Finest Backpacking Rain Jackets of 2025

May 6, 2025

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What do you have to search for in a rain jacket for mountain climbing and backpacking? Whereas having a water-resistant/breathable jacket is usually a plus, it’s fairly straightforward to overwhelm their means to vent moisture within the rain whenever you’re perspiring with a backpack strapped to your again. You’re actually higher off shopping for a extra reasonably priced jacket that has options that hikers want like a completely adjustable hood, pit zips, velcro wrist cuffs, and hem adjusters. Monitoring down rain jackets that match that description takes a bit of leg work, however we’ve finished it for you beneath.

We’ve additionally included waterproof/breathable rain jackets in addition to ones made with non-breathable materials since you’re going to perspire whenever you’re carrying them within the rain, regardless of how a lot they price or what they’re product of. If staying perspiration-free within the rain is essential to you whilst you’re mountain climbing down a path carrying a loaded backpack…possibly it is best to decide one other sport. You’re going to sweat. Consider a rain jacket as a part of your bigger layering system as an alternative. Its greatest use is to maintain you heat when it’s raining or the wind is blowing onerous, usually together with a mid or base layer. Perspiring is inevitable. Your aim must be to remain heat and keep away from hypothermia.

Listed below are the highest cheap rain jackets that we suggest for hikers and backpackers.

1. Patagonia Torrentshell 3L

The Patagonia Torrentshell 3L Jacket is a fully-featured rain jacket phrases with an adjustable hood, pit zips, velcro wrist cuffs, hem pull wire, and aspect pockets. Whereas the Torrentshell has been obtainable for years, Patagonia not too long ago up to date it and made it a full three-layer waterproof/breathable jacket with improved breathability and luxury. This together with its spectacular function set makes it a really enticing rain jacket at a comparatively low value level. It’s obtainable in males’s and ladies’s sizes. Learn the SectionHiker Patagonia Torrentshell Evaluate.

2. Black Diamond Fineline Stretch Rain Shell

The Black Diamond Fineline Stretch Rain Shell is a light-weight, 2.5 layer BD.Dry waterproof/breathable rain shell with a quantity adjustable, helmet-compatible hood and entrance brim, pit zips, velcro wrist cuffs, zippered handwarmer pockets, an elastic hem adjuster, and a YKK polyurethane zipper for further water safety. It’s made with a really comfy and quiet stretch cloth that’s absolutely seam-taped for max climate safety. It’s obtainable in males’s and ladies’s sizes.

3. REI Rainier Rain Jacket

The REI Rainier Rain Jacket is similar to the Marmot Precip Eco listed beneath. It has a 3-way adjustable hood that may be folded away when not in use, velcro wrist cuffs, pit zips, handwarmer pockets, inside drop pockets, and a drawcord hem. It’s made with REI 2.5 waterproof/breathable Peak membrane and has an exterior DWR which is able to must be refreshed periodically when rain stops beading on the jacket’s exterior. Accessible in males’s and ladies’s sizes. Learn the SectionHiker Rainier Rain Jacket assessment.

4. Out of doors Analysis Foray 3L

The Out of doors Analysis Foray 3L is an up to date model of OR’s hottest waterproof/breathable Gore-tex rain jacket. It’s loaded with options together with a three-way adjustable hood with a entrance brim, velcro wrist cuffs, chest and hand hotter pockets, YKK Aquaguard zippers, and elastic hem adjustment. However what units this jacket other than all others are its full-length torso-flow side-zips which could be opened like pit-zips however prolong all the way in which down the perimeters of the jacket so you’ll be able to absolutely ventilate the jacket like a poncho and even put on it over your hip belt to maintain it dry within the rain. The ladies’s mannequin known as the Out of doors Analysis Aspire 3L.

5. Montbell Versalite Jacket

The Montbell Versalite Jacket is a fully-featured ultralight rain jacket that has pit zips, a four-way adjustable hood, hook and loop wrist cuffs, hip-belt appropriate chest pockets, an internally managed hem adjustment, waterproof zippers, and taped seams. Whereas it’s by far essentially the most breathable Gore-tex jacket on this listing, it’s made with 10-denier nylon ripstop that’s straightforward to break and skinny sufficient that it’s greatest utilized in extra reasonable climate when much less heat is required. The Versatile jacket is on the market in males’s and ladies’s sizes. Learn the SectionHiker Versalite Jacket assessment.

6. Enlightened Tools Visp Rain Jacket

The Enlightened Tools Visp Rain Jacket is a 3-layer waterproof/breathable jacket made with a skinny 7D ripstop nylon, a non-porous PU membrane and a tender tricot lining for a cushty next-to-skin really feel. Weighing 5.6 oz it’s very light-weight, however much less puncture-proof because of this. It has pit zips below the arms with waterproof zippers. The jacket has a fitted hood with a stiffened visor that adjusts at the back and front and formed wrist cuffs with a velcro adjustment for added wrist heat and utility. Made for mountain climbing, the Visp has a drop-tail hem that gives further protection within the again to maintain the jacket from driving up below a pack in addition to an elasticated waist to forestall drafts from beneath. The sizing is unisex. Learn the SectionHiker Visp Evaluate.

