The 13 Very Best Winter Gloves for Men

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Material:Leather, nylon, and polyester |Thickness:Medium |Touchscreen compatible:Yes

If you’re going to buy only one pair of gloves for cold weather, we recommend this touchscreen-compatible medium-weight pair from Outdoor Research. Of the dozens of gloves we’ve tested, the Stormtracker best hits that sweet spot of dexterity (more common in thinner gloves) and warmth (which you get with thicker models). Jeremy’s worn them through two winters around town and during cold-weather hikes, and they’ve kept his digits warm and never clammy. Michael just got a pair and was impressed by the overall construction quality, the soft inner lining, and the supple goat-leather palms.

The Stormtracker gloves have a protective, layered design with a cozy, fuzzy interior and a wind-blocking, water-resistant softshell exterior that protects hands from blasts of cold air and light rain. Plus, they have zippered gauntlets around the wrists, which help them fit more neatly under a jacket cuff and lock in more heat. The thumb and index fingertips are touchscreen-compatible, but the dual-layered design is not dextrous enough for thumb-typing. But hunting and pecking with a single finger is still better than having to take the gloves off entirely.

Good gloves can be difficult to keep in stock once temperatures really start falling, but if the Stormtrackers are unavailable, Michael was also impressed by the similarSureshot Pros, which are slightly more insulated and use a velcro cuff instead of a zipper. They are slightly less dextrous than the Stormtracker but still touchscreen compatible.

Material:Polyester and neoprene |Thickness:Medium |Touchscreen compatible:Yes

This is a solid pair of gloves for working outside in cold weather — and Jeremy would know, having used them to make e-bike deliveries all over his neighborhood while moonlighting at a pizza restaurant. They’re more water-resistant than leather gloves so they’re perfect on the bike. They have a soft polyester lining that keeps fingers warm down to about 25 degrees Fahrenheit. They’re also dextrous enough to handle all the zippers of the pizza delivery bag and operate a U-lock without taking them off, and are even touchscreen compatible. The best feature is the stretchy wrist Velcro strap, which makes getting them on and off a breeze. At less than $30, we think these are the best-value winter gloves you can buy.

Material:Polyester and nylon |Thickness:Medium |Touchscreen compatible:Yes

It’s hard to find a waterproof glove that also offers dexterity, but these polyester gloves from Sealskinz fit the bill. Eric Lin, a cinematographer based in Brooklyn, swears by them. “A few years back, after a memorable night shooting in freezing rain outside, I realized my warm gloves didn’t mean much if they weren’t waterproof,” he says. “So I went on the search for waterproof winter gloves, and I found Sealskinz.” There are probably warmer gloves out there, Lin says, but the fact that they were waterproof and allowed him enough movement to be dexterous with his fingers means he found them perfect for what he needed. Lin used an older version of the Waterproof All Weather Glove, but the line has since expanded to include aninsulated version, which is built with a leather palm and neoprene.

Material:Fleece and polyester |Thickness:Thin |Touchscreen compatible:Yes

The Etip Recycled gloves work well as a standalone option in temperatures of 40 degrees or higher. The thin, breathable fleece is designed to be a liner but can also keep hands warm in colder temperatures if your heart is pumping, such as on winter runs or hikes. Jeremy uses them for winter trail runs and loves how easy it is to check his maps and use his smartwatch thanks to their five-finger touchscreen compatibility. Plus, the palms have a gripper so you won’t lose hold of your phone. Michael likes them for uphill ski touring, nordic ice skating, and cross-country skiing. He’s used his heavily for two winters now and appreciates how well they’ve held up.

Material:98 percent merino wool, 2 percent elastane |Thickness:Thin |Touchscreen compatible:Yes

Icebreaker’s Quantum liner combines naturally thermoregulating merino wool with a phone-friendly silicone-lined palm and touchscreen-compatible index and thumb. While not waterproof, wool’s insulating capabilities don’t degrade with moisture, so this pair is a great choice for running and other sweat-inducing activities. The fit through the fingers is a bit more snug than that of similar merino liners from other brands, which is good for dexterity. Some user reviewers note that the grippy silicone dots tend to flake off over time, but it’s better to have them for a while than not at all. If you’d rather skip the grip entirely, the similar, but thinnerOasis 200is a good option.

There are many slightly cheaper knit gloves that look like these black liners, but none can match their durability. They’re knit in Vermont, which is where Michael and his wife each bought a pair back in 2023. But for a bit of pilling, they’re still going strong in 2026. This might have to do with the fact that they’re designed to be worn with the purls on the “wrong” side of the knit facing outwards. Or it could be due to the higher nylon content of the 79 percent merino wool thread. Whatever the reason, it’s working. We only wish they came in more colors.

Material:Fleece, nylon, and polyester |Thickness:Medium |Touchscreen compatible:Yes

Gloves that are good with phones tend to be thinner and less warm, but these polyester-fleece gloves are slightly thicker and warmer than most liners. They’re a great go-to for walking around town or for any outdoor activities that get the heart pumping. Their excellent dexterity, paired with five-finger touchscreen compatibility, makes it easy to scroll and type with them on a touchscreen. They’re not windproof, but that also makes them breathable — perfect for people with hot hands, like ourselves.

