The Best Climbing Helmets, Even when You Hate Helmets (2024)

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Not all climbers placed on helmets, nonetheless we should at all times. Carrying a well-fitting helmet is crucial in defending in opposition to the shocking, whether or not or not that’s falling rock, enormous whips, upside-down falls, or just smacking proper right into a roof. We examined the most recent helmets obtainable in the marketplace and situated three that rose above the rest. Considering how cosy and light-weight these helmets are, there really isn’t any excuse for hitting the rock with out one.

At a Look

All gear on this info was examined by quite a few reviewers. Whilst you buy by our hyperlinks, we might earn an affiliate price. This helps our mission to get further people energetic and outdoor. Research further.

Best All-Spherical

Singing Rock Penta 2

$72 at Amazon $82 at Walmart

Weight: 195 g (M/L)
Dimension: S, M/L, XL

Execs and Cons
⊕ Comfortable and lightweight
⊕ Pleasant colors to pick from
⊕ Applicable for lots of climbing actions
⊗ Headlamp clips felt flimsy
⊗ Adjustment straps are finicky

The updated Penta 2 now presents three sizes and a removable, washable inside padding. It’s well-ventilated, lightweight, and durable apart from. Testers put the Penta 2 by its paces at their native crags and on multi-pitch routes and reported that it carried out properly on a variety of climbs. Above all, it’s cosy, on account of its lighter weight and adjustable match. “I wore the helmet for eight hours sometime and forgot that I had it on,” talked about Reynolds, who tackled a 3,500-foot climb throughout the Penta 2.

Bonus: Quite a lot of color decisions supplies climbers the choice to face out or combine in. One tip: It’s best to positively measure your head for sizing. One tester well-known it will run small for larger heads, although others felt it was true to measurement.

Most Sturdy

Wild Nation Syncro

$100 at Backcountry $100 at Amazon

Weight: 260 g
Dimension: One measurement (56-61 cm)

Execs and Cons
⊕ Good safety
⊕ Sturdy
⊗ Single measurement offering
⊗ Troublesome to manage whereas sporting

No matter its lightweight design, testers found Wild Nation’s Syncro helmet to be primarily probably the most sturdy of the examine. Climbing info and big-waller Matthew Pinheiro wore it for over 100 pitches all through a 24-hour climbing marathon and reported it survived the journey unscathed even after quite a few bumps on overhanging rock. Pinheiro appreciated that the helmet’s foam is surrounded by a clear plastic, giving it a accomplished seek for a softshell. Sarah Reynolds, a trad and sport climber from Salt Lake Metropolis, favored that the air movement—ten cutouts surrounding the helmet—saved her head cool beneath Utah’s summer season photo voltaic.

Though the Syncro is barely heavier than the other helmets on this itemizing owing to its thicker growth, it didn’t weigh testers down. Ding: This helmet solely is obtainable in a single measurement, and a few of our testers who typically placed on a small found they couldn’t cinch the Syncro tight adequate.

Most Lightweight

Edelrid Salathe Lite

$130 at Backcountry $130 at Amazon

Weight: 192 g (M/L)
Dimension: S, M/L

Execs and Cons
⊕ Delicate
⊕ Adjusts merely for a cosy match
⊕ Fashioned to accommodate ski goggles
⊗ 1 tester felt weak behind their head

This lightweight helmet is designed to keep up climbers safe with out weighing them down. At 192 grams, one tester well-known it’s ideally fitted to a protracted day throughout the mountains, whereas one different appreciated it on in a single day outings as soon as they’ve been schlepping quite a few totally different gear.

At first blush, this helmet, that features foam that is almost solely uncovered, gave some testers sturdiness points—they thought it could not keep as a lot as repeat abuse all through cragging and have been frightened it might get dinged up merely in gear baggage. Nonetheless neither proved true after 45 pitches and quite a few different thousand toes of climbing.

We’d not advocate this helmet for novices searching for extra security or these projecting arduous climbs the place whippers are anticipated, nonetheless it’s a safe, lightweight selection for expert climbers tackling longer routes. Bonus: The Salathe Lite is designed to moreover accommodate ski goggles, making it an excellent selection for multi-sport adventures.

Most Breathable

Black Diamond Vapor

$150 at REI  $150 at Backcountry

$150 at Black Diamond

Weight: 177 g (M/L)
Dimension: S/M, M/L

Execs and Cons
⊕ Lightweight
⊕ Breathable
⊗ Strap system irritated ears of 1 tester
⊗ 1 tester with 54-cm head found the S/M too enormous

Black Diamond’s updated Vapor is probably going one of many lightest helmets obtainable in the marketplace, which takes away the most important excuse climbers mustn’t defend their noggins. The 18 triangular cutouts current superior breathability, with one tester, Anthony Walsh of Climbingdiscovering it cosy adequate to placed on on 12-mile glacial approaches in British Columbia.

