THE BEST SKI AND SNOWBOARD HELMETS IN 2020/21

The Raider 3 is a spartan take on a ski helmet. Its design is heavily influenced by skateboarding, so much so that it’s one of the only products on this guide rated for multi-season use. It’s a solid, traditional ABS (see guide at end) shell that doesn’t cut any corners when it comes to durability. Heartiness aside, the Raider 3 certainly isn’t the most comfortable helmet on the market. It weighs more than most other options, has minimal ventilation, and lacks an adjustable fit system aside from the chinstrap. It also doesn’t have MIPS or other angled impact protection (see guide) which may be a deal-breaker for some. 

The Raider 5 takes a heavy-handed approach to protection. It’s quite literally a solid choice for anyone seeking a no-frills budget helmet; and one of the more obvious choices if you’re the type to rip out the side padding and liners anyway. If you’re a multi-sport border, it could be your one stop solution for protection. 

The Revent+ Amid is a rigorously-engineered ski helmet that excels across the board in resort conditions. To start, it’s definitely safe. Atomic uses the somewhat dubious wording “up to 40% higher impact protection than industry standards”, but the Revent+ has at least all of the essential safety features that you’ll see from other top contenders. Its hollow core is designed to give way under heavy impacts to reduce the amount of energy transferred to your head. An extensively adjustable liner system allows a custom fit to your head, or whatever additional layers the weather requires. Atomic even goes so far as to brand their own rotational-protection system (Amid) that functions similarly to MIPS.

The Revent+ is a solid option for a feature-heavy ski and snowboard helmet at a fair price. It’s safe, well-ventilated, and the hybrid build cuts-off a lot of the weight. Paired with a set of Atomic Revent+ goggles, and you’ll have an all-season setup that you can depend on. The only drawbacks we could find regarding the Revent+ have to do with sizing. Certain models can be hard to get a hold of, and some folks with wider heads have an issue getting them to fit comfortably around the ears.

Giro is one of the most trusted brands in ski helmets, and for good reason. From angled-impact protection onward, they’ve garnered a reputation for prioritizing protective features. Presumably named after the infamously technical Jackson Hole sidecountry, the Jackson is Giro’s take on a freeski-oriented helmet that will also serve a snowboarder well off-piste. But, given its sleek profile and aerodynamic design, it seems like it would be very practical for resorts as well. 

The shell itself has two pieces: a hard outer casing, and a molded polycarbonate inner liner. It’s engineered to save on weight, add padding to dead space, and create channels for air to flow through the interior of the helmet. In addition to these passive air channels, the Jackson is equipped with stack vents placed directly over top of the goggle’s vent channels to help prevent fog buildup on hot or moist days. 

All Giro helmets are designed to fit seamlessly with their goggle brand and optimize the stack flow ventilation. The Jackson is also compatible with aftermarket speakers if you want to eventually upgrade to a bluetooth connection for music.

Keeping with their theme of safety as a priority, the Ledge, Giro’s most pared down ski helmet, still exceeds in areas where other similar options fail. Not to put too fine a point on it, the Ledge is one of the only sub $100 dollar helmets that offers MIPS or any other form of angled impact protection. It’s ABS shell is skate-inspired, meaning durable and capable of a few seasons of heavy use. Good news for the snowboarder. It’s an easy choice if you want to save money, but still walk away confident you checked all the boxes safety-wise. 

The Ledge is one of the more bare-bones options we’ve selected for this season. But that doesn’t mean its low quality. It’s available in a wide array of sizes and colors, and the simplicity of its design should attract any style of rider. This is for people who feel like more features mean more fuss, and who find a little bulk reassuring, and don’t want to compromise on rotational protection. 

Finding a way to reliably play music and make phone calls on the slopes is difficult, so much so that it begs the question of whether or not it’s even worth attempting. If you want to forego having to fish your phone out of your jacket in sub-zero temperatures, then a Bluetooth integrated helmet may be the way to go. POC’s Communication technology isn’t the perfect solution to this problem, but it’s the best one so far. Though some complain about the actual quality of the audio, the Communication series of inserts as well as the integrated Obex Spin helmet provide dependable two-way audio in a market where reliable alternatives are rare. 

Beyond hands free music and phone calls, the Obex Spin is a sturdily built helmet. It has all the features you’d expect from a high-end helmet: a hybrid shell, adjustable vents, and a great fitting system. It also features POC’s Spin technology, which is essentially their proprietary take on MIPS or other angled impact protection systems. The liner is held in place by silicone pads that shear away on impact and allow the helmet a little free movement.  According to POC, they offer nuanced protection from a greater number of angles than other systems and you can buy replacement pads on their website.

