10 Finest Winter Sleeping Baggage of 2022-2023

Crucial attributes of a sleeping bag for winter tenting and backpacking are heat insulation, compressibility, low weight, and ample inside house to retailer gear and water so it doesn’t freeze in a single day. Price can also be an element, though a great winter sleeping bag will final fifteen years or extra if maintained and saved correctly. For winter backpacking and different cellular pursuits similar to backcountry snowboarding and ski mountaineering, we suggest you get a down-insulated winter sleeping bag as a result of it packs up a lot smaller and is way lighter weight.

We predict the very best bang to your buck is a 0-degree sleeping bag since you may increase its heat with a low-cost sleeping bag liner just like the Sea-to-Summit Reactor if you want to sleep in colder temperatures than that. However a -20 or -40 bag can also be a great wager should you’re a chilly sleeper or decided to sleep in additional excessive situations.

Listed here are our high 10 beneficial down-filled winter sleeping baggage for cold-weather backpacking. For extra info and reply to frequent questions, see our analysis standards and shopping for recommendation beneath.

1. Marmot Lithium Sleeping Bag

2. The North Face Inferno 0 Sleeping Bag

3. NEMO Sonic 0 Down Sleeping Bag

4. Therm-a-Relaxation Parsec 0 Sleeping Bag

5. Western Mountaineering Kodiak 0 Down Sleeping Bag

6. Feathered Associates Snowbunting EX 0 Sleeping Bag

7. Mountain Hardwear Phantom 0 Down Sleeping Bag

8. Therm-a-Relaxation Polar Ranger -20

9. Western Mountaineering Puma MF -25

10. Feather Associates Snow Goose EX -40

Winter Sleeping Bag FAQs

Mummy Sleeping Bag or Quilt?

A mummy sleeping bag is hotter and extra comfy than an ultralight down quilt below 20 levels Fahrenheit. Whereas quilts are standard for heat climate use, mummy baggage are far much less drafty when the mercury drops beneath 20 levels. Additionally they present a heat in a single day house the place you may maintain water, filters, and footwear in a single day to stop them from freezing. That is tougher to do with an ultralight quilt, which is normally shorter and sized slim to save lots of weight. Sleeping in temperatures beneath freezing positively modifications your habits and requires a distinct skillset and equipment checklist than common three-season tenting or backpacking in hotter climate.

Down vs. Artificial Insulation

Down insulation is extra compressible and hotter by weight than artificial insulation. How a lot hotter? The most effective artificial insulation is just equal to 600 fill energy down. What about moisture accumulation contained in the bag? If you happen to’re simply going out for one night time or a number of nights in zero-degree climate, it’s unlikely that you just’ll perspire sufficient to considerably scale back the insulation worth of a down bag. It’s a really totally different story should you’re on an expedition the place you’re sleeping out in -40 diploma climate each night time for weeks on finish. Even then, most mountaineering guides and explorers nonetheless go for down-filled sleeping baggage over artificial ones as a result of they’re hotter, pack up a lot smaller, and are a lot lighter weight to hold. You may as well dry out a sleeping bag throughout a visit within the solar to rid of it any additional moisture. Individuals do it on a regular basis.

Waterproof Down vs Non-Waterproof Down

There’s no such factor as waterproof down. Whereas so-called down waterproofing therapies permit right down to dry sooner if it will get damp from perspiration, most premium sleeping bag makers gained’t use it as a result of it reduces the perceived insulation worth of 800, 850, 900, advert 950 fill energy goose down.

Temperature Ranking

What’s the finest sleeping bag temperature ranking to get for winter backpacking? Whereas there are certain to be regional variations, a zero-degree sleeping bag is normally a great baseline temperature to goal for as a result of you may simply make it hotter by 20 levels by carrying insulated garments or through the use of a sleeping bag liner, which might prevent a bit of cash. A zero-degree bag will also be utilized in hotter temps as much as about 20-30 levels by cracking open the zipper or loosening up the hood and venting it should you’re too heat. The load and packability of a zero-degree sleeping bag can also be fairly cheap in comparison with a  minus 20-degree bag or minus 40-degree bag and normally doesn’t require the acquisition of a bigger backpack to hold.

