14 Brands Like 686 for Street-Ready Snow Outerwear
Your shell wetted out somewhere around the second week of March and you promised yourself you'd sort it before next season. It's July, the stock has dropped to half price, and you're squinting at a product page in a heatwave trying to remember whether it was the shoulders that gave up or the hem.
686 is a snow-outerwear brand that builds waterproof jackets, pants and bibs to read as streetwear once you're off the chairlift, across GORE-TEX, Thermagraph and SMARTY 3-in-1 lines, with pieces such as the Thermaldry Insulated Shacket at $140 and technical pants from $100. It's one brand, though, and colourways turn over fast. The 14 brands below sell the same thing: waterproof, breathable snow outerwear you'd wear into town afterwards. Prices come from each brand's own store, in the currency that store sells in, and where a snow line is sold out for the summer we've said so.
| Brand | Jacket price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Burton | $484.95 | A jacket the brand will still repair a decade from now |
| Volcom | $420 to $965 | Graphic outerwear with a jacket-to-pant connection |
| Patagonia | $449 to $799 | Buying one shell and keeping it going |
| The North Face | $750 | A resort week and the school run |
| Arc'teryx | $750 | The most refined shell on the mountain |
| Picture Organic Clothing | $550 to $690 | Published membrane numbers and a B Corp certification |
| Obermeyer | $499 | Cold-weather warmth with resort styling |
| Flylow | $440 to $480 | Skiers who read spec sheets before lookbooks |
| Oakley | $305 to $800 | Goggles, helmet and hood that sit together |
| Napapijri | Mid-range, UK store only | European street styling for a cold commute |
| Trew Gear | $599 | Wet-snow riders who patch instead of replacing |
| Quiksilver | $199.95 to $219.95 | A first proper snow jacket under $200 |
| DC Shoes | $179.95 to $329.95 | Unisex sizing and anorak cuts |
| Roxy | $239.95 to $449.95 | Women's fits with sizes past XL |
Burton
Burton has made snowboard outerwear since Jake Burton Carpenter started the company in a Vermont barn in 1977, and the warranty is the part worth knowing. Jackets and pants bought since 2003 carry a limited lifetime warranty, repair comes before replacement, and turnaround runs three to four weeks outside the winter rush.
The fabric labelling takes a minute to decode. DRYRIDE names a performance standard rather than a membrane, and anything carrying it clears at least 10,000mm waterproofing and 5,000g breathability, topping out at 20k/20k. Above that sits the [ak] line in GORE-TEX, where the Cyclic 2L Jacket ($484.95) comes in ten colourways and sizes XXS to XXXL. If you ride 40 days a season and hate replacing things, this is the deepest bench on the list.
Best for: Riders who want a jacket the brand will still repair a decade from now.
Volcom
Volcom is a California board-sports brand whose snow line sits closest to 686's design language, which makes sense given the origin story. Richard Woolcott and Tucker Hall started it in 1991 out of two bedrooms in Newport Beach and Huntington Beach, and their first year of clothing sales came to $2,600.
The snow line runs on GORE-TEX with the newer ePE membrane, which Volcom describes as PFAS-free with a reduced carbon footprint. Zip Tech joins the jacket to the pant so snow can't ride up your back, and a RECCO reflector is sewn in for avalanche search. The L Insulated GORE-TEX Jacket ($420) uses recycled 2-layer fabric with 80/60g low-loft insulation, while the TDS Inf GORE-TEX Jacket ($965) steps up to 3-layer C-KNIT with AquaGuard zips. Our editors rate the mid-tier pieces as the value sweet spot. We've covered the wider range in brands like Volcom.
Best for: Graphic-forward outerwear with a jacket-to-pant connection.
Patagonia
Patagonia sells snow shells under its H2No Performance Standard, and the brand is specific about what that means. Its own page calls H2No a testing process rather than a technology or material, measuring waterproofness, breathability, surface repellency and long-term durability before a fabric ships.
The Ironclad Guarantee is the reason people stay. Patagonia will repair, replace or refund a product you're unhappy with, and it repairs wear-and-tear damage for a reasonable charge, which is rarer than it sounds. Worn Wear then resells the results. Current pricing on its snow page runs the PowSlayer Jacket at $799, the SnowDrifter at $449 and the Storm Shift at $499. One practical note: the US shop URLs were unreachable for us from outside the States in July, so check availability in your region before you plan around a specific style.
Best for: Buying one shell and keeping it going for a decade.
The North Face
The North Face has been going since 1966 and now splits its snow range between GORE-TEX and its own FUTURELIGHT membrane. The Summit Series Tsirku FUTURELIGHT Jacket ($750) is the clearest example of what that buys: a seam-sealed 3-layer shell in 91% recycled polyester reinforced with Spectra ripstop, backed with 100% recycled nylon tricot.
