In this blog I’m going to feature a list of the very best men’s lightweight cycling jackets.
When you talk about lightweight, you talk about cycling jackets that sacrifice a bit of comfort and insulation in favor of single or double layer, small-size stowability.
The reason why you’d want such a garment is because you want to take some extra weather protection with you on your bike.
Also some of the most affordable sub-100 dollar cycling jackets made it onto this list. And with some extra layering underneath, you can easily add more protection as you see fit.
Both water-resistant and waterproof options are available. An easy table overview is listed at the end of the article.
So let’s see what’s made it onto my list of the best men’s lightweight cycling jackets.
Gore Wear Endure cycling jacket
The Gore Wear Endure cycling jacket is a fairly lightweight, and packable waterproof jacket.
Made from GORE-TEX PACLITE® Plus it features a durable outer shell, with a GORE-TEX membrane. In combination with water-resistant zippers and taped seams, it makes this cycling jacket waterproof.
The jacket packs into a tiny package, which makes it perfect to stow away in a pannier, bikepack, or backpack.
It’s hooded with enough space to cover an average-sized helmet.
It’s definitely not the cheapest but none of Gore’s products are. But its waterproof packability, makes this lightweight, breathable cycling jacket a serious contender for adventurous cyclists.
- Helmet-compatible, yet still stowable, waterproof jacket. Highly versatile jacket for any type of riding from trail riding, to touring, and bikepacking
- Pricey
Gore Wear C5 GORE-TEX Shakedry 1985 Viz cycling jacket
The Gore Wear C5 GORE-TEX Shakedry 1985 Viz cycling jacket sits resolutely in the more tech-oriented premium range of packable jackets.
Shakedry refers to the garment having great water beading characteristics that enable you to shake off the rain droplets should you decide to stow the jacket into a rear jersey pocket.
It’s one of the lightest waterproof packable cycling jackets on this list at 140 grams, but it’s one of the most expensive as well. Gore basically stripped the entire outer layer from their traditional fabric.
The combination of high breathability but still being waterproof justifies that price for the more ambitious roadies.
- Stylish, fully waterproof, lightweight, stowable jacket. Maximum protection against the rain in a minimal package.
- Delicate and extremely expensive.
Gore Wear GORE-TEX Paclite cycling jacket
The Gore Wear GORE-TEX Paclite cycling jacket is a lightweight cycling jacket with a relaxed fit.
Made from GORE-TEX PACLITE® Plus it easily enables multi-layering for added insulation should the temperature drop significantly, turning this garment into a great winter cycling option.
Durable, water- and wind resistant with fully taped seams for the best protection against riding through heavy rain.
Large reflective elements on the back and arms, alongside brightly colored options ensure you’re clearly visible in low-light conditions.
Water resistant zippers and a single zippered back pocket underline its road riding pedigree.
But roadie or not, if you want a lightweight winter cycling jacket to get you through the worst of weather conditions, look no further.
- High quality, lightweight winter jacket, which loose-fit enables multi-layering
- Not waterproof
Gore Wear C5 GORE-TEX Active cycling jacket
The Gore Wear C5 GORE-TEX Active cycling jacket is a minimal, performance-oriented, and very lightweight waterproof option.
As the name implies, the jacket is made from GORE-TEX Active fabric, which is extremely breathable, yet still waterproof.
With a single zippered back pocket the jacket can be stowed away inside itself, and can be carried around inside another jersey.
For those who want premium quality garment that can be easily carried with you.
- Lightweight, waterproof, stowable jacket
- None
Endura Pakajak cycling jacket
The Endura Pakajak cycling jacket is a packable cycling jacket you can stuff into your jersey for quick use.
Without any pockets it’s a minimal cycling jacket especially made to provide protection from wind-chill and a possible light shower, so don’t expect to be using this in freezing temperatures. That’s not what it’s meant for.
With a mesh ventilation underneath the arms, and a water-repellant treatment it provides carry-with-you protection when the weather becomes fickle.
- Lightweight, packable cycling jacket
- Not a replacement for a more standard cycling jacket
Endura Hummvee Lite II cycling jacket
The Endura Hummvee Lite II cycling jacket combines a loose-fit design with excellent weather protection.
A 2-layer polyester ripstop with sealed seams and mesh liner means you get a windproof and waterproof cycling jacket that allows for enough room to layer up.
This means it’s a flexible jacket for a variety of temperatures and weather conditions in an affordable package.
- Versatile, and flexible allround cycling jacket with loose fit
- Not the most breathable
Endura FS260-Pro Adrenaline Race Cape II cycling jacket
The Endura FS260-Pro Adrenaline Race Cape II cycling jacket is as minimal as they come.
