12 Finest Base Layers | 2024 Picks


Irrespective of the season, it’s all the time a good suggestion to deliver an additional jacket alongside whenever you’re heading outdoors. However as temps begin to drop, dressing properly is much more necessary (and we’re not simply speaking about discovering the proper puffer coat). A simple approach to insulate your self from the chilly is by sporting some nice base layers—a.okay.a. skinny, light-weight, long-sleeved shirts and tights that match underneath the remainder of your garments.

That may not sound like sufficient to maintain you heat, however these items are an amazing basis for the remainder of your layering. And whenever you’re bundled up correctly, you possibly can keep snug in chilly or unpredictable situations with out sacrificing your vary of motion. Right here, we spoke to mountaineering and kit consultants about the perfect base layers you possibly can add to your winter wardrobe, plus tips on how to go well with up safely in your subsequent chilly outing.

FAQs about base layers

What to search for when looking for base layers

You possibly can store for base layers the identical approach you store for different out of doors attire, however preserving the next options in thoughts can assist you streamline your search.

  • Match: Good base layers will match shut in opposition to your pores and skin, Maggie Peikon, supervisor of communications on the American Mountaineering Society, tells SELF. They need to really feel cosy, however not too tight. Take into account that some base layers are made to really feel compressive, which could not be as snug (relying in your preferences).
  • Supplies: One of the best supplies for base layers are Merino wool and artificial materials like polyester, nylon, or rayon, since they’ll aid you keep heat and stop you from overheating, Mike Kreis, a gross sales and repair specialist at REI, tells SELF. These supplies wick moisture away and regulate your physique temperature higher than cotton, which truly holds onto moisture—and it’s a lot more durable to remain heat whenever you’re damp, Peikon explains. She additionally suggests searching for fleece-lined base layers: Though they don’t have the identical quick-drying properties as artificial and wool items, they’re nice whenever you need to really feel further heat and comfy.

The way to correctly layer clothes for chilly climate

Ingrid Johnson, a product specialist at REI, beforehand gave SELF a wonderful metaphor for layering: “Gown just like the layers of an onion, the place every garment transferring outward will get barely larger so that you just don’t restrict vary of movement or compress your circulation and find yourself colder.”

With that in thoughts, after you place in your base layers, you possibly can add a mid layer like a fleece or a skinny down jacket so as to add insulation and heat—simply be certain it’s straightforward to take off in case you begin to overheat, Peikon says. (Kreis factors out that you just don’t have to start out your day with a mid layer in case you assume it’ll be too sizzling from the get go: “Bear in mind, you possibly can all the time depart a hotter mid-layer within the automobile or your pack.”)

The outer layer in your “onion” ought to shield you from the weather, like a wind- and waterproof shell-style jacket, Peikon says. Test that it’s roomy sufficient to put on over your different layers comfortably—though you’re bundled up, you must nonetheless have the ability to transfer.

Store the perfect base layers

As a lot as we love an indoorsy day through the winter, you don’t need to cancel your out of doors plans simply because it’s chilly—not upon getting some high-quality base layers, that’s. We chosen our prime picks primarily based on suggestions from SELF staffers and the consultants we spoke to. Test them out beneath, then get psyched in your subsequent chilly climate tour.

Finest base layer tops

Smartwool Intraknit Energetic Base Layer Crew

Smartwool

Intraknit Energetic Base Layer Crew

Execs

  • Temperature-regulating wool mix
  • Odor-resistant
  • Made with minimal seams

Cons

  • Runs small, in keeping with reviewers

Ventilated, stretchy, and designed to scale back chafing, Smartwool’s Intraknit Energetic Base Layer is ideal for exercising. Zappos reviewers like it for mountaineering and cross-country snowboarding, and it’s a favourite of SELF’s director of health and meals too. Its vented panels are strategically positioned for airflow the place you want it most (elevate your hand in case your again will get obscenely sweaty throughout exercises), and its wool mix cloth is made to really feel further light-weight and comfortable in opposition to your pores and skin.

Sizes: XS to XL | Supplies: Merino wool, lyocell, polyester, elastane

Below Armour ColdGear Mock Lengthy Sleeve

Below Armour

ColdGear Mock Lengthy Sleeve

Execs

  • Very stretchy
  • Tender, heat lining
  • $60 and underneath

Cons

  • Compressive type might really feel too tight for some

Our director of health meals and senior commerce author each swear by this toasty-warm mock-neck shirt from Below Armour—in reality, they’ve had theirs for years. “I’d have to take a seat out a lot of the fall climbing season with out this shirt,” our author says. “It’s cosy—like, very, very cosy—however nonetheless strikes with me. I run chilly, and I can pile a number of extra layers on prime of it with out feeling restricted.”

The ColdGear Mock Neck Lengthy Sleeve feels clean and modern on the surface, however comfortable and brushed on the within. Plus, its increased neckline helps hold frigid air out.

Sizes: XS to XXL | Supplies: Polyester, elastane

Kari Traa Rose Half-Zip Base Layer High

Kari Traa

Kari Traa Rose Half-Zip Base Layer High

Execs

  • Odor-resistant
  • Fast-drying
  • Adjustable protection

Cons

Each Kreis and Peikon recommend a half- or quarter-zip prime in order for you extra temperature management: Totally zipped, it supplies full protection; unzipped, it releases some physique warmth. Kreis likes this feature from Kari Traa as a result of it’s 100% Merino wool, considered one of his top-recommended materials for base layers (it’s additionally made with four-way stretch, so it doesn’t really feel stiff).

