Merino Wool Versus Cashmere Knits

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Angie is co-founder of YLF and its resident fashion stylist.

Merino Wool Versus Cashmere Knits

on January 20, 2025

Merino and cashmere knitwear and Winter accessories like scarves hats and socks are in abundance every season. Each is a form of wool, and considered a high-end natural fibre. Wardrobe items can be 100% merino, or 100% cashmere. Alternatively, each natural fibre can form a component of a blended yarn.

Merino and cashmere fibres have their similarities, but differ in key aspects:

Source: Merino wool comes from sheep. Cashmere comes from goats.

Texture and Insulation: Merino wool is soft, lightweight, warm, and is successfully used as layering items in cold weather. Cashmere is softer and warmer than merino, but not as lightweight. It has a plush texture that gives it a more luxurious and cosy appearance than merino.

Breathability: Merino wool is breathable and has excellent moisture-wicking properties, making it an ideal all-season fibre for dressy and casual wear. It’s comfortable to wear in milder Winter climates when cashmere is too warm. Merino wool is used for activewear.

Cashmere is not as moisture-wicking, but just as breathable. It’s extra warm and thick, making it ideal to wear in very cold weather.

Cost: Merino wool is cheaper than cashmere because it’s widely available. Cashmere’s rarer supply and extra luxurious texture pushes up its price.

Care: Merino wool is robust and easier to care for. It can be machine-washable in cold water. Cashmere is less robust, and requires more care. It needs to be washed by hand, extremely delicately in the machine, or dry-cleaned.

I wear merino wool and cashmere wardrobe items, and have a good selection of both. I personally find merino wool more versatile, easier to launder, more affordable, and casual. I can wear merino wool more frequently throughout the year in a Seattle climate. But cashmere has its place. It feels very cosy, looks premium and dressier, and keeps me well insulated on colder days. That said, I find that both fibres have the potential to scratch and irritate my skin. And both fibres can pill.

Over to you. What are your thoughts on merino wool versus cashmere knits? Do you prefer one over the other, or wear both?

Fabrications · Knitwear

25 comments · Add a comment

Suntiger

Active Member

I just wear wool coats, since they’re not touching bare skin. The one I have doesn’t specify what type, but I’m pretty sure it’s merino. I like it cause it makes my winter outfits dressier, but isn’t enough for bitter cold days like today.
Otherwise I mainly stick to cotton and velvet for winter tops, and cotton and bamboo for socks. My winter hat is acrylic, which itched at first, so I soaked it with fabric softener and it’s not bad. Does fabric softener help for wools too? I hate using it, but want to switch to natural fibers as possible.

January 20, 2025 at 4:39 am

Lisa

Veteran

I like both wool and cashmere for sweaters but have run into itch factors with both. I never know if the wool or cashmere sweater will itch until I try them on. I often find the thicker the cashmere the less likely it will itch but then the price goes up quite a bit too.For wool it’s more likely it will itch than not but sometimes I get lucky. For both sweaters I always wear a long sleeve tee, thermal top, or button down shirt underneath to layer. This helps with any itch factor, adds warmth, and prevents having to launder the sweater as often. I will also use a fabric shaver for pilling but find wool and wool blend sweaters tend to pil more than cashmere..

Now for some reason I can wear wool socks without an issue. I like the non cushioned Smartwool wool socks best and will wear them year round, even in the summer months. They are great for sweaty feet and help keep mine dry. I’ve never tried cashmere socks so I can’t speak from experience on those.

I’ve seen lots of matching cashmere sets pop up at retail the last few years but haven’t tried one yet. They look cozy but I think they would be a pain to launder by hand all the time.

January 20, 2025 at 4:49 am

April

Veteran

I find both itchy and follow Lisa’s practice of always layering beneath.

Cashmere attracts moths even more than merino. In my experience, both pill, especially because of my crossbody bags.

As the arctic blast hits our part of the world, I wish I had a good alternative to either of these fibers but I don’t.

Also a caution to those who want to buy cashmere. The word “cashmere” as now sometimes used to describe blends that contain no actual cashmere but are particularly lofty or soft.

January 20, 2025 at 5:00 am

RobinF

Veteran

I also find both can be itchy and have to be very picky about how it feels. That being said, I don’t have much cashmere. It has always been too expensive for me. I do have one small neck scarf that I knit from a skein of cashmere. It is super soft and warm. I do like wool for sweaters but I don’t get as cold as I used to so sometimes they can be too warm.

Not today though!!

January 20, 2025 at 5:13 am

Style Fan

Veteran

Most of my sweaters are cashmere. For active wear such as dog walking and hiking I wear fleece. My socks are merino wool.

