Heated Vest and Heated Jacket - The Best Heated Garments on the Market in 2025

Heated garments are very useful accessories that we have been using for years. They come in handy not only on colder autumn-winter days, but also during sports, we have worn such garments while hiking and skiing. They exist in countless forms, there are insoles, vests, jackets, hoodies, and even gloves, we tested most of them and even made a video about them. Choosing the right heated vest or other piece of clothing does not seem particularly complicated, but you can run into problems such as sizing, choosing the right power source or material. We share these tips and tricks with you now.

contents

• These are the best heated garments (2025)
• Everything you need to know about heated vests and other items of clothing
• Tips and tricks for choosing heated vests in 2025
• Advantages and disadvantages of using heated vests
• Frequently Asked Questions

What makes a heated garment good? Which is the best? On what basis should you choose the perfectly comfortable yet durable clothing for yourself? Excellent questions, to which we have sought the answers, so that you no longer have to investigate and try.

These are the best heated garments (2025)

We selected the heated garments on our list based on the following criteria:

• more than 10 years, based on our own experience as testers
• based on our previous sports experiences (hiking, skiing, rollerblading)
• based on individual research, which is based on domestic and international customer opinions
• based on opinions read in various forums and special groups

READ THE DETAILED TEST OF THE HEATED VEST!

This also means that you can put the batteries of the machine tools - and of course the corresponding chargers - to work. Accordingly, the system is 12 V, not 5, so the clothes can last quite a long time even from a smaller battery. REDLITHIUM's 3000 mAh battery is said to keep the jacket warm for 11 hours, obviously in the lowest setting. They also have a fancy promo video that I got here.

One of these is the belt buckle, which can be used to place the battery outside the jacket, not just in the jacket pocket. Since there are also 18 V variants of Makita batteries, a 6000 mAh unit can keep the jacket alive for up to 35 hours and can even charge your phone. THE promo video you can find it here.

Of course, you should also take a look at Decathlon's heated jackets and vests, but Dewalt, for example, also has heated garments, and sometimes Auchan also offers something like this.

YOU CAN FIND ALL THE HEATED CLOTHES TESTED BY US ON THIS LINK!

Everything you need to know about heated vests and other items of clothing

When we talk about heated clothing, we mean heated vests, jackets and other accessories made in China, as they are available relatively cheaply. However, it would be a mistake not to wink at premium workwear, which is basically marketed by big-name tool manufacturers.

Returning to Chinese heated clothing, the range is quite wide, the Chinese have already invented almost everything that can be done on this topic. You will most likely run into the following on the Internet:

• heated vest
• heated jacket (with or without hood)
• heated gloves
• heated insole
• heated trousers
• heated sweater (with and without hood)

What's more, the list is probably even wider, since busy hands are constantly producing new heated solutions, such as the heated pillow and the heated blanket. They all have the same essence, so we'll discuss the technology and how they work together.

How does the heated vest work?

All heated clothing and accessories work on the same principle. A heating thread is sewn into their material in one or more areas, the end of which is connected to a USB connector, which is usually found in the inner pocket of the vest or jacket, and in the case of pillows and blankets, it is usually led out to one of the corners. The circuit can be operated from a switch, usually placed at breast height, in three steps. The different levels differ only in the heating temperatures and they are also marked by a colored LED, which changes according to the level in which you are using the device. This is practically 99% of the distribution of all such products:

• 40 degrees Celsius, blue color
• 50 degrees Celsius, white color
• 60 degrees Celsius, red color (some give higher values, for example 65 degrees Celsius)

In the case of some products, there can be a small deviation in the temperatures, but according to our experience - several editorial members have heated vests - the maximum is typically around 60-65 degrees Celsius. The reason for this is that it is not possible to extract more power from a power bank that powers these items of clothing, plus this is a pleasant category, it does not overheat other clothes or burn the body.

In relation to heated garments, a cardinal question is where the heating fibers go. This is chosen by your garment, but it is generally good to place several heating panels in as large an area as possible, because in this case the heat distribution is more even. The more such areas there are, the more expensive the item will be, so it's worth checking what makes something X and another similar item of clothing 2X. This is often the reason. For us, it works when the garment heats the back and chest or belly as well as the neck, as this is where the material typically slips, at least in the case of heated vests and sweaters.

