Helmets are part of the essential cycling kit. But while all helmets on the market today will meet minimum safety standards, there's a lot more to picking the right one than just passing a regulatory crash test.
Fit, comfort, ventilation, weight, looks, and sunglass storage all play a role. Add in growing awareness around rotational-impact protection, new tech like 3D-printed pads or integrated lights, and a confusing array of independent lab tests and star ratings that rank helmets according to more than just a pass/fail standard, and it's clear that not all helmets are quite the same.
In this edition of Escape Collective Favourites, we asked our team, and you, our members, what helmets you ride with. And as always, we've also added some context to help you choose a helmet, especially if you're in the market for a new lid. If you missed our earlier Favourites including saddles, pedals, bib shorts, and even supermarket snacks, you can find them all here.
What to look for in a helmet?
Above all else, a helmet should fit you properly, which makes every other quality, from safety to performance, better. If a helmet doesn't feel right from the start, it probably won’t get better with time. A snug, secure fit not only improves comfort but can also help a helmet stay put in a crash. A helmet that shifts or wobbles, even slightly, can reduce protection and increase the risk of injury. In short, a poorly fitting helmet is functionally a less safe one, no matter how many safety certifications it has.
It's also good to consider your riding style. If you race downhill mountain bikes, you need a full-face helmet (in markets with separate test standards for full-face/gravity helmets, look for those specific certifications, such as ASTM F1952 in the US). If you mainly ride on drop-bar bikes, on gravel and paved roads, then a helmet without a visor is a good choice, whereas for mountain biking, you might want that extra bit of protection from low-hanging branches.
Most (but not all!) helmets come in three sizes (S/M/L) based on head circumference, but that's only part of the story. The internal shape of a helmet – often described as more oval or round – varies between brands, and even between models from the same brand. Some helmets sit deep and cradle the head fully, others perch higher and leave more of the forehead exposed. What works for one person may feel completely off for another, even if the sizing is technically correct.
Trying on a helmet in person is always the best approach. Bring your glasses or sunglasses with you, and make sure they work nicely with the helmet's fit and retention system. And if you want to stash the glasses in the helmet vents, make sure that's possible too.
A properly fitting helmet should feel snug all around without pinching. You should have a decent amount of adjustment in the retention system, usually operated with a rear dial, without hotspots. The helmet should sit level on your head, not tilted back (a common mistake that exposes the forehead) or to either side, and the straps should join to form a clean "Y" just below your ears, with no twists or slack.
Those with long hair may want to pay attention to how the retention cradle accommodates a ponytail, too. Some helmets now feature cut-outs or ponytail-compatible designs, while others tug on the hair uncomfortably, depending on the adjustment system.
Ventilation also plays into the overall comfort. Helmets with larger vents and good internal channelling tend to move more air, which is great on long climbs or hot summer days. And while weight isn't the most important factor, fewer grams can make a difference on longer rides, putting less stress on your neck.
What about padding, liners, and aerodynamics?
Even if most of the helmets are made with the same main material – EPS foam – from there, the features and materials start to differ, and this continues to the inside of the helmet. The outer shell can be made of plastic or polycarbonate, and there might be some carbon fibre for weight savings. Higher-end models often have some kind of in-molded lattice reinforcement inside the EPS, which helps keep the helmet together in a crash. And in addition to different materials and shaping, many models now come with a suite of extra features aimed at adding more comfort, convenience, or added visibility in the form of clip-on lights.
Padding might seem like a minor detail, but it does have a big impact on comfort, and in some helmets, safety, too. A good fit often comes down to how the padding supports your head shape, especially for long days in the saddle. It’s also one of the easiest things to clean or replace, and it should be: padding that’s worn out, compressed, or unglued can affect both comfort and the helmet’s functionality. If the pads are damaged, they should be replaced, especially in helmets where padding is integrated with safety systems.
One of those systems is Mips Air Node, which, instead of a full liner, laminates the rotational protection onto the padding, which is held in place with small hook-and-loop fasteners.
Some helmets now use 3D-printed padding structures – like Kask's Multipod, which, similarly to the Mips Air Node aims to reduce weight, improve cooling, and offer better long-term comfort. 3D-printed padding also tends to dry faster and is more durable than traditional padding.
Mips Air Node on the left, Kask Multipod 3D-printed padding on the right.
Then there's the aero options. Aero road helmets promise real watt savings – and in Escape’s own testing, Ronan McLaughlin measured double-digit watt gains by switching from heavily vented helmets to their sleeker aero versions from the same brands (Kask, Specialized, POC) at 35 km/h. That’s a tangible benefit, especially if you're racing, riding fast group rides, or tackling time trials.
