The 2025 Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon is one of the best ultralight packs under $300
Ultralight value shoppers rejoice, the Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 is a full-frame, full-size, fully-featured backpack weighing less than two pounds for under $300. A rare bird indeed! Users will enjoy good load transfer, a comfy foam back panel, and a lovely pair of top side pockets. We may not love the dual front mesh pockets bisected by a main compartment zipper, but this flaw is easily overshadowed by the many aforementioned benefits.
- Weight: 31.5 oz
- Price: $275
- Materials: 100d Robic Nylon main
- Frame: 2 carbon fiber stays, soft foam back panel
- Load Capacity: 40 lbs
- Internal Volume: 49L
- External Volume : 15L
- Recommended Accessories: Shoulder Strap Pocket x2
- Peers & Competitors: Outdoor Vitals CS40 Ultra, Gossamer Gear Mariposa, ULA Circuit, Durston Kakwa 55 Ultragrid, REI Co-op Flash 55, Flash 50 Air
- Pros: Ultralight. Large volume. Great value. Lots of external storage. Frame transfers load to hips well. Functional load lifters. Soft back panel.
- Cons: Front zipper makes rummaging in pockets hard. No lateral frame structure decreases stability and increases barreling. Does not use ULTRA or Dyneema for main fabric. Wide.
Check out more great options in our guide to the best ultralight backpacks. Read all about its smaller, lighter weight sibling in our CS40 Ultra review.
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Adding a pair of shoulder strap pockets is highly recommended
Expanded Pros Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60
Ultralight
At just a fraction of an ounce under two pounds, Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 hits the ultralight bullseye. Two pounds has long been, and continues to be, the gold standard for a fully featured, framed ultralight pack. While not exceptional in this regard, such a weight is comparable to many best-in-class alternatives.
Large volume
With 49L of internal storage and 15L of external storage, Shadowlight Carbon offers a ton of volume. While sometimes too large, packs of this size tend to be more versatile because they can accommodate both small and large loads. Whereas small packs can only manage small loads. Larger packs are also easier to pack, meaning less time spent over-compressing and Tetris-ing your gear.
Great value
It’s hard to find an ultralight backpack under $300 these days, and Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 offers a glimmer of hope to value shoppers in an expensive marketplace. This is a high performance backpack for a relatively low price.
Lots of external storage
Decked out in external storage. Unsurprisingly, it comes with standard side bottle pockets and full size hip belt pockets. But unlike most other designs, it also comes with cinchable top side pockets, great for storing things like a hat and gloves, potty kit, or microspikes. Dual front mesh pockets complete the arrangement. These are made with the best-in-class fabric for the job, ULTRA StretchMesh, which is super durable and of course stretchy. Each pocket is tall and narrow; we recommend storing your rain gear in one, and fleece in the other. The downside to this layout is that it’s difficult to access the bottom half of these pockets without yardsale-ing the top half’s worth of contents.
Frame transfers load to hips well and has functional load lifters
The tall carbon fiber stays do a fairly good job of transferring weight to hips, and this pack is rated for a 40 lb carry, better than most other packs in the two pound weight class. The stays are rather tall, which allows for functional load lifters that pull up, not just back, on the shoulder straps.
Comfy back panel
The aerated foam back panel is soft, comfortable, and does good work blocking lumps from jabbing into your back. It’s aerated with cut outs that reduce weight, but it’s not as cool and breathable as suspended trampoline-style mesh panels as can be commonly found on models from big brands like Osprey.
Expanded Cons of Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60
Front zip makes rummaging in front pockets difficult
Shadowlight’s dual front mesh pockets bisected by a zipper are a less user friendly design than the traditional wide single mesh pocket that most other ultralight backpacks have. For starters, the two narrow cylindrical pockets offer way less total storage volume than a single large pocket. And perhaps more annoyingly, it is very difficult to reach in and rummage around for what you’re looking for unless it’s in the top portion of the pocket. The narrowness of these pockets requires the user to yard sale the top contents to access the middle or lower contents. And lastly, if packing properly, there shouldn’t be any need to access items in the middle inside of your pack, except when you’re at camp, rendering this to become a rarely-used feature. Personally, I have yet to ever use it, so it just adds weight, manufacturing cost, and another breakable component.
No lateral frame structure decreases stability and increases barreling potential
While the independent dual carbon stays yield functional load lifters and an impressive load limit of 40 lbs, the frame and soft foam back panel offers no lateral stiffness. With lateral stiffness, the frame could have been even stronger. But perhaps more annoyingly, the lack of lateral framing, combined with the lack of a stiff back panel (it’s just soft squishy foam), means the center of the pack has a tendency to create the dreaded barrel shape when fully loaded. That is, it will round out, potentially bulging uncomfortably into your back. This is different than acute lump jabbing, and can usually be mitigated by proper packing. But it would have been mitigated entirely by a stiffer back panel and/or lateral framing.