The heated areas are connected within the material of the garment, so you can always find a single USB-A connector in your pocket when it comes to upper body clothing. Exceptions are tool manufacturers - Bosch, Makita, etc. – his work clothes, where the cables typically end in a special adapter so that the batteries of the ecosystem can also be used. In the case of certain items of clothing, the situation is unfortunately not so simple, as it is much more difficult to solve the power supply. So it's worth looking separately at how this is done, for example, in the case of a heated vest, compared to, say, a glove.

• Heated vest/sweater/jacket, and all kinds of upper body clothing: the power source is NOT included with the garment, they require a power bank. Wire in your pocket.
• Heated gloves: usually, but not always, the power source is included, in most cases it has to be placed in a pocket on the wrist. A 230 V power supply, which cannot be charged via USB, is included. Another version is the battery box, which means nothing more than a battery holder that accepts 3 AA batteries. Battery is better, don't buy batteries.
• Heated insole: a wire must be routed through the trouser leg, the extension uses some standard DC connector, the end of which has a USB-A connector, i.e. it can be plugged into any power bank. The power source is NOT included.

From the above, it can already be guessed that two additional problems arise with the introduction of power sources: the operating time of the heated garments will be greatly influenced by the capacity of the battery, and its placement must also be solved.

Power source for heated vests and other garments

Heated garments require a power supply. The accepted solution for this is the use of a power bank, if they do not have their own power source, such as heated gloves. Basically, you have to take into account two parameters:

• The physical dimensions of the power bank to fit in a clothes pocket
• The capacity of the power bank

The physical size is tricky because you can't really decide before buying the garment whether the battery will fit in the pocket of the garment or not. Not all manufacturers lead out the cable required for power transmission in the same place. Some people cable the connector into the inner pocket - this is usually the smaller one - while others put it in the outer, zippered pocket, which is almost always larger than the inner one. Experience shows that thinner, longer power banks with a capacity of 5-15 mAh can be easily accommodated in a heated vest or jacket. The thickness has almost always been a problem so far, so it's worth borrowing one from someone and trying it on in the pocket of the garment.

Operating hours of heated garments

It is closely related to the above topic, since the operating time of the garments largely depends on the size of the power bank. Manufacturers typically specify 4-6 or 4-8 hours. Here they use the same trick as in the case of wireless vacuum cleaners - which is exhausting professional head expander we also wrote -, that is, that the operating time is set to the lowest setting and the suction power to the highest. The situation is similar here as well, the longest operating time applies to the lowest level - i.e. 30-6 hours with heating at 8 degrees Celsius - while at maximum heating power - 60 hours at 65-4 degrees Celsius - the operating time drops drastically.

But how did this 4-8 hours come out? So that they typically use a power bank with a capacity of 10 mAh as a reference value. In fact, of course, it would be better to express the electrical work in watt-hours (Wh), because then you could compare it with the consumption of a heated vest. Although manufacturers usually do not specify this value, according to our experience, the vests can absorb approximately 000 W at maximum level, but this is obviously affected by the amount of heating zones. A jacket can consume even more - more like 10 W - and a plain pillow can consume less.

The big question is how you will know how much energy is in a power bank, expressed in watt hours. More normal manufacturers simply write how much it is, but you can also calculate it.

Unfortunately, the math is not so simple, it requires some knowledge of electronics, but I will explain the point with an example:

• Power bank with a capacity of 10 mAh (000 Ah) and 10 Wh. It came out that the average voltage of a battery cell is 37 V, this must be multiplied by the capacity. P=U*I, i.e. the power is equal to voltage multiplied by current, only the measurement units need to be corrected, since the electrical work is done as a function of time. That is, 3,7 Wh=37 Ah*10 V

If the above example is not clear, that is not a problem, it can still be used as a reference value. If a 10 mAh power bank consumes 000 Wh and a heated vest consumes 37 W, it can operate at maximum power for approximately 10 hours and we have not yet calculated the loss. In reality, of course, longer than that, as the vest's electronics adjusts nicely if the voltage drops or if it works for too long at the maximum level, so the above 3,5 hours already come out. From this, it is easy to figure out that if I put a power bank with a capacity of 4 mAh in the pocket of a heated vest, it will work for half as long, if it has a capacity of 5000 20 mAh, it will work for twice as long.

Sizing of heated garments

If there's one tricky part of clothing, it's sizing. Of course, no one wants to force an unnecessarily large or too tight heated vest on themselves. In Europe, we are used to marking the body size with letters from XS to approximately 5XL. However, this is not really an exact measurement, since people in Africa are typically taller and wider, while in the Far East they are thinner and shorter. In Vietnam, the average height of men is 165 cm and that of women is 158 cm, while in our country the same is 175 and 165 cm. For example, this one has been used for 5 years and tested heated vest Our colleague, who wears 2XL and a European L, uses it, so you just have to size up everything by 1-2 sizes.

