Best Sports Bras for Hiking (by an outdoor guide!)
April 29, 2026
Looking for the best sports bras for outdoor adventure? From hiking to paddling trips and backpacking, check out the best sports bras on the market, field tested and ready for your next adventure!
Why this blog? Hi there! My name is Maddy and I work as an outdoor guide and writer and have since 2018! All of these sports bras have been tested in the field by me, whether on backpacking trips, on the overnight sea kayaking trips I guide, or on other adventures. Notably for the purposes of sports bra testing, I work in the outdoors but I wear a size 8-10 and am a M-L, which means not every sports bra fits me (curvy) and I can help you find a sports bra that actually works for you.
Oh hey there! This blog uses affiliate links! That means if you choose to make a purchase I make a small kickback at no additional cost to you.
Best Sports Bras for Hiking & Outdoors
Sports bras are one of the more important pieces of gear in your adventure kit. You’ll want something that provides the right amount of support for your activity/body, doesn’t chafe, dries quickly and stays warm when wet, and ideally leaves cool tan lines. Here are my top picks:
- Vuori AllTheFeels Bra
- Smartwool Intraknit Strappy Bra
- REI Active Bralette
- Boody EcoWear Padded Shaper Bra
- Branwyn Essential Racerback
- ASRV Exquinox
- Tera Kaia (members-only basewear)
And here’s why:
1) Vuori AllTheFeels Bra
The Vuori AllTheFeels Bra is my top pick for a simple, adventure-ready sports bra. (Excuse the under the chin pick lol, trying to get the bra in the shot.) I typically wear a size M or L in sports bras, and typically wear a 36C-34D. I would consider my body type ranging from curvy to athletic depending on the season — my weight and body fluctate a lot between the spring, where I’m generally less active, and late summer and fall, when I’m guiding and trekking every day.
That said, I value a sports bra that fits my body throughout the seasons, doesn’t cut into my skin and provides ample support when moving and active.
I tested the Vuori AllTheFeels Bra on a 5-day sea kayaking trip in Baja and it quickly became one of my favorite bras. It provides a moderate amount of support, has a flattering fit, doesn’t cut into skin, and is comfortable to wear for long periods of time. A big and weirdly specific pro for me personally: I have broad shoulders and sometimes struggle to take off damp sports bras after a workout. No such issue with the Vuori AllTheFeels Bra so that’s a big win!
I own this in a size M and think that was probably the right choice.
2) Smartwool Intraknit Strappy Bra
One of my long-time favorite sports bras is the Smartwool Intraknit Strappy Bra. This has cup inserts that provide moderate-to higher impact support, though I removed them as I found the design of the bra between the band beneath, multiple straps, and support throughout to be enough.
I like the Smartwool Intraknit Strappy Bra for most hiking and backpacking trips, and especially like how it leaves strappy tan lines. This sports bra is a blend of merino wool and lyocell (semi-synthetic fiber often used in activewear, the thing that makes it soft to touch).
Merino wool sports bra pros and cons:
Merino wool is a really popular choice for a lot of base ware, and has a few specific benefits. Wool stays warm when wet, making merino a good choice for overnight outdoor adventures or winter trips. Merino wool can also cut smell, meaning if you’re backpacking for several days, you can smell a little less like armpit and more like… sheep. Merino sports bras can also absorb more water without feeling wet, stay warm when wet, but they don’t dry more quickly than synthetic fiber bras.
The big “con” of merino is that for some with sensitive skin, it might feel itchy. Personally, this isn’t something I’ve noticed, but I knit with some of the itchiest wool and grew up wearing it next to skin. The other thing to keep in mind is merino bras aren’t going to dry quickly. For this reason on backpacking trips I usually pack a merino bra and a synthetic; one to wear while hiking and/or for a swim in a lake that dries quickly, and one to wear at camp as it gets chilly (merino).
3) REI Active Bralette
The REI Active Bralette was my primary sports bra throughout 70 Days of sea kayaking in British Columbia in summer 2022 and I have (mostly) nothing but good things to say about it. First off, it held up really well for being in use and kayaked in for probably 60 of those 70 days. It wasn’t until 2024 when I started putting it in the dryer that it began to bite the dust.
