The 35 Reputable Bicycle Helmet Brands in 2021
The helmet is perhaps the most important safety equipment you can have as a cyclist. Hence, having a safe, secure, and solid helmet will protect the brain and minimize the chances of serious injuries during a fall.
There are a lot of brands in the market today; some have been in business for decades while some are up and coming. When it comes to buying bike helmets, it’s important to go after reputable brands. In short, they should have the experience and expertise to know what they’re doing.
On this page, I’ll share with you the 35 bike helmet brands that are reputable in our opinion.
Abus
Better known for their Abus offers bicycle locks, German brand Abus also makes some very fashionable bike helmets across all types of cycling disciplines. Their presence in road cycling gained a lot of visibility in recent years after their partnership with Movistar Team.
Popular Abus Helmet Models
- Road : Abus Airbreaker
- Offroad : Abus Moventor
- Urban : Abus Urban-I 3.0
- Kids : Abus Smiley 2.1
More info : Abus
Alpina
German brand, Alpina is an outdoor brand that focuses on offroad riding and skiing protective gear such as helmets and eyewear.
They have developed a unique crash sensor called the Toscen where it will acoustically ask if everything is okay. If there’s no response, it will get in touch with the emergency contact through the smartphone app.
Popular Alpina Helmet Models
- Offroad : Alpina Rootage
- Kids : Alpina Carapax Jr.
More info : Alpina
BBB
BBB Cycling is a Dutch brand started in 1998 by two ex-professional cyclists, Chris Koppert and Frank Moons after their retirement. BBB manufacturers a huge range of cycling gear from accessories to clothing, components, and tools for all disciplines.
Popular BBB Helmet Models
- Road : BBB Falcon
- Offroad : BBB Nanga
- Urban : BBB Metro
- Kids : BBB Kite 2.0
More info : BBB
Bell
Started in California, Bell is a long-time brand in the helmet industry with a history dating back to the 1950’s. It’s renowned for making high-quality motorcycle helmets and in recent years have expanded into bicycle helmets. Cadel Evans wore a Bell helmet en route to his 2011 Tour de France win.
Popular Bell Helmet Models
- Road : Bell Z20 Ghost MIPS
- Offroad : Bell Full-9
More info : Bell
Bern
Bern is a privately held company started in 2005 and currently based in Plymouth, Massachusetts. They are known for making stylish helmets for various sports as cycling, skateboarding, snow, and water sports. At the time of writing, they have 14 helmets under the cycling lineup to choose from and have male and female-specific models.
Popular Bern Helmet Models
- Urban : Bern Hudson
- Kids : Bern Youth
More info : Bern
Bontrager
Bontrager is the sister brand to Trek. While Trek is the bike brand, Bontrager is the accessories and apparel brand. Bontrager helmets have exclusive use of the WaveCel technology that helps to protect the head from angled and rotational forces during crashes.
Popular Bontrager Helmet Models
- Road : Bontrager Starvos WaveCel
- Offoad : Bontrager Rally WaveCel
- Urban : Bontrager Charge WaveCel
- Kids : Bontrager Jet WaveCel
More info : Bontrager
Casco
Casco is a German protective gear specialist based in Bretnig in eastern Germany. They make helmets and eyewear for cycling, horseback riding, skiing, skating, and fire and rescue. They have an accident replacement policy, offering a 50% off the regular recommended price for a replacement helmet.
Popular Casco Helmet Models
- Road : Casco Speedairo 2RS
- Offroad : Casco MTBE 2
- Urban : Casco E.Motion 2
- Kids : Casco Active Junior 2
More info : Casco
Coros
Currently based in Southern California, Coros is a performance sports brand that focuses on the outdoors and mountains. Better known for their outdoor hiking watches, Coros also makes cycling helmets that have an integrated audio platform that allows you to stream audio and receive phone calls hands-free.
Popular Coros Helmet Models
- Road : Coros Safesound Road
- Offroad : Coros Safesound Mountain
- Urban : Coros Safesound Urban
More info : Coros
Dotout
Italian brand Dotout wants everyone to put a full stop (dot) to the hectic lifestyle and go outdoors (out). Hence the name Dotout. They make cycling clothing and accessories but put more focus on their bike helmets. Their designs are innovative with huge air vents for maximum breathability. Alternatively, there’s an optional removable cover for aerodynamic gains.
