Best Cold Weather Sleeping Bags for Survival (updated 2024)

When faced with a situation that leaves you exposed to the cold and without any heat, particularly during the winter, cold weather sleeping bags that have been specifically designed to combat the loss of body heat is something you definitely want!

Choosing the right bag will help to protect you from freezing cold temperatures by ensuring the heat generated by your body is retained efficiently inside the bag, thus keeping you warm and safe from potential dangers such as hypothermia.

We at Alpha Survivalist understand the importance of planning ahead for these types of situations and that’s why we know that having the right sleeping bag isn’t just the wise thing to do, it’s an absolute necessity.

So before you find yourself faced with trying to survive a frigid day or days without heat you should really give some serious consideration to getting yourself kitted out with the best cold weather sleeping bag you can afford.

Choosing the Right Cold Weather Sleeping Bags

There are hundreds, if not thousands of sleeping bags from which to choose so when looking for a sleeping bag to meet those cold weather needs, you need to give consideration to several important criteria.

What You Need to Consider When Looking at Cold Weather Sleeping Bags

Insulation:

How much insulation the sleeping bag contains and what type it is are extremely important factors. Don’t just look for a sleeping bag that is insulated. You should do some homework to determine what type of filling is best for maximum warmth if you are faced with sub zero temperatures and no heat.

Down is most likely the best material for maximum warmth. How much down your sleeping bag contains is directly correlated to the amount of body heat your bag will trap. Fill power is the term used to describe how much down a bag contains. A bag with a fill power of 400 won’t trap and retain as much warm air inside as a bag that has a fill power of 800 does. Down isn’t your only option for your sleeping bag’s interior filling. If there is a good chance that your sleeping bag could potentially become damp, down filling may do you more harm than good. A synthetic fiber will be a better option for you as it will dry much better and faster than down. A wet sleeping bag won’t keep you warm in 0 degree weather and will only make your situation that much worse, so this is something to consider.

Temperature Rating:

The temperature rating of your cold weather sleeping bag is another crucial consideration. Do temperatures in your area plummet to 32 degrees Fahrenheit or do you see frigid arctic temperatures of -40?

Most likely your temperatures will be someplace in between these two extremes. At any rate, you want to be prepared by having a shelter for your body with a temperature rating that will be most likely to keep you comfortable. While temperature ratings are guidelines, you can generally assume that the lower the number of the temperature rating, the warmer your sleeping bag will be. So, essentially, a bag with a rating of 0 degrees will keep you warmer than a bag with a rating of 15 degrees. Another way to read the ratings is that a bag with a rating of 20 degrees has been designed to keep you warm in temperatures down to 20 degrees. Most temperature ratings given by manufacturers will be survival ratings unless stated otherwise. A bag may have a survival rating of 0° and a comfort rating of 20° meaning that you will feel comfortable in temperatures of 20° but if temperatures drop to 0° you may not have the best nights sleep ever, but you should survive without any issues!

Size:

The size of your sleeping bag is an important consideration because you don’t want a bag that is too big for your body size. A bag that is way too large for your body won’t help you hold the heat in as well as a bag that is closer in size to you. You want to select a bag that is neither too wide (one person won’t be able to keep as warm in a two-person bag as they would in a one person bag) or too long (extra-long sleeping bags are best for very tall people). You will want to consider whether or not you will be sharing your sleeping bag with another person and plan your purchase accordingly.

Zippers:

The type of zipper on your sleeping bag is important as well. You want to look for a sleeping bag with a zipper that is strong and secure and moves easily without getting stuck or snagging the material.

It might be a good idea to decide if you want a zipper that will allow you to open and close your sleeping bag shelter from the inside as well as the outside. Zippers made of nylon or plastic are recommended as they are the most durable and can be most easily repaired if broken.

