Kids Sleeping Bags for COLD Weather and Winter Camping? 5 Best Options

For starters, let’s be clear: don’t take your kids camping really cold weather until YOU have some experience. There’s a fairly steep learning curve for cold-weather and winter camping. You don’t want your kids to have a miserable time and end up hating it!

But, if you are confident in your skills, you know that you’ll need a warm sleeping bag for your kids. Unfortunately, kids winter sleeping bags are virtually non-existent. But there are some solutions to ensure your kids stay warm even in below freezing temps. I’ll go over the 5 main options below.

Also read:

1. Kids Sleeping Bags Rated for Cold Weather

There are a few brands which make kids sleeping bags suitable for cold weather. The ones in the table below have limit comfort levels of 20F or less.

Bear in mind that these are the limit comfort levels. Brands almost never list the actual comfort limit for kids sleeping bags. The actual comfort level is usually going to be 10-15 degrees higher than the limit. So, the Big Agnes Wolverine would actually only be good down to 25-30F. Even in fall, temps can easily drop below freezing – so your kid would end up cold at night. Also read: Best Kids Sleeping Bags for Camping and Backpacking

Name	Limit Comfort	Fits up to	Shoulder Width	Weight	Stuff size	Buy At
Big Agnes Little Red	15F	53"	24"	28oz	7.5x9"	Amazon, Campsaver
Kelty Mistral	20F	60"	28"	42.4oz	10x17"	Amazon, Campsaver
Big Agnes Wolverine	15F	60"	27"	38oz	8x10"	Amazon, Campsaver
North Face Eco Youth	20F	60"	26.5"	48oz	9x16"	Amazon
Big Agnes Duster	15F	66"	31"	46oz	10x11"	Amazon, Campsaver

2. Blanket Inside the Sleeping Bag

You can give your kid a blanket to use inside the sleeping bag. The blanket adds an extra layer of insulation. If your kids’ sleeping bag is too big, the blanket will also fill the empty space inside the bag to make it warmer.

Don’t put a blanket on top of the sleeping bag though. Not only will it just fall off, but it won’t be very warm: there will be air gaps and it could even compress the sleeping bag’s insulation, making it less warm!

For this solution to work, the blanket should be wool or fleece. A down blanket will just end up compressed and won’t provide much warmth. As always when camping in the cold, avoid cotton!

Problems with this solution:

No way of knowing the warmth level. You’ll have to guess how many extra blankets your kid will need. It’s stressful because you don’t want your child to end up cold.
If your kids are squirmy sleepers, blanket will just end up uselessly bunched up at the bottom of their bag. In this case, sleeping bag liners work better than blankets, but even those can end up bunched up.
A blanket might not fit inside the sleeping bag. Especially if your kid is already getting big for their bag. It will be uncomfortable and your kid might end up hot and sweaty.

3. Put a Quilt On Top of the Sleeping Bag

You don’t want to put a heavy blanket on top of a sleeping bag. However, you can put a down or synthetic camping quilt on top of a sleeping bag. Because they are lightweight, they won’t crush the insulation in the sleeping bag.

Since quilts attach to the sleeping pad, you don’t have to worry about them falling off squirmy sleepers at night. There are also fewer air gaps than you’d get with a blanket. This gives you a versatile sleeping solution.

4. Use a Woman’s Winter Sleeping Bag

There are zero options for kids’ winter sleeping bags, but there are plenty of women’s winter sleeping bags. Women’s bags are usually shorter and narrower than men’s bags, so they work better for kids. You may still have to tie off the bottom of the bag (and maybe fill the empty space around your child with a blanket), but at least you’ll be sure of the temperature rating.

The table below shows good women’s winter sleeping bags, their rating and sizes.

Name	Comfort Rating (F)	Limit Comfort (F)	Fits up to	Shoulder Width	Weight	Fill	Stuff size	Buy At
Big Agnes Sunbeam 15 (Petite)	N/G	15	66"	31.5"	3lbs 1oz	Synthetic	9x20	Amazon, REI
Marmot Teton 15	15	0	66"	29"	3lbs 10oz	Down	8.3x17.7	REI
Nemo Disco 15	17	5	66"	31"	3lbs 1oz	Down	8.5x12.5	Amazon,REI
Mountain Equipment Nova IV	21	9	67"	31"	4lbs 1oz	Synthetic	9x12	REI
Mountain Hardwear Shasta 15	17	5	68"	29"	3lbs 14oz	Synthetic	9.5x18	REI
Kelty Cosmic Synthetic 20	25	13	68"	30"	3lbs 12oz	Synthetic	10x16	Amazon, Campsaver
Kelty Cosmic Down 20	25	13	68"	28.5"	2lbs 6oz	Down	8x13	Amazon, REI, Backcountry.com
Mountain Hardwear Bishop Pass 0	13	0	68"	30"	3lbs 2.8oz	Down	9.5x17	REI

5. Sleeping Bags inside Double-Wide Sleeping Bag

I haven’t tried this solution but some families swear by it for winter camping with their kids. You and your child each sleeping your own sleeping bag. Then you sleep together in an additional double-wide sleeping bag.

Not only are you getting two layers of insulation, but you are sharing body heat inside the double-wide bag.

Of course, this solution isn’t perfect. The double-wide sleeping bag will crush the insulation of your sleeping bags a bit. If your kid has an accident at night, then ALL of your sleeping bags could end up wet! For this reason, I’d only use synthetic sleeping bags for this setup.

The Kelty Tru.Comfort 20 degree double-wide sleeping bag is great because it has built-in “blankets” for each person plus ventilation options, allowing you to adjust the temperature easily. The REI Hunkerdown double sleeping bag is also highly recommended.