DownTo1 Packs

The engine's answer

Best sleeping bag in chilly nights around 3 °C, under €400

Forclaz

MT500 0 °C Down

Down warmth at synthetic money.

  • Freezing-point comfort for very little outlay
  • Compresses far better than a synthetic equivalent
  • Good first proper bag
  • Heavy for the warmth
  • Low fill power means bulk in the pack

Find it at Bergfreunde · Trekkinn · Decathlon · Alpinetrek · eBay (used)

Why it wins, in numbers

Forclaz MT500 0 °C Down is the sleeping bag the engine picked for this trip: €130 and 1.10 kg, Comfort rating 0 °C, a 50% match on the questions asked. The kit around it comes to €365 of the €400 ceiling, leaving €35.

What the engine asked for: a sleeping bag rated to 1 °C or lower, a mat with an R-value of at least 2.5, a pack of at least 39 L, and €400 for all four; anything that falls short of these is flagged beside the item.

The kit it belongs to

Four items chosen together, not four separate winners. Swapping one moves the others.

4.10 kg on your back · €365 of a budget of €400

Tent
3F UL Gear Lanshan 2: €130, 1.10 kg, Season rating 3, 50% match.
Sleeping bag
Forclaz MT500 0 °C Down: €130, 1.10 kg, Comfort rating 0 °C, 50% match.
Sleeping mat
Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest SOLar: €45, 400 g, R-value 2.6, 50% match.
Backpack
Forclaz MT100 Easyfit 50: €60, 1.50 kg, Capacity 50 L, 50% match.

What the runners-up gave up

Each of these still leaves a kit that closes — the budget holds and the pack shuts. This is where each one lost.

  • Snugpak Softie 9 EquinoxA cheap, indestructible synthetic bag with a following among people who bivvy.Snugpak Softie 9 Equinox — €160, 1.75 kg — gives up Fill power: 0 against the winner's 650. It scores 50% to the winner's 50%.
  • Forclaz MT500 10 °CA cheap, cheerful summer bag that does not mind getting damp.Forclaz MT500 10 °C — €60, 900 g — gives up Comfort rating: 10 °C against the winner's 0 °C. It scores 28% to the winner's 50%.
  • Rab Solar Eco 2Recycled synthetic that shrugs off condensation.Rab Solar Eco 2 — €150, 1.20 kg — gives up Comfort rating: 2 °C against the winner's 0 °C. It scores 28% to the winner's 50%.

Questions this trip raises

How much does the whole kit cost?
€365 for all four items, €35 under the €400 ceiling. Prices are indicative euro list prices; the shops set their own.
How much does it weigh?
4.10 kg base weight — tent, sleeping bag, mat and pack together, before food, water and clothes. The pack is rated to carry 16 kg comfortably.
Is Forclaz MT500 0 °C Down warm enough for 3 °C nights?
Its comfort rating is 0 °C. For nights near 3 °C the engine requires a rating of 1 °C or lower, which it meets.

Change an assumption

This page answers one trip. Yours is not that trip — adjust the nights, the budget or the company and watch all four re-rank.

Build my kit

Specifications are manufacturers’ own published figures and prices are indicative, not live. Comfort ratings and R-values are comparable across brands but describe a standardised sleeper on standardised ground — neither is a promise about you on a particular night. Check the current spec and price with the retailer before buying.