The Cashmere Sweater Report: What Actually Justifies the Price
We sent twelve sweaters through a full winter of wearing, washing and pilling. Grade, ply and hand-feel, not the label, decided the verdict.
A cashmere sweater can cost $80 or $800, and the price tag explains almost none of it. Fiber grade, ply and knit density tell the real story — so we measured all three, then wore each piece long enough to see which ones held their shape and which ones went fuzzy by January.
The short version: two mid-priced sweaters beat a luxury rival outright, and the single most expensive garment in the test finished fourth. The full table, our grading method and the six sweaters we would actually buy are inside.