Best Patagonia Down Jacket

I've been studying Patagonia jackets for the last 3+ years (see full post list at the bottom). This post works as the blueprint to best Patagonia down jackets. 

Summary

#Notes:

• Parkas aren't in this list due to their different design intentions. Check out my Best Patagonia Winter Parkas & Jackets post to read about them. 
• Find supporting documents at the bottom of this post.

°F / °C column refers to the approximate lowest temperature ranges you can wear these pieces without feeling cold, assuming:

• you only have a shirt under and no shell over,
• during daily use (strolls, power walks etc at most - no high output activities), 
• with enough wind to cause an umbrella to twist in your hand, 
• and when it's dry out.

If you think you run warmer or colder than the average person, then shift temperature ranges accordingly. 

As you can see, excluding parkas, Patagonia currently offers only 4 down jackets in their entire line-up. 

Temperature Ratings of Patagonia Jackets

Here's how they compare to other down jackets: 

As some of you already know, Patagonia doesn't reveal the Fill Weights of their down pieces, which is one of two major factors that determine ultimate warmth. 

If you're unaware, the other major factor is Fill Power. 

Since fill weight is crucial to figure out the objective ultimate warmth, I contacted their Customer Service myself, obtained these relevant values, and laid them out in the chart below. 

Overview

Note that all these jackets & hoodies will lose warmth significantly when they get wet. Unfortunately, that's the fate and trade-off you must sacrifice with all down products. 

This is why, for damp areas, generally I don't recommend getting a down jacket, and instead, recommend getting a synthetic insulated jacket (see my best picks from Patagonia and Arc'teryx here). 

In addition to all these down jackets, Patagonia also offers some (although not much) down parkas and fleeces. Since they have completely different design intentions (which is mostly (always?) casual purposes), I won't review them here.

Check out my Best Patagonia Winter Parkas & Jackets post to read about them. 

So why get a colder hoody at the same price?

Well... because it's not all about warmth. 

Overheating, packability, durability, total weight, noise etc are all other factors although mostly minor next to the warmth. 

Overheating

If you're like most people, you'll most likely overheat inside Hi-Loft Down Hoody when it's anything above, say, 25 deg F (-4 deg C). 

Noise

Silent down jackets are made of 100% recycled down, 70% recycled fabric. This makes them more soft, stretchy and quiet than other picks in this review. 

What about Fill Power?

Good question.

Theoretically, it's true that the fill weight X fill power is the only factor that determines the warmth.

But in practice, the higher the fill power, the more durable the insulation will be in the long term. 

So it's a trade-off. Give or take. 

This means that although it's colder, Down Sweater Hoody (which is equipped with 104 grams of 800 FP down) will lose much less of its insluation capability than Hi-Loft Down Hoody (which is equipped with 177 grams of 600 FP down).

...within, say, 3-5 years. 

This means that if you aren't planning to wear them for that long, then you'd better disregard this loss of insulation as a whole. Because it won't come into play for you anyway. 

Packability & compactness

Some down products come with their own stuff sack, so they're packable. Whereas the others aren't. 

Compactness, or "packed size" is also determined by fill power of the down. The higher the fill power, the more compact the packed product will end up being. 

My other helpful data sets

I also published a data set for Arc'teryx and Patagonia jackets only - which are my two favorite brands of all. 

Supporting documents

My chat with customer service: