Awarded the best value buy after rigorous tests, Alex Roddie likes this Highlander Ember fleece.
With basic features but competent performance and an incredibly low price, the Highlander Ember Fleece offers pretty much everything you need from a fleece and has very few downsides.
Alex Roddie’s Best Value
Overall, competent performance at low price is the headline here, and it’s easy to recommend for a lightweight fleece that gets the basics right.- warmth for weight
- breathability
- comfort
- value
- fit
- long-term durability
- less temperature regulation than grid fleece
- no known sustainability credentials
| Quick specs |
|---|
| Price: no US shipping / £24.99 (available from Decathlon) Weight: 250g (M) Fill: 100% Polyester brushed fleece Hood: none Shell: n/a Pockets: none Hem: no adjustment Cuffs: simple Sizes: men: XS–XXL; women: XS–XXL Men’s version: yes highlander-outdoor.com |
This garment is made from standard brushed polyester fleece – no grid backing or fancy face finishings. It’s warm but not too warm, it breathes well but not as well as more modern grid fabric, and it has a degree of stretch.
One downside compared to higher-spec’ed fabrics is that basic fleece lacks that temperature regulation magic… so, overheating is possible in some conditions. However, I found it great under a shell in chilly Autumn or average winter conditions, and only found it stuffy above about 10°C.
The feature set is basic. It’s a pullover with a quarter-length zip, no pockets, a high collar, and simple cuffs. A simple design is all you really need in a garment like this, especially when worn beneath a shell. It’s also very lightweight.
I found fit to be good and as expected for medium. There’s little stretch but it still offers good freedom of movement. The sleeve length and bum coverage are both fine.
There’s no anti-odour treatment, and this fleece does retain odours more noticeably than other garments. After a three-day backpack the pong could not be denied.
Another area of concern is long-term durability. After several washes, the face fabric shows the earliest signs of pilling in some areas – nothing out of the ordinary, but it alerted me to potential microplastic shedding, and may not prove as durable over multiple years as other garments.
Overall though, competent performance at low price is the headline here, and it’s easy to recommend for a lightweight fleece that gets the basics right.
Testing conditions
Alex wears a men’s medium. He tested his midlayers on a variety of Autumn and Winter walks in the Scottish Highlands and Lake District, including routes at low and high levels, day hikes and multi-day hikes in full winter conditions. He also took them on a snowshoe tour of the Stubai Alps. Weights are as measured on Alex’s digital scale.
To compare this midlayer with others we rate, see our guide to the best fleece jackets and midlayers.