Finest Sort of Insulation

If you happen to plan to do any winter backpacking, you’re going to need a down-insulated sleeping bag as a result of it’s the warmest insulation out there by weight. It compresses very effectively, making it very packable. Intention for down fill powers of 800, 850, or 900: the upper the higher. Larger fill energy down traps extra heat by weight than decrease fill energy down. Individuals usually ponder whether goose down is best than duck down. All down is graded the identical means, in a species-independent method. In different phrases 800 fill energy goose down is nearly as good as 800 fill energy duck down, solely dearer as a result of there’s a smaller provide.

Sleeping Bag Dimensions

It is not uncommon to sleep with boot liners or boots, water bottles, and different gadgets, like water filters, that ought to not freeze in a single day. This implies you’ll need some additional house in a cold-weather sleeping bag to retailer the gear whereas nonetheless sustaining your private consolation. Along with added shoulder, hip, and foot width, some individuals get an extended sleeping bag to allow them to retailer gear beneath their toes. Winter nights are lengthy and it pays to be comfy, particularly if it’s important to sleep with chilly, damp boots and water bottles.

Gender

Most zero-degree winter sleeping baggage are unisex. The one exception to that is Featured Associates which makes seven ladies’s particular sleeping baggage by our final depend together with 0, -10, and -25 diploma winter sleeping baggage.

Should-have Options

Winter sleeping baggage ought to have a draft collar, zipper draft tubes, and snag-free zippers at a minimal. Partial size zippers, steady baffles, vents, and even waterproof down are all nice-to-haves, however you may get by with out them to save lots of on price or as a result of they’re not strictly essential.

Draft Collar

Most winter sleeping baggage have draft collars and I think about it a cold-weather important. A draft collar is a tube of insulation that drapes over your chest and neck and seals within the bag’s heat. With out it, the nice and cozy air contained in the bag will rush out round your neck if you transfer round inside. The best draft collar is a down tube that covers the entrance of your chest. Larger-end baggage add a second draft collar across the again of your shoulders and neck and supply further controls, so you may tighten or loosen it.

Zipper Draft Tubes

Draft tubes are down-filled tubes of cloth that cowl up the facet zipper so your legs don’t are available contact with it (as a result of it’s chilly). Additionally they stop chilly air from leaking into the bag via the needle holes which might be created when stitching the zipper to the bag. Most winter baggage have at the very least one zipper draft tube, though some have two, each high and backside, that fall into place if you zip up your bag.

Snag Free Zipper

Snag-free zippers stop the facet zipper’s enamel from tearing the shell material of your bag and spilling its insulation. The zipper is normally bordered by stiff material tape, to maintain it away from the down baffles and stop it from getting snagged on the bag’s outer shell.

Good-to-have options

Water-Resistant Down

Water resistant down is a pleasant to have, not essential in a winter sleeping bag. The reality is most individuals can maintain their sleeping baggage dry. If you happen to discover moisture on the surface of your sleeping bag within the morning, it doesn’t imply that the down inside is moist. Merely drape it over your tent within the solar whilst you eat breakfast and it’ll dry very quickly.

Steady baffles

Steady baffles normally run horizontally throughout a bag. They help you shake the down within the baffles and transfer it to a distinct location. For instance, should you’re too heat, you may shake the down so it fell down the perimeters of the bag, moderately than maintain it in your chest. Whereas steady baffles allow you to customise the distribution of down for various wants, many individuals desire baffles that maintain the down in a single place reliably and completely. It’s one much less factor to fret about.

Partial size zippers

Partial size zippers are sometimes used as a weight-saving characteristic, nonetheless, they’ll scale back use throughout a wider temperature vary by limiting your venting choices.

Vents

Vents like NEMO’s Thermogills can improve the temperature vary of a sleeping bag, however they’re only one means of engaging in this aim.

Which is best in winter, a mummy sleeping bag, or an oblong sleeping bag?

Mummy baggage are usually lighter weight as a result of they’re form-fitting, making them higher for winter backpacking if you need a light-weight, compressible sleeping bag. Rectangular sleeping baggage will be simply as heat, however they’re extra acceptable for winter tenting, not backpacking, as a result of they’re not as form-fitting, they’re heavier, and have much less environment friendly hoods to maintain your head heat.

Can you utilize a quilt as a substitute of a sleeping bag in winter?

It actually depends upon how chilly you need to go. Most individuals swap from quilts to mummy sleeping baggage at about 20 levels Fahrenheit as a result of sleeping baggage are significantly better at blocking chilly drafts than quilt-pad attachment straps. A quilt can definitely work right down to 0 levels should you increase it with a down hood (successfully replicating a mummy bag hood and draft collar) to maintain your head, neck, and higher chest heat. Beneath zero, you may strive stacking quilts however I extremely suggest testing out this technique at house earlier than making an attempt it someplace the place it counts.