But those gains don't always tell the whole story. An aero helmet that runs hot, fits poorly, or rubs your ears raw won't feel fast, and you may end up slower overall if you’re constantly overheating or fiddling with the straps. (Also, helmet aerodynamics is highly individual and depends to some extent on aspects like rider position.)
As Xavier Disley of AeroCoach put it in this Performance Process episode: even the fastest helmet isn't fast if you're distracted or uncomfortable. Aero performance is just one part of a good helmet, and arguably only matters if the fundamentals like fit, ventilation, and usability are already dialed.
But even the most comfortable, well-ventilated, and stylish helmet still needs to do one crucial thing: protect your head in a crash. And that's where things get more complicated – because safety, it turns out, is not that straightforward.
Helmet safety standards and ratings
As much as you should like the way your helmet looks, it is not a fashion item – its primary function is to reduce injury risk if you hit your head. That sounds simple, but helmet safety is a tricky topic. Some might even argue that helmets aren't strictly necessary.
Strictly speaking, a helmet doesn't make cycling safer – it doesn't prevent crashes – but it can help reduce the severity of head injury when things go wrong. Still, there's a wide range of performance among helmets, and with safety being a priority, this is where helmet testing standards and ratings come into play.
Every helmet sold legally in your region has to pass basic safety standards, such as CPSC in the US, EN-1078 in Europe, or AS/NZS 2063 in Australia.
Most crashes involve angled impacts, which can cause rotational motion, but traditional helmet standards focus on direct hits. Despite that, many brands add rotational-energy impact systems for added protection. The most common ones are:
- Mips: A low-friction layer that allows the helmet to move slightly around your head during a crash.
- Mips Air Node: A lightweight version where the low-friction layer is laminated to the helmet’s padding – more breathable and common in higher-end helmets.
- Koroyd: Found in Smith helmets – a collapsible honeycomb structure that absorbs energy and claims to increase airflow.
- WaveCel: Bontrager’s crumple-zone approach should compress and flex on impact.
- KinetiCore: Lazer's in-house alternative to Mips, KinetiCore uses built-in, helmet-shell "controlled crumple zones" to help manage rotational energy without adding a separate liner.
When it comes to standardised testing, Europe's upcoming EN 17950 standard, which at the time of writing is still in development, should become the first regulatory test to include rotational impacts. This test standard should stimulate real-world crash forces a lot better, and also uses new, more realistic headforms that better match human anatomy and friction, something that independent helmet testing labs have aimed to do much earlier.
It's also important to note that the way helmets are tested is far from universal or standardised, which explains why some helmets are only available in certain markets. Australia is a case in point: in 2024, the country updated its helmet import rules to allow a broader range of internationally certified lids, meaning cyclists could finally get their hands on previously unavailable models. But thanks to a mismatch between federal and state laws, riders in some states, notably Tasmania, until May 2025, and Victoria before that, could legally buy these helmets but not actually wear them. This is just one example of how regulatory approval doesn't always equal practical protection, and where you live might affect what’s legal to wear.
How about helmet ratings?
Where regulatory standards ensure basic helmet quality, independent helmet testing labs go further than the official standards, testing for more complex crash scenarios, including rotational impacts, which are increasingly understood to be a key factor in concussion and brain injury.
The most established of these is Virginia Tech University in the US, which has rated helmets since 2018 using a rigorous protocol across 24 impact scenarios. Helmets receive both a numerical score and a 1-5 star rating, based on how much force is transmitted to a dummy headform. In 2025, Virginia Tech made it harder for helmets to achieve five stars, raising the bar but simultaneously adding credibility to the top performers.
There are also other independent test labs. Imperial College London, for example, recently launched the HIPER rating system, also designed to test helmets in conditions closer to real-life crashes. Their research actually found that price isn't always an indicator of safety, but also that Mips-equipped helmets generally performed better in rotational impact tests. In Sweden, the insurance company Folksam performs its own tests.
As with regulatory testing, independent labs use different headforms, sensors, and rating protocols, which can result in different outcomes. But they all aim to close the gap between certification standards that test only linear impacts and real-world protection. If you're looking for a new helmet, they are good resources to cross-check.
Still, even the safest helmet is only as effective as its fit. That's why safety and fit need to be thought of together. A poorly fitting five-star helmet may underperform in real life, while a snug three-star lid might offer more reliable protection simply because it stays in place when it matters.
With that, let's get into our picks.
Escape Collective team and member favourites
Alex Hunt - Van Rysel FCR
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