With a translucent, lightweight design and made from ExoShell20ST 20K fabric, the jacket is meant to do only one thing, which is offering on-the-fly protection from the rain.
Meant for road cyclists who want to travel light with rain insurance that can be stuffed in a back stow pocket.
- The best insurance against sudden rain showers
- Very fragile. Not very breathable
Showers Pass Transit CC cycling jacket
The Showers Pass Transit CC cycling jacket is more than your average pack-and-stow jacket.
With Artex 3-layer fabric and DWR-free PFC treatment you get all the weather protection you need, in a fairly lightweight package, that’s extremely breathable, and has enough pockets to put away your keys and the like.
A reflective droptail with reflective bars on cuffs means you’re seen in low-light conditions and underlines its excellent use for daily commuting and bikepacking.
- Breathable, visible, waterproof, stowable cycling jacket for bikepacking, commuting, and touring
- None
Fox Racing Ranger Wind cycling jacket
The Fox Racing Ranger Wind jacket is an effective and stylish option to protect yourself against wind chill.
One of the more affordable options to obtain a cycling jacket, which is both windproof and protects you against light showers in the form of a DWR treated fabric.
2 zippered pockets ensure you’ve got the right amount of cargo space. And it’s lightweight and minimal enough to be stored in a jersey. You can take this jacket with you as an insurance should the weather take a turn for the worse.
Budget-friendly, but still more than adequate enough to be a great all-round option for cold-weather riding.
- Affordable windbreaker for chilly trail rides
- Not waterproof
Inbike Rain Hooded Waterproof cycling jacket
In an industry where premium brands vie for making the most expensive cycling garments you can think of, the Inbike Rain Hooded Waterproof cycling jacket is a breath of fresh air.
For a decent enough price you get a 10K lightweight polyester shell with fully taped seams, which makes this an excellent waterproof addition to your cycling wardrobe.
Its single downside is the hood is not fully compatible with your average helmet, which relegates this jacket to helmetless commuting or bikepacking (my hope is any trail rider wears a helmet).
2 zippered hand pockets and reflective striping finishes this otherwise pretty allround and great design for a waterproof cycling jacket.
- Budget-friendly waterproof, allround cycling jacket
- Not helmet-compatible
Craft Essence Light Wind cycling jacket
The Craft Essence Light Wind cycling jacket is a portable windbreaker you can easily stow away.
This means it’s meant for roadies that need ad-hoc protection when facing strong and cold headwinds.
Made from a polyester ripstop with a DWR treatment, it’s a pocketless, water-repellant and windproof, non-insulated cycling jacket.
Cheaper than many of the garments that fall into the same category.
- Budget-friendly, portable pocketless, water-repellant and windproof, non-insulated windbreaker
- Not waterproof. It's a windbreaker
POC Mantle Thermal hoodie
The POC Mantle Thermal hoodie is a great in-between cycling garment as summer moves into autumn and the temperature plummets.
Made from a double-layered 15K polyamide with fleece lining the hoodie features above-average stretching abilities into an already loose-fit. That means this hoodie feels fantastic and will give you all the freedom of movement you’ll need for tricky and technical trails in cold weather conditions.
Nylon also is more durable than polyester, the fabric of choice for many competing products.
And with a DWR treatment on top of tightly woven 15K fabric you don’t have to fear getting soaked because the garment has fantastic water-repellant characteristics.
Yes, unfortunately it comes only in black, which is a missed opportunity on POC’s side if you ask me, because I would’ve loved to don one of these with a color matching one of my bikes (blue, red, and orange please).
POC isn’t known for making cheap cycling apparel and this hoodie is no exception. And while last-you-a-lifetime might be a bit too much, this hoodie will surely last you longer than most.
- Cool-looking waterproof hoodie for cold weather conditions, made from durable nylon
- More colors please
POC Signal All-weather cycling jacket
The POC Signal All-Weather jacket has the honor of being the most expensive packable jacket on this list.
So what do you get for paying several hundred dollars for a minimal packable jacket? For one, the most waterproof jacket with protection against a 20K water column, which is double the protection when compared to the average other waterproof jacket. You can hang the packed jacket on your handlebars.
The jacket actually features a RECCO® Reflector and a twICEme® NFC Medical ID, something I normally see on jackets worn with skis or a snowboard. It’s an added protection for bikepackers.
The fact that such a jacket comes in a form, which can be easily stowed away indeed makes it the ultimate lightweight jackets for bikepackers.
