As most of you already know, I've been sharing helpful guides to all kinds of Arc'teryx and Patagonia jackets for the last couple of years now (find full post list at the bottom).
First of all, comparing models instead of brands would make more sense. However, there still are some points we can make when it comes to Arc'teryx vs Patagonia.
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Short Answer
If you're one of my regular readers, then you already know my answer to this.
You can think of Patagonia positioned closer to typical clothing brands such as Zara, GAP, etc. Whereas Arc'teryx is more like a Research & Development facility which literally engineers different jackets for cold weather use.
In most cases, it's pretty much impossible for other brands (including Patagonia) to match the performance standards Arc'teryx jackets have set in the last decade.
Now I say in most cases, because...
...there are some (although rare) situations where I'd recommend Patagonia over Arc'teryx:
- If you're looking for a synthetic insulated jacket to use during high output activities,
- As you can see in my Best Synthetic Insulated Jackets post, I recommend Patagonia's Nano Air over Arc'teryx's Proton LT and Atom LT for this purpose (also see: Nano Air vs Proton LT vs Atom LT).
- If you're looking for a wind jacket that offers extremely high breathability,
- As you can see in my Best Patagonia Jackets and Patagonia Houdini vs Arc'teryx Squamish posts, I recommend Patagonia's Houdini Air over Arc'teryx Squamish for this purpose.
- Because, after the '19 revision, the breathability of Arc'teryx's once beloved Squamish started to suck BAD.
- As you can see in my Best Patagonia Jackets and Patagonia Houdini vs Arc'teryx Squamish posts, I recommend Patagonia's Houdini Air over Arc'teryx Squamish for this purpose.
For all the other folks, Arc'teryx is likely to be a superior pick.
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Temperature Ratings
I examined the temperature ratings of all Patagonia and Arc'teryx jackets, and laid out my findings in this chart. If you're looking for an insulated jacket, this chart will probably be quite helpful to you. So don't skip it!
Enjoy!
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Popular Picks
Arc'teryx
Some of my favorite picks.
- Down jacket: Thorium AR (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Synthetic insulated jacket: Proton LT (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Hardshell: Beta AR (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Softshell: Gamma LT (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Parka: Thorsen (Men's - read my review)
These picks are just top of my head.
You must check out my huge Best Arc'teryx Jackets post if you're considering getting an Arc'teryx jacket.
Proton LT + Beta AR.
These two would probably be my go-to jackets when upgrading a wardrobe. They do wonders when they're worn together AND worn separately.
This is why, in addition to their high performance standards, they're also going to incorporate a lot of versatility to you - much more than any other two jacket combination would be able to accomplish.
Patagonia
When it comes to shell jackets, there's no contest. Arc'teryx's line-up outperforms that of Patagonia by far.
For other jacket types, from a performance-focused aspect, Arc'teryx would still mostly be a better option that Patagonia.
Having said that...
Like I said earlier in this post, there are two conditions where I'd recommend a Patagonia over Arc'teryx [(1) if you're looking for a synthetic insulated jacket to use during high output activities, and (2) if you're looking for a wind jacket that offers extremely high breathability].
Check out the introduction and my product recommendations if you're in one of these circumstances.
Now let me lay out some of my Patagonia favorites:
- Down jacket: Down Sweater Hoody (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Synthetic insulated jacket: Nano Air Hoody (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Fleece: R1 Fleece Pullover Hoody (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Wind Jacket: Houdini (Men's - Women's - read my review)
- Rain Jacket: Calcite (Men's - Women's - read my review)
Also see my other reviews:
- Best Patagonia Jackets
- Best Patagonia Down Jackets
- Best Patagonia Winter Jackets
- Best Patagonia Rain Jackets
- Best Patagonia Fleeces
- Best Patagonia Ski Jackets
Hope this is helpful.
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Product Catalogue
Arc'teryx revises their product catalogue more often to address the certain drawbacks and complaints of their products. This in turn keeps their portfolio up to date and leaves the customers more satisfied.
