The 15 Best Men’s Puffer Jackets
Hoodies, shirt jackets, blazers, raincoats, trucker jackets—these are the usual elements of fall and winter style. And they’ll do a fine job of keeping you warm, comfortable, and insulated from the worst weather of the cold seasons.
But if you’re looking to get out on the trails, hit the powder, or just generally be an active badass this fall and winter, what you’ll really want is a puffer jacket. Thanks to their quilted designs and extra doses of insulation they’re ideal for staying warm in the coldest of temps, all while keeping you free and mobile (and looking good, too).
We’ve collected the 15 best men’s puffer jackets for this fall and winter, with an eye towards giving you a wide range of prices, styles, and insulation levels. Check them all out below.
Helly Hansen Patrol Puffy Jacket
For top of the line protection against the elements, whether you’re hitting the streets or the slopes, look to Helly Hansen’s Patrol Puffy Jacket. Made in a full-coverage parka style, it’s strategically adjusted with reinforced ripstop fabric in the areas most vulnerable to tears, including the elbows and underarms.
For insulation, Helly Hansen is going for the legendary PrimaLoft Black—one of the only synthetic insulators that approaches the true feel of real down (as well as its amazing warming properties). If you’re looking for one jacket that will take you from downtown to the mountaintop and back again, over and over, then the Patrol Puffy Jacket is the right choice.
Patagonia Nano Puff Jacket
When it comes to all-purpose puffer jackets, Patagonia’s Nano Puff is legendary. Renowned not just for their ability to produce top-notch garments, but to do so with sustainable and Fair Trade practices, Patagonia continues to improve each of their garments with each new generation. And the Nano Puff Jacket is one of their most tried-and-true pieces of outerwear, with a dialed-in PrimaLoft gold (recycled) insulation and an eco-friendly water resistant coating.
It’s great for casual wear to the office during the fall and winter, but it’s sturdy enough to take out hiking or biking as well.
Stoic Sherpa Ultra Puffer
Puffers are warm and sporty. Fleece is cozy and comfortable. So why not combine the two? That’s exactly what Stoic has done with their Sherpa Ultra Puffer—and it feels like one of the most luxurious jackets you’ll ever wear, all while being ready for whatever adventures you want to embark on.
A relaxed fit makes the Ultra Puffer an easy go-to for casual everyday wear throughout the winter, where its 350 gram polyfill insulation will keep you warm and toasty on even the coldest days. And thanks to a little bit of spandex in the fabric blend, this jacket has enough stretch to make it comfortable even as a top layer over a hoodie or shirt jacket.
Cotopaxi Fuego Hooded Down Jacket
Ready for a burst of color in your otherwise dark winter wardrobe? Cotopaxi has you covered with their Fuego Hooded Down Jacket. Available in 12 different bold color schemes, these jackets really break the mold for what’s expected of outdoor gear—all while staying true to the rugged functionality you expect from an insulated puffer jacket.
A ripstop nylon exterior makes the Fuego durable and ready for outdoor adventures, while an 800 fill power goose down insulation means you know it’s going to be crazy warm and cozy. And when the sun comes out and the weather warms up, this clever jacket packs right into its own interior pocket for easy storage.
Columbia Powder Lite Insulated Jacket
The unfortunate truth of puffer jackets is that, most of the time, they’re quite expensive. It comes with the territory of their specialized design and activewear functionality. So when we see something like Columbia’s Powder Lite Insulated Jacket at such a good price—just over $100 at the time of writing—we can really appreciate having a more affordable alternative.
What this jacket lacks in insulating fill power, it makes up for with a novel technology: Little dots of silver all over the inside of the jacket, which help to reflect and retain the heat your body creates naturally. It’s a solid introduction to the puffer jacket style, at a great price.
Rhone Tundra Quilted Hooded Jacket
Rhone’s particular design sensibility of sports-ready activewear translates beautifully into the puffer jacket style, via their Tundra Quilted Hooded Jacket. Made almost entirely from recycled materials, it’s a remarkably fine-tuned piece of outerwear; just check out the variation in quilting that helps to make for a more athletic fit and look.
Plus, the Tundra is outfitted with four pockets: two interior drop-in and zippered pockets, as well as two zippered hand pockets to keep you warm when the thermometer drops low. That’s all wrapped up in a jacket that’s good looking enough to wear to the office, and durable enough to take out on the trail.
Topo Designs Mid Puffer Jacket
Where other puffer jackets are mostly geared towards professional or outdoor sports use, Topo Designs takes a different tack with their Mid Puffer Jacket: Making the most simple, minimal, and crisp style that they can.
