The Finest Ski Gloves of 2023-2024

How We Tested Ski Gloves

The GearJunkie team is made up of avid skiers who head to the resort or backcountry regularly — and we universally prefer to enjoy the slopes with warm, dry hands. From the frozen hills of Minnesota to the champagne power of Colorado, we’ve been testing ski gloves for decades.

While assessing the quality of a pair of ski gloves, we consider the warmth, waterproofness, durability, comfort, overall fit, and value. We test every pair of ski gloves in a variety of conditions over many days in the field.

GearJunkie Senior Editor Morgan Tilton specializes in the snowsports category and grew up in the mountains of Southwest Colorado, where she still lives and plays all winter from the slopes to the backcountry. Based in Gunnison Valley, Tilton tests ski gloves in tough conditions with teeth-chattering temps, windchill, and ample snowfall. She’s been a gear journalist including snowsports coverage for more than a decade, holds a Wilderness First Responder certificate, and has three certifications from the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education.

While she teams up with many gear testers, Tilton likewise tests ski gloves — technically, she’s beat up ski gloves for three decades. In 2023, she’s tested pairs on 59 days and throughout 177 hours of recreation. That doesn’t include the countless hours of shoveling or commutes.

The entire team also gathers annually for a ski week at Crested Butte Mountain Resort to compare notes on our favorite products. This roundup is a living document — whenever a new pair of ski gloves earns a spot, we’ll update the list with the best ski gloves available.

Buyer’s Guide: How to Choose Ski Gloves

When selecting the best ski gloves for you, there are many important factors to consider. Not all gloves are created equal, and we want to help you make a well-informed decision.

Though we thoroughly recommend all of the gloves on this list, certain styles are better suited for certain skiers. In this handy how-to-choose guide, our goal is to match your personal needs with the perfect pair of ski gloves.

Gloves vs. Mittens

Choosing between gloves and mittens is a matter of personal preference. Each option has pros and cons, and it is important to understand these before choosing.

Gloves offer improved dexterity but reduced warmth. Because every finger can move independently while wearing gloves, this option is better for gripping ski poles, swinging ice axes, or performing manual labor.

Mittens are very warm, but they do reduce dexterity.

Warmth and Insulation

Keeping your hands warm on the mountain is a ski glove’s primary job. Almost all ski gloves will be advertised as “warm,” but the proof is in the pudding. Some gloves are much warmer than others.

If you tend to have uncomfortably cold fingers while skiing, a warm pair of gloves is an invaluable investment. When the temps dip into the teens and single digits, there is no substitute for ultra-warm hand protection.

If you’re seeking top-notch warmth, expect to pay at least $100 or so. Though cheaper gloves can be well-made, they generally don’t possess the ability to insulate your hands in the coldest conditions.

All of the gloves on this list are built with some form of insulation. Most modern ski gloves have synthetic fill. While some gloves specify the exact weight of their insulation, fill weight isn’t always the best way to measure true warmth.

Though many brands create great results with their own synthetic insulation, PrimaLoft remains the gold standard of synthetic insulation. As always, trying on gloves is the best way to assess warmth and overall comfort.

If top-notch gloves still aren’t enough to keep your extremities happy, mittens or heated gloves could be a better choice for you. Mittens heat more effectively by keeping your fingers close to one another. Heated gloves have a built-in battery and heating element that produces electric heat from within.

Waterproofing

After warmth, waterproofness is the most important quality of ski gloves. In most mountain conditions, wet hands are cold hands. In snowy and stormy environments, reliable waterproofing is absolutely essential.

Gloves that are truly waterproof will come with a built-in membrane that sits between the shell and the liner. Though many brands produce their own membranes, GORE-TEX is the most widely recognized name in the entire waterproof outerwear universe. If you plan to regularly wander into wet territory, we think it’s worthwhile to go with GORE-TEX gloves.

As always, truly waterproof gear tends to come with a decrease in breathability. This isn’t usually a huge issue with gloves, since hands don’t tend to overheat as readily as the torso and core. However, when skiing in warm weather or skinning uphill, hot and sweaty hands can become wildly uncomfortable.

A few solutions exist for this problem. First, you can opt for a ski glove with less insulation on warm spring days and while skinning uphill. Some designs have vents on the upperside, to allow a window for heat to release at the top of the hand.

Another option is to choose a design that pairs a glove shell with an interior liner or adding your own. When the going gets warm, pop off the outer shell for increased breathability and dexterity. When the storm rolls in again, put the shells back on for full-strength waterproofing.

On this list, we have included several pairs of gloves with removable liners.

Dexterity and Phone Compatibility

Trying to manipulate your fingers while wearing ski gloves can be frustrating. Unfortunately, warm insulation and burly outer shells seriously reduce the dexterity of the human hand. However, some ski gloves are certainly more dexterous than others. As a general rule, gloves with less insulation tend to be more dexterous.

Removable glove shells with a liner beneath offer a simple solution to the dexterity problem. Standalone liners provide improved dexterity without having to fully expose your bare skin to the cold air.

Removing your gloves to operate your phone can be both annoying and potentially dangerous. To avoid this, look for a pair of gloves with touchscreen compatibility. In touchscreen-capable gloves, the tips of the fingers are outfitted with a special material that your phone screen will respond to.

Cuffs

There are two primary styles of ski glove cuffs. Gauntlet-style cuffs extend beyond your wrist and sit on the outside of your ski jacket. A double gauntlet offers two tiers for extra length that’s a bit more streamlined compared to a single, super tall gauntlet.