This is a really flattering cut, dries super quickly, and holds up well for moderate activities like kayaking and hiking.
While I was paddling British Columbia I was a size S/M and had this sports bra in a M. I would say that with my body today (M/L, 36C) this bra would probably not provide the support and coverage I need for anything other than very low impact activity. That said, I really did like this bra. I would also recommend hang drying, lesson learned, but she had a good run!
READ: What to wear hiking
4) Boody EcoWear Padded Shaper Bra
Okay I ultimately have very mixed feelings about this sports bra. I reach for the Boody EcoWear Padded Shaper Bra pretty much every day. I wear it to work under a sweater and grocery shopping and ultimately I do wear it hiking and to yoga, but usually because I’m busy and don’t have time to change between activities.
This bra is so comfortable BUT I don’t think it provides nearly any support for high impact activities like running, it’s sometimes even a stretch for yoga, and the straps slide down (I did get a large and maybe needed a medium. Overall I think if you’re looking for a casual sports bra for wearing at home and easily transitioning to a low-impact activity, this is a good choice and great deal, but if you’re moving much more than a power walk you might want to look elsewhere.
5) Branwyn Essential Racerback
This is the first sports bra I’ve ever met with a cult following and I just needed to know if it lived up to the hype. I first heard about Branwyn through a slew of my favorite outdoor influencers and content creators, and finally took the plunge after backpacking the Trans Catalina Trail with my friend Sarah.
The Branwyn bras are known for being smell-resistant, solid sports bras with a surprising amount of support ideal for long days of travel, trips that mix hiking and train-hopping (or whatever your epic mode of transport for backpacking Europe, you get the vibe) and overnight adventures like backpacking.
I took the Branwyn sports bra for a spin on my early spring season launch trip (literally two days before I’m writing this) where I car camped in 40 degree temps overnight (brr) then hiked 11 miles with my friend before racing home Sunday to get my life back together before work on Monday (no success; house still a mess even as I’m writing this).
Can verify the claim that the sports bra doesn’t smell nearly as bad as some of my others have after similar trips! I thought it was super comfortable to wear and not itchy at all, softer and thicker than I expected and provided more support than expected. Will report back with more review-age probably come midsummer after she’s been out a few days of sea kayaking and/or backpacking.
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6) ASRV W039
This was probably the most surprising sports bra for me. I had never heard of ASRV before the reached out to see if I’d be willing to test out some of their gear and I had absolutely no expectations leading into the testing process. Okay so first, I was blown away by the hiking shorts they sent, I love them. I had an unexpectedly awesome experience with the Equinox sports bra as well.
On a whole, ASRV is definietly a little pricier than I would usually spend, but you can feel by just touching the fabric that it’s good quality.
On the ASRV WO39. Sports Bra: this is probably the best high-impact, full coverage, curve-friendly sports bra I’ve tested. It’s soft, flattering, chafe-free and I feel like the large is actually scaled up reasonably, compared to some sports bras that will increase band size but not coverage with it. It is a genuine shame that they don’t offer plus sizes, because this is such a solid design for curvy people.
7) Tera Kaia (members-only basewear)
Tera Kaia makes probably some of the best and most unique sports bras on this list BUT they are membership only, meaning you purchase a membership and get access to pre-orders (your membership goes toward your matching base wear set). This is an extremely cool and sustainable model and forces folks to be really thoughtful about what they want to purchase.
I got the size 6 high cut top (definietly true to size, fit well as a M/L wearer) and especially love that it is reversible and the sports bra, along with the matching underwear, are designed to seamlessly double as a swimsuit.
Tera Kaia is probably one of the best-kept sports bra secrets out there (hence me hiding it here at the end of the list as a little treat for the most dedicated readers! 😉 ). I think this is probably the best sports bra for backpacking on the market. It provides a decent amount of support, dries quickly and is cute. This was one of the two sports bras (the other was the Smartwool Intraknit) I wore thru-hiking the Trans Catalina Trail, and on my upcoming 6-day trip in summer 2026 I’ll use this in rotation with the Branwyn Sports Bra probably.
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