- The most expensive minimal, waterproof cycling jacket you can pack and hang on your handlebars. Recco reflector and twICEme NFC medical ID
- Price, not well insulated
POC Motion Wind cycling jacket
The POC Motion Wind cycling jacket is a flexible cold-weather, windproof cycling jacket.
Made from nylon spandex fabric it’s very durable and has an excellent fairly loose fit.
It sits between jackets meant for MTB and road cycling, but could be used for both as well as for commuting and bikepacking.
With a long drop tail, reflective elements front and back, and a helmet-compatible hood it’s the perfect allround option that doesn’t hurt your wallet much.
- Allround cold-weather, windproof cycling jacket with large droptail and helmet-compatible hood
- Not waterproof
POC Supreme Rain cycling jacket
The single most eye-catching feature of the POC Supreme Rain cycling jacket is that it’s the most expensive lightweight cycling jacket I could find.
When any brand has the audacity to charge hundreds of dollars for such a product, you can be sure that a large portion of that goes directly towards the marketing department tasked with promoting it.
Granted, at less than 100 grams lightweight doesn’t exactly do this jacket justice. With a 3-layer 10-Dernier 20K polyester fabric you do get a fully waterproof jacket. Made from the same material used in stockings.
It doesn’t have any pockets, because you’d never want to put any extra weight into it.
Yes, it’s on this list, but just to give you a bit more perspective of what the industry has come up with, with respect to lightweight cycling jackets. Because for the price I can’t honestly recommend it over some of the other really solid entries here.
But for every 100 individuals, I’m sure there’s one that falls into the target audience of this piece of high-tech cycling garment. And it might just be me.
- 20K waterproof rain protection
- Absurd price for such a delicate piece of fabric
POC Pure-lite Splash cycling jacket
The POC Pure-lite Splash cycling jacket is a high-quality, very well-made lightweight cycling jacket.
Made from a double-layered nylon spandex fabric it’s stretchy and comfortable, but still is tight-fitting enough to suit the aerodynamic needs of the average road cyclist.
Available in a number of colors, from your standard black to icy blue.
There’s no insulation apart from a liner in the collar, but the fabric holds off all the wind from getting through.
It makes for another high-quality entry in the packable stow-away-into-jersey windproof jackets category.
- Packable cycling jacket with a single focus of protection you from a sudden rain shower.
- Not insulated
POC Haven Rain cycling jacket
The POC Haven Rain cycling jacket is one of the best high quality, waterproof, lightweight cycling jackets worth your money.
With a minimal 20K durable ripstop polyamide fabric the material itself won’t let the worst rain storm get through. The fabric is treated with a DWR coating and all seams are fully taped.
There’s a rule that sometimes the less product you get, the more expensive it is. That certainly goes for this premium rain cycling jacket. So be prepared to dig deep into your wallet to obtain this bit of Swedish high-tech weather protection.
- Highly waterproof jacket made from durable ripstop with large droptail
- Very expensive. Never liked large zippered pocket in the back
Giro Chrono Expert Wind cycling jacket
The Giro Chrono Expert Wind jacket is a solid choice if you’re looking for minimal protection you can quickly put away at any time.
Basically a packable water-repellent windbreaker, the jacket features nylon ripstop fabric with a DWR treatment.
The jacket doesn’t feature any pockets and needs to be stowed away into a separate bag.
The entire back is perforated, which is great for ventilation, but not so much to keep out the rain.
A great packable cycling jacket to keep you warm and offer some protection against the rain and wheel spray.
- If you're looking for a packable, water-repellent windbreaker
- Meant as first layer of protection against the elements, and not much more
Giro Stow H2O cycling jacket
Should you want maximum protection in a lightweight package the Giro Stow H2O jacket is one of the best choices you can find.
With a 15K 2.5-layer polyester fabric with DWR treatment, this garment is waterproof, windproof and durable, and still somewhat affordable when compared to similar options.
It further adds to that flexibility in use, with 2 zippered hand pockets to stow away your stuff.
When not in use, pack it and stow it on your handlebars.
My personal pick for the best allround packable waterproof cycling jackets.
- Premium, waterproof, stowable jacket
- None
Leatt MTB AllMtn 2.0 V22 cycling jacket
The Leatt MTB AllMtn 2.0 V22 jacket is an affordable entry into a packable jacket with a decent amount of water resistance.
The 5K water-resistant fabric will keep you dry through light and short showers, and has a hood you can pull over your helmet. The hood actually stays in place using a magnet.
2 zippered pockets let you take necessary items with you, like your phone and keys.
Offered in a single black version, it’s a clean-looking water-resistant and windproof jacket, which can fold into its own chest pocket.
