Vegan Winter Coats: Staying Warm Without Down or Wool

Why coats are where animal materials cluster

A winter coat is often the most animal-heavy thing in a wardrobe. The fill might be duck or goose down. The shell of a smart coat is often wool, and sometimes cashmere. The hood may have a fur trim, the toggles may be horn, and there may be a leather tab on the collar or a suede patch on the elbow. A coat can pass on the outside and fail on four counts inside.

The good news is that coats also have some of the best animal-free alternatives, and the technical case for them is stronger than most people expect.

Down, and what "responsible" down means

Down is the soft underlayer of a bird's plumage, usually from ducks and geese raised for meat, and in some supply chains for foie gras. The practices that made it notorious are live-plucking, where down is pulled from conscious birds, and force-feeding.

The Responsible Down Standard (RDS) prohibits both and says it covers welfare from hatching to slaughter. If you buy down, RDS is the minimum worth accepting. It still means a bird, and our materials gate counts all down: new, certified or recycled. We set out why in where fashion's animal materials come from.

Synthetic insulation, and how it compares

Synthetic insulation is a web of fine polyester fibres that traps warm air, just as down's clusters do. You will see it under brand names such as PrimaLoft, Thinsulate and Thermore, and under a coat maker's own names. Save The Duck's is called PLUMTECH. More and more of it is made from recycled polyester.

How it compares with down, in plain terms:

• Warmth when wet. Synthetic wins clearly. Down clumps and loses most of its loft when it gets damp. Polyester fibres keep much of theirs, which matters a great deal in a British winter, where cold usually arrives with rain.
• Warmth for the weight. Down wins. For the same warmth, a synthetic coat is a little heavier and bulkier, and it packs down less small.
• Care. Synthetic usually wins. Most synthetic coats go in the washing machine and dry quickly, while down needs careful washing and thorough drying to avoid clumping.
• Longevity. Mixed. Good down that is looked after keeps its loft for many years. Synthetic fill slowly loses loft with compression and washing, though the better fills hold up well. Buying a better coat and caring for it matters more than the fill.

Down is measured by fill power. Synthetic insulation is usually quoted as a weight in grams per square metre: roughly 40 to 80 g/m² in a light jacket, and 100 g/m² or more in a warm winter coat. If a brand gives you that number, it knows what is in its coat.

Wool-look coats

The smart wool coat is harder to replace than the puffer, but not by much. Many "wool-look" coats are polyester, viscose or acrylic blends, and some are very good. The trouble is that the names do not tell you which is which. "Melton", "bouclé" and "tweed-effect" can describe wool or synthetic cloth, and a coat can be sold as a wool coat when it is 30 per cent wool and 70 per cent polyester.

So read the composition label for the shell and the lining. Then check the details: buttons (horn and shell are both animal), collar tabs and trims (leather and suede), and any fur on the hood. Real fur is still sometimes sold as faux. Part the hairs and look at the base: fur grows from skin, and faux fur is knitted into a fabric backing.

A buying checklist

1. Shell: what is the fabric, by percentage? Recycled polyester or nylon shells are the norm on puffers.
2. Fill: what is it, and how much? Look for a named insulation and a weight in g/m².
3. Trims: hood fur, collar tabs, toggles, zip pulls and patches.
4. Waterproofing: is it rated, and what is the water-repellent finish?
5. Repair: does the brand repair zips and seams? A coat that can be mended lasts twice as long.
6. The brand: does the rest of its range use down, wool or fur? If so, your money funds that too.

Rated brands worth starting with

• Save The Duck: 32. The obvious place to start. An Italian brand that has made padded jackets and parkas without feathers, fur or wool since 2012, and says it always has. Every product page gives the composition of each component and where it was made. It is a B Corp, offers repair and resale, and uses fills including recycled PLUMTECH. It has not published a testing declaration or named its factories, which is why it scores 32 rather than more. UK orders can attract import duties, so check at checkout.
• Will's Vegan Store: 30. Its pea coat is a proper alternative to the wool classic, in certified cotton and insulated with recycled polyester.

Most big outdoor brands make excellent synthetic jackets, but many also sell down and wool, so they would carry a red tag under our standard even when the jacket you want is animal-free. If you buy one, the questions above will tell you what you are getting. If a brand you like is not on our list, let us know.

Keeping warm without a heavier coat

Layers beat bulk. A synthetic base layer, a fleece or dense knit mid-layer (see is wool vegan? for the alternatives), and a windproof, water-resistant shell will keep you warmer than one thick coat, and each layer comes off as the day warms up. Add a hat. It sounds obvious, and it is still the cheapest warmth there is.