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What to look for when buying a road bike helmet

Fit and retention systems

First and foremost, in the event of a crash, a helmet has to stay on your head to be effective. Just like shoes, helmets from different brands are all made to fit slightly differently, so it’s important to try before you buy.

Most helmets use a dial-based retention system (e.g. Giro’s Roc Loc 5 or Kask’s Octo Fit) to adjust the fit, but the vertical adjustment range (i.e. how high or low the rear adjustment supports sit on your head) will also vary between helmets, so again this is something to look out for.

Adjustable and comfortable straps are also incredibly important – you need to be able to wear them with a fairly snug fit against your chin for maximum effectiveness.

Materials

Most cycle helmets are made primarily from expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam. This skeleton is then covered, to varying degrees, in a hard polycarbonate shell (and sometimes a dash of carbon fibre) to add strength and protect the EPS foam from accidental bumps and scratches.

This basic design has been in place for decades now, but other manufacturing techniques and materials are beginning to filter through, such as 3D-printed Polyamide 11 or other proprietary polymer materials.

Naturally, manufacturers claim these designs offer benefits over traditional cycle helmets, but whether those benefits are realised in use remains to be seen.

Safety features

While we won’t comment on the overall efficacy of helmets in general, it’s worth noting that all helmets sold in the EU should conform to the EN 1078 European Standard (and therefore have a CE mark), or be CPSC-certified in the US.

Every helmet on this list does just that, if not more, and should at least offer your head some protection against bumps and scratches if you fall off your bike while out riding.

Recently, we’ve seen a substantial increase in additional safety technologies such as rotational liners (e.g. MIPS) and Bontrager’s proprietary WaveCel material. These innovations are claimed to offer increased protection from head and brain injuries by reducing rotational forces or simply by using materials that are better able to absorb certain shocks.

There is some independent safety testing of cycle helmets, but these things are obviously harder to test outside of the lab, where there are so many variables at play. On balance, these extra safety features are almost certainly worth having, but they tend to come on helmets with a higher price tag.

Ventilation

For fast road riding, especially in hot weather, ventilation is key. A well-designed system of vents and channels in the internal structure of a helmet can help to draw air over your head and dissipate heat.

As might be obvious, putting holes in a helmet to increase ventilation is likely to lead to reduced weight and, potentially, robustness. So, to make up for that, airy helmets often need more external reinforcement or are constructed with pricier materials, to ensure they still meet safety and durability standards.

Aerodynamics

The aero brush touches everything these days, increasing costs and making all your current kit feel outdated, but with helmets it probably does make sense. The potential watt savings to be made with aero helmets shouldn’t be overlooked if you’re concerned with riding fast.

There are compromises of course: increasing aerodynamic efficiency usually means closing off ventilation holes or putting up with funky-shaped lids that, frankly, have looks that sometimes border on the ridiculous. But then again, if your main concern is simply to ride faster, perhaps looks aren’t actually that important.

Other features

Only a few brands actively promote their helmets’ ability to hold your sunglasses in the front vents, but this feature can be a real bonus.

Obviously, helmet brands that also make sunglasses tend to do better in this regard, but make sure to take your sunglasses with you when you’re shopping for a new helmet so you can check the hold.

Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but it is worth considering what kind of riding the helmets you like the look of are designed for.

Let’s say you like classic-looking helmets with lots of vent holes; if you live somewhere cold, maybe you’d be better off with a more aero-focused helmet with less ventilation and holes for water to seep through.

Likewise, the opposite could be true if you live somewhere hot; there’s no use having a helmet that’s super-fast in the wind tunnel if you don’t want to wear it because it makes your head boil.

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