Sign in

Products · Clothing & underwear · Subset

Subset Organic Cotton Mid-Rise Brief

Reader ratings
Subset Organic Cotton Mid-Rise Brief

GOTS organic cotton briefs from Subset (formerly Knickey). Every fiber is named, nylon-and-elastane elastics included, and the fabric has 5% elastane. No certificate number, dyes or thread named, and no independent test found.

Best for Someone who wants GOTS-licensed organic cotton underwear and wants to see every fiber percentage, elastics included, before buying.

Our rating
Fair (3.3 of 5)
Price range
Mid-range
Verified marks
GOTS: 529 LLC dba Subset, license GOTS-21368 (Control Union)
Size
Women’s 2XS to 4XL; single pair
Made in
Cotton grown and processed in India (per Subset); shipped from Ohio, USA

approx. $20 per pair (3-packs and 6-packs also sold)

See it on Subset’s site → (opens in a new tab)

We are not affiliated with Subset. This link goes to the maker’s own page, with no tracking code. How we're funded.

Also sold at Amazon ($20) .

Reader ratings & reviews

– out of 5

Loading ratings…

Have this product? Please rate it.

    Reviews are personal experiences, not research, and they never change our quality ratings. Every review is read by our team before it appears.

    How we evaluated it

    How it scores Our rating, metric by metric Fair, 3.3 of 5
    1. Fabric & finishes 50% of the rating 3 of 5

      GOTS organic cotton with 5% elastane in the fabric and nylon-and-elastane elastics at the waist and legs; every fiber is named, but thread and dyes are not.

    2. Independent testing 20% of the rating 3 of 5

      A GOTS license for the brand’s trading company is verified, but we found no independent PFAS or chemical test of Subset or Knickey and no test of this brief.

    3. Trust 15% of the rating 4 of 5

      No recalls, Prop 65 notices, warning letters or suits found, and the page names every fiber, elastic and supply-chain step; it gives no certificate numbers and cites “Oeko-Tex certified materials” without one.

    4. Value 15% of the rating 4 of 5

      About $20 a pair, above Pact’s $14 and level with Cottonique’s boy brief at $20.

    The rating, 3.3 of 5, is the weighted average of these scores. See how we rank clothing & underwear and our standard.

    Where to buy Stores and the prices we saw 1 store
    • Amazon (opens in a new tab) approx. $20. Sold by Subset and shipped by Amazon. The single-pair listing, 2XS to 4XL; its title says GOTS Certified and its bullets say 95% cotton, 5% spandex.

    Prices as we saw them on October 23, 2026. They change often. These links carry no tracking code and earn us nothing.

    What it’s made of What touches your food, water, skin or air 5 materials
    1. Fabric: 95% certified organic cotton, 5% elastane
    2. Waist elastic: 91% nylon, 9% elastane
    3. Exterior leg elastic: 86% nylon, 14% elastane
    4. Dyed and finished with “Oeko-Tex certified materials” (not named, no certificate number)
    5. Thread: not stated
    Who tested it What each test found, and who paid for it 1 test
    • Paid certification Control Union Certifications B.V. (GOTS certification body), paid by Subset

      License GOTS-21368 for 529 LLC dba Subset, a trading company: women’s undergarments of 95% organic cotton and 5% elastane (the fabric of this brief) in scope, valid to 22 February 2027. The record does not name the factories, which hold their own licenses, and it is not a test of this brief. GOTS’s standard prohibits PFAS finishes and antimicrobial finishing inputs. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

    Who paid, and why it matters
    • Independent The tester took no money from the maker for it: a consumer group, a journalist, a university or a regulator.
    • Paid certification An outside lab or certifier tested or listed it, and the maker paid for that.
    • Maker’s own test A lab report or certificate of analysis the maker commissioned and published.

    A certification is a floor, not a verdict: it checks what its program checks and nothing else. We weigh tests by someone with no stake in the result most.

    What people ask Worries raised online and elsewhere, and what we found 5 questions
    Is it natural if the fabric has elastane and the elastics are nylon?
    Mostly, not fully. The fabric is 95% organic cotton and the waist and leg elastics are 86% to 91% nylon, with elastane in each. Subset states this on the page, which Pact does not do for its elastic; it is also why this brief scores below all-cotton ones.
    Is it free of PFAS?
    Subset’s home page says “PFAS-free organic cotton” and GOTS prohibits PFAS finishes, but we found no test of Subset or Knickey underwear. Mamavation, a site that lab-tests clothing for fluorine, has no Subset or Knickey test in its archive (we searched it on 23 October 2026).
    Is the GOTS certification really behind this garment?
    The license is held by a trading company, so the garment’s status depends on the factories’ own licenses and the shipment’s transaction certificate. Subset says its factories are certified organic and names the cities, but not the licenses. We could not check them.
    What do customers say?
    Subset’s own page shows 4.8 of 5 from 2,252 reviews. Trustpilot (opens in a new tab) has a single review, about a late delivery, so we found little independent feedback either way.
    What happened to Knickey?
    Subset is Knickey renamed in 2023, per its About page (opens in a new tab). Its FAQ (opens in a new tab) says the organic cotton blend and GOTS-certified fabric did not change.
    Why we chose it What put it on our list 4 points
    • The GOTS database lists 529 LLC dba Subset: license GOTS-21368, Control Union, valid to 22 February 2027. The scope includes women’s undergarments of organic cotton with 5% elastane, which matches the 95/5 fabric on the page.
    • The page names every fiber: fabric 95% certified organic cotton and 5% elastane; waist elastic 91% nylon and 9% elastane; exterior leg elastic 86% nylon and 14% elastane.
    • Subset’s supply-chain page names each step: a Gujarat farm, then ginning, spinning and knitting in Tamil Nadu, with the shipping warehouse in Ohio.
    • Subset says its cotton is “PFAS-free”, and GOTS’s standard text (version 8.1) prohibits PFAS finishes and synthetic antimicrobial finishing inputs. See avoiding PFAS.
    Trade-offs What to weigh before you buy 4 points
    • The elastane is in the fabric, and the elastics are nylon and elastane, so synthetic fiber touches the skin at the waist and legs. Our microplastics guide notes that synthetic fabrics shed microfibers.
    • Subset shows no certificate number. The GOTS record is for a trading company, and we could not see the factories’ own licenses.
    • Dyes are not named. Subset says the fabric is dyed and finished with Oeko-Tex certified materials and gives no certificate number.
    • About $20 a pair on 23 October 2026, more than Pact’s $14.
    What to know Details worth knowing first

