Conclusion

In an ideal world, we’d recommend having both a lightweight, packable jacket for showery weather, and a heavy-duty shell for those dreich, set-in days when it’s cold and wet. One of the lightest jackets is the Gore Bike Wear Gore-tex C5 Infinium Hybrid and this is a great choice if you’re a women looking for your first jacket because the current online price is amazing. Ride performance is great too, albeit for a smaller rider.

The other three women’s jackets are also relatively affordable, but only two are worth the money. The Leatt MTB 2.0 is a 2020 product but it feels old school in more ways than one.

We debated long and hard on the winner of the women’s category because the Madison

DTE Women’s and Endura Women’s Singletrack are both excellent jackets. The Endura is cheaper and has more features but the fit and protection offered by the Madison jacket meant it was the waterproof we’d reach for before any wet ride.

In the men’s category, one of the lightest jackets was the Specialized Trail Series Wind Jacket. It’s not fully waterproof and is over-priced but it’s a great jacket for stashing in a pack and then pulling out when the heavens open.

Price was also a deciding factor when summing up the Fox Neoshell. There were just too many little niggles like the inconsistent

DWR performance and poor fit to justify the £360 price tag.

The Giro suffered similar performance issues – it didn’t fit that well, the waterproofness was patchy and we’d often end our rides in this one soaked in sweat.

If you want a heavy-duty waterproof on a budget, the Leatt MTB 5.0 is a solid choice.

Build quality is up there with the best and it has some unique features, like the magnetic attachment and Climbvent connector, but again the fit is a little off, especially in the neck and hood.

If you want a waterproof jacket that doesn’t feel like one then we’d recommend the Madison Flux. It’s lightweight, comfortable and is

It’s breathable, it’s waterproof, and it can also take the knocks

something you could easily wear all day or just throw on during a downpour.

The top two jackets in the men’s category are both excellent products and you wouldn’t be wasting your money if you bought either one, which goes to show how hard it was picking a winner. The Scott Trail Storm WP is an excellent waterproof – it has the best hood and neck design here. It’s durable and the attention to detail is impressive. If it was a tad cheaper you’d be looking at the test winner.

The Gore Bike Wear C5 Trail Hooded is another quality jacket – it’s lightweight and has impressive breathability and waterproofness. With a high collar and maybe a different hood, you’d be looking at the test winner.

With the Endura MT500 II you are looking at the test winner. This jacket has good breathability and waterproofness, but it also can take the knocks. There’s a load of practical features and with that deep hood, high collar and those secondary wind cuffs we felt the most comfortable in this jacket. Sizing is a little off – we’d definitely try a size smaller – but it’s a great all-day winter jacket for less money than the Scott.