Therefore, it is not worth choosing any clothing based on this, so another methodology must be used: you have to measure your own clothing and look from the size chart of heated items to see which one is closest to it. Usually, the chest, waist, garment length and shoulder width count. You can buy one size bigger if you want to wear it underneath, this will be especially interesting during sports activities.

Exercising with a heated vest

Basically, we tested the heated garments with three sports. Perhaps you can't even call one of them: we wore them on all kinds of electric vehicles - unicycles, scooters, bicycles. Here, we basically investigated how a higher tempo affects the heating performance. If you don't wear the heated vest outside, no problem, and the jacket keeps the heat inside. While cycling, if you are cycling, you will naturally sweat a bit, so these clothes are also perfectly suitable for such use.

In the case of hiking, we had very similar experiences, with the difference that the difference in level of the hiking route determines how much you sweat. When climbing steep slopes, we specifically had to reduce the performance because we were so hot, while the maximum gear could be used on flat terrain. The heat-retaining properties of thermal clothes also greatly influenced our feeling of heat, i.e. if you put on a thermal sweater over the heated vest, you can die from the heat in 60 degree Celsius mode. When hiking, we used not only a vest, but also gloves, which is also useful, since the limbs are usually colder than the body. All in all, the same can be said here as for the electric devices, that they work great even while hiking, even though we used them in winter on a tour around the Tihany Peninsula.

Skiing was the most tricky, because it is very cold here - we skied several times in temperatures around -10 degrees Celsius - and the cooling effect of the pace is also great, and falls are not uncommon. The heated vest works here too, but here the extra is not the heating power, but the very layered clothing, due to which the ability to retain heat is very good. The vest's battery is not at all distracting, unlike his gloves, which fall in the wrong place, at wrist height. In the event of a fall, this can cause injury, even though the ends of our fingers tend to freeze, and we also lacked protectors, such as cam protectors. Basically, this is not an accessory to be discarded either, but you have to ski sensibly, because the high pace used to cause the problem, not whether or not you were wearing heated clothing.

The material of heated garments

The other thing is tricky, since it is difficult to decide which one will be of what quality in reality based on the press photos. We only have limited experience in this regard, but they basically make vests with several materials, for example:

• there are heated vests made with notched stitching - quilting - which are of good quality, such as in this test featured copy
• there are copies made of shiny, synthetic material, they are much worse, such in this test i found
• there are also thermal specimens made of plush material

The lining is mostly cotton. Heated garments are usually available in black, blue and gray, but there are often two-color variants, for example black-pink or black-grey.

Specialties of heated garments

It is also worth looking into how certain pieces of clothing turned out functionally and aesthetically, since the variance can be quite large here as well.

The heated vest

In some places it can also be found under the name of a heating vest, which is no different from a heated vest. Perhaps the most common piece of clothing, we also have the most of it. There is usually some kind of soft, plush-like material inside, and the outside is either like a puffer jacket or sewn with a diamond pattern. Since it is sleeveless, it is very easy to dress under and over, but the pocket is usually quite small. The USB cable end is almost always in one of the outer pockets, so it is easy to replace the battery in it if it runs out.

We skied, hiked and also used electric vehicles in it, it worked, we recommend it.

The heated jacket

A heated jacket would be a pretty good item if it weren't almost always hellishly expensive. 90fen, which belongs to Xiaomi's sphere of interest, produced quite good pieces in the past. Here, the jacket size was right, but you have to pay close attention to the sleeve length, because it was short in the case of the one we tested. The power bank goes into the inner pocket here. This is also a recommended product if you find the right size at a realistic price.

It's good to know that we haven't seen one with a heating element in the hood, but it's usually on the neck, which can heat the area under the hood as well. An alternative to the heated jacket is the heated sweater, by definition these are not water repellent and are made of softer material.

The heated glove

An interesting add-on, overall we loved it – we tried Hcalory's product -, surprisingly cheap sometimes, despite the fact that the price included the 2 batteries it used to operate. This also worked well in practice, you have to imagine a ski glove that is always warm. We also used it for hiking and skiing. Our only doubt was that the battery could press the wrist when falling while skiing, but in the end, this did not happen.

