The North Face Resolve 2 Jacket is the rain jacket I've recommended to more people than any other piece of gear I've tested. After nearly a decade of covering outdoor equipment, I find myself returning to this jacket not because it's the most technical option on the market — it isn't — but because it does exactly what a rain jacket needs to do, for the lowest price at which it's possible to do it well. At $99, with fully seam-sealed waterproofing, it belongs in a different conversation than the $60 water-resistant shells that fail in real rain.
The headline is the DryVent™ 2-layer construction. This is a fully waterproof, breathable membrane — a genuine barrier against rain, not a durable water repellent (DWR) coating that washes out after a few uses. I tested it in sustained rainfall across three hiking days in the Pacific Northwest (cumulative 18 hours in wet conditions, including two sessions where rain fell hard enough to limit visibility), two weeks of daily commuting through London in October, and a weekend in the Scottish Highlands. I never got wet through the jacket. That sounds like a low bar. In the world of $60–$80 "waterproof" jackets, it is genuinely rare.
The underarm zip vents are the feature that separates the Resolve 2 from cheaper waterproof jackets. Waterproof membranes trap body heat — even breathable ones, under exertion. The pit zips allow you to open large vents instantly when you're working hard uphill, then seal them when you stop or the rain intensifies. In practice, this eliminates the choice between being wet from rain and being wet from sweat. After 12 hiking days of testing, I never once resorted to removing the jacket mid-hike to cool down. This is the Resolve 2's killer feature and the reason it outperforms cheaper competitors.
The packability is genuinely useful. The jacket stuffs into its own chest pocket to form a package roughly the size of a grapefruit, weighing just 370g. I carried it in the top pocket of a daypack on every sunny hike, deployed it whenever clouds rolled in, and re-packed it within 90 seconds. For travel, it replaced a full rain layer in my carry-on without taking meaningful space. For commuting, it sat in a tote bag without bulk.
The hood is the best on any jacket at this price. It has a single-handed adjustment, a wired brim that holds shape in wind, and is sized to fit over a bike helmet or climbing helmet — a consideration that separates genuine outdoor gear from outdoor-aesthetic fashion. I wore it over a helmet on six cycling commutes in rain; it covered perfectly and didn't impede peripheral vision.
Where the Resolve 2 shows its price: breathability under sustained high-intensity effort is adequate rather than exceptional. If you run in the rain or hike fast uphill in a warm jacket with the vents closed, you will feel warmth building. This is not a membrane for elite mountain athletes — that's what the FutureLight series is for, at 3–4× the price. For the 95% of people who hike at a moderate pace, commute, travel, or want reliable rain protection on city streets and light trails, the breathability is more than sufficient. The pit zips solve any remaining issue.
At $99, the Resolve 2 is the clearest "buy this" jacket recommendation we make in any category. It competes directly with the Columbia Arcadia ($80), Marmot PreCip ($100), and Patagonia Torrentshell ($179). Against the Columbia it wins on features (pit zips, better hood). Against the Marmot it's a near tie — our call is the Resolve 2 on brand reliability and TNF's warranty. Against the Patagonia it's $80 cheaper for 90% of the performance. We awarded it our Editor's Pick in the 2026 Best Outdoor Gear Awards. Browse our full jacket reviews or outdoors category.
