The Best Sweaters for Men

Does 100% cashmere mean a sweater is high quality?

No. It tells you the fibre content meets the legal definition and nothing else. It does not tell you the average fibre diameter, the fibre length, how the yarn was spun, how densely it was knitted or how it was finished — and those are what decide how it feels and whether it pills. Reading brands' own pages in September 2026, the most specific cashmere page we found belonged to a $60 sweater, and several costing more than $700 published nothing beyond the words 100% cashmere.

Is a finer micron always better?

Finer fibres generally feel softer against skin, which is why fine merino and cashmere are used next to the body. But a slightly coarser wool can be the right choice for a sweater meant as an outer layer, where loft, density and durability matter more than softness. Micron is a specification, not a score.

Does more ply mean a better sweater?

No. Ply describes how many strands of yarn are twisted together, not how good they are. A fine four-ply yarn and a heavy two-ply yarn produce completely different garments, and neither is automatically superior. Ply is only meaningful alongside the yarn count and the gauge, which most brands do not publish.

What does gauge mean, and is higher better?

Gauge is roughly the number of needles across an inch of the knitting machine, so a higher gauge makes a finer knit and a lower one makes a chunkier knit. It is a design decision, not a quality ranking. A 7 gauge Shetland and an 18 gauge merino are aiming at different jobs.

Does pilling mean a sweater is badly made?

Not on its own. Pilling happens when short fibres work loose and tangle, and it is affected by fibre length, fibre diameter, yarn twist, how the fabric is constructed and how much the garment rubs in real wear. Light early fuzzing that settles is normal, particularly on softer woollen-spun yarns. Persistent heavy pilling, or a surface that deteriorates quickly, is the signal worth acting on.

Why do two sweaters with the same chest measurement look completely different?

Because chest only tells you how wide a sweater is, not how that width is distributed. Body length, shoulder construction, sleeve volume and the tension of the hem rib decide whether a sweater hangs straight, blouses over the waist or reads as cropped. A drop-shoulder knit and a set-in-sleeve knit with identical chest figures are not the same garment, and you cannot get from one to the other by changing size.

How should I measure a sweater I already own?

Lay it flat without stretching the knit, and measure chest pit to pit, body length from the centre back of the neck to the hem, and sleeve from the shoulder seam to the cuff. Then compare like with like: check whether the brand measures its sleeve from the shoulder or from the centre back of the neck, because those differ by six inches or more and a great many charts do not say which they use.