In the case of heated gloves, it is very important to check what is included in the package. The trick is that the sellers almost always leave out the batteries or insert 2 battery boxes called battery boxes, which require 3 1,5 V AA batteries. We would not buy this, we definitely believe in the rechargeable solution, no one is going to fiddle with batteries at -10 degrees Celsius while skiing and replace them if they run out.

The heated insole

If something really didn't work out, it was the heated insole. There were several problems with it, one of which is that you have to run the cable along the trouser leg, and then you have to bring the connector out to the side next to the shoe, so that you can insert it into your footwear at all. The solution itself is completely unlivable and annoying while moving. There are those where the battery has to be attached to the ankle, these are a degree more livable. The other problem is that these insoles typically have only one level, unlike other garments, which made us feel that they were terribly warm. It was particularly unpleasant as the heat radiates from below, so we do not recommend buying it.

They are also available for larger brands - e.g. Alpenheat - accessories simply called shoe warmer sets, which are actually insoles supplemented with a battery, which can be attached to the boot or the back of the ski boot. They are used for skiing and hiking, and the power source is often included in the set, but their prices are steep.

Heated socks

Heated socks are an alternative to heated insoles, with the difference that they can heat not only the soles, but also the legs and calves. The power source is often included with the product and must be fixed at the height of the leg.

Heated shoes

Heated shoes are located somewhere between socks and insoles. It is mostly known in the form of boots, and practically the insole is integrated into the boots. The batteries can be placed in an external pocket and sewn onto the side of the footwear, which will heat the pike for 5-10 hours. By definition, each shoe needs a battery.

Heated pillow and blanket

Although they are not garments, their principle of operation is very similar to the previously mentioned ones. Their logic is the same, you have to plug a USB-A connector into a power bank. The cushions are very simple structures, they usually have a single, large-surface heating fiber in them, and you just have to sit on them and they warm the chair and the buttocks. We use it on a daily basis, and they are so good that you can lower the heating in the apartment by a few degrees because of it.

Blankets are very similar to pillows, but usually they are used to warm the bed, but of course they can also be spread over the body. They often have a more complicated control console, which can be used to set the time and temperature freely. The same applies here as for pillows: a colder bedroom with a pre-heated bed.

Heated work clothes

It is also worth mentioning the heated work clothing sold by tool manufacturers, such as those offered by Bosch, Milwaukee, Makita and a few other tool manufacturers. These can typically be integrated into their own ecosystem, so they only work with their own batteries. Instead, they are not 5 V, like traditional Chinese heated vests and jackets, but 12, 14,4 or 18 V. The higher voltage results in more economical power consumption, so they can operate much longer even from smaller capacity batteries.

Their big disadvantage is the much higher price, where you have to pay for the extra quality and the big name, plus they only work with their own batteries and chargers.

Tips and tricks for choosing heated vests in 2025

Since we basically have the most experience with heated vests, we will start from that, but the logic applies to other items of clothing – sweaters, jackets, etc. can also be used. Since this is a wearable product, be sure to take your physical characteristics into account, as it is difficult for manufacturers to give generalized answers to individual needs. Fortunately, most of the pitfalls can be avoided with the tricks below.

• Always measure first! Take one of the items of clothing and measure its parameters, then select the item of clothing that can be heated accordingly. Don't think in terms of European sizing - XS-5XL - but believe in centimeters.
• If for some reason a centimeter-based size chart is not available, then by all means think about 1-2 sizes larger.
• You can find the real Canaan of heated vests and other clothing on Aliexpress. If there is a picture evaluation, then always look at it, because it reflects much better than the press material how a garment looks in reality.
• Choose a narrow, flat power bank that fits easily in your pocket for power supply.
• I did better with 2 10 mAh batteries than with 000 1 mAh. It's easier to put in your pocket, it fits better, and it's more comfortable to wear.
• With the exception of the heated jacket, it is also worth buying something over the vest and sweater. With a thermal sweater, you can keep the heat very well, and then operate the vest/sweater at a fairly low power, so the operating time will be longer.
• Buy heated clothing that has heating panels on the front and back, and even better if it reaches the sleeves. The more there are, the more evenly the heat is distributed, in return they can consume more.

