REASONS TO BUY
Thick and warm
Longer torso
Comfortable stretch-knit cuffs
Large versatile hood
REASONS TO AVOID
Very narrow through the hips
Hood cinch system doesn't get that small
The North Face Summit Breithorn Hoodie - Women's Review
A warm, thick jacket with an oversized hood and stretch-knit cuffs we love to wear, but narrow hips that restrict who it fits
Credit: The North Face
RELATED: Best Down Jacket for Women of 2023
Our Verdict
The fit of the The North Face Summit Breithorn made it a polarizing jacket among our testing team. Despite its longer torso, this slim jacket doesn't leave much room for hips. But our narrow-hipped testers who can wear it adore the Breithorn. This thick puffy is warm with good coverage and a spacious hood. Stretch-knit cuffs are soft and highly effective at sealing our wrists against the cold. We wish the hood volume adjustment could get smaller, but in our experience, it's great over a beanie. Though this slim-fitting jacket isn't for every body type, if a narrow fit works for you, it may just be the coat you've been looking for.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
The North Face Summit Breithorn Hoodie - Women's | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  |  |  | | |
| Price | $380 List $303.96 at Backcountry | $385 List $385.00 at Amazon | $409 List $409.00 at Feathered Friends | $280 List $280.00 at REI | $100 List $99.95 at REI |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Pros | Thick and warm, longer torso, comfortable stretch-knit cuffs, large versatile hood | Very warm, poofy and light, comfortable fit, mobility features, excellent adjustability | Very warm, super lightweight, highly compressible, versatile, great coverage, cozy and fluffy, high quality down, good wind resistance | Durable, weather resistant, athletic cut, good movement, versatile | Uncomplicated and effective design, thickly filled and puffy, layers well over thick fleece |
| Cons | Very narrow through the hips, hood cinch system doesn't get that small | May be too warm for mild climates, hood volume adjustment is velcro rather than toggle | Harder to layer under a shell, lacks specific-use features, can see down through light colors | Narrower baffles compress down, slightly lower quality (recycled) 700 fill down | No hood option, hip length lacks coverage, lower quality down, loses feathers readily, when packed has no carabiner loop |
| Bottom Line | A warm, thick jacket with an oversized hood and stretch-knit cuffs we love to wear, but narrow hips that restrict who it fits | An impressively warm jacket that offers a highly mobile fit, great adjustability, and cloud-like comfort | A very soft, poofy jacket that's filled with high-quality ultra-warm down and offers great everyday warmth in even the coldest climates | A durable, versatile, and very comfortable jacket that can handle many activities, from mountain to town | A pretty decent puffy jacket on a budget, though not without its flaws |
| Rating Categories | The North Face Summ... | Rab Neutrino Pro -... | Feathered Friends Eos | Rab Microlight Alpine | REI Co-op 650 2.0 |
| Warmth (30%) | |||||
| Comfort (25%) | |||||
| Portability (20%) | |||||
| Weather Resistance (15%) | |||||
| Breathability (10%) | |||||
| Specs | The North Face Summ... | Rab Neutrino Pro -... | Feathered Friends Eos | Rab Microlight Alpine | REI Co-op 650 2.0 |
| Down Fill | 800 fill ProDown; Responsible Down Standard certified | 800FP European Goose Down, hydrophobic Nikwax | 900+ fill down | Recycled 700 fill power down | 650 fill goose down; Responsible Down Standard certified |
| Outer Fabric | 100% 20D recycled nylon ripstop with DWR finish | 20D recycled Pertex Quantum Pro, ripstop | Pertex Quantum brushed ripstop nylon with DWR | Recycled 30D nylon Pertex Quantum ripstop, DWR finish | Recycled nylon taffeta, DWR finish |
| Weight, size small (ounces) | 13.4 oz | 18.5 oz | 10.3 oz | 13.5 oz | 9.9 oz |
| Hem Type | Drop hem (small) | Drop hem (large) | Drop hem (small) | Drop hem (large) | Drop hem (small); hip length |
| Fit | Standard | Regular | "Women's" | Active | Standard |
| Pockets | 7; 2 zippered hand, 1 external zippered chest, 4 internal slip (2 mesh) | 3; 2 zippered hand, 1 internal zippered chest | 3; 2 zippered hand, 1 external zippered chest | 3; 2 zippered hand, 1 external zippered chest | 4; 2 zippered hand, 2 internal slip |
| Hood | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Cuff Construction | Stretch-knit | Elastic and velcro | Lycra (elastic) | Elastic (overhanging baffle) | Elastic |
| Adjustment Points | Single hem bungee; single back-of-hood bungee | Dual hem bungees, dual hood bungees, velcro back-of-hood, velcro cuffs | Dual hem bungees, dual hood bungees | Dual hem bungees, dual hood bungees | Dual hem bungees |
| Stow Option | Packs into hand pocket + carabiner loop | Stuff sack included (drawstring) + carabiner loop | Stuff sack included (drawstring) + carabiner loop | Stuff sack included (drawstring) + carabiner loop | Packs into hand pocket |
| Other Notable Features | Helmet compatible hood, stretch-knit cuffs, reverse-coil zippers (water resistant), raglan sleeves for mobility | Helmet-compatible hood, 2-way zipper, wire-stiffened projected hood brim, twisted sleeve baffles for greater mobility, felt chin guard, large velcro loop at nape of neck | N/A | Felt chin guard, wire-stiffened projected hood brim | N/A |
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Our Analysis and Test Results
The North Face Summit Breithorn is a thick puffy jacket filled with RDS (Responsible Down Standard) certified 800 fill ProDown. Its exterior is 20D 100% recycled nylon ripstop fabric with a DWR finish. The Breithorn has a narrow fit through the hips with a small drop hem, weighs 13.4 ounces, and packs into its hand pocket.