What’s the very best insulation, down or artificial?

If you happen to’re desirous about winter backpacking, your finest wager is to get a down sleeping bag with the best down fill energy (see beneath) you may afford as a result of it’s ounce-for-ounce lighter weight and extra compressible than a winter sleeping bag full of artificial insulation. Winter backpacking gear could be very heavy if you add up the load of insulated boots, a high-capacity backpack, a four-season tent, winter sleeping pad(s), a liquid gas range, gas, snowshoes, crampons, and so on. so it actually does pay to save lots of as a lot weight and pack house as you may through the use of the lightest and smallest winter sleeping bag that can maintain you heat.

Which is best, waterproof down, or common untreated down?

So-called waterproof down isn’t truly waterproof, however waterproof. If you happen to dunk it in water, it’s going to fail to insulate, though it’s going to dry sooner than untreated down. Subsequently, should you plan on sleeping in snow caves or out within the open in a bivy sack, waterproof down might be a greater possibility for the reason that down will dry sooner if the material shell of your bag will get moist. If you happen to’re sleeping in a comfortable tent with a water-proof flooring, it in all probability doesn’t matter that a lot, besides should you’re on a multi-day journey the place the buildup of perspiration passing via your insulation and out the breathable shell of your sleeping bag can accumulate within the down, degrading its loft and skill to retain heat. Waterproof down could be higher in these circumstances.

What’s down fill-power?

Down consists of fluffy filaments which might be lots like human hair. A single ounce of common high quality down comprises about 2 million of those filaments which interlock to maintain heat air in and chilly air out. This layer could be very springy so you may scrunch it up by compressing it, however it’s going to spring again into form virtually instantly. Fill energy measures the lofting energy of goose down which is its skill to entice air. To measure fill energy, one ounce of down is compressed in a small glass cylinder. When the load is eliminated, the down’s skill to spring again will be measured. Down with the next fill energy ranking is extra resilient to compression, lofts higher, and might entice extra air. Apart from being hotter, this additionally signifies that sleeping baggage or parkas with larger fill rankings require much less insulation by weight to offer the identical stage of heat than an merchandise made with decrease high quality down.

Is there a heat distinction between goose down and duck down?

No. Fill energy is measured the identical means throughout totally different animals and species. In different phrases 750 fill energy goose down gives the identical stage of insulation as 750 fill energy duck down.

Is there a price distinction between totally different down fill-powers?

Sure. The upper the fill energy, the dearer will probably be. Costs have dropped lately nonetheless since there’s a worldwide surplus of down, the upper fill powers stay the most costly.

What’s the very best down fill-power for a winter sleeping bag?

The lightest weight, most compressible winter sleeping baggage are insulated with 800, 850, 900, or 950 fill energy down. A 950 fill-power down bag is high of the road.

How reliable are winter sleeping bag temperature rankings?

Whereas heat climate sleeping bag rankings have grow to be way more goal lately with the adoption of worldwide temperature ranking requirements and third-party testing, the identical can’t be mentioned about winter sleeping bag temperature rankings. Whereas the EN and ISO temperature rankings printed for heat climate sleeping baggage rated to 10 levels and better have confirmed to be dependable, research have proven that it isn’t a statistically dependable technique to fee the temperature ranking of sleeping baggage rated beneath 10 levels, together with all winter sleeping baggage.

As an alternative, sleeping producers fee their very own sleeping baggage by having individuals sleep in chilly rooms, mainly walk-in freezers, to see in the event that they keep heat at totally different temperature settings. This may generate very subjective outcomes relying on who does the testing, whether or not they’re male or feminine, what their physique weight is, how effectively a sleeping bag matches them, the heat of the lengthy underwear they’re carrying, whether or not they’re carrying a hat or not, what sleeping pad they’re utilizing, once they final ate, and so forth.

So who are you able to belief? Your finest wager is to purchase a winter sleeping bag mannequin that’s been available on the market for some time and has a loyal following of people that will attest to the accuracy of its temperature ranking.

Feathered Associates and Western Mountaineering have constructed their enterprise round word-of-mouth testimonials, which is why individuals desire their winter sleeping baggage over all others. Nobody else gives the vary of choice or technical options offered by these two producers.