The slim fitting design goes against most puffer jacket style cues, offering a great degree of recycled insulation without ever looking bulky. It’s then treated with a water resistant coating, and given a stow-away hood so you can choose your look to match the weather. Overall, the Mid Puffer Jacket does a great job of balancing fashion and function, and that’s why we love it.
Buck Mason Down Expedition Jacket
Buck Mason’s particular brand of rugged, outdoor-ready clothes that make you look really cool is why they’re one of our favorites for outerwear. The Down Expedition Jacket is a perfect example, taking its design cues from early 1900s adventure jackets then adding modern touches and responsible down sourcing through Allied Feather + Down.
It offers a relaxed fit through the chest and sleeves that makes it easy to layer with, but a slimmer fit at the waist that gives it a flattering overall look. Add in some cozy fleece-lined pockets, and you’ve got yourself one heck of a winter jacket.
Relwen Windzip Jacket
We might be stretching it a bit here to call Relwen’s Windzip a puffer jacket—but once you try one on, we think you’ll agree with us. Inspired by the quilted insulation style found in outdoor-ready sleeping bags, the Windzip is a remarkably warm and cozy jacket that’s also form-fitting and flattering for most any body type.
It’s an exceptionally breathable jacket that’s great for outdoor adventures, where its water-resistant exterior can provide a good degree of protection from the weather. Overall, this is a fantastic transitional jacket that will last you all the way through fall, take care of you on warmer winter days, and be perfect for the move into spring.
REI Co-Op 650 Down Hoodie 2.0
If you’re looking for great deals on outdoor gear, you should know REI’s Co-Op brand. Thanks to deep partnerships with outdoor industry manufacturers, REI is often able to produce amazing gear—like their 650 Down Hoodie 2.0—at unbeatable prices.
For an authentic down fill jacket like this, you can usually expect to pay at least two bills; but at the time of writing, the Co-Op Down Hoodie is just under 120 bucks. Plus it’s weather-resistant thanks to a durable water repellent coating, and can pack into its own pocket for easy storage.
The North Face Thermoball Eco Insulated Hoodie
With the performance of a puffer jacket and the loose, casual styling of a hoodie, The North Face’s Thermoball Eco Insulated Hoodie might just become your new favorite wardrobe piece. Thanks to a tightly spaced quilting pattern, the 11 gram recycled polyfill insulation here really overperforms, making for a lighter jacket that still stays very warm and cozy even if it gets wet.
That makes it a versatile outer layer for the transitional seasons, which is further reinforced by how portable the jacket is—when you don’t need it, just compress it and stuff the jacket into its own internal pocket.
Fjallraven Expedition X-Latt Insulated Jacket
For a dash of Nordic style in your cold season wardrobe, check out Fjallraven’s Expedition X-Latt Insulated Jacket. Designed to work perfectly as either an outer layer on cool days or a stackable mid layer on the coldest days, it’s another versatile puffer jacket that’s a great addition to any guy’s closet.
In addition to using recycled fabric and fill for its construction, the X-Latt is then treated with an eco-friendly durable water repellent coating for good measure. And like many other jackets in this review, the Fjallraven can stuff inside of its own pocket for easy storage.
KUHL Spyfire Down Jacket
We’ve always admired KUHL’s ability to take a piece of clothing that we think we know the ins and outs of, and transform it into the most technically sound piece possible. Their Spyfire Down Jacket definitely continues this trend, with an innovative body mapping system for its down filling that leads to maximum warmth and minimal bulk.
That gives it a sleek and form fitting cut that’s perfect for guys with athletic builds. But then KUHL caps it all off with a strong ripstop nylon exterior that’s heavily weather-proofed, as well as four perfectly positioned zippered pockets for carrying your everyday essentials and keeping your hands warm.
Big Agnes Shovelhead Down Jacket
Big Agnes is best known for their tents and sleeping bags. But when you think about it, that makes them perfect for designing a puffer jacket—the style is heavily inspired by sleeping bag construction, after all. And the Shovelhead Down Jacket is every bit as durable and well-designed as any of Big Agnes’s other outdoor gear, from its water-repellent down insulation to its body-mapped quilting for a snug and comfortable fit and feel.
A hooded visor brim is a particularly nice touch here too, allowing you to wear your favorite hiking hat through the rain or snow without bunching up under the jacket’s hood.
Outdoor Research Helium Down Jacket
Quantum Pertex: No, it’s not the next James Bond Sequel—it’s the high tech proprietary fabric used for the outer layer of Outdoor Research’s Helium Down Jacket. Because of Pertex’s exceptionally tight yet flexible weave, it allows this jacket’s down to fully expand to fill every inch of space, all while being windproof and luxuriously soft.
That’s paired with an 800 fill down insulation for true deep winter warmth, and binding that creates a snug and flattering fit. Overall, it’s a gorgeous high tech jacket that punches well above its weight price-wise.
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