Hi folks, I'm hoping y'all can save me some research time.

Basically, I'm looking for a breathable cycling rain jacket that can pack down small. Budget can go pretty high.

And yes, I know that no jacket will work 100%. I'll settle for 90%.

We like our Ground Effect jackets ... Rowan has the Storm Trooper in orange and I have the She Shell in a bright blue that they no longer sell.

Waterproof and breathable rain jackets for cycling | Ground Effect

I have been using a Gore Element set for a couple of years and have been happy with it. It packs pretty small which I guess is it's most redeeming quality.

I bought the Peak performance "Stark jacket" and "Stark Pants" last summer. Mainly because I wanted Gore Tex active and it was on sale. But it is a nice jacket, I really like that the hood is made to be used over a helmet, and the hood has "3D adjustment" which is nice.

The unlined Showers Pass jackets roll up to jersey pocket small easily (I've done it many times while riding) and are very well thought out jackets.

I use the lined jackets from SP for commuting as the vapor barrier lasts far longer without brushing wet hands that grab on it. But for long rides, the SP jackets are great until that accident happens. And when it does, that jacket gets demoted to a dry weather spring/fall and cold jacket, working very well there.

Ben

I am quite happy with my Mountain Hardwear Chinley 3L (but for cycling I would go with the Quasar Lite) It has a very air permeable membrane and the one I have is reasonably light but has more features for my main uses off the bike so that is why I would recommend the Quasar.

I have yet to try the Sugoi RSE Neoshell jacket but I have used Neoshell early on and it was quite air permeable and really felt great. I have read good reviews on it and it is more cycling specific so it might be more up your alley and maybe a touch cheaper?!

Gore-Tex is super durable but is not as good in the air permeability department but if I had to go with a jacket with GTX I would certainly go for Arc'Teryx their goal is to make durable high performance products without a lot of excess. They do a good job using micro seam tape to help keep the air permeability up and use high quality face fabrics and construction to make a tough yet comfortable product. They don't make cycling specific GTX jackets (at least not that I have seen yet) but there stuff is top-notch.

I have a Burley jacket that I like... but unfortunately ultimate age and ultimate jacket don't always go well together. However, the Shower's Pass jackets are supposed to be closely related to the Burley Jackets.

I do my best to avoid riding in the rain as I'm a fair weather cyclist.
Saying that I invested in a Showers Pass Elite 2 and like it plenty. I combine it with a Showers Pass helmet cover

Don't get the Performance Borough. Light & cheap rain jacket that supposedly has water-proof breathable membrane but naw, it doesn't work; lets lots of rain thru. Hmm, now that there's so much wicking-type sports clothing I wonder if it might be easier to take a solid thin plastic rain jacket for summer use. IE in the summer the big rainstorms are usually short & you're probably sweating anyway.

Probably not sold in the States but me and my SO got ourselves Haglöfs Gram jackets which are very minimalistic and made out the Gore-Tex Active material. I must say, I am very impressed with the material. The jackets have basically no vents and only one small breast pocket and still it remains very breathable even in near 20 degree celsius range. Over that I think I'll just risk getting wet. So far the water resistance has been 100% so even in downpour not a drop got through when my water resistant cycling pants were practically swimming. The hood is also really nice.

Of course exertion level is key here. I can remain almost sweat free when doing my usual commuting pace (which kinda is a bit of race pace since I need to 'win' all the other commuters) while wearing the jacket. With higher exertion levels one would get sweaty even when wearing no clothes but that's a different matter.
It also packs into a Jersey rear pocket nicely.

As a disclaimer, I used to dislike Gore-Tex quite a bit as I used to have a Haglöfs shell jacket with lots of vents and pockets and all that and it felt like wearing saran wrap. Absolutely nothing exerting could be done with that jacket on. BUT the Gore Active is actually really nice.

So, even if you can't find the Haglöfs Gram, aim for something made out of Gore-Tex Active as it's pretty regulated which kind of jackets can be made out of the stuff (goretex specifies that the garments made out of the active stuff need to be extremely minimalistic and lightweight)

Also! This is important! If you use a membrane jacket, you CANNOT use bug spray that contains DEET! It WILL destroy the membrane and you'll lose the waterproofing 100%

YMMV, but I have not found that breathable is a plus. I have found it better to ventilate as needed with the zipper and with pit zips if it has them. Maybe I just sweat more than some, but I never found that I can be dry when riding with any rain jacket, so I settle for wet but warm.