Can you utilize a 0-degree winter sleeping bag as a substitute of a -20 diploma winter sleeping bag?

There are all types of tips to increase the vary of a 0-degree sleeping bag for colder climate, particularly if gear weight or bulk is an enormous concern:

• by carrying insulated clothes inside your sleeping bag so as to increase its efficient temperature ranking
• sleeping with scorching water bottles
• sleeping with chemical hand heaters
• utilizing a sleeping bag liner
• stuff all your spare clothes inside so your physique has to warmth much less open house
• eat a heavy dinner with numerous fats and protein earlier than going to mattress
• and so forth…

It’s best to experiment with these in your yard or inside strolling distance of your automotive earlier than you want to depend on them in a wilderness survival state of affairs.

If you’re on a serious expedition and your information requires a -20 diploma or -40 diploma bag for sustained frigid climate, you must seek the advice of with them about utilizing a winter sleeping bag rated for hotter temperatures. Many guides hire cold-weather baggage, which might prevent the expense of shopping for one for one-time use.

Another choice is to cancel journeys the place you already know the climate shall be too chilly to your sleeping bag. As a winter backpacking journey information, my companions and I routinely cancel journeys the place the climate forecast requires -20 nighttime temperatures because it’s actually no enjoyable to sit down outdoors and soften consuming water in climate like that. There’s no disgrace in bailing on a visit when it’s too chilly outdoors to get pleasure from your self.

Do ladies want hotter winter sleeping baggage than males?

Girls are likely to sleep colder than males, so it’s beneficial that they get a sleeping bag that’s 10 levels hotter when shopping for a unisex or males’s sleeping bag. For instance, ladies can buy a -10 diploma winter sleeping bag so as to keep as heat as a person in a 0-degree winter sleeping bag. Nonetheless, that’s not the case, should you purchase a winter sleeping bag designed for a girl. A ladies’s 0-degree winter sleeping bag ought to maintain you as heat as a males’s 0-degree sleeping bag.

What’s the distinction between males’s and girls’s sleeping baggage?

Girls’s sleeping baggage are sometimes shorter in size, narrower within the shoulders, and wider within the hips. They might even have additional insulation over the chest, within the hood, and within the footbox, since ladies have a tougher time preserving their heads, fingers, and toes heat.

How do you measurement a winter sleeping bag?

Sleeping in a winter sleeping bag is totally different from sleeping in a three-season or summer season sleeping bag as a result of you want to sleep with a few of your gear from freezing in a single day (boots, water bottles, electronics) or as a result of you want to put on further insulated garments in your sleeping bag like a down parka and down-filled pants.

To measurement up, individuals usually get a longer-sized sleeping bag or one which has a wider shoulder girth. Shoulder girth measures the circumference of the sleeping bag at shoulder top. When becoming a winter sleeping bag, you need to reduce the quantity of additional inside free-space that your physique has to warmth up whereas not compressing the loft of your insulation by getting a bag that’s too tight.

For instance, a 5′ 10″ tall man may decide to get a 6′ 6″ lengthy bag as a substitute of a 6′ lengthy sleeping bag so as to retailer a few of his gear within the sleeping bag foot field. Alternatively, you may decide to get a bag with wider shoulders or chest measurements so you may hug your additional gear at night time to maintain it heat or tuck it behind your again (should you’re a facet sleeper.) That’s at all times been my desire, as a substitute of getting a longer-length sleeping bag.

How do you identify your wants and preferences? Attempt on numerous sleeping baggage whereas carrying your in a single day gear, even when it means shopping for baggage and returning them to retailers in the event that they don’t match.

What are a very powerful options to search for on winter sleeping baggage?

After match, a very powerful options are having a draft collar, draft tubes, zipper guards, and a well-fitting hood. It’s additionally vital to get a sleeping bag with a breathable exterior shell that may vent perspiration however is waterproof. Sleeping baggage with waterproof/breathable shells are sometimes much less breathable than these with no waterproof/breathable exterior material.

What’s a draft collar?

A draft coloration is an insulated tube of insulation that covers the highest of your chest and again and seals in all the heat beneath it in your bag so it will possibly’t escape. It prevents what’s known as the “bellows impact”, the place the nice and cozy air round your legs and core is pressured out via the highest of your sleeping bag if you transfer round at night time. You’ll be able to obtain an analogous impact by wrapping a climate or down jacket round your higher chest or neck as effectively.

What’s a draft tube?

