Men's Rebel Roamer II Pant vs Women's Torrentshell 3L Pants: which is safer?

Patagonia Women's Torrentshell 3L Pants is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

Columbia Men's Rebel Roamer II Pant

Columbia

Men's Rebel Roamer II Pant

PFAS grade

Bad 20/100

Overall grade

Bad 0/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

nylon/polyester blend with water-repellent coating

Confidence

45%

LikelyPFAS in water-repellent coating

PossibleAntimony in polyester fiber

PossibleMicroplastic shedding during laundry

Our pick

Patagonia Women's Torrentshell 3L Pants

Patagonia

Women's Torrentshell 3L Pants

PFAS grade

Poor 45/100

Overall grade

analysis pending

Verdict

pending

Hazard flags

none flagged

Material

Nylon with water-repellent coating water-repellent coating finish

Confidence

72%

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag PFAS in DWR coating, Antimony in polyester fiber and Microplastic shedding during laundry on the Columbia and not on the Patagonia.
  • The Columbia is nylon/polyester blend with DWR coating where the Patagonia is Nylon with DWR durable water repellent finish, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • The gap is 25 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Patagonia is the one to buy.
  • We are less certain about the Columbia grade, at 45% confidence against 72%, because it discloses less.

Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →

More rain pants: see the full ranking