Style & Wardrobe The Settle
Quince vs. Naadam Cashmere Sweaters: Settled
By Goldie ·
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Both of these brands built their whole reputation on the same promise: real 100% cashmere without the four-figure price tag. Quince put a Mongolian cashmere crewneck on the internet for about $50 and never looked back. Naadam made its name with a “$75 cashmere sweater” that the fashion press could not stop writing about.
So if you’re choosing between them, you’re really asking one question. Does Naadam’s sourcing story justify paying nearly double? We compared the two on price, fiber, returns, and the fine print to find out.
The short version
Buy the Quince crewneck. It’s about $50, it’s certified Grade A Mongolian cashmere, and it comes with a full year to return it. Naadam’s Original is a lovely sweater with a genuinely good supply-chain story, but at $98 with a 14-day return window and a return fee, it has to work twice as hard to earn the gap. For most people it doesn’t.
That’s the call. Here’s the why.
What you’re actually choosing between
| Quince Mongolian Crewneck | Naadam The Original | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ~$50 | $98 |
| Fiber | 100% Mongolian cashmere, Grade A, 15.8 micron | 100% Mongolian cashmere |
| Returns | 365 days, free | 14 days |
| Return fee | None | $12.75 deducted from refunds |
| Reviews | 25,000+ across the cashmere line, ~4.7 stars | Strong editorial reviews, fewer on-site ratings |
| The pitch | Cut out the middlemen, sell direct | Source direct from Mongolian herders |
The fiber row is the one that surprises people. Both brands sell 100% Mongolian cashmere, and Quince is the one that publishes the actual fiber spec. Grade A and 15.8 microns is a real number, and a low micron count is what makes cashmere feel soft instead of scratchy. Naadam talks beautifully about its sourcing but is quieter on the measurable grade.
The price gap nobody fully explains
Naadam earned its fame as the “$75 cashmere sweater.” The Original now sells for $98. That’s still cheap for cashmere, and it’s not a knock on Naadam, prices move. But it does change the math against a $50 Quince crewneck made from a published Grade A fiber.
You’re paying the extra $48 for Naadam’s brand and its supply chain, not for a softer or longer-lasting sweater. We could not find evidence that the Naadam knit outlasts or out-softens the Quince one. It’s the same cashmere either way.
Returns are where it stops being close
This is the part that decides it for first-time cashmere buyers. Cashmere is a fit-and-feel purchase, and you don’t really know until it’s on.
Quince gives you 365 days and eats the return shipping. Naadam gives you 14 days from delivery, and unless you added their shipping protection at checkout, $12.75 comes out of your refund. If you’re the kind of shopper who orders two colors to compare at home, that difference is real money and real breathing room.
If you’re still deciding whether cashmere is even worth it over merino or lambswool, our cashmere vs. merino breakdown settles that one first.
Where Naadam wins
Naadam still has a real case to make.
Its sourcing story is the most concrete in the category. Buying direct from herders in the Mongolian Gobi is a genuine point of difference, and if a transparent, herder-first supply chain is the thing you’re paying for, Naadam is the honest answer. The knits also lean a little more fashion-forward, with seasonal colors and silhouettes that feel less basic than a plain crewneck.
So if the ethics and the story matter to you as much as the sweater, and you’ll commit inside the 14-day window, Naadam is worth the $98. That’s a smaller group of buyers than Naadam’s marketing suggests, but it’s a real one.
For everyone else, the value math is lopsided. Want to see how both stack up against the rest of the field? That’s what the best affordable cashmere shortlist is for. And once your sweater arrives, washing it right is what keeps it alive for a decade.