How to Use a Top Quilt in a Hammock

By topquilt.com · Updated Oct 21, 2026 · 6 min read

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Learning how to use a top quilt in a hammock takes about two nights. The idea is simple: the quilt covers your top and sides, the underquilt handles your back. But small habits around getting in, positioning, and sealing drafts are what separate a cozy night from a fitful one. Here's the technique, step by step, plus fixes for the most common problems.

Before you get in: set up the system

A top quilt works as half of a two-part system. Before thinking about the quilt, make sure the bottom half is right.

• Hang the hammock with a comfortable sag (around 30 degrees at the suspension is the usual starting point). A hammock that's too tight makes it hard to lie flat and pushes the quilt off you.
• Hang the underquilt so it touches the hammock fabric along your whole body with no gaps. If you're not sure how, our how to hang an underquilt guide covers adjustment step by step.
• Pitch the tarp with the windward side low if there's any breeze.
• Fluff the quilt. Take it out of its stuff sack as soon as camp is set up and give it a few shakes so the down has time to loft before bed.

Step by step: getting in under your top quilt

1. Orient the quilt. Lay it in the hammock with the footbox at the end where your feet will go. With a diagonal lay, that's slightly off to one side of the foot end. The fabric side with the neck snap faces up.
2. Sit in the middle. Sit down in the center of the hammock like it's a chair, with the quilt behind and under you. Your weight centers the hammock so it won't flip.
3. Swing your legs in. Lift your feet into the hammock and slide them into the footbox. If the footbox is cinchable, open it first and close it once your feet are in.
4. Lie back diagonally. Shift your head toward one side and your feet toward the other, roughly 15-30 degrees off the hammock's centerline. This flattens your lay and stops the "banana" curve.
5. Pull the quilt up. Draw the top edge up to your chin. If the quilt has gotten trapped under your hips, lift your hips slightly and pull it free, so your back is on the hammock fabric, not the quilt.
6. Seal or vent. On a cold night, close the neck snap and cinch the drawcord. On a warm night, leave it open.

Sealing drafts: the key skill

Most hammock campers who feel cold under a perfectly adequate quilt are losing heat to drafts rather than through the insulation. A top quilt has open edges by design, and the trick is closing them when it matters.

At the shoulders and neck

This is where most heat escapes. Close the neck snap and cinch the drawcord until the opening fits snugly around your face or neck. Tuck the top corners of the quilt down between your shoulders and the hammock fabric. If the quilt is too short to do this, you'll feel it every night; consider sizing up next time (see quilt sizing). Below about 25°F, a draft collar makes a real difference.

Along the sides

In a hammock, the fabric wraps up around you, so side drafts are less of a problem than on the ground. If you still feel them, tuck the quilt edges between your body and the hammock fabric. Don't tuck them under your back: that compresses the quilt and creates a layer between you and the underquilt.

At the feet

A closed footbox solves this. If yours is open, cinch the drawcord fully and tuck the bottom under your feet. Warm socks or down booties help cold sleepers more than extra quilt.

From the outside

Wind is the enemy of hammock warmth because it strips heat from both the top and bottom. A top cover or hammock sock blocks wind and condensation from above and can add a meaningful amount of warmth. Pitching your tarp lower or in "storm mode" helps too.

Sleeping positions under a top quilt

Back sleeping

The default in a gathered-end hammock. A diagonal lay gets you nearly flat, and the quilt drapes naturally. A small pillow or a stuff sack of clothes under your neck makes a big difference; see backpacking pillows.

Side sleeping

Possible in a wider hammock with a deep diagonal lay, and easier in a bridge hammock. When you roll onto your side, the quilt should roll with you. A loose, wider quilt makes this easier; a tight quilt tends to open up a gap at your back. Some people hold the edge of the quilt as they roll.

Rolling over

Because a quilt isn't attached to you, it can slide off when you turn. Keep the footbox closed to anchor the bottom, and grab the top edge when you roll. Over a few nights this becomes automatic.

Managing temperature through the night

Night temperatures usually bottom out just before dawn. Set yourself up so you can adjust without fully waking.

• Start slightly cool. Begin with the neck open. If you're warm at 10 p.m. you'll sweat, and damp insulation is colder later.
• Keep a hat and layer within reach. A beanie and a light puffy jacket can extend your quilt's comfort range by several degrees. Our quilt layering system guide explains how.
• Vent with limbs. Sticking a foot or an arm out is the fastest way to dump heat.
• Close up at 3 a.m. When you wake cold, cinch the neck, pull on the hat, and tuck the edges.

Warm-weather use

In summer, a top quilt is more blanket than bag. If your footbox unzips or uncinches, open it flat and drape the quilt loosely. Many hammockers use a light 40-50°F quilt or even a camping blanket in summer. Even then, a thin underquilt or summer pad is often worthwhile below 65-70°F, because the air under the hammock cools your back faster than you'd expect.

Troubleshooting common problems

Still cold after fixing drafts? Our page on why you're cold in your quilt runs through every common cause.

Packing up in the morning

• If there's condensation on the shell, drape the quilt over the ridgeline or a branch for 10-20 minutes while you eat breakfast.
• Stuff it rather than rolling it. Random stuffing distributes wear on the down; rolling pushes air and down to the same spots every time.
• Many hammockers keep the top quilt in the hammock itself, packed together in a snakeskin or the hammock's stuff sack, so the whole bed comes out in one step. See how to pack a quilt.
• At home, store it loose. Never leave it compressed for weeks.

Choosing a quilt that's easy to use in a hammock

If you're still shopping, the features that make hammock use easiest are a closed or cinchable footbox, a length long enough to cover your shoulders with room to spare, and a good neck closure. Our hammock top quilt guide walks through sizing and features, and the best hammock top quilts roundup lists current picks across budgets. Budget shoppers often start with the Paria Thermodown (check price on Amazon), which has a cinchable footbox that works fine in a hammock.