What is alpaca wool?
By the Alpaca Atlas team · Updated · Data as of September 27, 2026, rebuilt with every catalog update
Alpaca wool is the fleece of the alpaca, a South American animal raised mostly in the Peruvian Andes. It's soft, warm for its weight and has no lanolin. It's sold by grade: the finer the fiber, the softer it feels. Much of what's sold as alpaca is a blend, so the label matters. Of the 4,514 alpaca pieces we track, 34% state 100% alpaca and 67% state a baby grade or finer.
Where alpaca wool comes from
Alpacas are shorn, and the fleece is sorted by how fine it is, then spun into yarn. Strictly, it's a fiber rather than “wool”, a word often kept for sheep, but most people call it alpaca wool.
Two breeds exist: Huacaya, with crimpy, fluffy fleece, and Suri, with long, silky locks. Most knitwear uses Huacaya.
Grades: why some alpaca is softer
Fineness is measured in microns. Peru grades alpaca under its NTP 231.301 standard; stores still use the older names like “baby” (20.1–23 microns) and “royal”, a brand name for the finest lots. Full table in alpaca grades explained.
Alpaca vs. other fibers
Fine alpaca is often compared to cashmere for softness and is described as warmer for its weight than sheep's wool. It has no lanolin, which some people react to. See alpaca vs. cashmere vs. merino and is alpaca wool itchy?.
Why so much alpaca is blended
Makers blend alpaca with wool, silk, nylon or acrylic to change the feel, the price or the durability. Socks, for example, almost always add nylon. A blend isn't bad, but you should know the percentage. See how to read an alpaca label and the listings report.
Frequently asked questions
- Is alpaca wool warm?
- Yes. It's usually described as warmer for its weight than sheep's wool, but the thickness of the knit matters as much as the fiber.
- Is alpaca wool soft?
- Fine grades like baby and royal are soft enough for most people to wear next to the skin. Coarser grades feel rougher.
- Why is alpaca wool expensive?
- There are far fewer alpacas than sheep, and fine grades are a small share of each fleece. Blends usually cost less.