Get your mitts on a great pair of gloves – warm, waterproof gloves specifically designed for snowsports are a lifesaver in the mountains. Whether you’re skiing, snowboarding or just walking the dog at home on a snow day, our pick of the best snow-ready gloves will keep your fingers toasty.
First up, decide if you’d like to pick a glove or a mitten style. There are benefits to both – on test we found mittens kept hands warmer, but gloves with fingers offer better grip and dexterity. You can also wear liner gloves inside either style, and these are handy if you need to grapple with a phone or swap a goggle lens over mid-ski. If you want to wear your new gloves with a liner, make sure your ski gloves have plenty of room when you purchase them, and try them on with your liner gloves before you head to the pistes.
Gloves need grip, too – pick a pair with grippy rubber pads on the fingers and palm so that you can hold onto your ski poles even when your gloves are wet. Once you’ve got waterproofing, warmth and grip sorted, some designs offer other bells and whistles – gloves that can be clipped together or that have wrist straps are useful for keeping them in a pair when they’re off your hands and some even have pockets for your lift pass.
Glove sizes vary by brand, so don’t assume that just because you’re a medium in one pair you’ll be the same for another. You’ll see that some brands sell their gloves as unisex products and that others market gloves for men or women. In our experience, unless they have unusually small hands women will do just as well wearing men’s outdoor gloves – just go for a small or medium size.
It’s worth trying a new pair of gloves on in person before you pack them for the pistes. Fingers should feel comfortable and have room to move (check you can make a fist without any tightness) and a snug cuff should trap in heat.
How we tested
We tried out each of these pairs of gloves in wet, cold and windy mountain conditions and looked for warmth, dexterity and comfort all day long. We also checked out the dexterity offered by each glove by trying to swap out goggle lenses and check phone screens while wearing them – a notoriously fiddly job in a snowstorm!
The best ski gloves and mittens for 2024 are:
Hestra vertical cut CZone gloves
These smart tan gloves may be the priciest design in our round-up, but they mean business when it comes to keeping you cosy in the cold. Hestra’s goat leather vertical cut glove feels wonderfully warm, soft and comfortable to wear, and is designed with ambitious skiers and snowboarders in mind who want something supple and naturally waterproof. Synthetic insulation keeps hands warm even if they do get wet and these gloves fit so nicely you’ll barely notice you’ve got them on. A treat for professionals and serious snowsports enthusiasts.
Buy now £135.00, Trekitt.co.uk
Mountain Warehouse extreme waterproof
Our favourite cheap and cheerful contender this winter at under £35, Mountain Warehouse’s ski glove punches well above its price point, with decent insulation, a fleecy inner lining that feels lovely against the skin, a waterproof outer that can withstand snowfall and rubber pads on the palms offering a bit of grip. Available in bright pink as well as in black or white, the extreme gloves would make a great first pair of ski gloves for a beginner or a good spare pair to pop in your backpack.
Buy now £34.99, Mountainwarehouse.com
Picture ancon mitts
This warm mitten-style glove ticked all our boxes on test, keeping fingers cosy in the cold thanks to a thermal lining and fully waterproof membrane that can withstand even heavy snow. These mitts are also surprisingly breathable on spring days, and are an eco-friendly pick, made with recycled materials and using PFC-free waterproofing to keep your hands dry. However it worth noting that the palms are made from goat leather, so this isn’t a vegan design.
Buy now £52.40, Snowleader.co.uk
Sealskinz fransham
Believe it or not, not all snow sports gloves are fully waterproof. Luckily, you can trust Sealskinz – its kit is designed to be ready to repel rain, sleet and snow. The Fransham is a great choice for winter sports – as well as a waterproof outer membrane it’s packed with Primaloft gold insulation inside and was one of the warmest gloves we tested. A strap keeps the cuff snug around your wrist and there’s decent grip on the palms thanks to a goatskin leather panel, too. Top marks.
Buy now £69.95, Sealskinz.com
The North Face etip
The North Face has set out to design a glove with skiers addicted to their smartphones in mind. Silicone on the fingers and palm allow you to easily use a phone without removing your gloves, etip technology offers full touchscreen compatibility, and these gloves also have great grip, so they’re good for fiddly jobs like doing up ski boots or swapping goggle lenses. Wear as a liner on the coldest days or use alone for spring ski sessions – these gloves are warm enough to keep your fingers cosy on more relaxed days on the pistes, and the soft fleece feels great against the skin. They also clip together for easy stashing in a pocket.
Buy now £40.00, Thenorthface.co.uk
Dare2B kid’s snowplay II
Warm the hands of mini skiers with these cute mittens from Dare2B. On test we loved the handy zips for popping these on without a fuss, and the adorable paw-print grippy panels on the palms. These gloves are made with recycled polyester and are water-repellent enough to keep kids dry even if they’re busy making snow angels. Sizing by age is helpful, too. It’s a pity the only colours available are gender-conforming blue and pink.
Buy now £17.50, Dare2b.com
66 North hvannadalshnjukur
Hard to pronounce, delightful to wear – meet the hvannadalshnjukur mitten, named after a peak in Iceland. 66 North is an Icelandic brand, so it knows its stuff when it comes to keeping cosy, and these are warmest gloves made by the brand, insulated with plenty of Primaloft filling to keep your fingers cosy even in the cold and wet and with a nylon and goat leather shell for toughness and dexterity. Available for men and women in XS-XL, so there should be a size to suit everyone. These mitts are quite bulky, but they’re brilliant for subzero temperatures.
