The Sierra Designs Cloud 800 - Women's is well named for its lightweight and comfortable construction, making it feel like you're sleeping on a cloud. The 800-down fill bag takes our Best Buy Award because of its great performance at a reasonable price. Word on the street is that Sierra Designs has been working with well-known thru-hiker Andrew Skurka in designing this bag to be not only light on your back but awesomely comfortable and packable as well. They've been successful as this has been our experience on the trail.
The Sierra Designs Cloud 800 is a great choice for long, lightweight backpacking trips in Spring, Summer, and Fall. It is lightweight, comfortable, and offers a great packable size. You won't waste space with this bag, nor will you waste any money. However, while it is high value, it's not perfect. Given that it's not a very warm bag and we wouldn't recommend to bring it out on nights forecast below freezing. Overall it's great for summer backpacking in cool to warm weather in all sorts of conditions!Sierra Designs Cloud 800 - Women's Review

Cons: Comforter sometimes does not stay tucked in
Manufacturer: Sierra Designs
Our Verdict
Compare to Similar Products
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Sierra Designs Cloud 800 - Women's | |||||
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Awards | ![]() | ![]() | |||
Price | $330 List $254.96 at Amazon | $113.37 at Backcountry Compare at 3 sellers | $194.21 at Backcountry Compare at 2 sellers | $275 List $275.00 at REI | $126.71 at Backcountry Compare at 2 sellers |
Overall Score ![]() |
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Star Rating | |||||
Pros | Comfortable, lightweight, excellent materials, not constricting | Light and compressible synthetic, keeps you warm when wet | Comfortable and warm | Comfortable, warm, roomy | Comfortable, inexpensive, recycled materials |
Cons | Comforter sometimes does not stay tucked in | Bulkier packed size, heavier, small fit | Not light, hood draw cords hard to use, large for a women's sleeping bag | Heavy, bulky | Heavy, bulky |
Bottom Line | A great, high-quality choice at a relatively low price for those looking for a lightweight bag that doesn't sacrifice comfort | An inexpensive and versatile synthetic bag, this is an excellent choice for breaking into backpacking | A favorite of many trail ladies out there, the Angel Fire earns high marks across the board and would be an excellent addition to any backpacker's kit | This middle-of-the-pack sleeping bag is comfortable, warm, and fine or short backpacking trips and car camping excursions | This well priced synthetic bag is a great choice for your car camping needs |
Rating Categories | Sierra Designs Clou... | The North Face Cat'... | Marmot Angel Fire | Mountain Hardwear B... | Marmot Trestles Eli... |
Warmth (25%) | |||||
Weight (25%) | |||||
Comfort (20%) | |||||
Packed Size (15%) | |||||
Features (15%) | |||||
Specs | Sierra Designs Clou... | The North Face Cat'... | Marmot Angel Fire | Mountain Hardwear B... | Marmot Trestles Eli... |
ISO/EN Comfort Rating | 26 F | 22 F | 30.4 F | 15 F | 20 F |
Fill Type | PFC-Free DriDown | Heatseekerâ„¢ Guide synthetic insulation | Duck down | 650-fill-power down | HL-ElixR synthetic fibers |
Measured Weight | 1.7 lbs. | 2.5 lbs. | 2.5 lbs. | 2.5 lbs. | 2.8 lbs. |
Total Weight | 27.4 oz. | 40.2 oz. | 39.8 oz. | 39.7 oz. | 44.0 oz. |
Fill Power | 800 | Synthetic | 650 | 650 | Synthetic |
Women specific features | More insulation per square inch than men's version | Women's specific cut | Women's Specific Fit - more Insulation in key areas | Additional insulation | Women's specific fit |
Fill Weight | 14.8 oz. | Unspecified | 23.5 oz. | Unspecified | Unspecified |
Material | 15d nylon risptop | 20D Nylon Ripstop/taffeta | 30d 100% Nylon DWR 1.18 oz/yd | 30d 100% Nylon Ripstop DWR 1.5 oz/yd | 20D Ripstop Nylon | 20-denier recycled ripstop polyester |
Neck Baffle | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
No | No | Yes - Internal Stash Pocket and Heater Pocket in Footbox | Yes | Yes | |
Sleeping Pad Sleeve | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Zipper Length | N/A | 59 in | 63 in & 13 in | 66 in | 53/15 in |
Shoulder Girth | 59 in | 58 in | 57 in | 60 in | 58 in |
Hip Girth | 58 in | 58 in | 58 in | 50 in | 58 in |
Foot Girth | 39 in | 40 in | 46 in | 40 in | 45 in |
Stuff Sack included? | Stuff sack and storage bag included | Compression sack and storage bag included | Stuff sack and storage bag included | Stuff sack and storage bag included | Stuff sack and storage bag included |
Our Analysis and Test Results
With a design unique to the manufacturer, the Cloud makes backcountry nights feel a little closer to home by excluding a zipper and replacing it with a comforter that tucks in or untucks to adjust to the nighttime temperature. The result is a comfortable, lightweight bag that rings in at a price much lower than its performance suggests.