January 20, 2025 at 5:19 am

kkards

Veteran

I have and love both. I’ve found merino to be extremely good for layering over, and as needed I’m replacing my old Heattech layering tees with merino one.

January 20, 2025 at 5:22 am

Tanya

Veteran

I love and wear both. I am lucky that I rarely find wool-based materials itchy, although it does happen from time to time, most recently with a woven wool skirt. I like touchable soft items so cashmere is a favorite, however I find that it pills significantly more than merino, which I find more robust in every manner.

I have a question for everyone: I occasionally find unexplainable holes in sweaters made from both materials after longer storage periods ( e.g. half a year) that make the sweaters unwearable. There are no moths in my place, and it is not wear and tear – the holes were not there when the sweaters were packed. I recently had to retire several beloved sweaters due to this issue and would love to be able to prevent it.

January 20, 2025 at 5:38 am

Staysfit

Veteran

I like both. Cashmere suits our winters and I love how soft and cozy it feels. I find good quality merino doesn’t feel itchy. A bit off topic but many knits are blends that include other natural or synthetic fibers. If there is even a little mohair blended in a knit, it feels too itchy for me and I require an underlayer. I can tolerate some wool and wool blended with cashmere and or merino without feeling too itchy. From knitting, I have learned that wool supposedly feels less itchy when you wear it in cold temperatures. Longer staple fibers may also be less itchy for example British Blue Face Leicester, which in my limited experience feels a bit like merino.

January 20, 2025 at 5:42 am

Dee

Veteran

I have both, merino for mostly layering and cashmere for cold days and/or dressier occasions. Pilling and snags can be a source of frustration too. I baby these knits as best I can.

January 20, 2025 at 5:45 am

Staysfit

Veteran

Tanya, you may have moths you do not see. I cannot think of any reason for holes to form other than moths. Here is the procedure I use for storing my sweaters. 1. Wash sweater using Eucalan or Soak or similar wool friendly cleaner. 2. Air dry 3. Fold and pack into large ziplock bag. 4. Place in freezer for a day or two. 5. Store bag with sweater in a plastic tub with a lid that seals well.

I do the same with my yarn, minus the washing. Any new purchases go into my freezer for a couple days before I package it into a zip lock bag and add it to my stash.

Moths lay eggs on the sweaters. When the larvae hatch they eat the sweater and holes form. Moths prefer dirty sweaters. An airtight bag and container may prevent them from thriving, however, it is also helpful in containing spread if anything does get moths. Finally freezing may help kill off eggs/larvae.

January 20, 2025 at 5:56 am

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Tanya, it sounds like you do have moths. They’re not always visible. I put sticky traps in all our closets to prevent this after finding a couple of small mystery holes a few years ago, and the problem seems to have stopped. I change them out periodically.

I like cashmere and merino, but I’m coming to prefer the more study aspect of merino. I find the quality of “cashmere” really varies these days, to the point where I am really skeptical of low-priced cashmere. I got an inexpensive cashmere sweater from Macy’s on deep discount a year or so ago and it pulled like mad.

January 20, 2025 at 6:04 am

ChristelJ

Veteran

Only merino for me. If serves as a great layering option in winter, and I also love to knit with it. Cashmere, on the other hand, I have given up on. Every item I’ve owned has been wrecked by moths. They have outsmarted me time and again.

January 20, 2025 at 6:34 am

Tanya

Veteran

Thank you Staysfit and Janet! I will look into dealing with “invisible” moths.

January 20, 2025 at 6:42 am

Star

Veteran

Coming from a really mild climate in Johannesburg, South Africa I never owned any wool items. Except one jersey which was itchy, I did not now why. Ten years into this fairly cold environment on the Black Sea and quite a few trials and errors I can say that I like merino wool, I have one such sweater, it is warm and I still wear an under layer. I always do with any knits. I purchased new a cashmere turtleneck which I loved, the softness especially, I wore that without an underlayer. Unfortunately it was not great quality and I only got about 30 or so wears from it. I never see cashmere in the thrift stores but I do see merino. Initially I thrifted many cotton knits but they are just not warm enough. I am finding some fake materials warm, but they are not created equal for sure as some are soft and some are not.

January 20, 2025 at 7:31 am

JAileen

Veteran

I have several cashmere sweaters. They are part of my “dressy” outfit in winter: sweater, pants, scarf, boots. I don’t find them itchy at all. Yesterday, I wore one to church and then to a traveling Broadway show. They do pill, but not as bad as a synthetic sweater I had that drove me mad.

January 20, 2025 at 7:34 am

BlueJay

Veteran

I have one cashmere cardigan sweater and it is one of my all-time favourite sweaters. I thrifted it and it has served me well for 20+ years and looks just as good today as it did when I bought it. Hardly any pilling and so cosy to wear.