Buy now £100.00, 66north.com
Dope ace mittens
These hefty mitts are indeed a bit ace. A water-resistant outer shell keeps snow firmly at bay and the inside is soft and fleecy, with room to move your fingers comfortably. These unisex gloves are available in sizes XS-XL, so they should suit skiers of all sizes, and in no less than 13 colourways, so if you like your ski kit to be matchy matchy they’re a smart choice. We’d have like an adjustable (or simply snugger) cuff, though, and these gloves do feel on the bulky side once on.
Buy now £51.00, Dopesnow.com
TOG24 ashfield
Hitting the slopes for the first time this winter? There’s no need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to cosy fingers – these simple, effective and well-priced gloves from TOG24 have got your back for lessons at ski school or a family holiday. Designed for winter sports and fully windproof, these gloves are warm and comfy to wear, and we like the adjustable strap for cinching them snugly around your wrist – great for beginners who may be taking a tumble or two. The grip panels are a bit basic, and these gloves aren’t fully waterproof.
Buy now £50.00, Tog24.com
Burton gore-tex gloves
Fancy a snow glove over a mitt for better dexterity? You won’t get better for under £100 than Burton’s gore-tex gloves. A thermal layer made from recycled materials does an impressive job of keeping fingers warm in the cold and cool when temperatures warm up. There’s a removable liner glove, so you’re getting two handy pairs for one here, and you can even use Burton’s popular glove directly on your phone screen – great for checking your location without getting freezing fingers. Male and female versions and a generous range of sizes are available.
Buy now £90.00, Burton.com
30Seven heated mitts
If you suffer from chilblains or numb fingers, or just love the idea of luxuriously warm hands on a freezing cold day in the mountains, look no further than 30Seven’s fantastic heated gloves and mittens. These mitts are great gloves in their own right, and are fully waterproof, highly breathable and well-suited to hard-charging skiers and snowboarders who are out in any conditions.
Feeling the chill? Simply pop a rechargeable heating element into zipped pockets in the gloves and switch it on and off for instant warm hands, even in a blizzard. These mitts are well worth the investment if you work outdoors in winter or regularly ski the backcountry – for a casual snow holiday, you can pick something cheaper and less techy.
Buy now £200.63, 30seven.com
Dakine titan Gore-Tex gloves
Keep the heaviest of snowstorms from soaking your hands in Dakine’s titan, which uses a gore-tex membrane to keep ice and snow firmly at bay. A thick layer of insulation traps in heat brilliantly and the rubber-lined palms are tough and rip-proof – ideal for working a ski season. We like the zipped outer compartment for your keys or lift pass. The tough titan is also available as a mitt and in a warmer leather iteration which is good for the bitterest of winter conditions. Dakine markets the titan as a men’s glove but as there’s a generous size range we’d recommend it for women too.
Buy now £65.76, Amazon.co.uk
Patagonia nano puff mitts
Patagonia’s nano puff insulated jackets are rightly very popular for their brilliant warmth to weight ratio, and Patagonia have applied exactly the same concept to these comfy-as-anything mitts, suitable for skiing in light snowfall. Pop them on and they provide instant warmth but never feel heavy or restrictive, but are still windproof and water-resistant enough to put up with light snow, while elasticated wrists help to further trap in heat on cold days. These squishy gloves are stuffed with 55 per cent recycled primaloft gold eco insulation, which compresses down easily to pop into pretty much any pocket.
Buy now £54.99, Sportsshoes.com
Decathlon Wedze freeride gloves
We always recommend Decathlon’s Wedze ski collection for functional snowsports clothing at affordable prices, but this season the brand has outdone itself with this affordable yet high-performing Freeride glove. Aimed at experienced skiers and boarders heading off-piste, this long-length leather glove keeps snow out thanks to a fully waterproof membrane and warmth in with a soft knitted lining. The cuff is adjustable and there’s a massive size range, so this style should suit snowsports fans of all sizes.
Buy now £59.99, Decathlon.co.uk
Volcom stay dry gore-tex mittens
If you’re just setting out in the world of snowsports, you’re likely to take more than a tumble or two as you learn how to master skis or a snowboard. The perfect glove for your first lessons? The Volcom stay dry, which is designed with a close-fitting neoprene cuff like a wetsuit’s to keep nary a flake of snow from getting at your skin, no matter how many times you end up in the white stuff. The stay dry also offers great grip and good waterproofing thanks to a gore-tex membrane. A generous 80g of insulation makes these mitts ideal for winter but too warm for balmy bluebird days.
Buy now £66.88, Alpinetrek.co.uk
Ski gloves FAQs
Are ski gloves or mittens better?
The main decision to make when shopping for winter-ready gloves is whether to choose gloves or mittens. The jury is out on which is better – on the whole we preferred mittens during our testing, as we found them warmer, but gloves with separate fingers offer better grip and dexterity when you’re dealing with fiddly things like a lift pass or a phone.
If you go for a mitt, we recommend picking one with built-in gloves inside it, or wearing your mittens with separate liner gloves inside – if you’re opting for the latter, make sure your ski gloves have plenty of room when you purchase them, and try them on with your liner gloves before you head to the pistes.
The verdict: Ski gloves
Serious skiers should get their mitts on Hestra’s excellent vertical cut gloves or invest in 66 North’s cosy-as-anything hvannadalshnjukur. After a beginner-friendly option? TOG24 offer a good all-rounder and Mountain Warehouse’s extreme model is a bargain.
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