Patagonia Houdini - Men's Review

The Patagonia Houdini is an incredibly lightweight and packable wind jacket. It also features one of the best DWR coatings we've seen on a windbreaker, giving you the confidence to go with it as your only layer, knowing that this versatile jacket will keep you dry enough to keep going in all but the worst of downpours. It is stout enough to hold up against a chilly wind on a ski tour but also breathable enough to make a fantastic running shell. Regardless of your activity, there is hardly a better option than the Patagonia Houdini.

Wind Resistance

The Houdini is made of a super-thin, lightweight nylon ripstop that is impressively wind resistant.

On a chilly afternoon on a mountain ridgeline, when the cold wind picked up, this jacket blocked the wind and kept us warm enough with only a sun shirt underneath. The hood cinches tightly around your head and won't blow off even when walking into a stiff wind. The cinch cord around the waist is easy to tighten at the hem, and the half elastic cuffs seal out any drafts from getting in through the wrists. The main zipper allows a barely perceptible amount of air through, but this wasn't noticeable even in 40 mph gusts at high elevation.

While this jacket is near the top of our wind resistance ratings, it balances breathability and wind resistance better than any other jacket. We have worn different iterations of this jacket up in the mountains for countless days over many years, and our head tester will vouch that the Houdini is a bombproof shelter from the wind.

Breathability

For a jacket that is so tightly woven, the Houdini is surprisingly breathable. It has a textured fabric that doesn't seem to clam up, no matter how hard we work. We never felt heavy with heat during extended, high-output activities like ski touring or trail running.

The Houdini has another magical quality: It seems to dry off even while you're still wearing it as long as it's getting some airflow — either a constant wind or when you are in motion, like on a ski descent. On trail runs through the desert, the Houdini does a great job of managing body temperature. The textured fabric allows for more air to run along it and prevents that cling-wrap feeling you get when wet ultralight fabric sticks to your skin.

While the Houdini doesn't have any special venting features, the fabric itself does the job pretty well. We honestly can't imagine this jacket getting much more breathable. Nonetheless, it has no pockets or underarm venting, so it could be improved with some ventilation options other than the main zipper. But again, we never felt like this jacket was lacking in breathability, and extra features would add weight to this ultralight wind layer.

The front zipper is the primary venting tool. You can also push up the sleeves, but the sleeves and wrist cuffs are a more fitted, so you can only push the sleeves up to your elbow if you're wearing a thicker midlayer.

Versatility

The Houdini works well in pretty much any situation you can think of, which is part of what makes it a great choice for almost anyone. It fits incredibly well on its own and as a shell in a winter layering kit. We've worn this jacket for everything from running, backpacking, hiking, climbing, skiing, biking, and on chilly evenings on a restaurant patio. It works very well for anything you throw it into.

The Houdini fits like an alpine layer should, not too loose but also not too tight that it restricts movement. Our head testers are often between sizes, so we've tested the Houdini in a small, medium, and large. From this experimentation, we've concluded that if you're between sizes and want your Houdini to wear as a standalone layer on top of a t-shirt or baselayer, you should get the size you usually wear. If you want it to easily layer over a puffy jacket, midlayer, or both, go larger.

This jacket is well-mapped and fits like an athletic layer, but it still allows ample movement in the arms and shoulders, which is particularly important when it comes to rock climbing and other alpine sports. This jacket is not quite as slim as previous versions and does allow for some layering underneath. But it is better worn over a fleece rather than a bulky synthetic midlayer. If you want to wear it over a thicker midlayer, you should size up.

There are no hand pockets on this jacket. The historically small chest pocket, which doubles as a stuff sack, has been updated to fit the increasing size of modern smartphones, but don't plan on much carrying capacity because it's still a pretty small pocket.

Packability

Our size medium Houdini weighs 3.4 ounces. This is one of the lightest jackets in the review, and it packs easily into the zippered chest pocket to a very small size.

Stuffing the Houdini into its zippered chest pocket is fast and easy. Unlike some lightweight layers, you won't struggle to fit this into the stuff sack pocket, and the packed size is one of the smallest of any jacket we tested — smaller than a Nalgene.

The stuff sack pocket has a small cord loop so you can hang this from a climbing harness or hook it onto the outside of your pack. This way, you'll always have it ready when you need it.

There aren't many jackets that pack down this small and weigh as little as the Houdini. Considering how well it performs when you're wearing it, you have little excuse to bring it along on any adventure.

Water Resistance

Water resistance is one of the Houdini's strongest traits. This is especially surprising considering its lightweight design and breathability.

We used this jacket on a week-long backpacking trip in the Weminuche Wilderness of Colorado. During that trip, we alternated wearing this jacket and a burlier jacket with a 2.5-layer waterproof-breathable membrane. The two jackets use completely different methods to ward off the rain, but we were amazed to find that the DWR coating employed on the Houdini was just as effective as our actual rain jacket.

Should You Buy the Patagonia Houdini?

Harry Houdini was once the world's most famous magician, and the Houdini might make you feel like you are wearing his magic cape. The Houdini is the ultimate layer, whether you are running, riding, or climbing. This jacket is one of the best value purchases you could make, thanks to its outstanding weather resistance and lightweight packability. It is perfect as an emergency piece to stash in your pack for almost any adventure, and you can wear it every day no matter the setting. The best part is that you don't have to pay top dollar for a top-quality wind jacket.

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