Light, temperature regulating, great for layering, and versatile, merino wool sweaters are a great option for the coming Fall months. We’ll review some of the benefits and recommend a few men’s merino wool sweater options to prepare you for the cooler weather.
Of all the sweater materials available, why go with merino wool? They offer the best of performance, comfort, cost-effectiveness, and versatility.
As opposed to cotton or cotton-blends, merino wool naturally regulates temperature. When it’s cool, it helps you stay warm. And if the temperature heats up a bit, it can wick sweat so you don’t overheat. This quality makes merino wool great for a variety of temperatures. Also, as opposed to lambswool or other heavier fabrics, merino is not itchy, so you can wear it without a heavy undershirt for cool weather.
While other cool weather fabrics may offer similar or slightly better performance compared to merino wool, they tend to be much pricier. Cashmere, alpaca, and Shetland wool, for instance, are great fabrics, but these sweaters will take a bigger bite out of your wallet. If you can afford them, they are great, but merino wool provides most of the benefits for much less cost.
Merino wool also offers the most versatility. Work in a business casual office? You can easily throw a fine merino sweater over your button down, or under a sport coat or suit jacket. Going for a casual look? Lightweight or chunkier merino wool goes great on it’s own with jeans, chinos, or trousers. Working from home? Throw one on with some joggers and you’re good to go. Going from cold weather outdoors to indoors? Merino wool is thin and great for layering, which can keep you warm outside without overheating inside. Harder to pull off with heavier wool sweaters.
Best options
While merino wool is a more economical choice, there is a wide price range for a men’s merino wool sweater. Most tend to be at least decent quality, but the lower end of the price spectrum will mostly offer thinner sweaters (not a bad option for layering) that may not last as long.
The grey crewneck (pictured below) provides a versatile option as well. If you only can have two colors of this style, I would go with grey and navy. Beyond that, you should try to pick colors to match your skin tone and other items in your wardrobe you may layer with your sweaters.
If you’ll typically wear these on top of button downs, v-necks tend to work slightly better to accentuate the lines of a dressier or business casual outfit. Crewnecks can be worn more easily on their own and can pull duty over casual button-downs, making them more versatile. Personally I avoid the v-necks on their own or over a t-shirt, but your mileage may vary on those styles.
The option above is from Uniqlo. Their merino sweaters are very affordable (under $50), lightweight, and great for layering. The fabric is on the thinner side, so these are best for cool weather or layering over button-down or underneath heavier outerwear.
As far as traditional mall brands go, Banana Republic offers a pretty solid option below. These clock in at $90 retail but can usually be found on sale for under $60.
Bonobos has another option below in a similar price range (~$100). I find the quality on these to be very strong, plus they offer a couple different fits (slim and standard).
All of the options above provide good quality for the price. Anything pricier, and you may want to consider a cashmere or wool/cashmere blend sweater. One exception is maybe something a little chunkier and more textured like the option from Charles Tyrwhitt below (retail $119).
Regardless of your budget, you have solid options to add at least a couple men’s merino wool sweaters to your wardrobe. Experiment with a few different looks and see just how versatile this piece can be.