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SLEEPING BAG RATINGS
One the most difficult decisions when buying a sleeping bag is determining what rating you need.
Ratings are a general comfort, or safety rating, and not a guaranteed comfort rating.
Why can't the manufacturer determine comfort ratings?
Comfort is relative to the individual. One person might be cold at 60 degrees, another at 65 degrees, and another at 70 degrees. Safety is a constant. Water always freezes at 32 degrees. Therefore many bags have a safety rating.
Manufacturers may try their best to rate a bag for comfort, but it isn't a sure thing. It is almost impossible to determine a person's personal comfort level. Here are a couple of good examples. If a person from Phoenix, Arizona visits northern Idaho in the spring, they will say it is cold. However, a person from northern Idaho will be just fine. A person from Miami, Florida is going to have a lower tolerance for the cold than somebody from Anchorage, Alaska.
Another example, my wife lost a lot of weight. She used to be warm all the time, now she is always chilly and wears a sweater most of the time. So I guess we could say she has had two different comfort levels. How would a manufacture know which one to use? I have sold thousands of sleeping bags and have had a lot of good feedback and many repeat customers, but every once in a while I get a customer that was cold, usually from a warm climate.
A few suggestions:
1 - I would recommend referring to your own experiences and if you tend to sleep cold, get a bag that is rated 10-15 degrees colder than you anticipate using it at. But with that, the weight will increase.
2 - Use a liner or sleep in a pair of thermals. It is easier to pack a pair of thermals that weigh 1 lb. or so than a bag that weighs 4 lbs. more.
Everybody has a different comfort zone.
Match your bag's comfort rating with the coldest nighttime temperatures you expect to encounter—and maybe even exceed that number for a little security.
Synthetic-fill bags can provide some insulation even when wet, and they dry out fairly quickly. Plus, for the same temperature rating, they cost less than down bags.
If you are used to flannel lined bags, Nylon lined bags can be quite a change. While cutting down on size and weight for carrying, Nylon cools down very rapidly. If you toss and turn, the bag may act like a bellows and let some cold air into the bag. If you sleep with a lot of bare skin touching the bag, this will make you feel cold. A simple solution is to wear even something light between your skin and the bag.
A bag's shape matters. Mummy-style bags insulate most effectively and are your best choice for colder, high-elevation conditions; rectangular bags give you more room to change sleeping positions, but offer more space that your body must heat up.
A good sleeping pad is essential. Your body weight compresses a bag's insulation when you lie on it, so you need a reliable buffer between your bag and the cold ground.
A sleeping bag's temperature or "comfort" rating identifies the most extreme temperature the bag is designed to accommodate. When you hear a bag described as a "+20 bag," it suggests most users should remain comfortable if the air temperature drops no lower than 20 degrees Fahrenheit.
Are such ratings infallible? No. Humans all have different metabolic rates, and no industry standards exist that uniformly determine sleeping bag comfort ratings. Instead, each manufacturer assigns a rating to its bags based on its own research. Therefore, use these numbers as a guide, not a guarantee. If you have trouble deciding between two bags, it's not a bad idea to select one that offers a little more warmth than you think you might need.
Many factors affect your ability to keep warm inside a sleeping bag:
The insulating pad beneath your bag (when sleeping on frosty ground at high elevation, you need a full-length pad to keep you separated from the cold; when sleeping on snow or frozen ground, two pads are recommended)
The presence/absence of a tent (a tent or bivy shelter traps an extra layer of dead air, warming it by up to 10 degrees)
Your metabolism; you might be a "cold sleeper" (and thus one who prefers extra insulation when sleeping) or a "warm sleeper" (someone who kicks the covers off at home)
Your gender (women frequently prefer bags with lower temperature ratings since they tend to "sleep colder" than men)
Clothing worn while inside the bag (dry long underwear and clean socks are good choices on cold nights, plus they help keep body oils off your bag; a cap and neck gaiter keeps body heat from radiating away; fleece pants and jackets help on colder-than-expected evenings)
Adjustments you make while in the bag (keep the bag zipped up and the hood cinched on cold nights; be careful to not breathe into the bag, since moisture has a negative effect on the insulation)
Food in your stomach (the process of digestion helps produce warmth)
Hydration (if you're not well hydrated the food won't help much) 
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