Off the mountain it's the most recognisable name here, and the Nuptse has done more for puffer sales than any marketing campaign. Read the warranty carefully before you buy, though. It covers manufacturing defects for the expected lifetime of the product, and the help page states the company can't currently process repairs for items outside those terms. That's a real difference from Patagonia if you plan to wear a jacket hard for years.
Best for: One jacket that works for a resort week and the school run.
Arc'teryx
Arc'teryx was founded in 1989 by a crew of Vancouver climbers who started out making harnesses and packs in a basement, and the construction obsession carried straight into outerwear. The Sabre Jacket ($750) is the freeride shell most people land on, built from 80-denier 3-layer GORE-TEX with the ePE membrane, free of intentionally added PFAS, with a RECCO reflector and the helmet-compatible StormHood.
Nothing in the range shouts. The palette stays quiet, the logo stays small, and the money goes into pattern-cutting and seam placement instead. Arc'teryx publishes no mm ratings, which frustrates spec-sheet shoppers, so judge it on the GORE-TEX grade and the cut. For the wider picture, we've written up brands like Arc'teryx and Arc'teryx vs Patagonia.
Best for: Skiers and riders who want the most refined shell on the mountain and will pay for it.
Picture Organic Clothing
Picture Organic Clothing is a French snow brand that publishes higher membrane numbers than anything else in this price bracket. The Huron GORE-TEX 3L Jacket ($690) and the Lassen GORE-TEX 2L Jacket ($550) both quote 28,000mm waterproofing and 28,000g breathability, built in 100% recycled polyester with a PFC-free Teflon Ecolite DWR finish and waterproof YKK zips.
The French brand is a Certified B Corporation, and every product page carries a Clear Fashion impact score, currently 75 out of 100 on those two jackets. Colour is where it parts company with the muted end of the eco category, and sizing runs XS to XXL. Its US store is running 40% off across the snow range in summer, so the Huron lands nearer $414 today.
Best for: Riders who want published numbers and a certification they can look up.
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Obermeyer
Obermeyer traces back to 1947, when Klaus Obermeyer arrived in the United States and took a job as a ski instructor in Aspen. That job led to the company, and the alpine-resort sensibility hasn't faded since.
The Charger Jacket ($499) shows the house recipe: HydroBlock Pro fabric in a two-way stretch blend that's 45% Repreve recycled polyester, PrimaLoft Black Eco insulation graded 100g through the body and 40g in the hood, plus Control Zone Ventilation and a Snap-Away powderskirt. The Pledge of Performance is a no-questions-asked limited lifetime warranty against defects in materials and workmanship. Ski-edge cuts and normal wear sit outside it, so read the terms rather than assuming.
Best for: Cold-weather warmth with resort styling and a wide size run.
Flylow
Flylow came out of a problem two Colorado natives couldn't solve in a shop. Greg Steen and Dan Abrams, friends since college, wanted ski pants that survived the backcountry, and their first products landed in 2005 as the Cactus Pant and the Black Coat.
The fabric page is unusually clear about tiers, which makes shopping straightforward. Intuitive PHD tops the range at 30k waterproofing and 30k breathability, Lux 2L sits at 20k/30k, and Stark holds the entry line at 10k/10k in a heavy 120-denier weave. The Quantum Pro Jacket ($440) is the three-layer hardshell most people start with, and the Dante GORE-TEX 2L Jacket ($480) covers the resort side. Around 80% of Flylow's fabrics are bluesign approved. Note the domain, because it trips people up: flylow.com is dead and flylowgear.com is the working store.
Best for: Hard-charging skiers who read spec sheets before they read lookbooks.
Oakley
Oakley makes both the snow goggles and the jacket hood, and its outerwear is designed around that fit. The Kendall RC Shell Jacket 2.0 ($305) uses a 2-layer FN DRY lamination rated 15K/15K, is made entirely from recycled polyester, and pairs an adjustable helmet-compatible hood with fully taped seams, a waterproof-zip chest pocket, pit vents and a snow skirt.
Prices climb steeply above that. The Bowls GORE-TEX Shell Jacket holds at $800 with no markdown, and the Sub Temp RC GORE-TEX Jacket 2.0 sits at $555. Sage Kotsenburg fronts the backcountry range, which tells you where the design brief points. Where 686 leans relaxed and casual, Oakley cuts closer to a race silhouette.
Best for: Anyone who wants goggles, helmet and hood to sit together properly.
