Unless you want to spend the winter on Zwift, it’s time to head outdoors and face the elements. Investing in a quality winter cycling jacket – one you know will protect you against wind and rain – can make the difference between staying indoors and venturing out.
For many riders, that means battling sub-zero temperatures, compounded by biting winds, and trying to stave off rain showers.
If you are planning on braving the cold this winter, be sure to check our winter cycling clothing guide to avoid an uncomfortable ride.
With that in mind, here's our round-up of the best winter cycling jackets, tried and tested by the BikeRadar team.
Below the best list is our buyer’s guide to winter cycling jackets. It will help you know what to look for in a quality winter jacket and understand the various features and tech terms used by brands.
Editor's note: this list was updated on 22 January 2025.
Best winter cycling jackets in 2025
Castelli Alpha RoS 2 Light Jacket
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- £250 / $290 / €250 / AU$399 / as tested
- Pros: Excellent in the wind and rain; comfortable fit; impressive versatility
- Cons: Pricey
The Castelli Alpha RoS 2 Light Jacket's winter prowess comes from wind- and water-busting Gore-Tex Infinium fabric.
Despite its typically sporty Castelli sizing, it has a rain-proof phone pocket besides three open back pockets. The internal vest allows you to remove the outer layer should your or the outside temperature rise.
Although Castelli calls it a 'light' jacket, the Alpha Ros 2 provided insulation below its recommended 7-15°C range. If needed, you can add a jersey over a baselayer beneath.
The RRP is high, but there are deals to be had. It'll save you buying a packable winter rainproof and the fabric proved durable through months of tough on- and off-road testing.
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Castelli Alpha Doppio RoS Jacket
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- £350 / $400 / €350 / AU$560 as tested
- Pros: Warm and water-resistant; comfortable in various conditions; well-constructed
- Cons: Very expensive
The Alpha Doppio RoS Jacket replaces Castelli’s venerated Alpha RoS 2, although this previous model is still widely available.
The new Doppio has a slightly more generous fit in some sizes, which will be good news to some, but may not be to everyone’s taste.
Otherwise, the Doppio shares much in common with its predecessor. Its Gore-Tex Infinium fabric, Polartec insulation, zip-up liner and draught-excluding wrist and neck seals deliver a one-punch solution to bad weather and wintry rain.
The performance comes at a high cost, but this winter cycling jacket’s performance is almost peerless.
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Castelli Alpha Ultimate Insulated Jacket
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- £380 / $449.99 / €349.95 / AU$600 as tested
- Pros: Excellent in all conditions; performs as claimed; comfortable
- Cons: One of the most expensive jackets
The Castelli Alpha Ultimate Insulated jacket is the brand's top-of-the-range winter jacket, targeting a wide temperature range of -5°C to 12°C.
The Ultimate Insulated variant departs from the Gore-Tex Infinium found on the Alpha RoS 2 and Alpha RoS 2 Light, opting for Polartec fabrics instead. A Polartec NeoShell outer layer is combined with an Alpha inner, the two-layer construction featuring separate double-opening zips.
This halo jacket performs as claimed and is impressively light for a winter jacket, as well as offering class-leading breathability. Simply pair it with the correct baselayer for the weather conditions and it'll be the one jacket you need to survive the winter.
Whether or not it's worth the £60 price hike over the Alpha RoS 2 is debatable though.
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Castelli Perfetto RoS 2
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- £245 / $280 as tested
- Pros: Improved cut; impressive fabric; good rain protection
- Cons: Pricey
Castelli has updated its Perfetto jacket to make it more suitable for everyday riders. It has a more relaxed cut in larger sizes, making the water-resistant jacket more comfortable on longer rides.
The Perfetto RoS 2 also sees a return to three rear pockets, which will prove popular with riders who value organisation.
The jacket still uses the same Gore-Tex Infinium fabric as its predecessor, which makes for excellent wind and rain protection from 4˚C to 14˚C.
The incorporation of a number of practical updates means the Castelli Perfetto remains one of the best mixed-weather jackets on the market.
