Winter in the UK can lead many of us to shelter on the turbo trainer rather than risk the wind, rain and cold temperatures. But, if you're a hardy outdoors rider or commuter, then you'll inevitably come across cold temperatures. Our hands can be the first things to get really cold, so it's worth investing in a pair of decent winter gloves to see you through until spring.
Best winter cycling gloves overall: Galibier Barrier Deep Winter Gloves
Best for visibility: Proviz Reflect360 Waterproof Cycling Gloves
Warm, bright, comfortable and affordable: Chiba 2nd Skin Waterproof & Windprotect Glove in Neon Yellow
Most affordable cycling gloves for deep winter: Van Rysel 900 Winter Cycling Gloves
Best winter cycling gloves for racing: Velotoze Waterproof Gloves
Best winter cycling gloves for dexterity: Spatz Thrmoz Deep Winter Gloves
Best cycling gloves for ‘shoulder season’: Galibier Ardennes Light Winter Gloves
Best 'ready-for-anything' winter cycling glove set: Dissent 133 Ultimate Cycling Glove Pack
Best winter cycling gloves for women: Castelli Perfetto RoS Women's Gloves
Best water-resistant winter cycling gloves: Castelli Spettacolo RoS gloves
Best deep winter cycling gloves: Santini Fjord Gloves
Best luxury winter cycling gloves: Assos Assosoires Winter Gloves
As much as that chap at the lights in bare hands might look like a hero, it's a pretty fruitless show of machismo that isn't going to help you get the best out of yourself at all if you decide to venture out in the cold with no gloves. No one wants to be stuck in the big ring up a climb because your hands are simply too cold to allow you to shift and change gear, which we have actually heard of in an ultimate worst case scenario example.
The best winter cycling gloves will keep your hands both warm and dry no matter how nasty the weather gets; although, it’s important to know that there are usually some trade-offs with regards to bulk and dexterity as protection increases. Look for windproof and waterproof outer shell fabrics, combined with soft, warm liners that keep you comfortable even if the weather seeps in. Reflective patches can also be a useful feature for signalling and general visibility.
With regards to sizing, luckily most brands will also provide a wide enough sizing range to cater for larger and smaller hands. Therefore, regardless of your gender, age or size, you can pretty much opt for whatever takes your fancy unlike items such as bib shorts and tights, where any worth buying will have been designed with anatomy in mind when it comes to the shape and padding.
If you aren’t entirely sure where to start, given there are so many different types of cycling gloves around, we've put together some top picks from our best-rated winter gloves of recent times and chosen them on what they're best for. Some are very toasty and ideal for deep winter, others are more for mid-season and some could be paired with a thermal liner so you can wear them in a wider range of temperatures. A liner could be essential if you suffer from Raynaud’s syndrome, so allow for some extra room if you need an extra layer under your main pair of gloves.
Be sure to couple whichever pair takes your fancy with some of the best winter bib tights and one of the best cycling jackets you can afford, and you’ll be ready to face the elements... well almost, as some decent overshoes are also absolutely essential for keeping your feet warm!
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15 comments
SIZE
It seems to me that the cycling retailers thinks we're all midgets. I've got some old Decathlons that the lining is worn so they are not very warm - I now realise I was lucky to find them at all in size 3XL.
Only half of the Decathlon range with 3XL sizes - and they're all sold out.
Altura don't make any 3XL gloves.
FABRIC COLOUR
Almost all you show are black, some have retroreflective spots. Winter gloves needs to be in colours visible to all - not just following motorists with headlights on, but pedestrians and other cyclists. When driving at night preparing to safely overtake a cyclist (who did have a rear light) I only just noticed his black gloved hand on the end of a black sleeved arm make a hand at hip signal.
All except the Chiba Neons don't deserve any stars
My goto's are the Galabier Light winters for shoulder seasons and Stolen Goats Winter Gloves. The SG's are available as another brand. Both got Road.cc 5* reviews if I remember rightly.
The SG's are worth looking into as they appear to be a traditional woolen kids mitten with a neoprene inner (dont tumble dry like I did). They seem weirdly warm for the lack of bulk.
Apart from the touch screen finger needing a couple of licks to work they seem remarkably good for the size and dexterity on offer.
For my next purchase it would probably be the Galibier Deep Winters. The Lights are just so good - only a reflective or 2 missing from them.
First real cool morning of this season, sunny but 2 °C (36 °F) and my Pearl Izumi AmFIB Lobster mits are still going strong after at least 8 seasons. Yesterday was 5 or 6 °C and I was riding in just thin liner gloves.
I have snowboard mittens with liners that are cozy down to maybe -8 °C (18 °F) then the pogies / bar mitts go on. Below around -18 °C (0 °F) I'll have hand warmers inside the pogies.
