Fast Fashion Tested - Which Sweater Is the Most Sustainable?

An affordable women's sweater that doesn’t harm the environment, myth or reality? We tested four eco-friendly pullovers from Pull&Bear, H&M, Guess, and Zara and found two winners. Check them out yourself!

The sample products are tested and evaluated to the best of our knowledge and belief. None of the brands sponsored this article. Nevertheless, we think that the products listed in this article can be useful for our readers.

Who said that choosing more sustainable materials for your clothes means quitting the luxury of warm, cozy and fluffy knitwear. We took a detailed look at the eco collections of four big fast fashion brands and picked some products to test and see if they were worth buying. We evaluated each item for materials sustainability, textile certifications, transparency of product description, durability and quality. And in this blog post we want to share our findings with you.

Jump to the test results for: Guess | H&M | Pull&Bear | Zara

Watch the video to have an even better overview of the sweaters we tested and how they performed.

Top Eco-Friendly Sweaters Comparison

We summarized the most important information and test results for our sample T-shirts in this review table.

Methodology

How Did We Pick the Brands and Items?

Selecting the four sweaters that would best represent our research was a crucial thing for us. We conducted major research on the fast fashion brands in the U.S market that provide an extended collection of sustainable clothing. Our final picks were Pull&Bear, H&M, Guess and Zara. These brands are among the biggest and bestselling mass fashion retailers, together counting millions of items and thousands of stores. Another criterion was that two out of four brands (Zara and Pull&Bear) are part of the Inditex Group, which is the largest fast fashion manufacturing company in the world. It was important to include this group in our campaign because most people are familiar with it and have shopped for its products. 

All sample clothes belong to the brands’ eco-friendly collections and were picked by using the websites’ navigational filters. When selecting the four knitwear items, we tried to cover a wide spectrum of materials, including recycled polyester, wool content and viscose to make our testing more multifaceted and give you as many useful insights as possible.

How Did We Test?

To provide you with a comprehensive, valuable and authentic review, we tested each product extensively. The products were ordered in October 2021 and were delivered to us after a couple of days. The testing period started at the beginning of November 2021 and lasted three months. We took photos of each product, measured them, wore, washed (minimum five times), ironed and then recorded our results. Our testers treated the items they received as their own. 

Additionally, we exposed every item to different conditions, including sunnier and colder places. The goal was to have a better understanding of their long-term durability and quality to ensure objective results. We reviewed how each garment responds over the course of time in terms of shrinking, wearing or washing out, losing shape, fading color and more.

It’s also important to highlight that we followed all suggested handling instructions. All sweaters were washed in a cold program with no tumble drying or bleaching and they were ironed on the lowest heat settings, except for the H&M and Guess pullovers. Those did not require any ironing at all, according to our testers. 

Another important factor is the overall presentation of the product on the website. We particularly paid attention to how precisely the sustainability of the sweaters is described and how extensive the information about the production process is. We cross-checked the online information when receiving the garments to see if any of the brands attempted greenwashing. Last but not least, we checked whether each item carries any textile certificates.

All products were tested within our international company. We are five eco-conscious women, living in Europe and the U.S., sharing similar mindsets about sustainable living. In case you want to learn more about our testers you can check out our about us page.

How Did We Rate?

Materials

In terms of textile sustainability, it’s fair to say that the Guess pullover is a clear winner. This sweater consists of 75% certified viscose. This material is often considered a sustainable alternative to cotton or polyester, becoming more and more popular in the fashion industry as a cheaper and more durable alternative to silk. We appreciated that the percentage of this sustainable material was pretty high, therefore we scored one point more than H&M. The latter is a knit sweater made of 52% recycled polyester and an additional blend of acrylic, spandex and wool. Not only because of the sustainable content in the fabric blend but also because of the wool it lost points scoring a total of three. The Pull&Bear and Zara sweaters each scored two points for this criterion due to the low percentage of sustainable materials (up to 25% and 26% respectively). To that, Zara’s is a non-vegan garment. None of the sweaters achieved the ultimate five points, which means that there’s still room for improvement. We think that knitwear made of 100% organic cotton would be a great idea for the next collection launch.

Textile Certifications

We were very disappointed that this particular criterion was applied only for the Guess hoodie. Guess received points as the only one carrying the Lenzing EcoVero label, which means that the material was derived from certified renewable wood sources, ensuring responsible production and high environmental standards at the same time.

Product Information

To be able to assess sustainability even better, we also checked how transparent and extensive the product information was. First of all, we carefully reviewed the garments' descriptions on every website. We looked at the material composition, production process, place of origin, working conditions or any other sustainability statements. After that, we cross-checked this information with the inside label of each garment. 

In this case, Pull&Bear and H&M sweaters received the best scores for their efforts to share valuable information about the suppliers and the production processes. However, we have to mention that when the H&M sweater arrived, the main label was missing but we decided it would be unfair to deduct points for that since the entire H&M order carried all necessary labels. We assume this was just a mistake that happened only to one piece and it would have been unfair to rate them with zero points for this reason. Zara, scoring four points, tried to share some sustainability statements regarding water reduction during the production process. Yet, we believe this information can be a little more specific and therefore transparent. 