The Quantum from Smith is one of the most tediously engineered helmets on the market, built with the needs of the 100+ day skier in mind. Smith is another huge name in the industry, and the Quantum integrates just about every safety feature available across their snow line. The foundation is a quality hybrid molded shell, reinforced with rigid polymers at common impact points. The interior is reinforced by Smith’s Aerocore tech, plates of force-dampening tubes that have the additional perk of increasing airflow. Smith tops off the heavy construction with an impressive 22 slide-adjustable vents, letting you dissipate all of the heat that it’s admittedly considerable bulk is sure to accumulate.

The Quantum is a great helmet for the right skier. There’s certainly nothing wrong with it, and its extensive list of safety features. But, it does weigh a lot. And clocking in somewhere around $300 USD, it’s definitely one of the most expensive helmets in this style. For all of it’s bulk, it’s still a very comfortable helmet, and its quality is undeniable despite its high price.

The Smith Vantage has gotten a lot of buzz this year, and for good reason. You won’t find another helmet as comfortable as the Vantage, certainly not one that manages to cram all of the current market-level safety features inside of a lightweight, compact shell. It’s a do-all snowsports helmet that can keep you protected from high-velocity impacts, but is also one that you won’t grumble about wearing on the skin track. It comes at a premium, but taking a closer look at the specs might convince you that it’s worth the investment.

The most important criteria in judging a helmet is, of course, safety. The Vantage checks all of the boxes that you’d expect based on the competition–an accurate fit-adjustment system, molded impact-resistant hardshell, and MIPS rotational impact protection. But they go a little further by including their shock absorbing Aerocore inserts right underneath the vents. Aside from the safety specs, the Smith Vantage is incredibly well ventilated with 21 slide track adjustable vents. The only thing that we can think of to criticize is the price, at nearly $300 USD, you won’t have any trouble finding cheaper alternatives that do the job nearly as well. But if you want the best that the industry has to offer, then look no further.

Sweet Protection is steadily carving out their niche across the ski and snowboard helmet world through crafting high-quality protective equipment for snowsports, paddlesports, and mountain biking. The Switcher is their take on a resort-focused helmet, and has received numerous well-deserved accolades from some big names in the outdoor industry. While there have been some complaints about the sizing, the consensus is that once you get it fitted to your head correctly, you won’t find a more comfortable helmet out there.

They’ve included all of the typical safety features, and added an additional impact shield designed to distribute the force of impact across a wider area. It has a litany of vents designed to facilitate airflow while underway, and additional ventilation to shunt moisture away from your goggles. The Switcher shines in it’s capacity to make fine adjustments in a hurry. The vents are adjustable with easy-to-use sidetracks, fit is adjustable through an easy-access dial in the back, and the chinstrap is magnetic. Ideally, your helmet is never going to be the reason you have to take off your gloves. It’s one of the best resort specific helmets of the decade, and offers adequate protection to all but competitive freeride skiers.

Though it’s a bit of a niche option, the Salomon MTN Lab is an excellent helmet, and should be a strong contender for any dedicated backcountry skier who still spends a handful of days at the resort every season. The MTN Lab is up to specifications for both skiing and rock climbing, but it’s more for the skier who spends a few days at the crag than the inverse. The rocks specs have more to do with its potential for ski mountaineering where you may see occasional rock or ice fall than a dedicated climbing helmet.

The MTN Lab is one of the lightest helmets out there that offers dependable protection. It has a hybrid molded shell with a generous amount of fixed vents. It’s a helmet you definitely won’t ever get too warm in, and has the additional benefit of keeping moisture off of your head so your goggles don’t immediately fog up after a tough climb. Due to the minimalist trappings of its design, the MNT doesn’t leave much room for features, but still retains a functional goggle or headlamp strap.

When talking about helmets it’s easy to start splitting hairs between safety and weight, this is particularly true if you’re doing most of your riding outside of the ropes. The Salomon MTN Lab offers a beautiful compromise.

Oakley is a widely recognized name in sports eyewear, and the Mod series is their first foray into making full-protection helmets specifically designed to fit their goggles. It’s a hybrid style helmet with a molded interior shell that is armor-plated by sturdy ABS panels. The helmet is also equipped with MIPS, and is reinforced at specific impact points to help mitigate impact force. The Mod 5 has adjustable vents, but these tend to work better while underway rather than standing around at the base. The chin buckle is also magnetized, so you don’t have to take your gloves off to make adjustments.

The Mod 5 differs from other models because of its unique modular visor. Users can select either a small or large visor depending on which goggles they’re using that day. It was designed for use with specific models of Oakley goggles, but it has the potential to provide a good fit with other manufacturers as well.