Patagonia Houdini - Men's Review

The Patagonia Houdini is best known as an incredibly lightweight and packable wind jacket. It also features one of the best DWR coatings of any jacket we tested, giving you the confidence to go with it as your only layer, knowing that this versatile jacket will keep you dry enough to keep going in all but the worst of downpours. We love this jacket for climbing because it is so light you will hardly notice it hanging off the back of your harness.

In terms of the most important attributes of a wind jacket — wind resistance and breathability — the Houdini sets a category standard. It is stout enough to hold up against a chilly wind on a ski tour but also breathable enough to make a fantastic running shell. This jacket truly impresses with its ability to balance these two characteristics that might seem mutually exclusive. Regardless of your activity, there is hardly a better option than the Patagonia Houdini.

Performance Comparison

Wind Resistance

The Houdini is made of a super-thin, lightweight nylon ripstop that is impressively wind resistant. It is downright difficult to force air through this material with one's mouth, and our field time definitely backs up this simple test. In a side-by-side test riding a bike down a long hill, we found that this jacket is on-par with other nylon ripstop layers, and only slightly more air permeable than insulated options.

While this jacket is not at the top of our wind resistance ratings, it balances certain qualities that make it superior to other jackets in this review. For instance, the Houdini might not be as wind resistant as other nylon builds, but it is much more breathable. We have worn this jacket in the mountains for countless days over many years, and our head tester will vouch that this jacket is a bombproof shelter from the wind.

Breathability and Venting

For a jacket that is so tightly woven, the Houdini is surprisingly breathable. The jacket never felt heavy with heat during extended, high-output activities like ski touring. This jacket also has a magical quality, where it seems to dry off on your body — both in a constant wind or when you are in motion, like on a ski descent. Even on trail runs through the desert, the Houdini does a great job of managing body temperature.

We were a bit disappointed with the Houdini's lack of venting capability. With no pockets or underarm venting, there is no way for trapped air to escape except through the fabric itself, which sometimes makes the arms clammy with perspiration. The front zipper is the primary venting tool, or you can push up the sleeves. But this is often uncomfortable on trail runs due to the tightness of the half-elastic wrist cuff around our forearms. However, this slight criticism is still insufficient to knock any points off the Houdini's breathability and venting rating.

Weight and Packability

Our size large Houdini weighed 3.9 ounces. This is one of the lightest jackets in the review, despite its larger size — the majority of jackets in our lineup are mediums.

The Houdini receives high marks for its remarkably low weight and superb packability. It is actually tough to say which of the other lightest jackets packs up the smallest, but all are great options for hanging off the back of a climbing harness.

Fit and Functionality

Our head tester is often on the edge of sizing in Patagonia clothing. After testing a size medium Houdini in the past, we decided to try out the large instead. We are happy we did, as the large afforded a nearly perfect fit. This jacket is well-mapped and fits like an athletic layer, but still affords ample room for movement in the arms and shoulders. A fit like this is particularly important when it comes to rock climbing and other alpine sports. This jacket is not quite as slim as previous versions and does allow for some layering underneath. But it is better suited to be worn over a fleece like a Patagonia R1, rather than a bulkier synthetic midlayer.

The Houdini has a minimal feature set to keep it feather-light. The wrist cuffs are half elastic, but do an excellent job of keeping the wind out. When you push the arms up to help out with ventilation, the half-elastic design can be uncomfortably tight around your forearms. The hood is tightened from behind with a single drawcord and cinch buckle, but one complaint is that there is no mechanism for stowing away the hood when not in use. The hood readily flaps around in the wind and can act like a sail with the speed of a ski descent. We would love a way to fasten it tight so that it isn't as prone to billowing.

There are no hand pockets on this jacket. While the historically small chest pocket — which doubles as a stuff sack — has been updated to fit the increasing size of modern smartphones, don't plan on much carrying capacity. Overall the features are simple and work well for a light emergency shell that you can easily deploy on a moment's notice.

Water Resistance

Water resistance is one of the Houdini's strongest traits, surprisingly so because of its lightweight construction. A few years ago, we used this jacket on a week-long backpacking trip in the Weminuche Wilderness of Colorado. During that trip, we traded off this jacket with a burlier jacket sporting a 2.5-layer waterproof-breathable membrane. While the methods the two jackets use to ward off the rain are completely different, we were amazed to find that the DWR coating employed on the Houdini was just as effective.

To back this up, we tested it side-by-side with similarly weighted wind jackets by using a garden hose to simulate a rain shower. Despite the fact that the thin material tends to stick to the body under the weight of falling water, we found that the Houdini's water resistance was far superior to any other ultralight jacket in our review.

Should You Buy the Patagonia Houdini?

Harry Houdini was once the world's most famous magician, and the Patagonia Houdini might make you feel like you are wearing his magic cape. Patagonia claims that the Houdini is the ultimate layer whether you are running, riding, or climbing, and we absolutely agree. This jacket is one of the best value purchases you could make thanks to its outstanding weather resistance and lightweight packability — it is perfect as an emergency piece to stash in your pack for almost any adventure. The best part is that you don't have to pay top dollar for a top-quality wind jacket.

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