No matter it being an especially lightweight foam growth helmet—and thus sometimes further fragile—one different tester, Nathaniel Dray, well-known that after tripping and falling backwards onto the helmet related to his backpack, it solely had a small dent throughout the polycarbonate crown. Walsh favored that the extreme purple color selection stood out in footage, and every testers thought it was modern. No trade-offs between magnificence and safety proper right here.

Most Sustainable

Eldrid Zodiac 3R

$70 at REI $85 at Backcountry

Weight: 370 g
Dimension: One measurement (55-61)

Execs and Cons
⊕ Sturdy
⊕ Comfortable
⊕ Easy to manage
⊗ Solely is obtainable in a single measurement

The model new 3R appears to be surprisingly sporty for a hardshell helmet, with black and inexperienced colors, angular design, and a lower-profile match to the sooner Zodiac. It’s moreover ten grams lighter. One tester well-known that the wheel adjustment on the once more is intuitive and the buckles are good and snappy. Nonetheless what’s most authentic regarding the 3R is that it’s made solely of recycled provides—really, the polyamide shell is sourced from rope manufacturing leftovers. Common, it’s simple to placed on, simple on the eyes, and easy on the environment. That talked about, the one measurement could not match all people.

Best for Smaller Heads

Trango Halo

$100 at Backcountry $100 at Amazon

Weight: 220 g (S/M), 225 g (L/XL)
Dimension: S/M, L/XL

Execs and Cons
⊕ Comfortable
⊕ Good air movement
⊗ Magnetic buckle could also be fussy

Last season, Trango added one different measurement option to the Halo lineup. The small-medium is obtainable in a cultured lavender color and was profitable with our tester, Natalie Bladis, who thought it was probably the greatest match she’s ever found for her small, 54-centimeter head. “I cherished it, it’s the one helmet I’ve tried that is further snug than my Smith biking helmet.” Nonetheless, she found that the magnetic chin clasp was tough to undo one-handed.

Nonetheless, the hardshell helmet carried out properly on the wall, providing Bladis peace of ideas on a traverse pitch instantly beneath a roof on the Jelly Roll Arch at Donner Summit. “I was super grateful to have a well-fitting, lower-profile helmet as I crouched beneath the roof traversing,” she talked about.

How one can Choose the Correct Climbing Helmet

Hardshell vs. Softshell

The precept two lessons of climbing helmets are hardshells—with a foam core that’s completely wrapped in a layer of arduous plastic—and softshells—which can be principally foam to shed ounces. Whereas they will weigh about half that of hardshells, softshells are often further delicate to abuse. Within the meantime, a hardshell is more durable and typically lasts longer, nonetheless can actually really feel heavier and can get sweaty on scorching days if the venting system isn’t properly designed.

Funds and Weight

The precept searching for considerations are your value vary and the best way you intend to utilize the helmet. Hardshells start spherical $60 and could also be thrown throughout the crag, whereas softshells are sometimes costlier and require some extra care. Whereas it’s best to use each kind in your most popular trend of climbing, softshells really shine the place weight points—prolonged alpine days or projecting sport routes at your prohibit.

Operate Set and Match

Totally different options to remember: headlamp clips for climbers that start early or maintain out late, how the helmet fits over a beanie for climbing in chilly temps, and naturally, whether or not or not it’s the proper type and measurement in your head.

How We Examine

• Number of testers: 14
• Number of helmets examined: 12
• Number of vertical toes climbed: 20,250
• Number of pitches climbed: 351

Our testers come from a variety of climbing backgrounds, from trad to sport to very large wall climbing. Collectively, we put these helmets by the paces on partitions from Canada to Arizona. We requested testers to guage how each carried out on the subject of sturdiness, comfort, and adjustability, along with the strengths and weaknesses of each model. We then gathered this data to pick our favorite climbing helmets on this yr’s crop and inform the critiques on this itemizing.

Meet Our Lead Testers

Jude Coleman is a retired dirtbag turned journalist based totally in Bend, Oregon. She’s climbed for seven years all through the Southwest and West Coast, with connections to a diffusion of climbing guides, multi-pitch fanatics, and casual craggers who examined these helmets — along with one tester who crushed over 100 pitches in 24 hours all through a climbing marathon in Horseshoe Canyon Ranch, Arkansas.

Ula Chrobak is a contract journalist and climber of 12 years. Primarily based in Reno, Nevada, she has entry to quite a few the nation’s best granite—from Donner Summit to Tuolumne Meadows. She’s moreover part of a neighborhood of multi-sport adventurers, which she tapped into to take the helmets out on their journeys. That means the helmets glided by the wringer—one tester, Peter Throckmorton, managed to rack up 33 pitches in two weekends.

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