Roundup
Best curtains for a sunroom
A sunroom is a room made of windows, which means every curtain decision gets multiplied by four walls and sometimes a roof.
By Janet H. · Last updated October 17, 2026 · How we choose
For a sunroom that is too hot by mid-afternoon, a silver-backed thermal panel such as the Deconovo Thermal Insulated Blackout Curtains in a light color is the pick: the reflective backing faces the glass and sends solar energy back out before the fabric can absorb it. That is the one decision that changes how the room feels, and it is the opposite of what most people reach for.
A sunroom amplifies every ordinary window mistake. Hang a dark heavy panel in it and you have built a solar collector: the fabric absorbs the afternoon sun and re-radiates it into the room you wanted to cool. Hang nothing and the furniture fades and the room is unusable from two o'clock. The four picks below are sorted by which of the three sunroom problems - heat, glare, fade - is the one you actually have.
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Before the list
Work out which sunroom problem you have
Sit in the room at its worst hour. If you are uncomfortably warm but can see fine, the problem is heat and the answer is reflection - ideally outside the glass. If you are squinting and the room is otherwise pleasant, the problem is glare and the answer is diffusion, which a sheer or a solar screen does without taking the garden away. If the room is fine but the cushions on the sunny side have gone pale, the problem is UV and almost any covering helps, including a sheer.
Most sunrooms have two of the three. Where they conflict, heat wins: a room you cannot sit in at four o'clock is a lost room, and a slightly reduced view is not.
Buying guide
What matters in a sunroom specifically
Color on the glass side, not the room side
Solar energy that is absorbed becomes heat in your room; energy that is reflected does not. What decides which happens is the color and finish of the surface facing the glass - so a pale or silver-backed panel with any color you like on the room side is the construction to look for. This is the same mechanism explained in best curtains to keep heat out.
Mounting, when there is no wall
Sunrooms are glass to the corners, so there is often nowhere to put a bracket and nowhere for panels to stack. Two practical answers: mount the rod on the ceiling or the window head rather than the wall - see how to hang curtains from the ceiling - or fit one covering per section of glass rather than one long run.
Fabric that survives the conditions
A sunroom is the harshest place in the house for textiles: hours of UV, big temperature swings, and often damp in the morning. Coated panels stiffen along fold lines faster here than anywhere else. If a panel will hang in direct sun every day, prefer an uncoated weave or accept that a coated one is a consumable.
The roof, if it is glazed
No curtain helps a glass roof. If the heat is coming through overhead, the only interventions that work are exterior shading, a solar film on the roof glazing, or planting. Hanging more fabric on the walls will not change a room heated from above.
| # | Best for | Product | Type | Care | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Best for the heat |  A sunroom that is unusable by mid-afternoon, where reflecting solar energy back out matters more than the view. | Thermal curtain | Gentle cold, no heat | $38.49 · View on Amazon #ad Price as of November 3, 2026, and it can change. How we’re funded |
| 2 | Best for glare with the view kept |  Sunrooms used for sitting and reading, where cutting the hard beam is enough and you do not want to lose the garden. | Sheer curtain | Machine wash cold, gentle | $7.93 · View on Amazon #ad Price as of November 3, 2026, and it can change. How we’re funded |
| 3 | Best for a sunroom you work in | Snap-N-Glide Cordless Roller Shades, solar screen A desk or table in the sunroom, where you need the screen readable through the afternoon. | Roller shade | — | Check price on Amazon #ad No current price for this one — check it on Amazon. How we’re funded |
| 4 | Best for the heat you cannot beat indoors |  Glazed roofs and west-facing walls, where the only real answer is stopping the sun before it reaches the glass. | Exterior shade | — | $159.00 · View on Amazon #ad Price as of November 3, 2026, and it can change. How we’re funded |
01 — Best for the heat
Thermal Insulated Blackout Curtains, silver backed
Deconovo
A silver-tone thermal coating facing the glass reflects solar radiation back out before the fabric can absorb it — the mechanism that separates a genuinely heat-rejecting panel from a merely heavy one.
Who it’s for: A sunroom that is unusable by mid-afternoon, where reflecting solar energy back out matters more than the view.
The catch: The coating is the failure point: it stiffens along fold lines and does not tolerate a hot wash or a tumble dryer. Expect a shorter life than an uncoated weave.
At a glance
- Type
- Thermal curtain
- Construction
- Woven, silver coated
- Care
- Gentle cold, no heat
- Drops
- 63 / 84 / 96 in
#ad Price as of November 3, 2026, and it can change. How we’re funded
02 — Best for glare with the view kept
Solid color sheer voile panels
MIULEE
A light, smooth voile that filters sunlight without blocking airflow, which suits a window you actually open.
Who it’s for: Sunrooms used for sitting and reading, where cutting the hard beam is enough and you do not want to lose the garden.
The catch: Light enough to billow in any moving air. Not the choice beside a door, a vent, or an opening window in a windy spot.
