These Are The Best Insulated Layers For Skiers, According To Our Testers

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Outerwear might get all the glory, but it’s what’s on the inside that really matters. Insulated midlayers are the key to staying warm on the mountain and offer the most options when it comes to your on-mountain layering system. This season, our team of testers put insulated layers from various brands through the wringer, ranging from active midlayers designed for high-output backcountry skiing, to cozy fleeces to arctic expedition-grade puffy jackets.

These spanned the range from super-breathable and lightweight layers to keep the wind at bay while touring uphill all day, to sleeping-bag-like puffies that absolutely delete the elements on frigid storm days. 

Active Midlayers vs. Fleeces vs. Puffy Jackets

Unlike the uninsulated shell jackets we’ve reviewed here and here, midlayers, fleeces and puffy jackets are designed with one thing in mind: keeping you warm. We call them “midlayers” because they are the middle layer in a standard layering system for skiing, where baselayers go next to skin for moisture wicking and the first layer of insulation, midlayers are sandwiched between to provide the bulk of the insulation, and waterproof shells are the outside layer to keep wind and precipitation at bay. 

There are two key differences between active midlayers, fleeces and puffy jackets: construction and ideal use case.

Active midlayers are typically made of synthetic insulation that stretches with you and is extremely breathable. These are meant to be worn on high-output days, whether your backcountry ski touring or resort skiing. On sunny days with no precipitation, I’ll often wear these as my outer layer for most (or all) of the day and skip the shell jacket entirely. These are great to sweat in as they are the most breathable.

Fleece midlayers are some of the warmest options and work well for lower-output activities like cruising around the resort on really cold days. Most high-performance fleece jackets are now made with grid fleece patterns, which give the material a bit more loft (and thus more warmth). Thanks to their lower-profile construction, I will often wear these as an additional midlayer on particularly cold days at the resort.

Finally, puffy (puffer) jackets are the pinnacle of warmth when it comes to insulation. These use either goose or duck down feathers or high-loft synthetic material sewn into baffles to provide exceptional warmth. These are the best option if you run really cold, or as an extra layer to carry in your pack to use in an emergency or for a summit lunch break. Goose down compresses better than synthetic materials, offering more warmth for the bulk, but loses its loft as soon as it gets wet–meaning it won’t keep you warm anymore. Synthetic puffy material works better in wet climates but isn’t quite as warm or packable. I rarely wear a puffy under my shell, instead usually layering it over my shell jacket to ensure it keeps its loft. 

Down is rated by its “fill power,” a measurement of the quality of down feathers used in the construction–it’s not a direct correlation to how warm a jacket actually is. Instead, high fill power down tends to be a little lighter and more packable, while the physical amount of down in the jacket determines its warmth.

Active Midlayers:

Stellar Equipment | Flexlight Hood

Stellar has been killing it when it comes creating ski outerwear that puts function and usability above all. We’ve been super impressed with their shell kit, and now we love the Flexlight Hood insulated midlayer. A nod to the venerable Arc’teryx Atom Hoodie (my personal favorite midlayer for years), the Stellar EQ Flexlight brings exceptional breathability, stretch, and comfort to the table. In fact, I like it more than the Atom these days due to the slightly longer fit and the slightly cheaper price tag. 

Thanks to its awesome breathability and mid-level warmth, the Flexlight is a great option to wear for all-day ski tours, colder resort skiing, and even around town doing errands. A simple pocket layout (two hand pockets and a chest pocket large enough for a phone) cuts down on extra zippers, meaning this layer is impressively compressible to shove in your pack when things heat up. 

The Flexlight Hood fits slightly larger than most and is available in a men’s and women’s fit.

Stio | Fernos Insulated Vest

I’ve never been a huge fan of vests until I tried Stio’s Fernos Insulated Vest as a nordic skiing layer. It got me thinking, “would this be the Goldilocks layer for extremely high-output days where I want a little extra warmth to battle the wind or cold?” I started wearing it ski touring, and lo and behold, it quickly proved its worth as providing exactly what I needed for pre-work bootpacking up Mt. Glory, keeping up with my faster friends on the skintrack, and evening skate skiing missions. It keeps my torso warm and blocks the wind while letting my arms (and most notably, my wrists) breathe. 

Stio’s Jackson Hole heritage is really on display here, as this piece was clearly built to serve the needs of the aggressively active population of skiers in the Tetons. There’s a good reason I’ve seen tons of people wearing this piece here. 