The Midweight Screentaps are also ourtop pick fortouchscreen glovesand one of ourfavorite pairs of women’s gloves. They come recommended by Strategist writerKatherine Gillespie, who praised them for their comfort on chilly morning hikes in Patagonia’s Torres Del Paine National Park. “They’re thin enough to provide ample dexterity when fishing items out of a backpack or taking photos of scenic vistas yet thick enough to insulate against frosty mornings or random rainstorms,” she writes. “The touchscreen fingertips are highly responsive, and the stretchy cuffs prevent cold wrists.”

Material:Recycled polyester ripstop with Primaloft Gold insulation and abrasion-resistant palm liners |Thickness:Bulky |Touchscreen compatible:No

When it comes to achieving maximum warmth, keeping your fingers together in a mitten will always feel warmer than separating them in gloves. Patagonia’s Nano Puff jackets are aperennial staff favoriteamong men and women, so it’s no surprise that the mitts would be a hit as well. They’re made of the same soft, warm, and durable recycled polyester ripstop as the jackets, so it feels just like stuffing your hands into the pockets of your favorite puffer. But the palms are lined with a tougher, abrasion-resistant fabric. We also like that they come in a variety of colors that can bring a bit of levity to dreary winter days. Mitt sizing is less precise than glove sizing, but Michael found that going with his normal medium size was the right move here. But it never hurts to size up a bit to leave extra room for a liner on really cold days. It’s not like you can use a phone while wearing them anyway.

Material:Leather, wool, and neoprene |Thickness:Medium |Touchscreen compatible:No

These workwear-inspired cowhide gloves from Hestra are made from a supple leather that isn’t waterproof (but can be treated to shed water), and are significantly pricier than other medium-weight gloves on this list. But they’re the ones that Jeremy reaches for the most when he wants to look sharp while staying warm. They’ve kept his fingers warm on both 15-degree and 40-degree days, and he appreciates the removable wool liners (which feel like the inside of a fuzzy sock) and the paracord wrist adjustment to cinch them down tight. At nearly $200, they’re definitely a bit of a splurge, but these are the type of gloves that break in and get better over time, rather than wearing out — like many of the polyester picks in this guide. They’re not touchscreen compatible either, but they’re so thick that it wouldn’t matter even if they were.

Material:Knit acrylic and latex coating |Thickness:Medium |Touchscreen compatible:No

The medium thickness and confident rubber grip of these Kincos make them excellent for working with smaller tools that require more dexterity. They’re a must for Adam Butler, a general contractor in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He and his colleagues “generally try to not wear gloves except for winter work as carpenters. In the Northeast, at least, we like to develop calluses,” he tells me. “Our winter work go-tos are rubber-dipped gloves like the Frost Breakers.” They have a latex coating on the palm and on the fingers, which provide grip — great for lifting heavy objects and handling tools in cold environments.

Material:Leather palm, fleece and wool lining with Gore-Tex insert and PrimaLoft Gold insulation |Thickness:Bulky |Touchscreen compatible:No

If your hands and fingers will be exposed to a lot of snow, we recommend a waterproof glove with plenty of insulation. Jeff Lane, a former snow ranger for the Mount Washington Avalanche Center, swears by lobster-claw mitts, which he wears at the ski resort and on cold days in the backcountry.

“Discovering this type of mitt-slash-glove was a game changer when I worked on Mount Washington. Nothing beats a full mitten for warmth, but these come close,” he says. “They give you a lot of dexterity that you don’t get with a full mitten but still can keep your fingers warm on the coldest days. When it’s a not-too-cold day, they live in the bottom of my pack with a balaclava just in case.”

Lane tells us he used a version from Outdoor Research for the last ten years, and the lobster-claw-mitt modelthe brand currently makesmight not be exactly the same. He currently uses these Guide Finger Gloves from Black Diamond.

Material:Pigskin leather, cotton-blend canvas, and polyester elastic knit |Thickness:Medium |Touchscreen compatible:No

These ubiquitous work gloves are well known in the ski industry, and we’ve seen them on slopes and at resorts. They come recommended by Lane of the Mount Washington Avalanche Center and by Ruben Kimmelman, a former snowboard instructor on Mount Baker. “These seem to be a standard uniform piece for ski-area employees everywhere,” Lane says, noting that they’re far less expensive than other outdoor gear brands but just as effective. “I wear them patrolling, and if they start to wear out, then they move into my garage for around-the-house use.” Lane recommends applying a waterproof coating on them, likeNikwax. Kimmelman agrees: “Add a little Scotchgard or Minwax to waterproof them and they are the bomb for $30.”

Material:Wool, acrylic, nylon, spandex, with rubber grip |Thickness:Thin |Touchscreen compatible:No

These thin yet grippy knit gloves are the ones we recommend for winter cycling. They’re a favorite of New York bike messenger Paul Solis, who wears them forriding in cold, wet weather. After cycling through less-reliable models that claimed to be waterproof, Solis turned to this wool pair, which works similarly to the Atlas Therma-Fits and Kinco Frost Breakers above. “They’ve already survived a couple winters,” according to Solis.