    Subset was formerly Knickey. Its briefs follow the idea behind most of this list: organic cotton, certified under GOTS. The GOTS database confirms the license, and the standard’s text rules out PFAS finishes and synthetic antimicrobial finishing inputs. Our guide to clothing chemicals says organic describes the fiber, not the finish, so that is the right kind of certificate to look for.

    What sets this page apart is the detail. It gives the fabric as 95% organic cotton and 5% elastane, and the elastics as nylon and elastane blends. A reader can then decide whether that suits them. It is not all natural, and no one has published a fluorine or chemical test of the garment that we could find.

    Two things stay open: Subset gives no certificate numbers, and it does not say what the dyes or thread are. If a rash is the reason you are shopping, the guide notes that dyes and resins can cause textile contact allergy, so ask Subset about them first, and wash new underwear before wearing it.

    What we checked Each claim, and how sure we are of it 5 checks
    Tested by
    GOTS database (Control Union Certifications B.V.)
    How Subset Organic Cotton Mid-Rise Brief measures up against our clothing & underwear criteria
    What we checked What we found
    Certified textiles Verified The GOTS database lists 529 LLC dba Subset: license GOTS-21368, Control Union Certifications B.V., valid to 2027-02-22, field of operation “Trading”. The scope lists women’s undergarments of organic cotton with 5% elastane. Subset also cites Oeko-Tex, Fair Trade and FSC marks, with no numbers.
    Natural fibers, synthetics stated Maker’s claim Fabric: 95% certified organic cotton, 5% elastane. Waist elastic: 91% nylon, 9% elastane. Exterior leg elastic: 86% nylon, 14% elastane.
    No PFAS finishes Maker’s claim Subset’s home page says “PFAS-free organic cotton”. GOTS prohibits PFAS finishes, so the claim fits the license, but what we confirmed is the license, not this garment.
    No antimicrobial finishes Not verified Not mentioned on the product page. GOTS (version 8.1 text, Table 6) prohibits synthetic antimicrobial finishing inputs.
    Dyes and trims named Maker’s claim Elastics named with percentages. Thread is not named. Dyes are described only as Oeko-Tex certified materials, with no certificate number.
    What the labels mean
    • Verified We opened an independent record that confirms it: a certifier’s listing, a regulator’s list or a lab report. It is linked under Sources.
    • Maker’s claim The maker says so on its own page or label. We read it but found no independent record.
    • Not verified We looked and could not confirm it, or the maker does not say. Treat it as unknown.
    Sources Where our facts come from 9 sources
    1. Subset Organic Cotton Mid-Rise Brief product page. Maker’s page. Fiber percentages, the $20 price and the review count, read on 2026-10-23. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    2. Amazon listing: Subset Women’s Organic Cotton Mid-Rise Brief, Single. Independent source. Sold by Subset, shipped by Amazon, $20.00 and in stock for Carbon, Small on 2026-10-23. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    3. GOTS certified suppliers database: 529 LLC dba Subset. Certifier or regulator listing. Shows license GOTS-21368, scope and expiry 2027-02-22. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    4. Subset: Behind the Seams (supply chain). Maker’s page. Names the farm, ginner, spinner and factory cities, and says the fabric is dyed with Oeko-Tex certified materials. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    5. Subset home page. Maker’s page. The “PFAS-free organic cotton” statement. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    6. Subset FAQ. Maker’s page. Says the cotton blend and GOTS-certified fabric did not change when Knickey became Subset. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    7. Subset About page. Maker’s page. Says Knickey, launched in 2018, became Subset in 2023. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    8. GOTS standard, version 8.1 (June 2026). Independent source. Table 6 prohibits PFAS finishes and synthetic antimicrobial finishing inputs. Certified entities move to this version by 1 March 2027. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    9. Subset on Trustpilot. Independent source. One review, about shipping, read on 2026-10-23. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    Alternatives Other options to compare 3 options

    Weekly research digest

    New topics and updated research, once a week when there's something new. How it works