What is softshell jacket?

Softshell jackets are made of a soft-shell, stretchy, tightly-woven fabric. It is usually made from a combination of materials such as polyester and nylon.

They aren’t quite 100% waterproof, but it is highly breathable, very fit to the body when wear, and last a long time. The main features are windproof, waterproof, breathable，and stretchy. Unlike hardshell jacket, a soft shell’s water resistance comes from the fabric itself, not a membrane.

The difference between outdoor active hardshell jacket and outdoor active softshell jacket.

HARDSHELL

Weather protection: hardshell jackets are often engineered to protect against wind and rain, and can be used as a shelter.

Resist wear and tear: the tightly woven fabrics help maintain the quality of this outerwear option.

Breathable: fabric breathable to help reduce the accumulation of sweat during your favorite outdoor activities.

Ready for adventure: these jackets are often designed for extreme sporting activities.

SOFTSHELL

Mobile: the fabrics used in softshell jackets are flexible, allowing for maximum movement.

Comfortable: the inner lining, often made of fleece, is comfortable and provides warmth.

Packable: the thinner, easy-to-work fabric makes a softshell jacket simple to stuff into a pack or even to be folded into a pillow for a quick snooze.

Water resistant: though typically not entirely waterproof, a softshell can stand up to a run in a light rain or snow.

Also, it is easy to confuse outdoor softshell jackets and outdoor fleece jackets. That’s because there is a lot of intersection between these two types of jackets, making distinctions pretty vague.

Simply put, the softshell jacket is made with weather protection as the primary function. A fleece jacket is made for warmth as its primary function. However, both soft shells and fleece provide some protection from weather and warmth.

This time we will briefly introduce Softshell jackets

Softshell jackets are very common in life. There are lightweight softshell ,  midweight softshell and heavyweight softshell jackets.

The lightest weight softshell jacket falls somewhere on the border between shirt and jacket;

lightweight softshell jackets are great for wear on a cool day. Suitable for temperatures in the 20s -25s. Lightweight softshell pack down small and are easily stowed in your pack

Midweight softshell jacket is suitable for a whole winter, midweight softshell with little to no fleece backing. It can be matched with all kinds of warm clothing with down fleece. You can add or remove clothes at will according to the weather. It is the most practical jacket in winter

Heavyweight softshell jackets , They are designed to deliver as much warmth as a softshell possibly can, with furry fleece inside.

How to choose softshell jacket?

1、Weather conditions when outdoors

2、Activities，the type of softshell jacket you choose will depend on what you want to use it for. When are you going to wear it?

3、Style and fit of your jacket，we recommend getting a jacket with a full zipper. Quarter zips and half zips can make putting on taking off the jacket a pain, especially on the trail. Also, having a full zip allows you to ventilate better by giving you the option of having the jacket entirely open or closed.

4、Money

heavyweight softshell jackets are fleece-lined for extra warmth，lightweight softshell jackets for day-to-day wear. For more active use, where you don’t need quite as much warmth, then midweight softshell jacket is will be best.