The article presents the results of reserch carried out to evaluate the influence of the type of spinning of cotton fibres on the characteristics of the yarn, its behaviour during knitting and the main characteristics of the resulting jersey knits. Three qualities of cotton were used: carded, combed and semi-combed. Each type was spun using ring spinning and open-en spinning. The yarns were assessed for their resistance, tensacity and elongation, regularity and trash build-up. The yarns were knitted into jersey fabrics and threse were tested for the geometry of the piece, resistance to abrasion, pilling and softness. It was concluded that open-end spinning produces yarn very suitable for jersey knits. The knits produced were less soft than those made from ring-spun yarn and had similar pilling, but superior resistance to abrasion.