Sunglasses are sometimes thought of as an optional extra on the slopes, but personally, I find they're crucial. Even though I tend to do my actual riding in goggles (I wear contact lenses, and therefore don't like airflow round the eyes) I always make sure I always have a pair of sunnies stashed in my snowboard jacket pocket, for a number of reasons.
Firstly, whenever you stop for refreshments (liquid or otherwise) they're far more comfortable. Have you ever tried eating a plate of spaghetti with a massive mask on your face? Nightmare!
"It's essential to have a pair of sunnies for ski touring—goggles will mist up completely"
Second, if you start to sweat, ski goggles mist up far more easily. As someone who spends a lot of time ski touring, it's essential to have a pair of sunnies for the way up if you want to be able to see anything through your ski goggles on the way down.
And third, sunglasses just look cool, don't they? If you're lucky enough to have one of those late season slushy days where you can shred around in ski pants, a t-shirt and gloves, sunnies are definitely a must.
Best Skiing Sunglasses 2025: TL/DR Review Summary
If you just want to cut to the chase: choosing sunglasses is a subjective business, but the editor's pick here are the Vallon Waylons if you're after a stylish, classic-looking, bombproof pair of skiing sunglasses for everything from après chilling to touring up the skin track.
If you'll mostly be using them for downhills, you can't go wrong with the Oakley Sutros or the SunGod Vulcans. And if you're on a budget, and fancy channelling the '90s snowboard sunglasses steeze that's right back in fashion at the moment, check out the Pit Viper Slammers.
Buyers' Guide: What to look for in a pair of skiing sunglasses
The main things to consider, when buying skiing sunglasses are the lenses, the materials and (perhaps most importantly) how well they fit your face / how cool they make you look.
Lenses: Light reflecting off white snow can be incredibly bright, so it's important to make sure your sunglasses have 100 percent UV protection, aka UV400. If you're intending on skiing down with them, or touring, you may also want to consider a pair with interchangeable lenses for overcast, low light days, or photochromic sunglasses, with lenses that automatically get darker in bright weather conditions.
Materials: There's a good chance your skiing / snowboard sunglasses will take a battering. There's all the usual dangers, like accidentally sitting on them in the car, plus the added risk that you'll often be hurtling down a snowy mountain while wearing or carrying them. It's worth buying a pair that are made of impact resistant materials. (Oh, and stashing them in a pocket you won't fall on.)
Fit & style: Frames that fit your face are not only comfortable, they will also normally suit you better. It's important to consider both elements — and check yourself out in plenty of mirrors before making your purchase.
The Best Skiing Sunglasses 2025
We've chosen six pairs of the best sunglasses for skiing and snowboarding here in a variety of styles, designed to suit a range of different skiers.
Anon Opportunist Snowboard Sunglasses
RRP £145
These polarised sunglasses take the classic Wayfarer shape popularised by RayBan, but tweak it with slightly larger lenses. Designed in Japan by Anon, the in-house eyewear brand of Burton Snowboards, they are aimed at snowboarders or skiers looking for a pair that will work equally well for slushy days on the slopes, long afternoons at après and days on the beach in summer.
The frames are made of hard-wearing cellulose acetate, and they come with a vegan leather case.
Buy the Anon Opportunist Snowboard Sunglasses 2024-2025: £145 at burton.com
Julbo Vermont Classic Skiing Sunglasses
RRP £140
French eyewear brand Julbo was founded in 1888, and developed its first pair of sunglasses for crystal hunters in Chamonix in the early years of the 20th century. Their Vermont frames are the original glacier glasses—first launched in 1950!
Of course the classic style has been brought right up to date with the latest Spectron3 lenses, which are available in a range of different colours. One of our test team has owned a pair of the blue & white one for over five years. "They're my go to glasses for ski touring, cos the lenses offer amazing definition even in low light, and they make you look like Maurice Herzog heading off to tackle Annapurna."
Buy the Julbo Vermont Classic Skiing Sunglasses 2024-2025: £155 at ellis-brigham.com
Bloc Chameleon X400 Skiing Sunglasses
Often time is of the essence in the mountains, and swapping between goggles and glasses is a guaranteed time sink, which is where the Chameleon comes in.
A Cat 4 lens will fight off the fiercest glacier and snow glare, a magnetic gasket prevents light leaking in around the edges, while the ear hooks keep everything in place during energetic skinning up moments. However, once back in town, the gasket can be popped in a pocket, the arms switched for straight versions, and you have a set of ‘normal’ looking sunnies.
It’s a tried and tested concept, especially for touring folk, and to get a decent brand such as Bloc at this price is pretty impressive.
Buy the Bloc Chameleon X400 Skiing Sunglasses: £40 at amazon.com
Oakley Sutro Skiing Sunglasses
RRP £160
First designed with cyclists in mind, the Sutro frame has become the go-to Oakley style for a whole range of active outdoor sports. They're ideal for skiing because the large lenses block a lot of airflow to the eyes.
They're perfect for ski touring too, and look great in the après bar. But increasingly, this style of shades are seen miles from any sporting arena—look at any footage of the crowd at Glastonbury in recent years and you'll see a whole bunch of stylish Gen Z types rocking them. Available in a range of colours, for different weather conditions, the Sutro's lenses use the same Prizm technology found in Oakley ski goggles. https://www.snowmagazine.com/features/top-tens/6-best-ski-goggles
Buy the Oakley Sutro Skiing Sunglasses 2024-2025: £155 at amazon.com
Pit Viper Slammer Ski & Snowboard Sunglasses
RRP £70
It's no secret that everything '90s is currently back in fashion—and that includes wraparound shades. Pit Viper are bang on this trend—even their website is even designed to look like it was made with Windows 95.
These are a good pair of sunglasses skiing down, with the shape offering protection from the wind, but they're arguably better suited to chilling at the bottom of the snowpark, shotgunning cans. Pit Viper do Slammer photochromic sunglasses too, so you can stroll straight from the slopes into a dark, rowdy après party without ever having to take them off.
SunGod Vulcan Ski Sunglasses
RRP £160
Given their popularity across a whole range of sports, it's hard to believe British brand SunGod was only founded in 2013. They now supply the McLaren Formula One team, the INEOS cycling team and Sir Ben Ainslie's America's Cup sailing team, among others. On snow, their athlete team includes freeskier James Woods and snowboarder Katie Ormerod.
The Vulcans have the same cycling-inspired heritage as Oakley's Sutros (see above) but make for excellent skiing sunglasses — especially if you're into backcountry touring. The frame colours are fully customisable, and there are a whole range of lenses available, including SunGod's Iris photochromic lenses. Our tester was impressed by the ability to swap out lenses for different conditions. "You just click off the bottom and the nose piece, like changing the lens in your snow googles."
Vallon Waylons Ski & Snowboard Sunglasses
RRP £115
Founded by two Swedish brothers, Vallon make a range of sunglasses that put a contemporary twist on classic designs. Inspired by 60s and 70s shapes, the Waylons are a sort of hybrid between sports and lifestyle glasses.
They're casual enough for every day wear, and hanging out in the sun at après ski, but they come with a detachable head strap that you can use to keep them secure if you want to wear them skiing, snowboarding, climbing or for anything else. "I use them gravel biking and they're my go-to shades in the pocket for when I'm on the slopes," our tester said. "They're built from this tough acetate which makes them feel like they can take a beating."