I also have merino wool socks and lots of tops. They’re great when it’s cold, but also my short-sleeve ones can be good in the summer as they’re cooling (despite what one would think) and are great for not retaining odours. I store all of my cashmere and wool things in ziplock bags too, like Staysfit.

Tanya, carpet beetles will also attack sweaters and other materials (not just carpet).

January 20, 2025 at 7:55 am

Sisi

Veteran

I prefer merino. It is my favorite type of wool. Soft, thin, warm, easy to maintain. It looks “sportier” to me than cashmere.
I have never shared the general appreciation for cashmere. I do not find it better than merino, it is fussy to launder and pills like crazy. I have worn cashmere sweaters in the past and the fluff always got in my eyes. It was a nuisance.

January 20, 2025 at 8:08 am

Suz

(website)

Veteran

My thoughts and feelings about merino and cashmere are identical to yours, Angie. I love them both, both have a big place in my wardrobe, but merino is wearable across a wider temperature range (depending on the gauge of the knit, etc.) In our damp PNW climate, cashmere can irritate me more than it used to in a dryer climate, where it never bothered me at all. But if I save it for colder days, I have no trouble with it.

I successfully wash all my merino and cashmere in the delicate setting (often in laundry bags) in the machine and air dry. Very rarely I will get a bit of shrinkage on the older sweaters and need to block them carefully.

January 20, 2025 at 8:30 am

Irina

Veteran

I wear both. Especially, cashmere – I wear a cashmere sweater every day from October to May.
In my experience, cashmere can be thick or thin, depending on yarn. I have heavy sweaters and summer weight, light cashmere t-shirts and a sweater. The featherweight cashmere is not often available in retail.
I mostly wear merino sweaters and cardigans during fall/spring seasons, thinner merino works well for warmer weather. I find thick merino too heavy and would rather wear substantial cashmere knit instead.
I don’t find both knits too stretchy, not like cotton anyway.
I hand wash my knits and don’t have issues with excessive pilling. I also iron my sweaters after.

January 20, 2025 at 8:55 am

Firecracker (Sharan)

Veteran

I wear both cashmere and merino sweaters, with an underlayer, and I love them both for their warmth. I’ve found wool is essential for me in the cold damp Pacific Northwest winters. For me, they are the two wools that I can count on not to itch. I prefer merino for its hardiness and ease of care. But I love the soft, cozy feel of cashmere on a cold day, so it has its place for me, too. I wear a lot of merino for bicycling: baselayer tees, jerseys, socks, hats, glove liners. I also like merino socks for daily wear and am trying to add more of them as I can. And I swear by the sticky moth traps like what Janet mentions. Those finally solved our moth issues. I use them year-round, replacing them on schedule according to the instructions (every three months, I think). Here are the ones I use, from Ace Hardware: https://www.acehardware.com/departments/lawn-and-garden/insect-and-animal-control/insect-bait/7039571?store=18238&gStoreCode=18238&gQT=1

January 20, 2025 at 9:40 am

Eliza

Veteran

I have both, yet am leaning towards merino more over time. Like many, I like its versatility, easy care and lack of bulk. Additionally, I have had far fewer pills with it (regardless of price point), while cashmere has become a frequent losing bet, including some very high end brands. The cost coupled with such unpredictability means I haven’t purchased cashmere in a quite awhile. Great topic.

January 20, 2025 at 9:52 am

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Very interesting responses! Lots of very similar opionins. High five to all of you!

January 20, 2025 at 9:57 am

karen23

Active Member

I don’t actually see cashmere very much, but it’s lovely.
As for merino wool – I like it. I have several pair of Smartwool socks. And wool can keep you warm, even if it gets wet. If your winter boots spring a leak in February, a good pair of wool socks is a godsend.

January 20, 2025 at 11:52 am

sarah

Veteran

I wear sweaters in both types of wool and find merino to be more durable (less pilling). Also, I am an avid cross-country skier, and am amazed at how well my merino wool base layer tops withstand weekly wear and washing. Plus, they don’t smell the way synthetics do after workouts, and never pill.

January 20, 2025 at 12:13 pm

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Merino wool is a favourite for good reason. Easier to maintain and a lot cheaper.

Tanya, glad you got good moth advice. Good luck

Suz and Sharan, in the PNW where we live, merino wool has it’s well deserved place! I typically wear cashmere 4 months of the year. Nov to Feb. And not every day. Merino is worn more. Cotton knitwear is worn a lot too.

Sisi, yes, merino can look sporty at times, AND is good as gear!

January 20, 2025 at 12:48 pm

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