Interesting. I probably ought to try Goretex Active, but have been burned too many times in the past with new breathable fabrics none of which worked for me.

Castelli Gabba is the only rain jacket i've ever tried, that actually breathes. I came across it when reading an article about how all the pro cyclists used it, regardless of what sponsors they had. It keeps you totally dry, but is really cycling specific, and won't look good on you when off your bike. Price is also pretty steep.

Castelli Gabba 2 jacket review - Cycling Weekly

I've never tried the "bikesuit" but maybe it would be a good idea for touring in places like Norway or Ireland where it rains pretty much all the time

The Smart Products - BikeSuit

On average, the Marmot nanopro membrane breath more than Goretex active though design is probably more important
Sunrise Gear: Marmot NanoPro Fabrics vs Gore-Tex Fabrics


I have the essence jacket and find it
-very breathable (among the most breathable fabrics on the market: 20,000 to 47,000 gm / 24h JIGS-1099 B1),
-lightweight: 6.3 ounces
-packable (fit inside the hood but not inside its pocket)
It's not a cycling specific jacket though.
I've surprised a few when handing over my jacket as it is very lightweight and they don't expect it to be so lightweight when they get it in hands, funny

https://www.outdoorgearlab.com/Rain-J...Marmot-Essence

I've been using a Showers Pass Elite for the past two years, and it's by far the best rain jacket I have ever owned. It is such a nice jacket that I also use it as my main winter cycling jacket, regardless of rain. Excellent ventilation and breathable fabric. You can often find them on sale if you shop around on the internets.

I use REI's house brand version eVent fabric rain jacket, and have been very pleased with it.

Novara Trenta eVent Bike Jacket - Men's - REI.com

How wet? OK with a new one every other year?
(factory DWR that promotes water beading up, is only good for that long)

I got a cycling Rain cape for the winter deluges. Spring and fall , a SP Portland, tweedy tan.
Cape at the ready for the rain Squalls.

but usually wear a Parka, in neon lime with wide reflective stripes.

On a long bike tour I like an Anorak
gloves stow in the hand warmer pocket, snacks [& cough drops] in the Kangaroo pocket.

only under the cape do my hands stay dry..

I also have never found a breathable rain jacket that didn't make me miserably warm and wet from my own sweat. I'd rather be wet and cool, so I never use anything waterproof or breathable. My current jacket is the best cycling jacket I've found, the Voler Jet in HiViz. It's adequately water repellent but lets a small amount of water through, enough to keep me cool and functional. It packs to the size of a Naval orange and easily fits in a jersey pocket.

Cape. Wore one for years commuting, touring. In PNW where rain & 100% humidity go hand in hand a cape is very comfortable. Never had windage issues.

Here's one from outside the box. Don't get a jacket, wear a wool sweater. Unless it's coming down relatively hard, a simple merino wool sweater will do the trick. I commute in Portland, and only rarely pull out a full rain jacket. On most days I wear a thin old wool sweater. If it's really cold, I'll wear two.

There is absolutely NO material that is actually waterproof that will remove sweat vapor off my body faster than I can make it.

After a sustained rain near the Oregon-California border. Wool t-shirt as base, thin shirt with velcro pockets over that, then an old wool sweater on top. 30 minutes later we were riding through a massive hail storm, and it got very cold. Then, and only then did I pull out my rain jacket-I wasn't sweating much at the time!

Hmm, the Trenta is on sale now, $88 vs $179, wow. I've heard lots of rec's for the Showers Pass Elite though it goes for $250. I'm listening to Jseis' cape advice too; PNW riders surely know their rain togs, eh? Back in the '70's before breathable fabrics became common, many cycling writers advised using a cape.

Cycling rain capes are better than jackets for water proof and breathability.

stow it in a handy place and its easy to put it on in a shower then roll up and tie back down when it stops.

Its the waterProof Part , the stuff does not have to breathe because the bottom is Open ventilation.