About Yak Wool

Yak Wool – High-Performance Fiber from the High Plateaus of the Himalaya

Yak wool is a high-performance fiber from the Himalayas. Adapted to the extreme climate and hostile landscapes of the Central Asian high mountains, where temperatures can drop to as low as -50 °C, yak wool not only provides excellent insulation but also stands out for having the highest breathability of any type of wool, an outstanding warmth-to-weight ratio, and high resistance to wind, weather, and precipitation even at the lowest temperatures. These properties make yak wool the world’s best functional fiber and guarantee maximum performance in the most demanding climates and weather conditions.

What Sets Yak Wool Apart

HEAT RETENTION & INSULATION

In winter, temperatures on the Himalayan plateaus drop as low as -50 °C. To prevent heat loss in this extreme cold, yaks have an extremely dense and warm undercoat. So it’s no surprise that yak wool is the world’s second-warmest wool fiber, after vicuña wool. It offers up to 40% higher insulation (thermal performance) than merino wool and reliably keeps you warm even in the coldest temperatures.

OUTSTANDING WARMTH-TO-WEIGHT RATIO

The hollow fiber structure of yak hair provides the best warmth-to-weight ratio of any wool, except vicuña. This means you can achieve the same level of thermal performance—and in some cases even higher—as with merino wool, but with less weight. This helps you avoid carrying unnecessary weight while mountain climbing.

Temperature-regulating

Yak wool has excellent temperature-regulating properties. By trapping air in its fine fibers, it insulates your body heat in winter, keeping you cozy and warm, while in summer it effectively wicks away body heat, keeping you comfortably cool at temperatures up to 30 °C.

BREATHABLE & MOISTURE-REGULATING

Yak wool is the most breathable wool in the world. Its fibers are hollow inside, allowing up to 66% greater breathability than merino wool. As a result, they wick moisture and water vapor away from the body 17% more effectively than merino wool. This prevents moisture from building up on the inside. You won’t feel clammy or wet.

NO HEAT BUILD-UP

Thanks to its high breathability and effective temperature regulation, yak wool prevents heat build-up. This means you won’t overheat even during the most physically demanding activities, such as mountaineering and ski touring.

Keeps You Warm Even When Wet

Yak wool can absorb up to 35% of its own weight in moisture without losing its insulating properties. Because of yak wool's hollow-fiber structure, the fibers release heat through a special chemical effect when they come into contact with water. As a result, compared to other fibers, wool still offers limited protection against the cold even when completely wet and helps prevent hypothermia.

Because we use a very strong yarn in most of our products, our yak wool T-shirts and long-sleeve tops take up to 4 times longer to reach their maximum moisture capacity and release up to 2 times more heat from absorption than conventional merino base layers. An insulating air pocket also remains within the hollow fibers of yak hair, allowing yak wool to protect you from the cold longer and more effectively.

Prevents Hypothermia in the High Mountains

Yak wool is designed to minimize evaporative cooling by immediately wicking absorbed moisture away from the body. As a result, evaporation cools the outer layer of the wool rather than the skin, where the inner yak fibers insulate and mitigate the effect. This prevents you from getting chilled in the thin air of the high mountains—because due to low atmospheric pressure and low humidity, water evaporates much faster at high altitudes. Without an insulating layer like that provided by our yak wool, life-threatening hypothermia can set in after just a few minutes.

SUPPORTS THE BODY’S NATURAL TEMPERATURE REGULATION

Unlike synthetic fibers, yak wool absorbs some moisture during strenuous activities and stores it between its fine fibers. As it slowly releases moisture to the outside, evaporation creates a slight cooling effect that supports the body’s natural temperature regulation and prevents overheating. As a result, yak wool keeps you comfortably cool even in summer at temperatures up to 30 °C.

Quick-Drying

The hollow fiber structure allows for quick drying—up to 2.5 times faster than cotton and about 1/5 faster than merino wool.

HIGHLY WATER-REPELLENT

Thanks to its special fiber structure, yak wool is highly water-repellent and reliably keeps you dry in light rain, fog, or snowstorms. This makes it ideal for the changeable weather in the high mountains.