As for Guess, even though we’re generally disappointed by its product descriptions, this time we appreciated the further explanation of what the Lenzing EcoVero label is and why it is better for the environment. However, the description on the website doesn't say precisely that only 75% of the fabrics are sustainable. We think that a regular customer might not know that Lenzing Ecovero is sustainable viscose. Again it would be better to deliver this kind of information in a clearer way.

Durability 

More durable clothes also mean more sustainable clothes since they last longer and don’t need constant replacements with new ones. With this in mind, we thought that durability deserves being a separate criterion. We paid attention to how long-lasting or fragile the garments were during testing. Even though we have two winners in this category, only one of these received excellent feedback in terms of durability. The H&M sweater reached the ultimate 5 points for durability and we noticed that its loose shape, initial measurements and soft touch were not affected by laundry or daily use. The tester can predict that this sweater will last for many winter seasons, which is a great aspect to consider. 

On the other hand, our second winner, Guess, didn’t get the best ratings for durability. Its tester noticed that there were some loose strings hanging out after laundry. Moreover, the blush pink color started fading a little bit. But we have to admit that all stains that were created on purpose (oil from cooking, tomato sauce from eating pasta and toothpaste drip) were easily removed with a cold wash program. 

Also, the Pull&Bear cardigan got a perfect rating on durability and testing did not affect its pre-usage condition. Finally, we also scored Zara knitwear with 3 out of 5 points since we noticed a few changes after testing. The color faded because some of the pink fibers washed out and it‘s now a lighter shade of pink than before. The most important comment we’ve got though is that the tester thinks that this garment will not last more than two winter seasons, which contradicts its placement in a sustainable collection. 

Quality

The H&M and Pull&Bear sweaters not only scored five points on durability but also on quality. Both of these pullovers were rated as a top-quality choice for your next shopping trip. Even though the H&M sweater looked like one of those itchy and baggy sweaters at first glance, it appeared to be a great, oversized pullover that was very breathable and gentle to the skin. Similarly, the Pull&Bear cardigan was commented as a very cozy, light and soft piece. Even though it gets statically charged, which is definitely a thing to consider, we were satisfied with its overall quality. 

Guess follows in the quality rating, scoring four points due to some stitches sticking out. In general, the quality of the cord and the manufacture of this hoodie seem good and the material smooths out by itself when it gets wrinkled. The Zara pink pullover didn’t receive a good review since we noticed that the quality is generally not better than other items from the regular Zara line. It easily catches fibers from other garments like scarfs and we assume it’ll fall apart in the long term. 

Our Key Test Findings

The winner product was determined by calculating the scores from five different testing criteria. We were not completely satisfied by the performance of the four tested sweaters since none of them reached more than 3.6 points in total. However, we were happy to see that both winning items consisted of the most sustainable material composition. 

In this case, also the most expensive sweater ($79.00) landed on position #1, yet it didn’t get as good a review in terms of quality and durability as other garments. It’s also fair to say that H&M green sweater has a great balance between the sustainability of the fabric and the testing performance, therefore it’s our favorite pick between the two winners. There is still a way to go, especially in terms of textile certificates, considering that only one garment carried such a label. 

Wait! Here is more

• Sustainable T-shirts review
• Sustainable jeans review
• Sustainable dresses review

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Wool Harmful to the Environment?

Pure wool is often used in the fashion industry and is considered one of the best options to keep you warm during the winter season. However, we believe it’s no longer a wise decision to use pure wool in our clothing. Wool is a typical byproduct of the meat industry as is obtained from animals, like sheep, goats or rabbits in a brutal and painful way. And we all know that farming is very much responsible for massive greenhouse gas emissions, which directly affect not only nature but human health as well. We should also bear in mind that many chemicals are also used on these animals to keep them free of parasites. Considering all these factors we should seek vegan alternatives to replace wool in the fashion industry.

Which Fabric Is Best for Sweaters?

Most conventional sweaters are either made of wool, cotton, acrylic or polyester. However, cashmere is arguably one of the most luxurious sweater materials out there (and one of the most expensive, too). Both cashmere and wool fibers are obtained from goats, which means that the garments made of these materials are non-vegan. Cotton is another often-used option for making sweaters because it’s breathable, lightweight and can also be warm. But if cotton is not sourced sustainably (which is mostly the case), such clothing affects the entire ecosystem due to toxicity, the high water consumption etc. At Moincoins, we believe that for every unsustainable fabric there is a more eco-friendly substitute. We even created a guide listing the most popular textile materials so you can find an eco-friendly substitute to pretty much anything. It’s also helpful to look for certifications, such as GOTS, Oeko-Tex, OCS, etc, when making your purchase. In this way, you will ensure that your garment fulfills the highest environmental and social standards.

Sources 

1. H&M
2. Guess 
3. Pull&Bear 
4. Zara