Generally, gauntlet cuffs are ideal for cold or super powdery conditions, as they are often insulated and can seal out cold air with a drawcord. They can also block snow from flying inside your glove. If you regularly ski in deep powder or wet conditions, we recommend a pair of gloves with long gauntlet-style cuffs.

Undercuffs are shorter and more streamlined cuffs that more easily tuck underneath your ski jacket cuff. This style is less bulky than gauntlets, which results in better wrist dexterity but slightly reduced warmth and protection against the elements.

Durability and Materials

Durability is an important consideration when choosing ski gloves. Ultimately, a glove’s durability comes down to its construction and materials. The longest-lasting gloves tend to feature polyester or nylon outer shells with high-quality leather palms.

The downside of gloves made with leather is that they require regular maintenance. A waterproofing treatment such as Sno-Seal or Nikwax can significantly help maintain the waterproofing ability and general quality of a pair of leather ski gloves.

Aside from nylon and leather, many thin and lightweight ski gloves are made from wool, fleece, and cotton. Though fleece and wool gloves can be plenty sufficient for warm and wind-free conditions and nordic skiing, we recommend gloves with waterproof membranes and durable outer shells for most skiing purposes.

Types of Skiing: Resort, Backcountry, and Nordic

For downhill skiing at the resort, most people prefer durable, warm, and waterproof gloves. Though all of the styles on this list could be used at a resort, some are better used for Nordic or backcountry skiing.

Backcountry skiing involves uphill travel and prolonged exposure to the elements. Generally, gloves with removable outer shells are ideal for the backcountry thanks to their premium versatility. When skinning uphill, shedding a few layers is common. By removing your glove’s outer shell and wearing solely a liner, you can prevent your hands from overheating and sweating. When the temps drop and the snow begins falling, put the outer shell back on for maximum warmth and protection.

Better yet, choose two pairs of gloves for backcountry days: A lighter pair for uphill travel and a warmer, more insulated pair for the descent or, at the very least, to have stashed for emergencies. Backcountry skiing gloves should also have reasonably long cuffs that can successfully prevent snow from entering at the cuff.

Nordic skiers commonly wear relatively lightweight and nimble gloves. Because skate and classic Nordic skiing typically involve high-cardio, heat-building movement and tend to take place on trails at lower elevations compared to backcountry travel, burly shells and thick insulation are often unnecessary. As always, we recommend that you wear whatever gloves make you feel warm and comfortable.

Sizing

Ski glove sizing is inconsistent. In other words, a size small in one brand may be a medium in another. At a single brand, a size small in the women’s category might not match the size small for men, or they might have mirrored dimensions.

Most brands offer a sizing chart that can help you decide which size to buy, so be sure to measure your hand according to the directions. We also recommend trying on a ski glove in person, if possible.

Ideally, your ski gloves should feel snug — not tight or restrictive. You should have less than a centimeter of open space at the tip of each finger, and there should be minimal resistance from the material when you make a fist.

FAQ

Our top ski gloves range from $54 to $400. On this list, we have included options across a range of budgets without sacrificing baseline quality. The general price for the majority of our favorites is closer to $150.

Generally, more economical gloves will be less warm, durable, and waterproof than more expensive and higher-quality options.

Most high-performing gloves cost at least $100. If you are seeking battery-operated heated gloves, expect to pay at least $150.

For the 2023-2024 season, the warmest ski gloves come with built-in battery-operated heating elements. While heated gloves are great for frigid conditions and people with chronically cold hands, they aren’t necessary for most skiers.

If you are seeking super-warm gloves without an integrated battery, look for lots of insulation, a waterproof membrane, and a gauntlet-style cuff. If that doesn’t do the trick, consider a pair of mittens.

Choosing between ski gloves and ski mittens is a matter of how cold the temperatures drop, as well as a bit of personal preference. Each option has pros and cons.

Gloves offer improved dexterity but reduced warmth. Because every finger can move independently while wearing gloves, this option is better for gripping ski poles and performing tasks with your hands. Some gloves are more streamlined than others and the insulation varies broadly between designs.

Mittens are very warm, but they reduce dexterity. We don’t find mittens as easy to use for fine and detailed applications like grabbing a small zipper pull on a backpack, closing a buckle, opening a snack bar wrapper, or basic tasks on a phone screen, for instance.

However, once the ambient temperatures reach 10 degrees Fahrenheit and if there’s added windchill, we are hard-pressed to find a glove design that withstands brutally cold conditions as well as a mitten, which allows the body heat from your digits to circulate in a single shell. The warmest glove we’ve consistently used in such conditions is the Swany Men’s X-Cell Glove and the Swany Women’s X-Cell Glove.

A couple of hybrid options include mitten designs that are paired with glove liners, so you can pull your hand out for tasks without exposing your skin to the cold. There are lobster-style gloves, too, like the Hestra Fall Line 3-Finger.

Most of the gloves on this list are designed with a waterproof membrane that sits between the outer shell and the inner liner. If you are seeking reliable waterproof gloves, we recommend purchasing a high-quality pair with a name-brand waterproofing system such as GORE-TEX.

Some designs such as the Kinco Lined Heavy-Duty Premium Grain & Suede Pigskin Ski Glove with Omni-Cuff need to be surface treated with a waterproof wax, such as the Nikwax treatment that’s included with a pair of Kincos.

Yes. For the most part, skiing gloves and snowboarding gloves are interchangeable. Because snowboarders need to adjust their bindings throughout the day, they tend to prefer more dexterous gloves.