Does not use ULTRA or Dyneema for main fabric
The very best ultralight backpacks are made with woven UHMWPE fabrics like Dyneema, Challenge ULTRA, or ALUULA. These textiles are stronger, lighter, and inherently waterproof. The ripstop Robic nylon fabric that Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 is made from is acceptable, functional, and proven, but relatively low tech and unexciting. The lack of UHMWPE woven fabrics precludes it from best-in-class consideration.
Wide
With top and bottom pockets sticking off both sides (a welcome feature, not complaining), the pack runs a bit wider than average when fully loaded. It’s not a huge drawback, but can be annoying if you have a smaller torso, are hiking in desert canyons, or while bushwhacking.
Hard working load lifters
Who Should Choose It
Choose Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 if:
- You want a full frame ultralight pack under two pounds with functional load lifters
- You’re shopping for your first ultralight pack, this would be a great choice
- You are value shopping to maximize bang for your buck
- You would put the top side pockets to good use
Don’t Choose Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 if:
- You want the most cutting edge pack, if so choose models made with Dyneema or ULTRA
- You are irked by the zipper bisecting what could have been a larger, better front mesh pocket
- You won’t tolerate any barreling
- Your use case demands exceptional durability; Shadowlight’s durability is merely average
Wonderful top side pockets
Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 Vs the Competition
Vs Outdoor Vitals CS40 Ultra
The CS40 Ultra is a higher tech ultralight pack that is lighter, smaller, and more expensive because it’s made with waterproof and hyper-durable ULTRA Weave fabric. The CS40 is better for experts carrying a dialed-in ultralight kit, while Shadowlight is better for beginner and intermediate backpackers.
Vs Gossamer Gear Mariposa
Gossamer Gear Mariposa is similar in many ways to the Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon. Mariposa has a secondary pocket on one side, and another additional pocket by way of the top zipper compartment. Between them, we have a slight preference towards Mariposa’s pivot frame with lateral rigidity and sit pad back panel, as well as the fact that its front external pocket is not bisected by a zipper. That being said, Shadowlight is $40 less expensive, a few ounces lighter weight, and uses superior mesh on its front pockets. Which to choose is a pretty close call!
Vs ULA Circuit
The ULA Circuit is another lightweight pack made with ripstop nylon (also available for $100 more in Challenge Ultra). Between them, Circuit has a much better front mesh pocket, a laterally stable frame, and stiffened back panel. It is also proven to be one of the most durable options, comes in a myriad of fun colors, and remains the most popular choice among PCT thru-hikers for good reason. Shadowlight is $25 cheaper and seven ounces lighter weight, which is a fairly significant amount. Many argue that Circuit, at 38 oz, doesn’t even qualify as ultralight anymore. Shadowlight also has the two bonus top pockets as an advantage. But until this new 2025 version of Shadowlight is trail-proven, we’d lean towards the ULA Circuit given its PCT cache, but neither is strictly better than the other.
Vs Durston Kakwa 55 Ultragrid
These two packs are similarly sized, similarly weighted, and made of similar ripstop nylon fabrics. Shadowlight’s biggest advantages are in the foam cushioned back panel and top side pockets, as well as being regularly in-stock and available to purchase. Kakwa 55 is superior in regard to weight transfer and frame rigidity, as well its much lower price point and a version available in Challenge ULTRA weave. It also comes with built-in shoulder strap pockets, whereas Shadowlight requires shoulder strap pockets to be purchased separately. We’ve had super positive experiences with Kakwa, and would default to it over Shadowlight until we get more reps in with the latter to know for sure.
Vs REI Co-op Flash Air 55 and Flash Air 50
For an extremely popular value optimized lightweight pack, you may also be considering the REI Co-op Flash 55. From an ultralight perspective, Shadowlight is the superior choice, given that it weighs 14 ounces less while offering similar capacity, load transfer, and even more pockets. Flash 55 also has a top brain compartment, a beginner-oriented/beginner-friendly feature that most experts ultimately move away from. That being said, Flash 55 is exactly $55 less expensive (hey, how about that?!?) and is still a great pack. Flash Air 50 costs a bit more than Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon, weighs about the same, has a better front pocket, lacks top side pockets, and has a lower load carrying capacity. This is a closer call than Flash 55, but we’d take Shadowlight over either.
Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon Review Conclusion
Thanks to its low weight, reasonable price tag, and high volume, the Outdoor Vitals Shadowlight Carbon 60 is a particularly great first ultralight pack to buy, and a lot of bang for your buck. While it doesn’t represent a huge tech upgrade for veteran minimalists who already own an ultralight pack, the value proposition is matched by very few alternatives, and earns a strong seal of approval from us. Happy trails!