Highly Wind-Resistant

Thanks to its slightly crimped structure, which traps numerous air pockets, wool is naturally highly wind-resistant, though not 100% windproof. Yak wool has particularly fine fibers that, thanks to their hollow structure, form a highly effective barrier against the wind—which is how the yak withstands the icy high-altitude winds in the Himalayan mountains. Because our performance clothing is knitted particularly densely and heavily, it forms a more effective wind barrier than any other performance clothing.

Anti-bacterial and strongly odor-resistant

Yak wool effectively wicks moisture away from the body, giving bacteria no chance to grow. As a result, it protects you from unpleasant odors up to 66% longer than merino wool—you can often wear our yak wool twice as long as merino before you need to wash it. Many of our shirts can be worn for up to a week, even during physically strenuous activities, before they need washing. For our sweaters and cardigans, it’s often enough to wash them just once a year.

UV Protection Factor 50+ for the Highest UV Protection

Due to increased UV radiation and advances in life expectancy, more and more people are developing skin cancer over the course of their lives—in the U.S., it’s already one in five people. UV exposure is particularly high in high-altitude mountain regions. Yak wool is naturally UV-absorbing. With a UV protection factor of 50+, it reliably protects you from harmful UV radiation.

ANTISTATIC, FLAME-RETARDANT & SELF-EXTINGUISHING

Because we do not add any synthetic fibers, our yak wool is naturally antistatic, flame-retardant, and self-extinguishing. The ignition temperature of wool is an extremely high 570–600 °C. Because wool naturally absorbs moisture and has a high nitrogen content, ignition is made even more difficult. As a result, our yak wool is flame-resistant, so flying sparks cannot harm it. If it does catch fire, the flame usually extinguishes itself as soon as the external ignition source is removed. This is because wool requires an oxygen concentration of 25–26% to burn—more than the approximately 21% present in our atmosphere.

Unlike synthetic fibers such as polyamide or polyester, wool does not melt when it burns; instead, it chars. This charring acts as an insulating protective shield against the heat of the flame and makes it difficult for the fire to spread to underlying layers of wool. Above all, however, it minimizes the risk of injury, as no liquid material sticks to the skin. As a result, our yak wool helps prevent severe burns that penetrate deep into the skin tissue when it comes into contact with fire.

Because we use a thicker yarn in all our products, it also creates a stronger physical barrier between your skin and the ignition source, further minimizing the risk of burn injuries.

REDUCED INFRARED SIGNATURE

Because it contains no synthetic fibers and undergoes no chemical pretreatment, our yak wool naturally has a reduced infrared signature and is NIR-compliant/IRR-compliant. This means that in the near-infrared (NIR) spectrum—that is, when illuminated by a night vision device—it does not “glow brightly,” but instead reflects a similar amount of infrared light as the natural surroundings. As a result, you are harder to detect with a night vision device.

SOFT, SNUG, & ITCH-FREE

Yak wool is incredibly soft and gentle on the skin. It’s itch-free right out of the package and doesn’t chafe against your neck or shoulders. That way, you can focus entirely on your next adventure.

EXCELLENT STRENGTH & HIGH DURABILITY

Yak wool is naturally much more abrasion-resistant and durable than merino wool. Thanks to its unique fiber structure and knitting technique, it’s twice as durable as merino wool and cashmere and less prone to pilling.

By choosing a heavy, robust knit, we enhance the wool’s natural resilience and create durable, sturdy pieces you can enjoy for years. Our performance clothing is a workhorse, made to be worn.

A SUSTAINABLE CHOICE

Harvesting yak wool conserves the resources of Asia’s steppes and high plateaus. Our wool is a pure natural product that contains no plastic additives. We do not chemically treat our wool or use a superwash process. As a result, our wool is one of the few functional garments on the market that is 100% free of plastics and does not release microplastics. We rely on short supply chains and socially responsible production at a local manufacturer in Mongolia.

Learn more about the Sustainability of our Wool.

SUITABLE FOR PEOPLE WITH ALLERGIES

Yak wool is naturally free of lanolin and is also particularly soft and breathable. These properties make yak wool the ideal choice for people with allergies and those for whom regular wool causes skin redness and irritation.