Helly Hansen Alpha LifaLoft Review

Despite the extra plush insulation and draft-sealing design, the Helly Hansen Alpha LifaLoft includes a unique vent in the upper back that channels warm air through the insulation to the exterior waterproof/breathable Helly Tech Professional shell fabric. This vent helped keep us warm without ever feeling hot and clammy.

Warmth

Warmth is the number one reason to buy the Alpha LifaLoft. The windproof shell, combined with thick, 100g Primaloft Black LifaLoft insulation, let us speed down groomers without ever feeling a draft get through. We could also lean against the frozen backs of chairlifts without discomfort.

The warmth doesn't only come from thick insulation, which is relatively easy to stuff into a jacket. Helly takes the time and effort to fully insulate the collar, making it feel plush, in addition to increasing its effectiveness. We're also fans of the wrist gaiters, which seal out drafts that can sneak under your sleeves. If you need to take your gloves off and on to manage gear, help kids, use your phone, or enjoy snacks on the lift, you might appreciate the wrist gaiters.

Weather Resistance

Helly Hansen uses a proprietary waterproof shell material with a Durable Water Repellant (DWR) coating. It's able to shed water easily, and this jacket has historically held up well over multiple seasons for multiple testers (our last tester for this jacket wore his for several seasons). The aforementioned wrist gaiters aren't waterproof, but they do help reduce the ability of snow and water to enter the sleeve.

While the hood improves weather resistance, it's not the best hood we've tested. It's large enough to be compatible with helmets, but it's a bit undersized for serious coverage during full-on downpours.

Ideally, you'll be wearing this jacket while skiing when the precipitation remains frozen into snowflakes, but if you ski in wet weather (we're sorry!), the smaller-than-average hood might be a deciding factor for you. However, the shell itself is waterproof.

Comfort and Fit

The Helly Hansen Alpha LifaLoft is an absolute comfort winner with our testers. The plush insulation, combined with 4-way stretch fabrics and a body-hugging cut, makes this coat feel like it's tailor-made to fit active people. The shorter waist length also reduces binding around the hips when skiing, which can be annoying with some longer jackets.

The fit is definitely athletically trim and a bit small compared to most other insulated ski jackets. One of our broad-shouldered testers reported a bit of a binding across the shoulders on high arm movements, but it wasn't bad enough to warrant sizing up. Still, everyone who orders their usual size should know that this isn't a jacket designed for extra midlayers.

Breathability

The Alpha jacket's shell uses Helly Hansen's most waterproof and breathable shell fabric, Helly Tech Professional. The company uses this same fabric for its hardshell rain jackets, and it's very effective at shedding rain over hours at a time. The breathability lets water vapor escape through tiny pores. However, remember all that insulation? Layers of insulation slow breathability as water vapor from a hot torso has to work its way through a half-inch of fibers to even get to the Helly Tech Pro shell.

The Alpha LifaLoft's breathability score is bolstered by excellent venting. A vent positioned at the upper back lets hot, moist air rise and escape to the breathable shell. In use, it seems to help regulate temperature. The difference is most notable when we side-by-side tested insulated jackets that don't have this kind of vent while skiing.

For much quicker cooling, Helly includes underarm vents. Because the vents are covered in mesh, we could leave these open on warmer days and have little issue with moisture or snow getting inside — even when our testers went down in deep snow.

Style

Premium coats tend to have more tailored cuts that better fit human bodies. The Helly Hansen Alpha LifaLoft has one of the most flattering insulated cuts we've ever tried on. In person, the quality of the stitching, positioning of pockets, and attention to detail all result in a refined sense of style that looks good.

Bright color options bring along their own vibe, too, elevating this jacket with options that might match your personality. When the skiing is done for the day, and it's time to hang out or cruise the sidewalks of a mountain town, the shorter waist length fits right in.

Features

The Alpha LifaLoft has all the core features we expect in a great ski jacket, including large, adjustable cuffs, underarm vents, a helmet-compatible hood, zippered chest pockets, and a powder skirt to help seal out snow.

While the powder skirt is not detachable, the hood is — it can be completely removed for warmer, bluebird days, or for a trimmer style around town. Testers also rave about the stretchy wrist-and-thumb-hole gaiters. They not only make the coat feel warmer, they evoke a better sense of connectivity between the sleeves and the arms of skiers. So good.

Helly Hansen includes a handy microfiber goggle wipe in one exterior chest pocket.   Credit: Chris Maxcer

The powder skirt helps fend off deep snow. The waist fits trim, but the elastic toggle and cord lets you seal out drafts.   Credit: Chris Maxcer

The sleeves offer wide adjustments to let you cover gloves if preferred or needed.   Credit: Chris Maxcer

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The LIFEPOCKET+ insulated phone chest pocket looks like any other pocket, but it's not. The pocket is sewn underneath a layer of insulation, which keeps the contents warmer than every competing jacket's chest pockets. For avalanche safety, Helly has also sewn in a RECCO reflector, which can be used by rescuers to help locate avalanche victims.

Should You Buy the Helly Hansen Alpha LifaLoft?

If you're looking for a super warm, full-featured ski jacket for resort use, the Alpha LifaLoft is hard to beat. It's waterproof, has very good ventilation, and delivers premium materials in a stylish package. Compared to many ski jackets, the fit is trim, and it's a bit short, so it's not as good for adding tons of layers underneath (but it's warm enough that you won't need them). If you want one jacket layer to handle most conditions, the trim fit works well.

What Other Ski Jackets Should You Consider?

The Helly Hansen Alpha LifaLoft is a high-quality winner, but some other insulated ski jackets excel in slightly different ways. The Helly Hansen Alpha 4.0 performs just as well in most of our testing categories, but it's less insulated and drops the extra plushness down a notch, making it cost a bit less. The Patagonia Storm Shift Insulated tackles weather protection and temperature management in similar ways, but it fits just a bit larger, giving you room for an extra layer if you need it. If the higher prices of these jackets are out of reach, the more affordable Obermeyer Raze impressed us with its ultra agile fit and surprisingly chill do-it-all vibe.