At a glance
- Type
- Sheer curtain
- Weave
- Smooth voile
- Care
- Machine wash cold, gentle
- Width
- ~54 in per panel
#ad Price as of November 3, 2026, and it can change. How we’re funded
03 — Best for a sunroom you work in
Snap-N-Glide Cordless Roller Shades, solar screen
CHICOLOGY
Solar-screen fabric is woven with a stated openness factor, so it strips out glare and a share of solar heat while you can still see through the weave.
Who it’s for: A desk or table in the sunroom, where you need the screen readable through the afternoon.
The catch: Solar screens reverse after dark: with your lights on, the weave shows the room clearly from outside. A street-facing window needs a second layer for the evening.
At a glance
- Type
- Roller shade
- Fabric
- Solar screen
- Operation
- Cordless
- Fit
- Cut to size
#ad No current price for this one — check it on Amazon. How we’re funded
04 — Best for the heat you cannot beat indoors
Outdoor Roller Shade with wand
Coolaroo
An exterior knitted shade the manufacturer rates at up to 90% UV block. Mounted outside the glass it stops solar radiation before it enters, which no interior covering can do.
Who it’s for: Glazed roofs and west-facing walls, where the only real answer is stopping the sun before it reaches the glass.
The catch: Needs somewhere outdoors to mount — a soffit, beam or pergola — and has to be rolled up in high wind.
At a glance
- Type
- Exterior shade
- Fabric
- Knitted outdoor screen
- Operation
- Wand
- Fit
- Stock sizes
#ad Price as of November 3, 2026, and it can change. How we’re funded
The honest answer
Why exterior shading keeps appearing
Any interior covering acts after the sunlight is already inside, which is why its ceiling on heat rejection is low. A shade mounted outside the glass stops the radiation before it reaches the pane, and on a west-facing sunroom that difference is the one people describe as transformative. It is less convenient, needs somewhere to mount, and has to be rolled up in wind - and it is still the biggest single improvement available. The comparison is in outdoor and patio roller shades.
Both layers
A layered sunroom setup that works
The arrangement that solves the most sunrooms is a solar screen or sheer at the glass for daytime glare, plus a light-colored thermal panel that can be drawn on the two or three worst hours of the afternoon. You keep the garden for most of the day and close down only when the sun is on that wall - which is also what stops the room feeling like a corridor of curtains.
Methodology
How we chose
We select on published construction and materials, on fitness for the specific sunroom problem each pick addresses, and on failure patterns that recur across owner feedback rather than headline scores. We do not lab-test these products and publish no solar-rejection figure of our own; where a figure appears it is the manufacturer's and is labeled as such. Full criteria on the methodology page.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask
What curtains are best for a sunroom?
A light-colored or silver-backed thermal panel if the room is too hot, because the reflective face sends solar energy back out before the fabric absorbs it. A sheer or solar screen if the problem is only glare and you want to keep the view. A dark heavy panel is the one choice to avoid - it absorbs the sun and re-radiates it into the room.
Will curtains make my sunroom cooler?
Somewhat, and less than people hope. An interior panel acts after the sunlight is inside, so the gain is modest - a reflective face helps most. Exterior shading, or film on the glass, is what produces the large difference, because it stops the radiation before it reaches the pane.
How do you hang curtains in a sunroom with no walls?
Mount into the window head or the ceiling rather than the wall, or fit one covering per glazed section instead of a continuous run. Ceiling-mounted rods also need a longer panel, because the drop is measured from the rod - the arithmetic is in the curtain length guide.
Do sunroom curtains stop furniture fading?
They slow it considerably, and even a sheer helps. Nothing short of UV film or exterior shading stops it, and no covering reverses fading that has already happened. If a particular sofa or rug matters, moving it out of the direct beam is worth more than any fabric.
Should sunroom curtains be floor length?
Usually yes, half an inch clear of the floor, because a sunroom's glass often runs close to the floor and a short panel leaves the lower pane uncovered. Where there is a low wall or built-in seating, size the panel to clear it rather than bunching against it.
Keep going
Read next
Glare
Best sheer curtains
Diffuse harsh daylight without darkening the room — plus the width rule sheers really depend on.
Glare
Outdoor and patio roller shades
Stop the sun before it reaches the glass — mounting, wind and realistic expectations.
Drafts
Best curtains to keep heat out
Reflect the sun before the fabric absorbs it — and why a dark blackout panel backfires.
Drafts
Best window film to block heat
Film applied to the pane, what it realistically achieves against heat, and when shading beats it.
Glare
Best roller shades for glare
Lower it to exactly the height of the glare — and the openness number that decides the rest.
Rooms
Best window treatments for large windows
Covering a picture window with stock-size products, and what each approach gives up.
About the author
Janet H.
Janet H. is the owner of Janet Media Group and the person behind Drape & Dawn. She researches every pick against the site's published methodology.
Published by Janet Media Group · Last updated October 17, 2026