At arcteryx.com, you'll see the REVISED tag at the top right of each product image, for all revised products, such as: https://arcteryx.com/us/en/shop/mens/atom-lt-hoody.
Patagonia also revises their catalogue - but it just isn't as often and well thought out as that of the Arc'teryx's.
So, to me, Arc'teryx would be the clear winner in this aspect.
Visit the bottom of my Best Arc'teryx Jackets page to see the full list of all revised, new, and discontinued Arc'teryx models.
Product Diversity
Arc'teryx's product diversity is superior to Patagonia. Arc'teryx tends to design a product to target a very specific need in the market.
This is why these products mostly tend to appeal to some certain type of their audience.
It isn't unusual to come across two different Arc'teryx jackets and wonder why Arc'teryx even thought of making two of these products.
Because, in your eyes, you might almost see no difference (for example, Gamma LT and MX).
However, when you look closer (or read my site, hehe); you'll recognize the small nuances that ultimately make these jackets perfect for one type of specific use.
This, in turn, constitutes another reason as to why Arc'teryx jackets are unbeatable in the performance department.
One criticism I'd like to make about Arc'teryx's catalogue is that it can be a bit difficult to really understand which product to get. Their naming scheme is confusing.
- You can read more about Arc'teryx's naming scheme here: https://www.arcteryx.com/help/arc-naming
- This is why Arc'teryx came up with a digital tool they call Jacket Finder, which I strongly recommend every potential buyer to use: https://www.arcteryx.com/us/en/shop/jacket-finder/
Also, questions & answers section at the bottom of each product page at arcteryx.com helps you make up your mind. This isn't available at patagonia.com.
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Material Quality
This is another category where Arc'teryx is the clear winner.
This does not mean that there's something wrong with Patagonia. They're quite a bit above the market average. It's just that Arc'teryx operates on a whole another level with this.
This is also the main reason Arc'teryx jackets are (much) more expensive than Patagonia jackets.
Although Arc'teryx never really completely discloses the material specs in detail, I did find some good resources on this: https://outdoorcrunch.com/goretex/
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Deals
Arc'teryx
Arc'teryx had offered discounts only during the biggest national sale days and weeks - such as Black Friday.
Patagonia
Patagonia, however, offers discounts throughout the entire year, through their Web Specials pages:
Patagonia's Web Specials offer honestly the best discounts I've ever seen. They literally offer 50% off of their best sellers.
This is one of my favorite things about Patagonia. I constantly wish having the same opportunity with Arc'teryx.
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Where are they made
Arc'teryx
Except Alpha SV Men's and Alpha SV Women's, which are made in Canada; all Arc'teryx jackets are made in the Far East (Asia).
Find the manufacturing facilities and locations of all Arc'teryx Jackets (that are currently on sale) below. Data is extracted from arcteryx.com.
Full size table (without scrolling): https://outdoorcrunch.com/arcteryx-data.html
Patagonia
For Patagonia, I didn't code a script that pulls the necessary data from patagonia.com, but I did find a good source about this:
- Vietnam – 40.69%
- Sri Lanka – 16.03%
- China – 13.09%
- Thailand – 7.21%
- Mexico – 5.16%
- Colombia – 3.29%
- USA – 3.12%
- Philippines – 2.05%
- El Salvador – 1.87%
- Bangladesh – 1.60%
- Canada – 1.60%
- India – 1.51%
- Hong Kong – 0.98%
- Nicaragua – 0.80%
- Not Specified – 0.62%
- Taiwan – 0.09%
- South Korea – 0.09%
- Spain – 0.09%
- Portugal – 0.09%
Source: https://allamericanreviews.com/patagonia/
Conclusion: Both brands manufacture the majority of their products in Asia.
Arc'teryx vs Patagonia: Full list of reviews
Scroll down to the bottom of this post to reveal the full list of my Patagonia and Arc'teryx jacket reviews.
Lastly, here's a good video for Arc'teryx vs Patagonia:
