Women's Packable Rainfoil Jacket vs Men's All Terrain Gore-Tex Waterproof Jacket: which is safer?

Eddie Bauer Women's Packable Rainfoil Jacket is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

Our pick

Eddie Bauer Women's Packable Rainfoil Jacket

Eddie Bauer

Women's Packable Rainfoil Jacket

PFAS grade

Bad 20/100

Overall grade

Bad 2/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

Nylon with water-repellent coating water-resistant coating

Confidence

45%

PossiblePFAS in water-repellent coating (fluorinated compounds)

Reportedwater-repellent coating degradation and shedding

PossibleNylon microfiber shedding from abrasion

The North Face Men's All Terrain Gore-Tex Waterproof Jacket

The North Face

Men's All Terrain Gore-Tex Waterproof Jacket

PFAS grade

Bad 20/100

Overall grade

Bad 0/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

Gore-Tex membrane (Teflon-type coating-based Teflon-family coating) with nylon shell

Confidence

45%

PossibleTeflon-type coating membrane off-gassing / inhalation risk

LikelyMicrofiber shedding from membrane and nylon

PossibleSeam tape adhesive leachables

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag PFAS in DWR coating (fluorinated compounds), DWR coating degradation and shedding and Nylon microfiber shedding from abrasion on the Eddie Bauer and not on the The North Face.
  • We flag PTFE membrane off-gassing / inhalation risk, Microfiber shedding from membrane and nylon and Seam tape adhesive leachables on the The North Face and not on the Eddie Bauer.
  • The Eddie Bauer is Nylon with DWR water-resistant coating where the The North Face is Gore-Tex membrane (PTFE-based fluoropolymer) with nylon shell, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • These two are level, close enough that price and fit should decide it rather than our grade.

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 jackets: see the full ranking