Opti-Shell Waterproof Gray Printed Rain Jacket Windbreaker Size S vs Women's Dirt Roamer Storm Jacket: which is safer?

Patagonia Women's Dirt Roamer Storm Jacket is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

Merrell Opti-Shell Waterproof Gray Printed Rain Jacket Windbreaker Size S

Merrell

Opti-Shell Waterproof Gray Printed Rain Jacket Windbreaker Size S

PFAS grade

Bad 20/100

Overall grade

Bad 0/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

polyester with water-repellent coating waterproof coating, composition unspecified

Confidence

35%

PossibleFormaldehyde resins in polyester fabric finishing

PossibleAzo dyes in printed graphics and base color

Likelywater-repellent coating degradation and migration

Our pick

Patagonia Women's Dirt Roamer Storm Jacket

Patagonia

Women's Dirt Roamer Storm Jacket

PFAS grade

Poor 45/100

Overall grade

Bad 17/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 4

Material

polyester shell with water-repellent coating finish

Confidence

72%

PossibleAzo dyes and color fastness

PossibleAntimony in polyester fiber

Reportedwater-repellent coating degradation and re-treatment chemicals

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag Formaldehyde resins in polyester fabric finishing, Azo dyes in printed graphics and base color and DWR coating degradation and migration on the Merrell and not on the Patagonia.
  • We flag Azo dyes and color fastness, Antimony in polyester fiber, DWR coating degradation and re-treatment chemicals and Unverified DWR chemistry on the Patagonia and not on the Merrell.
  • The Merrell is polyester with DWR waterproof coating, composition unspecified where the Patagonia is polyester shell with DWR 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 Merrell grade, at 35% 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 cycling rain jackets: see the full ranking