A draft tube is an insulated tube of insulation that runs alongside the zipper and prevents chilly air from leaking in your sleeping bag or heat air from leaking out. Some sleeping baggage just like the Western Mountaineering Puma -25 have two interlocking draft tubes, one above and one beneath the zipper.

What’s a zipper guard?

A zipper guard is a bit of cloth or stiffened material tape that runs alongside a zipper and prevents it from snagging on the within lining of your sleeping bag. It’s an vital characteristic of a sleeping bag because it eliminates snags that may stop you from closing the zipper in frigid climate.

What’s a sleeping bag baffle?

A baffle is a material tube containing down or artificial insulation. They’re normally oriented horizontally or vertically in sleeping baggage.

What are steady baffles?

Steady baffles are material tubes full of down insulation that normally run horizontally round a sleeping bag. They allow you to shake the down inside them to maneuver it the place you need it, normally to the highest of a sleeping bag, or down the perimeters. Present in high-end quilts and sleeping baggage like these from Feathered Associates or Western Mountaineering, steady baffles are a extremely fascinating characteristic for some individuals that permits you to transfer the insulation to the elements of you which might be chilly. For others, it’s a curse, as a result of the down insulation can shift the place you don’t need it to go, creating chilly spots.

What are block baffles?

Blocking baffles, additionally known as facet block baffles or V-block baffles are utilized in excessive loft, winter expedition sleeping baggage to stop down from shifting from the highest of a sleeping bag to its sides.

What are the professionals and cons of sleeping baggage which have waterproof breathable exterior shells like Gore-tex?

Sadly, they’re principally cons. The concept of masking a sleeping bag with a water-proof/breathable shell material is interesting as a result of it will imply that you just don’t want to hold a bivy sack to sleep in a snow shelter or fear about getting inner condensation on the surface of your sleeping bag if you contact your tent’s partitions at night time. However expertise has proven that masking the outside of a sleeping bag with a water-proof breathable shell tends to entice extra perspiration contained in the insulation of a sleeping bag than one with a a lot lighter shell material.

Opposite to what you’d count on, waterproof/breathable materials are literally far much less breathable than many of the non-waterproof shell materials used on the outside of sleeping baggage immediately. You may get the identical waterproof profit by spraying a DWR coating on the surface of those lighter-weight, extra breathable materials, which is able to repel water droplets that fall onto the surface of the bag, inflicting them to bead and roll off, identical to a rain jacket. Most sleeping producers already do that on the manufacturing unit. But when the DWR coating wears off, you may apply it at house utilizing Nikwax TX Direct or related merchandise.

As well as, most sleeping bag producers don’t tape or seam seal all the seams of their baggage, which is absolutely required for true waterproofing. Take into consideration all the tiny needle holes within the baffling of a down bag. Taping or seam sealing all of them could be very expensive. In distinction, most bivy baggage made with waterproof/breathable materials have taped seams or will be simply sealed with a seam sealer. You actually can’t do the identical with a sleeping bag.

What’s the finest exterior material for a winter sleeping bag?

You need an exterior shell material that’s powerful sufficient to be sturdy and has good breathability, with a decent sufficient weave and/or a DWR coating that can make water roll off its floor. Pertex Defend and microfiber calendared nylon are good examples of materials with these properties.

How ought to a winter sleeping bag hood match?

That is an space of non-public desire, however you need a hood that can match round your head with none air gaps that leak heat. It must be simple to regulate (many aren’t), transfer with you should you roll onto your facet, and never grow to be saturated with water vapor if you exhale at night time via your mouth. One of the simplest ways to find out hood match is to get inside a sleeping bag and take a look at it out. It’s vital to get a hood you could spend 12 hours or extra in comfortably since winter nights are so lengthy.

How vital is a excessive R-value sleeping pad?

A winter sleeping bag with no excessive R-value sleeping pad is sort of a sheep with out wool. With out one, your physique warmth shall be sucked into the chilly floor. We suggest utilizing a sleeping dangerous with an R-value of 5 or higher. R-values are additive, so it’s also possible to use two sleeping pads, one stacked on high of the opposite to attain the next composite R-value. Many winter backpackers will carry a foam pad, which can be utilized as a seat when cooking or snow melting, along with an inflatable sleeping pad for consolation. When selecting winter pads, we suggest utilizing ones which were rated utilizing the brand new sleeping bag commonplace, such because the Therm-a-Relaxation XTherm, which has an R-value of 6.9

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