Black Diamond

Product Information

While this list doesn’t cover every mitten ever made, suffice it to say we’ve been thorough in narrowing it down to our favorites. These are the best winter mittens that we can’t stop raving about — the ones we recommend and rely on all winter long.

For such sports, domestic work, and mountaineering pursuits, you’ll want mitts made with durable materials, like goat leather, or mittens that are reinforced in high-friction zones. The all-leather Give’r Frontier Mittensare rated as extremely durable, as are the polyester and goat-leather Picture Organic Women’s Anna Mitts. While you can use regular winter gloves, it's recommended to use specialized ski gloves designed for the specific demands of skiing. Ski gloves provide better insulation, waterproofing, and features like reinforced palms for grip on ski poles. How do I prevent my hands from sweating inside the gloves? Some wrist leashes are sewn on and not removable, like with the Picture Organic Women’s Anna Mitts , while others are easy to remove. Ventilation Mittens have lots of pros — namely, providing a toastier warmth than gloves can — but they do go down a notch in the functionality department, specifically dexterity.

Should You Buy the Black Diamond Mercury Mitt?

Aside from polyester and leather, other winter mittens are made from wool, fleece, and cotton, which typically result in a leaner mitten overall. Generally, cotton is not ideal, as it takes a long time to dry and easily tears. Liner materials — whether they are removable or not — most often are made with a soft fleece material that has a bit of stretch. Certain tasks are still achievable with mittens on like tightening a velcro cuff; (photo; Jason Hummel) Connectivity Gear Institute called the Guide Gloves “heavy duty work-horse gloves that will last years and keep your hands warm in nearly any condition.” They also mentioned the sacrifice of dexterity for bulk and warmth but deemed it a worthy sacrifice. More than three decades ago, Senior Snow Sports Editor Morgan Tilton learned to ski in sync when she learned to hike as a toddler in Telluride, Colorado, and still calls Southwest Colorado home. Today, she lives in one of the coldest locations in the country, Gunnison Valley, where it’s not uncommon to drop into negative digits plus windchill. If it’s frigid out, she reaches for mittens when she’s heading up the ski lifts at Crested Butte Mountain Resort or taking laps on the Crested Butte Nordic trails. The super warm Mercury Mitt has a trigger finger liner that gives greater dexterity and extra abrasion protection. The removable split-finger liner features a high-loft fleece lining for increased warmth and comfort, and a BDry™ insert adds moisture protection even when you use the liner by itself.

While this is a solid choice, it is far from the only option available. Here are a few others you may want to consider. Avoid choosing gloves that fit tightly anywhere on your hand. This can lead to restricted blood flow and colder hands. It can also reduce the glove's dexterity by reducing how much you can bend your fingers. If the fit is too big, the glove can feel sloppy. From there, you’ll want to consider whether you will be layering gloves underneath (leave some room), or wearing the gloves as a standalone piece (aim for fitted comfort). Sizing Reviewers really loved that the heating wires were woven into the liner rather than between the liner and the outer shell glove, like many other heated gloves on the market. And the battery life isn’t shabby, either—they last about 8 hours on the “low” setting, about 4.5 hours on the “medium” setting, and about 2.5 hours on the “high” setting. (Most other heated gloves only last up to 2.5 hours, too!) While they will perform with a little bit of water, if you are skiing in an area prone to wet conditions and wet snow, these might not hold up. In particular, the leather palm has no water resistance, which can lead to it soaking through to your hand, which can hurt the mittens ability to keep your hands warm. The Alternatives Scroll right to view all of the columns: Price, Shell/Material, Cuff Type, Insulation, Warmth. Mitten

Products regularly purchased with this item

To be considered for each category, we measured each glove or mitten against standardized criteria: they had to be warm, affordable, durable, comfortable, highly water-resistant, windproof, and dexterous.