REI and Backcountry reviewers say the Rose Half-Zip is impressively heat—one wrote that it’s all they put on underneath their ski coat after they hit the slopes.

Sizes: XS to XL | Supplies: Merino wool

Smartwool Traditional Thermal Merino Base Layer Crew

Smartwool

Traditional Thermal Merino Base Layer Crew

Execs

  • Very comfortable
  • Good for a variety of temperatures
  • A number of shade choices

Cons

  • Runs small, in keeping with Smartwool reviewers

This SELF Activewear Award–winner stored our tester heat whereas mountaineering a four-mile, snowy mountain path in 32-degree climate. “The fabric was very comfortable, not itchy in any respect, and comfy,” she mentioned, including that she’d fortunately sleep in it on her subsequent backpacking journey. Plus, the match is nice in case you’re going to be transferring round loads: “The physique of the shirt was fitted, however the sleeves had been barely free,” our tester mentioned. “That provided the mobility I want when mountaineering and scrambling.”

What units this Smartwool layer other than the Intraknit shirt above is its supplies and objective: The Traditional Thermal Merino Crew is 100% wool and made to carry out within the coldest temps, whereas the Intraknit is healthier suited to cool-to-cold climate between 25 and 50 levels.

Sizes: XS to 4XL | Supplies: Merino wool

Janji Rover Merino Hoodie

Execs

  • Hooded
  • Backside hem pocket for small objects
  • Not fairly as cosy as different choices on our listing

Cons

Our director of health and meals additionally likes this Janji hoodie, noting that it isn’t cumbersome within the least—as a substitute, it suits shut sufficient to the physique that you would be able to put on a vest over it. It additionally has a comfortable hood that gained’t slide round when you’re on the transfer and sleeves with thumb slits, so that you get somewhat extra protection than you’ll with a normal long-sleeve crew.

Sizes: XS to 3XL | Supplies: Merino wool, nylon, spandex

Athleta Ascent Seamless High

Athleta

Ascent Seamless High

Execs

  • Very stretchy
  • Below $90
  • Ventilated mesh panels

Cons

  • Not appropriate for very chilly climate

Right here’s a breathable base layer for milder days “whenever you want one thing underneath your T-shirt, however know you’ll be sweating buckets in case you put on something too heavy,” our senior commerce author says. She put it to the check on a number of classically fickle spring days, the place the solar was shining one second and it was chilly and breezy the following. “It added somewhat heat once I wanted it, and helped me keep cool once I peeled off my different layers,” she says, including that it has “seemingly limitless quantities of stretch.”

Sizes: XXS to XL | Supplies: Nylon, wool, spandex

Finest base layer tights and leggings

Minus33 Light-weight Magalloway Merino Wool Backside

Minus33

Light-weight Magalloway Merino Wool Backside

Execs

  • Out there in three weights
  • Holds up after many washes
  • Below $80

Cons

  • Amazon reviewers report some inconsistencies with sizing

SELF’s way of life director wears Minus33’s Light-weight Magalloway Merino Wool base layer underneath working pants and denims, which we think about a testomony to how mild they honestly are. “They’re actually comfortable and heat, however not too heat,” she says. “They’re not too tight and don’t dig into your waist, and so they wash effectively.”

These tights are additionally obtainable in a midweight selection and the model’s “expedition” weight, which is the warmest, heaviest choice (Minus33 recommends it for 30-degree climate and beneath).

Sizes: XS to 3XL | Lengths: 26 to 32 inches, relying on the dimensions | Supplies: Merino wool

Columbia Omni-Warmth Infinity Tights

Columbia

Omni-Warmth Infinity Tights

Execs

  • Sweat-wicking
  • Below $65
  • Light-weight however heat

Cons

  • Waistband may very well be wider, per one tester

Columbia’s Omni-Warmth Infinity Tights gained a 2023 Activewear Award for his or her spectacular warmth retention. Their lining displays and traps your physique warmth, however wicks away sweat so you possibly can keep dry. “I wore solely these as bottoms whereas mountaineering in 32-degree climate (with no different base layers),” one tester mentioned. “The leggings weren’t solely heat, however had been versatile and responsive with my motion. I’ll be sporting these on extra hikes and tenting journeys to return.”

The Omni-Warmth Tights are additionally a standout for one SELF staffer, who’s wanting ahead to sporting them snowboarding. “These are approach hotter than different base layers I’ve tried,” she says. “They’re light-weight, match completely, and have held up over time.” She additionally recommends the corresponding Omni-Warmth Infinity Base Layer Crew shirt for all-over light-weight heat.

Sizes: XS to XXL | Size: 26 inches | Supplies: Polyester, elastane

Kari Traa Rose Capri Excessive-Waist Base Layer Bottoms

Kari Traa

Rose Capri Excessive-Waist Base Layer Bottoms

Execs

  • Pair effectively with ski boots
  • Very comfortable

Cons

Kreis additionally recommends Kari Traa’s Rose capris, which finish proper beneath your knee. This size can come in useful in case you’re sporting them with ski boots or different high-cut, heavy footwear, since they gained’t add further bulk round your decrease legs. And the areas they do cowl can be good and heat, because of their soft-to-the-touch wool cloth and midweight insulation.

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