Patagonia Nano Puff vs. Micro Puff vs. Down Sweater: Differences and Reviews 2024

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Patagonia Nano Puff vs. Micro Puff vs. Down Sweater: Differences

Before diving into my in-depth discussion, look at the table below to get a key specs of them.

Insulation

The Primaloft Gold Eco Insulation material used in the Patagonia Nano Puff is extremely good at holding in your body heat and keeping you warm in pretty cold conditions.  It’s warmer and lighter than lesser synthetic insulation, and it’s composed of over 50% recycled materials.

Patagonia has used a different type of insulation material in the new Micro Puff range, which called  Plumafill insulation.This has been designed to replicate the structure of natural down.  The Plumafill tends to perform slightly better than natural down in wet conditions, though, as it is synthetic, it doesn’t clump up when wet like down can sometimes do.

The Patagonia Down Sweater uses real down (800 fill power, ethically sourced goose down) which keeps highly warmer than Nano Puff and Micro Puff in dry weather. However, if it gets wet, it might not keep you warm anymore. 

Warmth

The Patagonia Down Sweater contains 800 fill natural down. Down is so good at retaining heat as it traps air in the spaces between the down material and then heats it naturally. This then provides a layer of warm air between you and the conditions outside. So in dry conditions, the Patagonia Down Sweater can keep you warmer at lower temperatures than the Nano Puff and Micro Puff. However, Down Sweater does not perform well once they get wet. They take longer to dry, and any air the down material trapped soon disappears, along with any warmth it was retaining.

The Nano Puff and Micro Puff are still more than capable of keeping you warm and comfortable when you’re out in the cold. They hold up much better in wetter conditions. As they uses synthetic insulation, it does not have the problem of losing its heat-retaining properties once wet as the Down Sweater does. As we know that the synthetic insulation dries faster. 

Compared to the Nano Puff, the Micro Puff is warmer. Because the Micro Puff has heavier insulation with 65 grams of PlumaFill and different baffles, allowing the synthetic insulation to mimic down a bit better than the Nano Puff's 60 grams of PrimaLoft.

Durability

The Patagonia Nano Puff,  the Micro Puff and the Down Sweater are all pretty durable jackets.They can withstand carrying a backpack, the odd scrape and bump, and they both put up with the expected general use of an outdoor jacket pretty well. However, the Nano Puff has more durable materials. The 1.4-ounce 20-denier shell and 1.3-ounce 22-denier liner double to create a stronger outer layer than the Micro Puff's 0.8-ounce 10-denier shell.
The Patagonia Down Sweater comes with 1.2-oz 20-denier NetPlus® 100% postconsumer recycled nylon. You can expect it to be more abrasion-resistant than the Nano Puff and Micro Puff. The higher the denier, the tougher the fabric.

Fit

The Nano Puff and Micro Puff do fit a bit tighter than the down sweater, but it is still loose enough to be comfortable, and it doesn’t impact your mobility in any way. Because the man-made filling is  easier to compress than real goose down, making the Nano Puff and Micro Puff’s silhouette a little more slimline.

The down insulation in the sweater is bulkier than the Nano Puff and Micro Puff’s synthetic insulation. The Down Sweater is more generously cut and therefore allows for more freedom of movement than the Nano Puff and  Micro Puff. In terms of shape it feels just right – not too loose and not too tight either. While you can wear the Down Sweater beneath other layers, it is a bit more bulky.

Packability & Compressibility

All the three jackets can compress down into small packs. The down insulation can hold its shape better when compressed so it looks more natural when unpacked. The synthetic insulation in the Nano Puff and Micro Puff jackets tend to struggle a bit more to return to its desired shape after being packed away. So they have a more creased appearance than the down sweater.

When packed away, all the three jackets are compact. However, The Micro Puff does pack away to a smallest compressed size though (although there isn’t a huge difference). This is because the Micro Puff is far lighter of the option.The added bulk the down insulation adds to the down sweater that make it  pack away to a largest compressed size among the three.

Water Resistance

All the three are coated with a DWR (durable water repellent), which helps to bead water as it hits the jacket resulting in water running off the down sweater rather than soaking through. The problem with this is that it is only a coating that will get worn away. In heavier downpours, the DWR will be overwhelmed, and water will start soaking your jacket.

Based on our own experience, the Down Sweater is better compared to the Nano Puff and Micro Puff when it comes to water resistance. Just keep in mind, when it gets wet, here comes the trouble.

Unlike the Down Sweater, the Nano Puff and and Micro Puff have tons of stitching sewn through it.  If you wear a DWR-treated jacket in heavy rainfall for too long, the stitching will be the first to get saturated.
Pockets & Features

Pockets & Features

Looking at the pockets, the Patagonia Nano Puff, the Micro Puff and the Down Sweater all have side pockets in the front where you can warm your hands nicely.  All of the pockets feature easy-to-grab pulls. To protect your stuff from getting wet, the zipper garages hold them in place.

The Patagonia Nano Puff has one zippered inside pocket that also features as a compressible pocket. So, you can compress your jacket down into the pocket pretty nicely. On the other hand, the Micro Puff and  the Down Sweater have not a zippered pocket but actually has two large internal drop-in pockets with elastic on it.

One thing to consider here can be that the internal dump pockets of Nano Puff and Down Sweater overlap with hand warmers that take place on the other side of the garment. This might make the jacket less comfortable when you fill all of them up. 

Some additional features that the Nano Puff and  the Down Sweater have that the Micro Puff does not is cinch cord on the bottom hem. They both have a cinch cord so you can tighten it up as you like or loosen it to allow some warmth to get out. The Down Sweater even has better hem drawcords. It is located in the hand pockets, so you can adjust the hem without having to get your hands out of the pockets. On the other hand, the Patagonia Micro Puff doesn’t have this in an effort to be less weight.

Bottom Line