Kids fleece jackets for chilly trailheads

Our recommendations

Full-zip fleece

Columbia Boys' Steens Mountain II Fleece Jacket

The zip pockets are the useful detail on this boys’ Steens listing. It starts at 4/5, so do not guess that its XXS will fit a toddler. Columbia sells separate smaller-age Steens styles.

Check price →

Worth knowing.

• Columbia lists zippered hand pockets on this boys’ style
• The full front zip can be opened without taking the fleece off
• Maker care directions allow machine washing

Community discussions: r/HikingWithKids · r/NewParents

Hooded lightweight pick

The North Face Boys' and Girls' Glacier Full-Zip Hooded Jacket

The Glacier has the hood the other two cards lack. Check how that extra fabric sits beneath your child’s rain shell or helmet before choosing it for a layered outfit.

Check price →

Worth knowing.

• An attached hood is part of the exact Glacier listing
• A full front zipper lets you open the layer without pulling it overhead
• The Zappos listing identifies recycled fabric content

Community discussions: r/HikingWithKids

Smaller-size fleece

Columbia Benton Springs Fleece Jacket

For a 2T or 3T child, the toddler Benton Springs is a different style from the boys’ Steens shown above. Check the product’s size selector; the purple photo alone cannot settle it.

Check price →

Worth knowing.

• Columbia lists a separate 2T–4T toddler style
• The toddler style has a full zip and no hood to bunch under a shell
• Columbia lists machine washing for that toddler style

What our boys wore

My boys wore Skyler and Sunstone Columbia Youth Steens Mountain II fleeces in the winter months. They kept the boys warm, the zippers worked well, and I found the jackets easy to put on. Getting a fleece on was a lot easier than pulling our Tuffo rain suit over boots. No contest.

• The blue Steens pictured in this guide is a different color variant. Our hands-on notes belong to the purchased Skyler and Sunstone fleeces; the pictured card’s specifications come from Columbia.
• We have not confirmed family use of the Glacier or Benton Springs. Those cards remain researched picks.

How I narrowed it down

Columbia uses similar fleece names across boys, toddler and infant jackets. I checked the exact style pages to keep the size advice straight, and used Zappos for the Glacier details. Our hands-on notes below are limited to Skyler and Sunstone Steens fleeces, not the blue version pictured.

• Compared Columbia’s boys’, toddler and infant style pages instead of treating similar model names as one size range.
• Used the purple Benton Springs Amazon image to match appearance only; it cannot confirm which size or color a seller has now.
• Checked the Glacier hood and zipper against its Zappos listing. No family use of that exact jacket is confirmed.

I'm Matt, a dad of two boys. If we've used something at home, the card says personally tested. The rest I read up on. I keep a weekly list of kids' product recalls. How I pick.