Men’s zip-up sweaters have shaken off their reputation as the preserve of retired dads and billionaire eccentrics, and the options worth pulling on this season run from a $60 Uniqlo fleece to a $1,375 Inis Meáin cashmere-blend, according to GQ. The zip-up, in all its forms (full-zip, quarter-zip, half-zip) has crossed style tribes from prep to gorp, and the brands driving the shift span Copenhagen ateliers to American heritage labels.
Why Men’s Zip-Up Sweaters Have Found Their Moment
Part of the zip-up’s rehabilitation is down to a handful of subversive labels reframing what a knit can look like. Copenhagen’s Mfpen and Stockholm’s Our Legacy have been particularly influential, using the format to cut through glitzy high fashion and brash streetwear alike. Household names like Ralph Lauren, L.L.Bean, and J.Crew have meanwhile been producing zip-up sweaters for years and are now finding newer, younger customers gravitating towards them, or simply stealing them from their fathers’ wardrobes.
Mfpen’s appeal extends across several styles. Alongside the ribbed cotton-jersey ‘Covet’, GQ’s pick for best zip-up overall at $335, praised for its relaxed off-the-shoulder fit and two-way zip, the label also produces a ‘Leisure’ zip-up sweater made from organic cotton with a smooth handle, listed at Mr Porter. It is the kind of considered material choice that has helped the brand build a following well beyond corporate-core dressing.
At the more affordable end, Uniqlo’s souffle yarn half-zip comes in at $60 and carries a feel closer to brushed mohair or alpaca than its price suggests. The relaxed fit is built for layering, and the range of colourways makes it dangerously easy to add more than one to the basket. Uniqlo’s Milano ribbed full-zip cardigan, part of the Uniqlo C line, lands at $69 in four colourways: red, olive, navy, and plum.
The Best Men’s Zip-Up Sweaters Across Every Budget
For those ready to invest, John Smedley’s Mallam ribbed cardigan, made from an equal blend of recycled cashmere and merino wool, sits at $720 and is built to go further than a dinner reservation. The brand has been based in the Derbyshire moors for 242 years, and the Mallam is designed to handle them. The funnel neck, when left unzipped, folds into a neat collar, a small detail that earns its keep.
Todd Snyder’s merino quarter-zip at $278 takes a quieter approach, with the contrast between the torso knit and the saddle shoulder sleeves providing subtle distinction rather than noise. S.N.S. Herning’s ‘Robust’ at $490 goes the other way: a five-gauge, 100% pure merino wool construction, seamless stitch shifts at the shoulders, and a stand collar that sits well under a leather jacket. The name is not an accident, this is knitwear with a lineage in outfitting North Sea sailors.
Further up the price ladder, Our Legacy’s ultra-ribbed merino full-zip at $810 brings real structure to the format, with raglan sleeves as a standout detail. Inis Meáin’s ‘Lifeline’ merino and cashmere-blend at $1,375 is the sentimental option, its contrasting stitchwork and speckled yarns doing the kind of quiet work that gets better the longer you wear it. Rier’s full-zip at $1,153 follows the label’s fleece quarter-zip and, like that earlier release, relies on fit and drape to do the talking.
At the more accessible end of the considered-spend bracket, Banana Republic’s cotton bomber sweater jacket at $220 knits like a bomber and is dyed to read like denim. Drake’s striped cotton-jersey half-zip polo at $345 sits somewhere between a rugby shirt and a quarter-zip. Frizmworks’ ribbed wool-blend zip-up at $240 skips the collar entirely and is no worse for it under a topcoat.
Batoner’s signature drivers knit at $365, knitted in Japan, uses thick-gauge yarns that sweep dramatically through the shoulders. District Vision’s half-zip running shell at $200 is technically a running jacket, but the nylon carries well beyond the trail. Ralph Lauren‘s estate-rib quarter-zip at $135 is the stalwart option, the one that has always been good and continues to be, regardless of what’s having a moment.