Napapijri
Napapijri takes its name from the Finnish term for the Arctic Circle and traces its origins to the late 1980s in Aosta, Italy. The Skidoo was its first jacket and remains the piece the brand builds its identity around, cut in CORDURA for abrasion resistance with Thermo-Fibre padding made from 100% recycled polyester, critically taped seams, water-resistant and windproof.
Be realistic about timing and geography before you get attached. There's no US storefront, prices show in pounds, the ski collections return zero products on the UK site in July, and every Skidoo variant we checked was out of stock. The Skidoo Common Anorak lists at £620 and the Skidoo PDF at £485. Bookmark this one for autumn as a city-winter jacket, not as technical snow kit you can buy today.
Best for: European street styling in a jacket that handles a cold commute.
Trew Gear
Trew Gear started shipping out of a garage in Hood River, Oregon, and designed the bibs it's still known for in 2008. Pacific Northwest snow is wet and heavy, which shaped the whole approach.
The PNW Primo 3L fabric used on the Cosmic Jacket PRIMO ($599) and the TREWth Bib PRIMO ($599) is 100% recycled nylon, bluesign certified, PFAS-free, rated 20,000mm waterproof and breathable, with mechanical stretch. What sets Trew Gear apart is the repair desk. Outerwear carries a three-year warranty against manufacturing defects, and beyond that the brand fixes damage you caused yourself for $15 to $100 with your approval first, covering return shipping and turning work around in three to six weeks. Zippers get one year before they count as wear and tear.
Best for: Wet-snow riders who'd rather patch a bib than replace it.
Quiksilver
Quiksilver has been going since 1969, and its snow range is the cheapest genuine way into properly waterproof outerwear among the brands here. The Mission Solid Snow Jacket ($199.95) is 100% recycled polyester at 165gsm with a C0 DWR finish and a 10K TPU lamination, and it comes with a removable powder skirt, underarm vents, an interior goggle pocket and a sleeve pass pocket.
Step up to the Fairbanks Snow Jacket ($219.95) and you get 10K DryFlight waterproofing plus WarmFlight x2 Eco insulation spun from recycled PET bottles, 40g through the body and hood, under a helmet-compatible fixed hood. The GORE-TEX styles the collection page describes were sold out when we checked, so treat those as an autumn proposition. Our full round-up sits at brands like Quiksilver.
Best for: A first proper snow jacket for under $200.
DC Shoes
DC Shoes brings skate-brand pricing to snow outerwear, and it cuts several styles as unisex rather than splitting the range down gender lines. The Intel 30K Insulated Jacket ($329.95) carries the highest rating in the line, and the DC-43 Anorak ($229.95) delivers the over-the-head silhouette 686 fans tend to gravitate toward.
Further down the range the Tundra Insulated sits at $249.95 and the Defiant Insulated at $219.95 in 100% recycled polyester with taped seams. Product copy is thinner here than at Flylow or Picture Organic Clothing, so you get fewer published numbers to compare. The Nexus Reversible Anorak ($179.95) answers that in its own way by giving you two jackets for one price.
Best for: Unisex sizing and anorak cuts without the boutique markup.
Roxy
Roxy is a women's snow brand whose outerwear is cut on its own patterns instead of shrunk down from a men's block, which is the gap most of 686's rivals leave open. The Meade Jacket ($269.95) holds full price with a 10K/10K rating and critically taped seams, and the GORE-TEX Stormday Jacket ($449.95) pairs a GORE-TEX 2L shell with PrimaLoft Black Eco insulation.
Details you'd expect further up the price ladder show up here: a jacket-to-pant attachment system, a three-way adjustable hood, Lycra wrist gaiters and the Hydrosmart collar treatment. Shells run 55% recycled polyester and PFAS-free. The Chloe Kim collection is the standout, and the Overhead Jacket ($239.95) in that line runs XXS to XXXL, a broader size span than almost anything else here. More options in brands like Roxy.
Best for: Women's fits with a size range that goes past XL.
How to Pick the Right Snow Kit for the Way You Ride
Start with days on snow, because that number decides the rest. Under ten days a season and a 10K jacket from Quiksilver, DC Shoes or Roxy will keep you dry for a fraction of the money. Past 30 days, the 20K and 30K fabrics at Flylow, Trew Gear and Picture Organic Clothing stop being a luxury and start being the reason your midlayer is still dry at 2pm.
Then read the warranty, since it's the one spec brands rarely put on the hangtag. Patagonia and Trew Gear will repair damage you caused yourself for a fee, Burton and Obermeyer both back jackets for a limited lifetime against defects, and The North Face states it can't process repairs outside its warranty terms. Across five seasons that gap costs more than the price difference between two jackets.
Still weighing the mountain-to-city question? Our guides to brands like North Face and Patagonia and ski brands like Goldbergh pick up where this one stops.
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Written by
Spencer Lanoue
