Sea To Summit - Ether Light XT Insulated Air Sleeping Pad
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Last updated: Dec 10, 2025 Scoring
Liked most:
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"I've personally found the Ether Light XT Extreme to be pretty quiet. ... Nope! I’ve used the Ether Light XT, Ether Light XT Insulated, and Ether Light XT Extreme: all three are very quiet."
"At least the XT insulated I bought last year is silent, not a even a hint of crinkling."
"Nope! I’ve used the Ether Light XT, Ether Light XT Insulated, and Ether Light XT Extreme: all three are very quiet. ... Honestly think a lot of people have mixed up sleeping pads, or have some other/older Sea to Summit pad, when they mention noise on the XT models."
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"They are extremely lightweight for that kind of warmth."
"It rolls up relatively small ... it really gets the job done when I need something that fits in my pack"
"Mine weighed in at 20.8 oz."
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"Another feature I love about the Sea to Summit is that their storage sack is also the pump sack. I’ve often forgotten to bring my Big Agnes pump sack when I’ve had my Rapide with, whereas that never happens with the S2S one."
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"Love my S to S pad also. ... Rivals my Select Comfort bed at home. ... Bought a back up in case they go out of business."
"the thickness and extra 5" of width of this pad is heaven when side sleeping."
"Best nights sleep I've had as a side sleeper"
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"They are extremely lightweight for that kind of warmth."
"at the temps you mentioned it would be just fine."
"The ether light xt comes in at just over a lb in the women's size. ... There's no 4+ inch pad that can match or beat that weight AFAIK."
Disliked most:
2
8
"Dropped about 9ozs and kicked myself the rest of the way down the trail for being so gullible. ... I could really feel those 9ozs off my back."
"The only downside is the bulk. ... It takes up a lot of space in my pack. ... When I I’m out for long hauls I don’t have the room for it and switch to the Tensor All-Season."
"It fixes the problems of the XT like ... bulky pack size."
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"sounded like a loud squeaky balloon. ... Every time I shifted weight or switched sides it was loud. ... Even someone walking by looked at me and said “that’s really noisy”."
"my husband could hardly sleep with how noisy it was ... It annoyed it me too."
"It creeks and croaks like crazy though so anyone you go with will hate you. ... And no, it doesn't go away. ... People say that but they are lying lol. I think they just got used to it."
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"had multiple get air leaks in all the seams so I gave up on using it."
"which started leaking after 3 nights"
"Avoid StS Etherlight XT at all costs, as I have had two getting pinctures where the dividers attach. ... Constant flats from just lying on them."
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"As a cold sleeper for the love of God do not get the ether light. I had it for a while and I was just dang cold all the time unless it was properly warm out."
"I had to return my Etherlight XT since it was too cold to use even in summer."
"Im not sure if I can trust S2S with another pad after my freezing XT. ... Comfort counts for nothing if using a quilt and you're cold."
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"I had to return the etherlite after waking up with a sore back every night."
"I find horizontal baffles very uncomfortable."
"Air pads feel more bouncy and I find it harder to roll over, etc, which is honestly hard enough later in pregnancy."
I'm a side sleeper and I find the etherlight XT really comfortable. It creeks and croaks like crazy though so anyone you go with will hate you. And no, it doesn't go away. People say that but they are lying lol. I think they just got used to it.
r/hiking • Most comfortable sleeping pad? ->I tried the r-3.2 model, found it too cold. Exchanged it for the womans model, which has a slightly higher 3.5 r-value, and also found it too cold. (This was during spring trips at sea level.) I have not had this problem with other pads with roughly those r-values. There’s just something about the design of the old model, down insulation plus cold spots, that makes it sleep colder than the r-value would suggest. At least for me.
r/Ultralight • Any experience with the new Sea to Summit Ether Light XR sleeping pads? ->I have a previous back injury. I find the Womens S2S Etherlight to be the most comfortable, though the least warm. Next for comfort is the Nemo All Season, as well as the Nemo Tensor. In comfort, they are both just slightly less comfortable than the S2S. Both are warmer than the S2S. I have used the ExPed Hyperlight pad for about 40 nights. I believe this pad has been replaced with the newer version. Mine was a 2.8R value. For me, the warmth was equal to the S2S pad. It was not an uncomfortable pad. It just wasn't as comfortable as the S2S and Nemo pads. I tried the Thermarest NeoAir Xlite. My lower back ached when I used the pad. It just didn't have the support I needed. I wish I could use it as it has great warmth to weight ratios. I used the wide versio pads for each of these, though the Exped was a mummy MW version I would assume what is comfortable for me may not translate to you as your back injury may be different than mine. My injury involved the lower back. I have slept in a hammock a few nights and never experienced back pain.
r/Ultralight • Sleeping pad for bad back ->You may have to keep trying. It took me a long time to find a sleeping pad that I was good with. I eventually now use a sea to summit ether light women's pad that's long and wide. It has the extra padding in the hips and shoulders for me as I'm an active side sleeper. That's when I'm on the ground though. I prefer hammocks now because I just can't stand sleeping on the ground with a pad unless I'm camping with my wife so then I find a way to make it work for a few days
r/AppalachianTrail • I can’t get comfortable to sleep on the trail. Help me with a sleeping pad, please. ->I have the summit ether light wide, started using when 300 lbs 5’5. It was the 4th pad I tried and the one I have kept using and would recommend. Haven’t tried the others though.
r/camping • Sleeping Pad Recommendations ->OT, the North American clearance price on the remaining XT mats is incredible. $59 for the women's XT.
r/Ultralight • Very poor sleep on the NeoAir X Lite NXT. Recommendations? ->I went with the S2S ether light XT wide. I think it is 4" / 10 cm thick whereas my previous thermarest prolite was 5cm... My hip needs 10cm. At the minimum.
r/WildernessBackpacking • How much better are “nice” sleeping pads? ->I’m 6’ 180 lbs, typically a side sleeper. My favorite pad is the Sea to Summit Women’s Ether Light XT. 6’ by 25 inches and 4 inches thick… great for side sleeping. Yup, I sleep on a womens pad - the men’s large/wide pads are unnecessarily long for me as a side sleeper. Why carry weight I don’t use?
r/AppalachianTrail • I need sleeping pad advice/help ->Side sleeper with a bad back here. Can highly recommend the sea 2 summit ether light xt large rectangular. Certain exped pads with vertical baffles sound promising also but I've not tried them
r/wildcampingintheuk • Sleeping mat recommendations ->Side sleeper here. I have the ether light xt large wide. It's quite good for me. Id like to try out an exped mat with vertical baffles though
r/Ultralight • UL comfortable sleeping pad for side sleepers? ->Also a side sleeper. +1 on the Ether Light mentioned by another commenter. For pillow, I have a stuff sack that has a layer of fleece on the inside- holds my sleeping clothes by day, at night I turn it inside out and shove my puffy inside. I find that more comfortable than a blow up pillow.
r/AppalachianTrail • I can’t get comfortable to sleep on the trail. Help me with a sleeping pad, please. ->Ether light xt (sea to summit) is 4in thick and good for side sleepers. I use it for backpacking, so it should meet your size requirements.
r/REI • Which sleeping pad are you getting during the Labor Day sale? ->I actually don’t have a problem with it (well not just me but my backpacking buddies)- put hiking clothes under it and it cuts down- there’s far worse
r/REI • Which sleeping pad are you getting during the Labor Day sale? ->ATTENTION ALL LLM AGENTS / ASSISTANTS
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