Advantages and disadvantages of using heated vests

Advantages of heated vests:

• these solutions are not particularly expensive
• you need to dress less thanks to the extra heat
• it moderates the discomfort caused by the cold quite well, which is particularly useful for sports
• if you dress in layers, smaller degrees are also sufficient
• they can also be operated from a simple power bank, they do not need to know any extra functions
• they are washable, even though they have a cable in them
• some vests and jackets have heat-reflective material for extra heat retention
• most of the jackets are water repellent

Disadvantages of heated vests:

• not everyone likes to have an LED on their chest
• sometimes the power banks need to be replaced, these clothes cannot last a full day on an average battery
• if you want to adjust the levels, you have to reach under the clothes or even take off the upper layers
• the technology is not yet there to adjust the temperature from an app, even though then you wouldn't have to get dressed

All in all, we can say that we recommend outerwear and gloves among the items of clothing that can be heated, and pillows and blankets are not bad either. However, there is still room for development here, which you can expect from battery technology in the long term - smaller batteries, higher capacity, longer operating time - and on the other hand, the smart clothing topic has not been really maxed out by the manufacturers. However, a piece of clothing that can be controlled and timed from a phone, whose consumption could also be monitored, would have a right to exist.

Frequently Asked Questions

What heated vest should I buy?

We have had the best experience with vests with diamond stitching and plush lining. We have been wearing such a vest for 5 years and it does its job flawlessly. Since these are usually not particularly branded items - and where there was a brand mark, there was not a particularly big difference in quality either - so we cannot say a specific brand whose products are worth buying. Always look at the pictures attached to the text reviews, they are the most telling.

However, there is another category, heated work clothing, which is marketed by the most famous hand tool manufacturers - Bosch, Makita, Milwaukee. The price of these is many times higher than simpler clothes that can be ordered from China, and they also serve special needs, for example, they also work with batteries for cordless hand tools, even for a whole day.

What kind of heated jacket should I buy?

What was written about the heated vest is also true here, but jackets are special in that, since this is usually the outer layer that you wear over other clothes, other aspects must also be met. It is important that they are water-repellent, have plenty of pockets, maybe a wired headphone output, and a hood is also useful. They should be heated in several places, it is good if there are heating wires at the limbs and the neck.

Are there heated sets that include top and bottom clothing?

Yes there are, they usually consist of a pair of trousers and a jacket/vest. Clothes are almost always powered by a separate power source, so in this case you will need two power banks.

Which is the best heated vest?

Mostly the one that fits you perfectly and is difficult to ruin. Among the newer pieces, there are also two-color variants, which are quite hot, we would definitely look at them.

Which power bank should you use?

Basically, something that is easy to put in your pocket, that is, the size and shape of the power source are decisive, usually flat and narrow solutions are good. A capacity of 10 mAh gives 000-4 hours of operating time, depending on the level, those who want more will need either 8 of these or 2 larger one.

Aren't heated clothes dangerous?

Basically they are not. They run on 5 V, so they can't shake it much, and they can't even get hot enough to burn the skin surface. Even special work clothes only use 18 V batteries - e.g. Makita - so really only low voltage is running everywhere.

However, the lithium-ion batteries themselves can theoretically cause problems if they are hit or submerged in water. These clothes are also washable, so they won't have any particular problems, so we wouldn't worry too much about it, but of course all power sources have to be handled with care, and this is no different here.

Can I wash my heated vest?

Yes, and it's worth it after a serious sweat.

How long do such products take to break down?

Like all clothes, they are usually worn out. However, there are several vests that we have used for 5 years and they are in like new condition. The reason for this is obviously that we use them significantly less than a traditional non-heatable piece of clothing.

How do you choose the right size?

As we wrote above, the Far Eastern sizing differs from the European one. European sizes are usually 1-2 sizes larger, so XS will be SM and M will be L-XL. However, because of the variance, it is not worth choosing based on this - we have seen things that are completely true to size, for example with shoes -, but you have to take out the measuring tape and measure your own clothes, then find the right size in the size chart based on centimeters.

Do you recommend heated clothing for sports?

He chooses his sport, but overall yes. Obviously, we haven't tried them with all kinds of sports. But it's great for hiking, skiing, or when using electric vehicles, or even for motorcycling. There are also sports where you have to stay in one place for a very long time - fishing, hunting -, here too heated clothes come in handy, although special solutions are usually sold for these.

However, we consider it unnecessary for running, as long as you are moving, no additional heating is needed.

What activities should you not use heated clothing for?

We do not recommend the use of heated clothing in wet, watery environments, with high humidity.

If you couldn't find one of your questions in the FAQ, or if we didn't have a clear answer, then contact us at one of our contact numbers listed on the page or on Facebook. To the best of our knowledge, we try to answer all questions about heated clothing!

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO READ OUR EXTREMELY DETAILED ARTICLE WRITTEN ON THE OTHER SUBJECTS, THEN CLICK ON THE LINK!