(Runner-Up) Best Overall Sleeping Bag

Price: $139.95

Weight: [short] 2lb 7oz (1.1kg), [reg] 2lb 10oz (1.19kg), [long] 2lb 15oz (1.33kg)

Temperature Rating (Lower Limit): 21°F (-6°C)

Style: Mummy

Shell: 20D 400T nylon

Lining: 50D 300T polyester

Insulation/Fill: 550 FP Duck Down (75%) / Polyester (25%)

Compressed Volume: [regular] 8L, [long] 8.8L

What We Like: Warm, Roomy, Packable

What We Don’t: Slightly heavy, Liner could be softer

At only $140, the Kelty Cosmic 20 is a prime example of budget performance. It provides a spectacular balance of practical features at a reasonable price. This three-season trapezoidal mummy sleeping bag has a warmth-to-weight ratio that’s hard to beat, especially at its price point. While it lacks a few features that we appreciate from higher-end bags, the fact is that the price jump to these bags is significant. So for those of us that don’t need to optimize every detail on our sleeping bag (and empty our wallet while doing so), the Cosmic 20 is a very reasonable compromise. With a focus on all the features we value most in a sleeping bag, the Kelty Cosmic was named Runner-Up for Best Overall Sleeping Bag.

Compare to Similar Products

See Our Best Budget Sleeping Bag Review HERE!

Kelty has been in the hiking game for nearly 70 years, and their products appeal to those who like to play as hard as they work. If you’re in the market for a three-season sleeping bag that won’t skimp on comfort or go overboard on price, the Cosmic Down 20 should be right near the top of your list. Although it’s more often simply referred to as just the Cosmic 20, Kelty also offers a Cosmic Synthetic 20 and a Cosmic Ultra 20 that differ in materials and price. The Cosmic Down 20 is a trapezoidal mummy sleeping bag with a warmth-to-weight ratio that’s hard to beat, especially at its price point. With a focus on all the features we value most in a sleeping bag, the Kelty Cosmic was named Runner-Up for Best Overall Sleeping Bag.

Warmth

This three-season bag utilizes a trapezoidal neck-baffle construction designed to help retain heat and duck-down insulation bolstered by a bit of synthetic insulation. These elements combine to give the Cosmic 20 a temperature rating of 21°F (-6°C). This is the same as its ISO lower limit, while the comfort rating is 32°F (0°C), and the extreme rating is -11°F (-24°C). Down is well known for its excellent warmth-to-weight ratio, and the Cosmic 20 is no exception, with fill weights of 1lb 0.4oz for the regular and 1lb 2.8oz for the long.

Comfort

The Cosmic 20 is filled with 75% 550FP (fill power) duck down and 25% polyester batting. The duck down can be found throughout the bag while the polyester is only located on the bag’s underside; it’s intended to prevent long-term compression. The duck-down fill is much more comfortable than a purely synthetic-fill sleeping bag. Still, the liner material, made of 50D 300T polyester, is a bit coarse compared to other backpacking sleeping bags, which often opt for softer, 20-denier fabrics.

The Cosmic 20 comes in short, regular, and long versions; the short accommodates up to 5’6” (167cm), the regular accommodates up to 6’ (183cm), and the long accommodates up to 6’6” (198cm). Like all mummy bags, the bag tapers down toward the feet; however, the Cosmic 20 tapers slightly less than other bags, making it just a bit more spacious in the foot-box area. It’s also a bit roomier in the shoulders, so those hikers who prefer a tight fit in their sleeping bag will want to look elsewhere.

Weight & Packed Size

With respect to backpacking sleeping bags, there are certainly lighter options than the Cosmic 20; the short weighs 2lb 7oz (1.1kg), the regular weighs 2lb 10oz (1.19kg), and the long weighs 2lb 15oz (1.33kg). That being said, the low price of the Cosmic 20 makes these weights extremely reasonable, especially when one considers the comfort that comes with it.

The Cosmic 20 has an included stuff sack; when packed away, the bag shrinks down to 7’x13″ (18x33cm) for the small, 8″x13″ (20x33cm) for the regular, and 8″x14″ (20x36cm) for the long. If you opt for a third-party 15L compression sack rather than a stuff sack, the long version of the bag will compress down to just under 9L while the regular is around 8L, which is larger than other backpacking sleeping bags. While this is a very reasonable size for a budget sleeping bag, it’s roughly 2L smaller than the comparably priced Marmot Trestles 30. The down fill enables the Cosmic 20 to pack down smaller than synthetic counterparts, so amongst budget backpacking sleeping bags, the Cosmic 20 keeps up with the pack on backpacking packing.

Features

The shell on the Cosmic 20 has a C0 and PFC-free durable water repellent (DWR) coating to repel moisture and keep you warm. This is especially important due to the duck down fill since duck down will clump and become useless when exposed to moisture. As mentioned, the bag comes with a stuff sack. However, you may want to switch to a compression sack to optimize its packability. One of our favorite features was the stash pocket inside the bag, which is the perfect size for a cell phone or a headlamp.

The Bottom Line

At only $140, the Kelty Cosmic 20 is a prime example of budget performance; it provides a spectacular balance of practical features at a reasonable price. While it lacks a few features that we appreciate from higher-end bags, the fact is that the price jump to these bags is significant. For those of us who don’t need to optimize every detail on our sleeping bag (and empty our wallet while doing so), the Cosmic 20 is a very reasonable compromise.

^ Back to Top ^