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Van Rysel Men's Winter Road Cycling Jacket Endurance
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- £70 / €80 as tested
- Pros: Warm and comfortable; plenty of pockets; good value
- Cons: Slightly bulky; too baggy for some
The Men's Winter Road Cycling Jacket Endurance offers plenty of warmth in a comfortable cut.
With 10 pockets, the jacket provides excellent versatility for those looking to carry accessories on their rides, although these may prove a hindrance if you're looking for a streamlined design.
We found a mix of fleece fabrics to work well, offering warmer insulation where it's needed most, while also allowing for free movement.
The jacket also provides excellent value for money, at almost a fifth of the price of other jackets in this list.
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Santini Vega+ Winter Jacket
- £240 / $300 / €250 as tested
- Pros: Impressive warmth; great breathability; decent rain protection; slim and stylish cut
- Cons: Pricey
The Vega+ Winter Jacket delivers excellent protection for racier riders looking to stay warm throughout the winter.
The Polartec Windblock outer and Alpha insulating fabrics come together to provide a good barrier to the elements, while a figure-hugging cut leaves little room for bunching, making it comfortable for long days in the saddle.
The dropped tail covers your back well when in a tuck position and spacious rear pockets enable you to carry plenty of items.
Despite being pricey, our tester believes it offers a performance equal to jackets in the £300 plus category.
Endura Men's Pro SL 3-Season Jacket
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- £210 / $300 / €240 as tested
- Pros: Wide range of operating temperatures; water resistant; good value for money
- Cons: Tricky zips
The Pro SL 3-Season Jacket combines an inner liner with a water-resistant outer shell, making it useful in a wide range of temperatures.
While it's not the outright warmest jacket, this versatility means it could act as a silver bullet for winter and the shoulder seasons.
It's not as sleek as offerings from Castelli and Assos, but at £210 it offers great value.
We had an issue with the zipped vents and pockets, though, which proved difficult to open with one hand.
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Santini Vega Absolute
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- £239 / €239 as tested
- Pros: Deep-winter insulation; visible; well-made
- Cons: No waterproof pocket
The Santini Vega Absolute is named after one of the brightest stars, aptly, given the hi-vis and reflectivity on display.
So the visibility boxes are ticked, but it’s also one of our top-end picks for mid-winter riding due to its dense, three-layer build and substantial collar.
Neat touches include a zipper guard to prevent chilly air intrusion and a circular zipper head that’s easy to grab with thick gloves.
The ‘secret’ zipped chest pocket sadly isn’t waterproof, so you’ll need to invest in a phone wallet, and the classy cuffs don’t repel showers like the core body materials. Think about sizing up as well.
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Sportful Total Comfort Jacket
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- £250 / $299 / €269.90 as tested
- Pros: Great insulation; high breathability; impressive water resistance; decent cut
- Cons: Seams are quite bulky; pricey
The Total Comfort Jacket provides excellent levels of insulation and decent water resistance that will fend off the worst that winter has to offer.
We were impressed by the high levels of breathability, keeping the jacket from overheating.
With a Polartec Alpha insulating lining featuring under the majority of the jacket, it holds up to seriously cold weather, although this makes the inner seams feel noticeably large.
It's also on the expensive side, but aside from these two niggles, it's an excellent deep-winter jacket.
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Also consider…
The following jackets scored fewer than four stars in our test, but are still worth considering.
Altura Men's Endurance Blast Jacket
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- £140 / €175 as tested
- Pros: Good breathability; decent insulation; accommodating cut
- Cons: Not the best water resistance; pocket flaps are a hindrance
The Men’s Endurance Blast Jacket offers impressive breathability, while keeping you warm enough when not pushing hard.
We found it wasn't as warm as others on the coldest days, but high levels of breathability help keep it from overheating should the weather change on a ride.
The fit is very good and it's well-priced too.
We found the water resistance a little disappointing and flaps on the rear pockets make them hard to access.
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Assos Mille GT Hashoogi Winter Jacket S11
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- £265 / $335 / €300 as tested
- Pros: Decent rain protection; great breathability; slim, low-profile construction
- Cons: Skinsuit levels of shaping; pricey
The Mille GT Hashoogi Winter Jacket S11 performs well for high-intensity rides during the winter months, with good rain protection and ample breathability.
