Toilet paper as a specific product has several “invention” moments, depending on what you mean by it.

Quick Scoop

  • Paper used for wiping is recorded in East Asia by the 6th century (China and Korea).
  • Special toilet paper made in large sheets for the Chinese imperial court appears by the 14th century (often dated around 1391–1393).
  • The first commercially packaged toilet paper in the modern sense was introduced in the United States in 1857 by Joseph Gayetty (flat sheets, not rolls).
  • Toilet paper on rolls became common later in the 19th century, with patents for perforated rolls and dispensers in the 1890s.

So if you just want a simple answer:

People were using paper as toilet paper by at least the 6th century, but modern commercial toilet paper was invented in 1857 by Joseph Gayetty in the U.S.

Mini timeline

  • 6th century: First documented use of paper for personal hygiene in China.
  • 14th century (c. 1391–1393): Mass production of special toilet paper sheets for the Chinese emperor and court.
  • 1718: Early reference to “paper as toilet paper” in Europe, as paper became more common.
  • 1700s: Newspapers and similar paper became a popular improvised wiping material.
  • 1857: Joseph Gayetty sells the first factory‑made, packaged toilet paper in the U.S.
  • 1882–1890s: First documented rolls and patents for perforated toilet paper rolls and dispensers.
  • 1935: “Splinter‑free” toilet paper marketed, showing how rough early products could be.

Little storytelling angle

For most of human history, people used whatever was handy: leaves, rags, sponges on sticks, sand, corncobs, or, later, old newspapers.

In imperial China, things were a bit more luxurious: by the late 1300s, large perfumed sheets of paper were made specifically for the emperor’s bathroom.

Fast‑forward to 19th‑century America: Joseph Gayetty launches packets of medicated flat sheets in 1857, proudly printing his name on every sheet as the “inventor” of this new hygiene product.

Only later do the familiar perforated rolls show up, get refined to be softer and “splinter‑free,” and eventually become the everyday standard most people in 2026 barely think about—until the moment the roll runs out.

TL;DR:

  • Earliest recorded paper for wiping: 6th century China.
  • Special imperial toilet paper: 14th century China.
  • Modern commercial toilet paper: 1857, Joseph Gayetty, USA.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.