Curating published, peer-reviewed literature on mask design, mask use and mask effectiveness.

About Us

We are a team of academics, physicians, trainees, people who sew, and other volunteers. We've been working on identifying and curating published, peer-reviewed literature on mask design, mask use and mask effectiveness.

At present, this site and all our work is on a voluntary basis, without funding.

We started out as clothmasks.org when the limited numbers of certified medical masks and N95’s were needed for healthcare workers and cloth masks were one of the few options available. We changed our name to maskevidence.org and in following the science, we recommend ‘Wear the best mask available’.

Research

Mask research is more than identifying the best material for masks — it also requires understanding how masks fit, the level of risk in the environment, what activities are being performed while wearing masks and availability of masks, materials and supplies.

Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic, one of the few constants has been change. Early days left even healthcare professionals and hospitals short of certified medical masks and N-95’s. While mask supplies have greatly improved, North America still experiences supply interruptions for the public. Around the globe, even more people face challenges in accessing masks. Our contributions to research help the public make sense of peer reviewed literature in today’s world and document lessons learned for the future.

About Masks

“Our Best Advice” is based on peer reviewed, scientific literature bringing everything together one place. Information on understanding mask materials, choosing a mask, mask features such as nose wires and filters, mask safety and making a mask translates science to practical help.

Blog

Mask Use

Review the filtration efficiency of different mask types, find links to resources to find N95s, read information on extended use of masks that are designed as single use, what we know about washing cloth or polypropylene masks, and check out our curated collection of research on the effectiveness of masks.