Its pre-shape cut won't suit everyone, but it offers great comfort when riding with a purpose and is relatively forgiving.
Those looking to ride at a lower effort may want to look for something with more insulation, but the materials work well in protecting you from foul weather.
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Gore Spinshift Thermo Jacket Men's
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- £160 / $220 / €180 as tested
- Pros: Good insulation; well-designed cuffs and collar; well-priced
- Cons: Not the best water resistance; some bunching
The Spinshift Thermo Jacket Men's offers good warmth even on the bitterest of winter days, while remaining breathable.
A relaxed fit won't suit everyone's taste due to some bunching, but it remains cosy when the temperature plummets.
We found the water resistance lacklustre compared to rivals, although if you're going out on crisp winter days, this may pose less of an issue.
The price is well-considered, as are the draught-excluding cuffs and collar that keep cold air from intruding.
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Rapha Men’s Pro Team Winter Jacket
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- £230 / $300 / €260 as tested
- Pros: Impressive breathability; no bunching thanks to racy cut; good DWR treatment
- Cons: Aggressive cut won't be for everyone; short and loose wrist cuffs
The Men’s Pro Team Winter Jacket offers great protection for racier riders who plan on pushing high watts through the winter months.
Its slim cut won't suit everyone's needs, but it reduces bunching, making for a comfortable fit all around.
We found issue with the cuffs, which are slightly short and loose – allowing cold air to rush up the sleeves.
The DWR treatment holds up well to showers, making it an excellent outer layer for winter days.
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How we test winter cycling jackets
We test winter cycling jackets out on the road and on some of the coldest days of the year.
Our testers have reviewed hundreds of winter cycling jackets, so have good knowledge on what strengths and weaknesses to look out for.
Ultimately, our winter cycling jacket reviews are based on the following criteria:
- Comfort – is the jacket comfy for long days in the saddle?
- Warmth – does the jacket stand up to cold winter days?
- Versatility – are there plenty of pockets to store items when riding?
- Overheating – is there plenty of ventilation if the temperature starts to rise?
- Value for money – how does the price compare to others on the market? Are you getting a good deal?
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Our reviews are always editorially independent – with no exceptions. Our reviewers comprehensively test all products in the real world, always reflecting on performance, value and the wider market when delivering their verdicts and review ratings.
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Buyer's guide to winter cycling jackets
Knowing how to layer up is key to successful winter riding. Besides quality bib-longs, a baselayer, winter cycling gloves and a set of overshoes, a good jacket is essential if you live somewhere with a cold (and wet) climate.
When it comes to buying one of the best winter cycling jackets, one of the first things to consider is whether you need a hardshell or softshell jacket.
Hardshell jackets are typically designed to keep the elements out so, if you're after something to wear in an outright downpour, read our guide to the best waterproof jackets for cyclists.
Many winter cycling jackets, however, use a softshell fabric to deflect those chilly blasts of air, and most will feature a durable water-resistant coating to keep showers at bay, even if they're not completely waterproof.
A softshell cycling jacket will typically be more breathable than a hardshell jacket, so the intention here is to stay comfortable in a wide range of conditions.
As usual, the overall fit is vital for the effectiveness of a winter jacket and your riding pleasure. Riders who are solely covering short distances, for example when cycling to work, can probably get away with a looser cut.
But, for endurance rides, you should minimise flapping in the wind for both warmth and aerodynamic reasons, so we’d advise a close and slim fit.
That fit, however, needs to be large enough to squeeze a baselayer and, if necessary, a mid-layer underneath.
We realise this is sometimes easier said than done, which is why trying before you buy is recommended (as is a decent returns policy), especially as sizing can vary markedly between the manufacturers.
Other things to look for are the type and location of the pockets, from zipped to internal and rear.
The texture of the collar is also important, as is the effectiveness of the front zipper and the ability to adjust it up or down with one hand while on the move.
Aesthetics also play a role, because, if you’re anything like us, you’ll end up wearing yours on the school run and to work.
Finally, fabric choice is key, to find the right balance between waterproofing and breathability, and the small details, such as collars, cuffs and pockets, can make all the difference to the end product.