Also, there can be huge variance on glove requirements depending on what's on your arms. If your arms are under-insulated and the blood is getting chilled going down to your hands, your hands will be cold even inside a thick glove.
On the other hand, I've ridden at around freezing with no gloves and my hands have been fine when I've been borderline overdressed with a toasty core and warm arms.
Ok people, forget this stupid article.
I commute year-round in Frankfurt, so down to -10.
This is what you need:
A heavy-duty hand cream, that Scandinavian stuff is ideal
A cheap pair of jasmine silk gloves from eBay
A cheap pair of Lidl or Aldi ski gloves.
Apply the cream and use the under/over gloves, and you'll never have cold hands.
I'm guessing you don't have poor circulation or a condition like Raynaud's phenomenon (as I and up to 20% of the population do) which makes temperatures tolerable for completely healthy people agonisingly (and I really do mean agonisingly, tear-inducingly) painful. Be grateful that you're lucky enough to get away with minimal protection but don't dismiss as stupid the fact that others need more. I've tried the sort of setup you suggest, it would be literally impossible for me to ride in 0 degrees with it, let alone -10.
P.S. For those with similar problems I cannot recommend "elephant ears" (aka poggies) too highly, found a pair designed for road bikes last year and they're transformative, not had a moment's discomfort when using them. Yeah they look a bit daft but who cares?
I've been looking for a road bike version of these - lots of MTB but very few (without going to silly money) for road bikes. I even contemplated making my own!
What brand/name did you manage to find?
I tried making my own out of an old pair of neoprene overshoes, but they were not a success! I bought Bar Mitts from Amazon, not cheap but not too pricey compared to a pair of winter gloves and they work so well, you can ride around in 0 degrees just with a pair of thin spring/autumn gloves on. There are cheaper versions avaiable such as Rockbros for £21.99 on eBay, but these are the ones I can can vouch for.
Worth taking a few minutes on a quiet street to get used to taking your hands in and out for signalling but once you get used to it it's a doddle; also worth noting that in an emergency when you need to brake quickly and your hand's out it's possible to grab the lever over the top of the mitt.
I'll second the Bar Mitts recommendation. Got a set last year and couldn't be happier.
I do recommend getting a size larger than you think you need if possible, as otherwise the space for your hands can get pretty cramped, especially on longer rides and/or if you're wearing anything more than thin liner gloves.
I don't even think they look too bad, all things considered.
You're right, they don't look too bad at all especially in your illustrated situation, I really meant I suppose that I feel a bit daft, because of my hand problems, using them when some other people haven't even started wearing gloves!
Can you go far with those?
... I'll get my coat.
A pair of the RockBros arrived over the weekend, so I got to try them out this morning.
Stitching looks solid and they feel thick. Bit of a tight fit around the bars, but i can brake/change gears okay. Most importantly - they are warm! I reckon I could have happily cycled without gloves this morning, whereas on Friday I was wearing two pairs! Hopefully they will see me through a few winters. Thank you for the suggestion.
I'm on my 2nd pair of Galibier Barrier Deep Winter Gloves. The original version with the silver reflective backs are my favourites of all time. Still being used but a bit tatty.
Now using the current model.
However, I find that the sizing has changed (got smaller in this iteration) and it's now harder to fit a slim pair of silk underliners below them. Also the length of the fingers seem to have shortened slightly. Not sure if its the thermal lining bulking it out? Grip on the bar is harder to attain/maintain too - fingers less flexible.
There is also less room at the wrist - so wearing a (garmin) watch can be a bit uncomfortable, especially if you have 2 or 3 layers on your top (long sleeve base, mid layer, shell).
They still do a great job of keeping the cold and wet out. For the price, I haven't found any others that come close to them for value and overall performance.
+1 for the Galibier Deep Winter gloves, and I also find the fingers a bit short. I'm forever easing them down a bit at traffic lights. They're good though, keep my hands warm, even up to 3 hours at zero C, with snow blowing around, and this week when it's been well minus in the mornings. If only the fingers were a bit longer, they'd be perfect.
Yes , another vote for Galibier Barrier gloves. I have Rapha's Pro winter gloves - bought as a present for my 40th and they don't come close in insulation.
Ive broken out the thicker gloves from storage and i have worn
Endura Strike II's
Aldi CRANE gloves (the thick ones with the reflectives strips going across the top)
and both left my fingers rather cold.
What worked for me was an wearing an old North Face E-tip glove (which is a thin softshell glove with a light fleece lining) over the Altura microfleece glove pictured above.
They were by no means warm but my hands/fingers werent completely frozen either and I could easily operate my phone or garmin with no issue since there was no bulk around the fingers.
While this worked for me I do run hot so it might not work for you.
(I also have a old pair of Castelli Diluvio's but I use these for fishing instead)