sort of thing can always feel intimidating if you’ve never tried it. So, if you also hate your towel bar but don’t know where to start with replacing it, let me help. Oh, and if you do know how to replace it but are just looking for some cute towel hook ideas for your bathroom, keep reading! I’ve got some gorgeous options for you at the end of the post.

How to Install a towel hook {video tutorial}

Sometimes these things are easier to understand if you watch them happen – so I put together a quick little video tutorial for you to make it as easy as possible. I’ll break down the steps below for those of us who prefer to read, but this is a great option for you visual learners.

How to hang a towel hook

Materials needed

• Towel hooks
• Drill
• Anchors {I used the ones linked here, but if the base on your hook is smaller, you’ll want an anchor with a smaller profile}
• Tape measure
• Level

determine where to hang the towel hook

I based my spacing entirely on where the holes from the towel bar were. I had a giant hole in the wall from an anchor that wasn’t properly installed, so I needed to cover that up with the base of my towel hook.

A good rule of thumb, though, is to place your first towel hook about 8-10″ from the edge of your shower – that makes it easy to reach from inside the shower. Then, place the remaining towel hooks about 12″ apart from one another.

As far as how high to hang your towel hook, the bottom of mine are at 57″ from the ground. Personally, I’d say anywhere in the range of 55″-60″ is an probably ideal height.

install the anchors

You’ll want to install a drywall anchor for your towel hook if you aren’t going into a stud. Towels aren’t that heavy, but they’re definitely heavy enough to need some extra support!

There are a ton of different types of anchors you can use, and your towel hook may come with one. If it doesn’t, these are my personal favorite. The head of the anchor is pretty large, though, so if you’re using a daintier towel hook you’ll probably want to use something more like this.

To install the anchors, simply hold the towel hook on the wall where you want to place it, then use a pen to mark where the holes should go. Install the anchors into the wall where you’ve marked!

hang the towel hook

With the anchors installed, you’re ready to add the towel hook! Just place it on top of the anchors with the holes in the towel hook lining up with the holes in the anchors, and use the screws that came with your hook to attach it.

I’ll note that many different brands of towel hooks will have different processes for hanging them. These instructions are for a very basic towel hook that is simply hung by a screw on either side of the base. Others may come with fancier systems that require a different process – be sure to read any directions that come with your anchor for the best results!

This is such a small little change, but my goodness it has a big impact! I can’t even begin to tell you how much better it feels in here with the towel hooks versus the towel bar. It instantly feels so much cleaner and more put together when the first thing you see isn’t a giant jumble of towels hanging on a bar that you can’t even see because it’s so overstuffed.

bathroom towel hooks

Here are a few beautiful options for towel hooks if you’re in the market to switch your system up and need some good ideas!

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