That's the basics covered. Now let's take a closer look at the key features to consider when buying a winter cycling jacket.
Complexity
A good winter cycling jacket needs to keep out the cold without making you overheat, and it should prevent rain from getting in but not stop sweat evaporating out. It’s a tricky proposition, even with the advent of today’s advanced fabrics.
Suffice to say, coming up with a suitable solution means a winter bike jacket is as high-tech as any other cycling clothing item. Scratch beneath the surface and you quickly find yourself in a world of hydrophilic polyurethane coatings and ePTFE membranes with billions of micropores per square inch.
But why do they need to be so complex when all they’re doing is being a barrier between you and the elements? The answer to that is you, or more specifically, the heat and sweat you generate while riding.
Cold and wet weather can not only make you miserable, it can affect your performance. But so can getting too hot and soaking in sweat, which means a winter cycling jacket and the fabrics it’s made from need to work like an elaborate one-way system.
They need to be porous and gas permeable from the inside out, to allow heat build-up to escape, but non-porous and impermeable from the outside in, to keep rain at bay.
Breathability
Waterproofing and water-resistant treatments have often been the enemy of breathability in a cycling jacket, but that’s improved recently and winter jackets are no longer the glorified bin bags of old. But where have the technological leaps been made?
“This is mainly through the addition of the DWR (durable water-repellent coating), which allows the surface fabric and the membrane to perform at their best by not letting the rain water ‘wet out’ the jacket and clog up the air permeability,” states Amy Spencer, design and development manager for Altura.
“This membrane also has a breathability rating – how much air it will let escape. This is given a rating of 5k, 10k, 15k or 20k [with 20K being the most effective].
“To ensure the breathability of the membrane performs efficiently, we also add a DWR to the face side (outside) of the fabric, which helps the rain droplets bead and fall from the jacket so they don’t penetrate the top layer of fabric and stop the jacket being as breathable.”
Pockets
Cash, card, keys, phone, jelly babies, peanut butter sandwich, multi-tool, spare pump, banana, flapjack… if you’re anything like us, your pockets will be bulging when you exit the house before a long winter ride.
Happily, most winter cycling jackets can accommodate moving buffets, but increasingly important for us is a zipped and waterproof pocket that’s big enough to stash a smartphone.
A waterproof phone case is a smart addition for added protection and peace of mind, but it’s worth messaging the brand’s online customer support if you’re worried that your mobile – hello the iPhone 12 Pro Max – may be too big as a pocket companion.
Waterproofing
The key remit of a softshell cycling jacket is to provide warmth and windproofing, but there’s also water-resistant tech at play.
Most winter cycling jackets will survive a shower, but many lack the fully waterproofing capabilities of a hardshell jacket.
Just where does the extra rain-thwarting element come from in the more spring and autumn-friendly hardshell?
“For a jacket to be fully waterproof, the fabric must have a membrane, described as a 2, 2.5, or 3-layer construction,” says Spencer. “The membrane makes the jacket waterproof by creating a barrier under the surface fabric.
“This is the part of the fabric that determines the hydrostatic head rating (waterproof rating) of 5k, 10k, 15k or 20k [as with the breathability rating, the higher the number, the more effective the waterproofing].”
Waterproof jackets are also made like a non-waterproof jacket by stitching panels together, Spencer adds. As the needle punches holes in the membrane, sacrificing waterproofing, many brands then add taping to the seams to provide an additional layer of protection.
Life cycle
Winter cycling jackets can be delicate pieces of kit, especially with materials having to balance the demands of waterproof and breathablity.
While you can reproof a jacket to reinstate some of its DWR protection, following the recommended washing instructions will not only preserve your jacket’s lifespan and save you pennies, but will help lower your ecological footprint.
That heightened environmental awareness is shown in the lack of plastic packaging many jackets now arrive in, and also in some of the material choices on display. It’s a movement that’ll only intensify, believes Spencer.
“Within five years, I’d like to see more fabrics that are sustainably sourced without compromising on the level of performance. As a rider, you need to feel comfortable that you’re protected from the elements, as well as buying a product where its whole life cycle has been considered.”