7. Marmot Precip Eco

The Marmot Precip Eco is a extremely popular backpacking rain jacket as a result of it’s cheap, however absolutely featured, with pit zip vents, a completely adjustable hood, velcro-wrist cuffs, and a hem adjustment. The jacket additionally has two mesh-lined entrance pockets that are nice to retailer gloves or a hat and supply extra air flow. The Precip Eco is made with Marmot’s proprietary waterproof/breathable cloth which will get the job finished however will must be reproofed when the DWR coating wears off. Whereas the Precip Eco is priced at $120, you’ll be able to often discover it for much much less. This jacket is on the market in males’s and ladies’s sizes. Learn the SectionHiker assessment.

8. Lightheart Gear Rain Jacket

The Lightheart Gear Rain Jacket is a fully-featured rain jacket with an adjustable hood, pit zips, velcro wrist cuffs, inside, and exterior pockets, and a drawcord hem. It’s made with siliconized polyester (silpoly) which is a completely waterproof cloth, so that you’ll by no means want to revive a DWR layer as a result of it doesn’t have one. Lightheart Gear is a cottage producer that sews all of its jackets. It’s additionally obtainable in a pleasant number of colours. The sizing is unisex. Learn the SectionHiker assessment.

9. Frogg Toggs Xtreme Lite Jacket

The Frogg Toggs Xtreme Lite is a light-weight waterproof rain jacket with a completely adjustable hood, zippered aspect pockets, velcro wrist closures, and a cord-adjustable waist. It’s additionally completely waterproof and much more sturdy and higher becoming than different Frogg Toggs rain gear together with the basic Frogg Toggs UL2 Rain Go well with favored by generations of AT thru-hikers. Accessible in males’s and ladies’s fashions. Learn the SectionHiker assessment.

10. The North Face Alta Vista Jacket

The North Face Alta Vista Jacket is a 2.5 layer waterproof/breathable jacket made with TNF’s DryVent Membrane. It has a wonderful 2-way adjustable hood with a rear quantity adjuster and neck cords. Full with pit-zips, the jacket has hand-warmer pockets, and stuffs into its chest pocket for straightforward packing. Hook and loop wrist cuffs and a hem adjustment spherical out its spectacular performance. The jacket is on the market in males’s and ladies’s fashions.

Backpacking Rain Jacket Choice Standards

What are an important options to search for on a mountain climbing and backpacking rain jacket?

Adjustable Hoods

Sadly, many rain jackets have outsized hoods which can be supposed for skiers and climbers who put on protecting helmets. What it is best to search for is a completely adjustable hood with a rear quantity adjustment so you’ll be able to shrink the hood dimension to suit your head, aspect pulls so you’ll be able to alter the scale of the face opening, a wire or shapeable brim to protect your eyes from wind and snow, and a excessive collar that covers your neck and mouth. All of those options will assist defend your face from the chilly and wind and enable you keep hotter.

Zippered Pockets

You’ll be able to’t have too many rain jacket pockets. They’re nice for carrying spare gloves, hats, and retaining navigation instruments in straightforward attain. They’re additionally good for retaining snacks shut at hand so you’ll be able to eat whilst you hike. I view rain jacket pockets as an extension of my backpack as a result of the additional storage cuts down on the variety of instances I’ve to cease to get garments or meals out of my pack.

Venting Capabilities

When you must hike in cool moist climate, you need to restrict the quantity you perspire by actively managing your heat stage. The important thing to doing this includes venting extra heat by eradicating or venting layers. A great rain jacket ought to present a number of methods so that you can dump extra warmth with out having to take it off utterly. Listed below are among the most essential options to search for when evaluating completely different jackets.

Adjustable Hook and Loop (Velcro) Wrist Closures: This helps regulate the physique warmth at your wrists the place the blood flows near the floor of your pores and skin. They are often worn below gloves or over them relying in your desire and the glove kind.
Two-way entrance zipper: When you pull the underside half up, you’ll be able to dump lots of extra torso warmth, poncho-style.
Hem drawcord: Cinch it closed to maintain the wind from blowing up between your legs and robbing your torso of warmth.

Breathability Scores

What do you have to search for when it comes to breathability scores when mountain climbing rain jackets? For cheap rain jackets, the perfect you’ll be able to hope for is 10,000 (g/m^2/d) MVTR (movable water vapor transmission fee), which is fairly lackluster. A lot of the producers listed above don’t publish the MVTRs for his or her jackets, as a result of they’re not that aggressive with dearer clothes.

However to be sincere, I don’t belief the breathability scores printed by producers as a result of they’re measured in splendid laboratory circumstances which have little to do with precise use. Pit zips and energetic venting trump breathability claims any day. When you get too scorching, venting your rain jacket goes to chill and dry you off much more shortly than ready for water vapor to maneuver throughout a breathable membrane whereas your zipper is closed.

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