Outer Fabric:

One feature that people often tend to overlook when determining what to look for in a sleeping bag is the material that the shell of the bag is made from. The vast majority of bags will have shells made from taffeta or polyester/nylon, while these fabrics may be toughened, weatherproofed, and breathable, in most cases they are not waterproof. What you may want to look for if the ultimate in cold weather sleeping bags is what you want, is a bag with a shell made from a waterproof material that has been treated with a durable water repellent. Waterproof sleeping bags are available and will be covered in detail on Alpha Survivalist in the future. Our top choice of cold weather sleeping bag, the US Military Modular Sleeping System is one example of a sleeping bag that is waterproof, although strictly speaking, it is the outer bivvy that is waterproof not the sleeping bags that are inside. The sleeping bags included in our ‘best of’ lists below are selected on how well they maintain body heat and therefore keeping a person alive in extremely cold conditions, not on their waterproofing ability. We would strongly advise anyone to look into obtaining a shelter such as a cold weather tent that will provide protection from rain and wind and not to rely on their sleeping bag alone to keep them alive in cold weather.

Inner Lining:

The lining of your sleeping bag, the part that will be next to your body, is an important consideration and is where personal preference will play a role in any decision making process. Polar fleece is known for softness and warmth while silk is better for whisking away moisture that might be generated by your body inside the bag. Cotton flannel is another choice that might be preferred for its softness and quick drying properties. It is a good idea to test a few sleeping bags to see what feels comfortable to you and what you might not want if trying to keep warm in freezing temperatures.

Style and Design:

Another thing you will need to make a decision about is the style of the sleeping bag you want. Taking style and design into consideration when purchasing an extreme weather sleeping bag isn’t a case of making simple choices based on aesthetics, there are far more important factors that need to be weighed up. Making a purchasing decision based upon what a sleeping bag looks like instead of how effective it is during an emergency situation is never going to be the best idea!

Popular for sleeping, the mummy style sleeping bag allows for a close body fit and maximum warmth. A nice feature of the mummy style is that it is usually equipped with a draw string hood that allows heat to remain trapped around the head and neck area, rather than escaping through the top of the sleeping bag. A negative of this type of bag could be that it isn’t as easy to get into and out of quickly, potentially making any middle of the night trips to the bathroom more challenging. A quilt style bag is nice for those who prefer a bit more room to move around inside their bag as it isn’t as restrictive as the mummy style. On that note, it won’t offer the closeness of the mummy bag, so might not retain body heat as well. If using this type of bag, you will want to line it with a liner that is specially made for sleeping bags and rated highly for warmth. While not often considered for a general use sleeping bag, you might find the wearable sleeping bag to be quite literally a life saver in a survivalist situation. The wearable style allows you to unzip the bag in strategic places to allow your arms and legs to be outside of the bag while your core remains covered for maximum warmth. This could be extremely helpful in a situation where you need to move about in a very cold environment.

Cost

The price of a sleeping bag can vary massively with some bags that are designed specifically for dealing with the types of extremely low temperatures experienced in polar regions and when mountaineering, costing over a $1000. Thankfully, the vast majority of us will never need to survive in conditions as extreme as those, so spending as much as a $1000 on a sleeping bag would probably be overkill, unless of course you have the heads up about a second ice age being just around the corner?

That being said, an expensive price tag on a sleeping bag doesn’t necessarily make it the best bag and similarly, a bag that carries a price which is much more wallet friendly shouldn’t be discarded as being a lesser bag because of the ‘get what you pay for’ mantra. Our list of best cold weather sleeping bags below has a very varied price range and you’ll see that there are many very low priced sleeping bags outranking more expensive counterparts, quite rightly too! Performance is what matters and if you can get the performance you desire for a lower price then you’d be foolish not to go for it!

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Best Cold Weather Sleeping Bags 2024

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To Conclude…

Planning ahead for your sleeping bag purchase might not seem like a big deal when conditions are good. However, putting some thought into what your needs will be under extreme conditions will be time and effort well spent. Some forethought now could save you a great deal of discomfort later on.