- High-quality, yet affordable, entry-level MTB jacket
- Not waterproof
Specifications men's lightweight cycling jackets
Name | Price | Material | Weather protection | Pockets | Reflectiveness | Packable | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gore Wear Endure cycling jacket | 230 USD | GORE-TEX PACLITE® Plus | windproof, waterproof | 2 zippered front pockets | reflective logos | yes | |
Gore Wear C5 GORE-TEX Shakedry 1985 Viz cycling jacket | 300 USD | GORE-TEX SHAKEDRY™ | windproof, waterproof | 1 lower back stow pocket | reflective logos | yes | |
Gore Wear GORE-TEX Paclite cycling jacket | 200 USD | GORE-TEX PACLITE® | windproof, waterproof | 1 zippered back pocket w. 1 zippered breast pocket | reflective details | yes | |
Gore Wear C5 GORE-TEX Active cycling jacket | 220 USD | GORE-TEX Active | windproof, waterproof | 1 back stow pocket | reflective logos on both arms, chest and back | yes | |
Endura Pakajak cycling jacket | 75 USD | Nylon ripstop fabric w. DWR treatment | windproof, water resistant | none | reflective elements front and back | yes | |
Endura Hummvee Lite II cycling jacket | 140 USD | 2-layer polyester ripstop w. sealed seams and mesh liner | windproof, waterproof | 1 zippered breast pocket | reflective logos front and back | yes | |
Endura FS260-Pro Adrenaline Race Cape II cycling jacket | 110 USD | ExoShell20ST™ 20K fabric | windproof, waterproof | none | reflective logos w. striping | yes | |
Showers Pass Transit CC cycling jacket | 239 euros | Artex™ 3-layer fabric w. DWR-free PFC | windproof, waterproof | 2 zippered hand pockets w. 1 zippered breast pocket | reflective droptail w. reflective bars on cuffs | yes | |
Fox Racing Ranger Wind cycling jacket | 85 USD | Cordura® ripstop fabric w. DWR finish | windproof, water resistant | 2 zippered hand pockets | reflective logo | yes | |
Inbike Rain Hooded Waterproof cycling jacket | 109 USD | 10K lightweight polyester shell w. taped seams | windproof, waterproof | 2 zippered hand pockets | reflective shoulder stripes and elements on back | yes | |
Craft Essence Light Wind cycling jacket | 90 euros | polyester ripstop w. DWR treatment | windproof, water resistant | none | reflective elements | yes | |
POC Mantle Thermal hoodie | 150 euros | 15K 2-layer polyamide w. fleece lining w. fluorocarbon-free DWR treatment | windproof, water resistant | eyewear holder w. zippered lower back pocket | reflective elements | yes | |
POC Signal All-weather cycling jacket | 350 euros | 20K ripstop fabric w. jersey liner | windproof, waterproof | 2 stow hand pockets and 1 zippered back pocket | reflective front and back logos | yes | |
POC Motion Wind cycling jacket | 140 euros | Nylon spandex fabric w. DWR treatment | windproof, water resistant | 1 zippered breast pocket | reflective front logo and back stripes | yes | |
POC Supreme Rain cycling jacket | 490 euros | 3-layer 10-Dernier 20K polyester | windproof, waterproof | none | reflective elements | yes | |
POC Pure-lite Splash cycling jacket | 120 euros | Polyamide stretch fabric w. fluorocarbon-free DWR treatment | windproof, water resistant | 1 zippered back pocket | reflective logos | yes | |
POC Haven Rain cycling jacket | 290 euros | 20K ripstop polyamide fabric w. DWR treatment and taped seams | windproof, waterproof | 1 zippered back pocket | reflective front and back logos | yes | |
Giro Chrono Expert Wind cycling jacket | 120 USD | Nylon ripstop fabric w. DWR treatment | windproof, water resistant | none | reflective strip on back | yes | |
Giro Stow H2O cycling jacket | 90 USD | 15K 2.5-layer polyester w. DWR treatment | windproof, waterproof | 2 zippered hand pockets | 3M® reflective logos | yes | |
Leatt MTB AllMtn 2.0 V22 cycling jacket | 130 USD | 5K w. DWR treatment | windproof, water resistant | 2 zippered hand pockets | reflective elements | yes |
Johan van Seijen
FoundeR Restoration.bike
Johan van Seijen is the founder of restoration.bike. His passion for cycling in general, and restoring older bikes turned into a website to share his knowledge with a broader audience. Starting out on his father’s road bike and riding classics as the Amstel Gold Race and Liege Bastogne Liege he has shifted his attention to trail, XC, and gravel riding since. No matter how much he loves writing about everything related to cycling, nothing beats actually using his ever-expanding bicycle collection.
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