Everything worth knowing about Cashmere That Does Not Pill is below, starting with the part that changes what you buy. Pilling is friction plus short fibres, so it is a spinning question before it is a fibre question. Where it does pill, a comb rather than a razor keeps the surface intact. A tight gauge holds shape; a loose one drapes and eventually grows. The groups below run from the decision that matters most to the ones you make afterwards.

What decides this is fibre, gauge and how well it holds shape. Everything else is preference. Two from the first group show the range: 7 For All Mankind's CREWNECK POINTELLE SWEATER in Cashmere Coal at $298, and A.L.C.'s Ashtyn Cashmere Crew Neck Sweater at $550. The first is the easy entry point; the second is where the money goes. Fibre content tells you more than price. Look for the percentage, not the word cashmere. A tight gauge holds shape; a loose one drapes and eventually grows. A higher price mostly buys materials and finishing, and occasionally it buys nothing at all.

Tuck the front hem only. It reads as considered rather than fussy. From the second group, 7 For All Mankind's Cashmere Crewneck Sweater in Black ($328) is the one that earns its place, because it works in more than one context without being restyled. The third group is smaller and deliberately narrower, knits, for the decisions you make after the main one. None of this needs the whole group. One piece from each is usually enough.

There are 20 knits here from 13 brands, $89 to $890, all in stock when this was written. We would not buy all of them, and neither should you. Skims's FEATHERWEIGHT CASHMERE SLEEVELESS TOP at $89 is the low-risk way in, and Khaite's Isha Top in Cream Silk Cashmere Jersey at $890 only makes sense if this is a category you already use constantly. On cashmere that does not pill specifically: the difference between the top and the bottom of this list is real but smaller than the price gap suggests. Nothing here is included because it is famous, and price is not used as a proxy for quality anywhere on this page. If you take one thing away: the piece you reach for on a rushed morning is the one that was worth the money.