Performance Comparison
The Breithorn is a warm, comfortable jacket that we love - as long as it fits your hips!
Credit: Maggie Nichols
Warmth
The Summit Breithorn is packed with quality 800 fill ProDown. Its medium-sized baffles are slightly wider than average, cutting down on the number of seams leaking cold air onto your core. The helmet-compatible hood has plenty of space to be worn over a thick beanie with a pom on top or layered underneath a ski helmet on a cold day. Stretch-knit cuffs hold tight to the wrists, effectively stopping cold air from rushing up the sleeves. A longer torso with a small drop hem adds some coverage, as does the high-zipping chin. A single adjustment point along the hem lets you pull it tight — though the Breithorn is so narrow through the hips that we rarely needed to use it.
The helmet-compatible hood is a great touch, adding extra warmth on frigid crisp mountain mornings.
Credit: Maggie Nichols
Comfort
A lot of the comfort of the Breithorn comes down to whether it fits your body or not. This jacket was not designed with curvy women in mind. Our lead tester is 5'4" with 36" hips. She comfortably wears a size Small across the board and could barely keep the Breithorn zipped and down around her bum while walking. Some of our testers who typically wear the same size but have wider hips couldn't even fit into this very slim jacket. But for those narrow-framed individuals who it does fit, the close-to-body design of this jacket feels great. It has raglan-style sleeves offering a wide range of movement for your arms and a whopping seven pockets (four are internal).
The stretch knit cuffs are extremely comfortable and we appreciate that the Breithorn has more pockets than just about any other jacket we tested.
Credit: Maggie Nichols
Portability
Weighing 13.4 ounces, the Breithorn is just on the heavier side of the array of jackets we tested. Yet while wearing, it feels like a soft cloud and offers excellent warmth and coverage for its weight. We think the extra few extra ounces are worth it. It compresses into its own hand pocket, with a little finagling and squeezing. Once packed away, it becomes a long, slender package with a fabric carabiner loop located at the end of the zipper, letting it dangle at an angle off of your pack.
The Breithorn is midweight but compresses into a pretty small package.
Credit: Maggie Nichols
Weather Resistance
The Breithorn's thickness and wider baffles help stop wind from coming straight through to your core. Its slender fit and tighter hem with a strong cinch cord also come in handy when you're out in trying conditions. The hood design is great for warmth, though when worn over a bare head, we were unable to fully cinch it around our faces to seal out the wind. The ProDown insulation is designed to retain loft (and therefore warmth) even when wet, and a DWR finish helps to seal out moisture. The reverse-coil zippers also help keep water out.
The cinching system for the hood can't quite tighten all the way around our bare heads.
Credit: Maggie Nichols
Breathability
As a thicker, warmer model, the Breithorn suffers a bit regarding breathability. It lacks venting features to make it more breathable, and its slender fit doesn't allow for easy air exchange without unzipping the whole thing. We found ourselves occasionally needing to remove it while snowshoeing the uphill sections of a trail on a mild winter morning at 8000 feet.
The size Small is snug around our lead tester's 36" hips.
Credit: Maggie Nichols
Should You Buy The North Face Summit Breithorn?
The biggest consideration when purchasing the Breithorn is whether or not it fits your hips. If you have slender hips, this jacket's trim and close-fitting design may be exactly what you're after. It's warm, cozy, and comfortable for those seeking a slim-fitting jacket. If your hips are average width or wider, it may not be the right choice for you.
For those on our testing team who could comfortably wear the Breithorn around their hips, they love how it fits, feels, and protects.
Credit: Maggie Nichols
What Other Down Jackets Should You Consider?
If you're not a narrow-hipped human but you're after a super warm jacket for active pursuits in cold environments, the Rab Neutrino Pro is an excellent and mobile fit that we continue to love year after year. Or if you want a medium-warm jacket that's easy to layer and wear every day or on adventures, the Arc'teryx Cerium is a very versatile jacket that we solidly recommend.
There's a lot we like about this impressive jacket from The North Face's adventure-ready Summit Series.
Credit: Maggie Nichols
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Maggie Nichols
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