Performance Comparison
Warmth
The Cloud is EN comfort rated for women to 26 degrees, however, we'd be hesitant to take it out when temperatures are forecast below freezing. The Cloud has no zipper, and one side of the bag doesn't seal shut. The "comforter" does tuck into the inner bag and stays closed when the sleeper stays still, but you'll always need to be conscious of what it's doing when you move around, especially if you're a restless sleeper. Sierra Designs claims that the "shoulder pocket" will keep the comforter wrapped around you, but that was not our experience.
As an added feature, the Cloud has an integrated pad sleeve that a sleeping pad can be inserted into. In our humble opinions, we think that pad sleeves reduce the warmth of a sleeping bag. When a sleeping pad is slipped inside the bag's sleeve, it stretches the bag open creating more space inside and leaving you unable to pull the bag around more tightly for warmth. As a result, it's not as warm as other contenders but does well in conditions that aren't below freezing.
Weight
We are blown away by the lightweight design of this down bag. The svelte Cloud weighs in at just 27.4 ounces which right at the top of the ratings. Sierra Designs really made this bag simplistic by including high-quality 800-fill down and lightweight shell materials. By throwing out the zipper, it decreases the weight of the bag, making it easy to carry. Given its lightweight design, we'd recommend it for any adventure that demands equipment that doesn't add extra ounces. Feel free to use it on multi-day backpacking missions or while trekking up the side of a mountain. It'll have you using a lot less muscle than conventional sleeping bags.
Comfort
Along with its low weight, this is an area where the Cloud shines. For people who want to up their lightweight backpacking game, but don't want to commit to a full mummy style bag, this is a great choice. The lofty nature of the 800-down fill makes the bag super cozy to snuggle up to for all-night-long comfort.
Sierra Designs has been focusing on their comfortable "bed" style bags, and the Cloud is an impressive member of this series. It has a 'comforter' that you can pull over you and wrap around you like a blanket, but can also open it wide and free up your arms for stomach sleeping or sitting up in the bag. Looking for something that feels like you're at home in bed? This is what it does best.
Packed Size
The Cloud 800 can pack down to a very small volume due to its lofty 800-down fill make-up. The included stuff sack is fairly small and fits nicely into a backpacking pack. If you need to maximize space in your backpack, consider purchasing a smaller compression sack as this bag will shrink down even further! Because of its great packability, it makes it a wonderful option for long backpacking trips and explorations into the wilderness.
Features
This sleeping bag is rather simple with the exception of the comforter. It has no zipper to snag, which is nice. We also like the "self-sealing foot vent" that allows you to stick your feet out the bottom without undoing anything if they're feeling hot, and it does not seem to let any warm air out when our feet are cold.
The Cloud also has a sleeping pad sleeve, which we think is an unnecessary feature unless you're a very restless sleeper and fall out of bed often. We think using a sleeping pad sleeve detracts from the warmth of your bag because it does not allow you to pull the bag closer for extra warmth. As most of our testers aren't fans of this feature, we would cut it off to save further weight.
This bag does not have any down fill in the back torso panel with the logic being that the down would be compressed under your weight rendering it useless, so make sure you have a warm sleeping pad to insulate you from the ground. There is extra down around the foot box of the Cloud that we appreciate.
Value
For an 800-fill down sleeping bag, the Cloud is a great value. Many other options on the market range to almost double the Cloud's price! While there are other products that offer a similar price to the Cloud, none match the level of performance offered. It deserves our Best Buy award for the unbeatable balance of performance and cost that it offers. It's designed for use on many camping trips for many years to come, whether you're hanging out on a portaledge or sipping cocoa on the John Muir Trail.
Conclusion
The Sierra Designs Cloud 800 is a top competitor, it's ratings are slightly below the most high-end products we tested, but at a significantly lower price tag. It is constructed with high-quality materials that make it lightweight and super comfortable. The best part? It's sold at a reasonable price. We commend Sierra Designs for their efforts in making a relatively affordable bag for female backpackers without cutting corners. This is why it wins our Best Buy Award.
— Jessica Haist
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