Consumer Reports helmet page recommendations
2020
Summary: In 2020 Consumer Reports updated its bicycle helmet report on the website. They give Excellent impact
protection ratings to 22 models, with most of the remaining ones scoring Very Good. They recommended 15 models. Of those
they scored four at the top of the ratings, including three MIPS models and one without MIPS. They describe MIPS as "a
promising technology designed to reduce the risk of concussion." The Morpher Flat Folding Helmet and Woom Kids Helmet
failed impact tests.
See our
Helmet Ratings page for the short list of helmets with the highest
Consumer Reports rating for impact protection and also scoring best on the Virginia Tech STAR concussion ratings.
Rated helmets
CR now rates helmets by Bell, Bern, Bontrager, Cannondale, Coros, Garneau, Giant, Giro, Kali,
Livall, Mongoose, Morpher, Nutcase, Overade, Pro-Tec, Raskullz, Razor, Schwinn, Shred, Specialized, Triple Eight, Uvex,
Wipeout, Woom and Zefal.
Scores
The highest overall scores are for the Giro Register MIPS, Kali Alchemy, Bontrager Circuit MIPS and Bell
Stratus MIPS. Below the leaders were the Giant Rev Comp MIPS, Giro Cinder MIPS, Livall Bling BH60, Coros LINX, Bontrager
Specter WaveCel, Cannondale Quick, Garneau Raid MIPS, Specialized Chamonix MIPS (despite scoring only fair for fit),
Specialized Align, Bontrager Charge WaveCel, Garneau Vitesse, Garneau Nino, Uvex Quatro Junior, Specialized Shuffle Youth
SB, Bell Span, Giro Scamp MIPS, Raskullz Mohawk, Razor V17 and Bell Disney Frozen Tiara. Lowest scores from the bottom
up: Woom Kids Helmet, Morpher Flat Folding Helmet, Wipeout Dry Erase, Overade Plixi and Pro-Tec Classic.
Impact protection ratings
The impact ratings have been CR's biggest contribution to consumer information, and one
of our key criteria for helmet choice. After testing more than 48 current models in the lab, CR has rated 24 of them
Excellent: Giro Register MIPS, Kali Alchemy, Bontrager Circuit MIPS, Bell Stratus MIPS, Giant Rev Comp MIPS, Livall Bling
BH60, Coros LINX, Bontrager Specter WaveCel, Cannondale Quick, Garneau Raid MIPS, Specialized Chamonix MIPS, Specialized
Align, Bontrager Charge WaveCel, Garneau Vitesse, Garneau Nino, Uvex Quatro Junior, Specialized Shuffle Youth SB, Bell
Span, Giro Scamp MIPS, Raskullz Mohawk, Razor V17, and Bell Disney Frozen Tiara. Note that some that were rated Excellent
for impact protection had low overall scores for other reasons. The remaining helmets were mostly rated Very Good, with a
few only good and two "do not buy" for impact test failures. We consider the impact ratings the most important
consideration. You can now combine the impact ratings with the Virginia Tech concussion protection ratings to compile a
very short list of helmets rated for both major impact protection and lower-level
impact protection.
Fit
Fit is our second key criterion, and here CR was more discriminating. They rated Excellent only the Kali
Alchemy, Kali City and Bontrager Circuit MIPS. Most of the rest were Good, but surprisingly the Specialized Chamonix MIPS
rated only Fair.
Ventilation
Only the Giro Register MIPS, Livall Bling BH60 and Specialized Chamonix MIPS rated Excellent for
ventilation. Ten models are rated Poor.
Concussion?
CR has in the past discussed concussion concerns. They had tested MIPS vs Non-MIPS models and found
that MIPS reduced rotational force by 43 percent. We do not know what testing protocols they used. They concluded that
"The MIPS helmets in our ratings are priced $20 to $25 more than the non-MIPS versions. Even if the extra benefit isn't
definitive, a MIPS helmet might be worth the extra cost." For this 2020 page they describe MIPS as "a promising
technology designed to reduce the risk of concussion."
What We Missed
CR has improved their helmet selection, and their ratings are certainly worth a look if you are
researching a new helmet, although the number of helmets included is still small compared to the
thousands on the market this year. Most of the models are available only in bike stores, leaving out
the millions of helmets sold in discount stores. There were no
Bell True Fit models tested, the
only major advance in helmet fitting in the past decade. But testing is expensive, and no single lab, including the US
Government, can afford to test every helmet on the market. Our own listing of
helmets for this
season is much more comprehensive, but has no lab test results, severely limiting its usefulness. To find a helmet
rated for both major impact protection and lower-level impact protection, see our
Helmet
Ratings page for the very short list of helmets recommended by
Consumer Reports and scoring best on the
Virginia Tech STAR concussion ratings.
The article
Here is
the article in Consumer
Reports. The ratings are behind the pay wall.
Prior articles
Here is a link to our reviews of
previous Consumer Reports
articles.