The Fernos Insulated Vest fits true to size and is available in a men’s and women’s fit.

Rab | Vapour-Rise Summit Jacket

Still a relatively low-profile brand in North America, Rab has been quietly putting out some of the highest-quality outerwear and equipment for skiers and climbers across the globe. The Vapour-Rise Summit Jacket (yes, very British) bridges the gap between an alpine-climbing layer and ski layer, using Pertex Quantum Air insulation and Rab’s Vapour Rise fabric to create a breathable but windproof jacket that’s perfect for days mixing both high-output exertion and standing still on summits, belay stations, or a lunch break.

Inside, the VR Warm fabric features a high loft fleece-like weave that’s one of the most breathable and moisture-wicking fabrics I’ve ever tested. It’s really comfortable and lets sweat escape like little else I’ve seen. The face fabric isn’t fully waterproof, but will keep light snowfall and wind at bay, making this a great option to wear on the skintrack even on storm days.

The Vapour-Rise Summit Jacket fits true to size and is available in a men’s and women’s fit.

Puffy Jackets:

Orage | MTN-X Echo Down Parka

As one of the few truly OG outerwear brands, Orage has been in the game since the dawn of freeskiing. Their brand has always been characterized by a fashion-forward style that doesn’t skimp on technical features. We’ve been a fan of the men’s MTN-X Spurr 3L jacket, and are even more impressed by their super-warm MTN-X Echo Down Parka. 

Interestingly, this heavy-duty puffy jacket is a unisex style, but comes in three colors. Inside, 800-fill duck down keeps you really warm, while Pertex Quantum Diamond fused Taffeta face fabric adds a degree of weatherproofing and extra durability. This jacket isn’t waterproof, but is one of the warmest puffies I’ve ever worn–a great option for winter camping, basecamp use, or as an emergency layer in the backcountry. I wouldn’t recommend actually skiing in it unless you want to overheat.

The MTN-X Echo Down Parka jacket fits true to size, but it’s bulky!

La Sportiva | Lumina 300 Down Jacket

Best known for their light-and-fast gear for ski mountaineering, La Sportiva has also quietly been producing outerwear built for the backcountry for years. Their latest insulated layer, the Lumina 300 Down Jacket, uses 1000-fill Italian down for exceptional packability and warmth. The outside is durable but extremely packable Pertex Quantum Diamond fused face fabric, with strategically reinforced zones at high wear points like under your backpack shoulder straps.

Where the Orage Echo Down Parka is built for all-out warmth, La Sportiva’s Lumina Down Jacket balances warmth (trust us, it’s plenty warm) with impressive packability and low weight (350g) to make sure this takes up as little room in your packs as possible. Despite its impressive compressibility, the jacket still features fully adjustable hems, cuffs, and two large harness-compatible hand pockets.

The Lumina 300 Down Jacket fits slightly large and is available in a men’s and women’s fit.

Mammut | Crag IN Hooded Jacket

On the lighter end of the spectrum, Mammut’s Crag IN Hooded Jacket is a mid-weight puffy that opts to use synthetic insulation made from recycled climbing ropes. The synthetic insulation isn’t quite as warm as down, but retains its insulating properties even when wet, making this a great option to wear on really cold storm days under or over your shell.

Despite the synthetic fill, the Crag IN hooded jacket still packs down small enough to disappear into your pack. It’s become a go-to extra layer that lives in my resort/sidecountry pack that I’ll gladly pull out if I mis-read the temperature forecast. 

The Crag IN Hooded Jacket fits slightly small and is available in a men’s and women’s fit.

Fleece Layers:

Ridge Merino | Cloudripper Merino Grid Fleece Full Zip Jacket

Unless its really cold and sunny, I generally don’t wear fleece layers all too much, instead preferring the on/off warmth of a down jacket or the more weatherproof and breathable protection of an active insulation midlayer. However, I spent much more time than I expected to in Ridge Merino’s Cloudripper Merino Grid Fleece–it’s just so damn comfortable.

Made from a combination of merino wool and synthetic fibers, the Cloudripper is quite warm, but thanks to the magical properties of merino, it’s more odor resistant and better at regulating temperature than a full-synthetic grid fleece. This is the jacket I’d bring on a multi-day hut trip to wear both skiing and lounging around at the fire in the evening. I also found it’s a great layer to wear on long overnight flights–put that hood up and cocoon yourself away. 

The Cloudripper Merino Grid Fleece fits true to size.