Popular Dotout Helmet Models
- Road : Dotout Karbio HT.2
- Offroad : Coros Safesound Mountain
- Urban : Coros Safesound Urban
More info : Dotout
Ekoi Racing
20 years after its inception in 2001, French-based Ekoi is one of the leading brands among the pro riders in the Tour de France. Ekoi helmets are worn by no less than three teams. Their focus is road racing and triathlons. With a direct-to-consumer business model, they are able to sell their helmets at 30 to 40% cheaper than their competitors.
Popular Ekoi Helmet Models
- Road : Ekoi Legende
More info : Ekoi Racing
Funkier Ride
Funkier Ride is a brand started by cyclists and all their employees are cyclists; either in road, mountain biking, or triathlons. So when it comes to designing cycling products, they do know what cyclists want with their product lineup covering road, offroad riding, running, and triathlons.
Popular Funkier Helmet Models
- Road : Funkier Neptun
- Offroad : Funkier Eris
- Urban : Funkier Haumea
- Kids : Funkier Neutron+
More info : Funkier Ride
Giro
No stranger to bicycle helmets, Giro is one of the leading brands in the market today. They have a wide range of cycling gear from helmets to shoes, gloves and jerseys. But among all these, their most popular products are their wide selection of MIPS-equipped helmets.
Popular Giro Helmet Models
- Road : Giro Aether Spherical
- Offroad : Giro Manifest Spherical
- Urban : Giro Quarter
- Kids : Giro Tremor MIPS
More info : Giro
HJC Sports
Established in 1971 and better known for their Moto GP helmets, HJC Sports is a new entry into cycling. They rose to the highest levels of professional cycling when they partner with Israel Start-Up Nation, the team of 4x Tour de France winner, Chris Froome. Their primary focus is on road racing and triathlon helmets.
Popular HJC Helmet Models
- Road : HJC Ibex 2.0
- Triathlon : AJC Adwatt 1.5
More info : HJC Sports
Kali
Started in Morgan Hill, California, Kali Protectives makes helmets and protective gears for all types of cycling; from road to mountain biking and downhills. Kali’s helmets uses a unique technology called the Composition Fusion where the helmet shell and underlying foam are bonded together, enabling a thinner, lighter and yet stronger helmet.
Popular Kali Helmet Models
- Road : Kali Grit
- Offroad : Kali Maya 3.0
- Urban : Kali City
- Kids : Kali Chakra Child
More info : Kali
Kask
Italian brand Kask is perhaps most well-known for its partnership with Ineos-Grenadiers who won 12 Grand Tours since its inception in 2010. While they’re well-known for their stylish and very popular helmets such as the Kask Protone in cycling, Kask also makes helmets for snow and equestrian sports.
Popular Kask Helmet Models
- Road : Kask Protone (Our review)
- Triathlon : Kask Bambino
More info : Kask
Ked
Started in a garage in Germany back in 1985, KED today produces helmets for cycling and horse riding. They’re proud of their Made in Germany stamp on their helmets which represents the innovative designs and high-quality manufacturing at their state-of-the-art facilities in Freiberg.
Popular Ked Helmet Models
- Road : Ked Rayzon
- Offroad : Ked Pector ME-1
- Urban : Ked Mitro UE-1
- Kids : Ked POP
More info : Ked
Lazer
Lazer is a bike helmet specialist with a history dating back to 1919. It was started by Henri van Lerberghe who won the 1919 Tour of Flanders. Today Lazer makes helmets for all cycling disciplines and they have been a mainstay in professional cycling for decades. This year, Alpecin-Fenix and Team Jumbo Visma with the likes of Matthew van der Poul and Primoz Roglic will be wearing Lazer helmets at the Tour de France.
Popular Lazer Helmet Models
- Road : Lazer Z1 MIPS
- Offroad : Lazer Chiru MIPS
- Urban : Lazer Urbanize MIPS
- Kids : Lazer Gekko MIPS
More info : Lazer
LEM Helmets
LEM was founded as a MotoGP helmet in 1972 by Romano Magnani in Italy. LEM stands for Lavorazioni Elmi Magnani, which means Helmet Workshop of Magnani. Over the years, LEM has gone through various transformations and makes cycling helmets today. They have moved and are now based out of Morgan Hill in California.
Popular LEM Helmet Models
- Road : LEM Motiv
- Offroad : LEM Flow
- Urban : LEM Boulevard
- Kids : LEM Scout
More info : LEM Helmets
Limar
Limar is based out of the beautiful Italian city of Bergamo. They pride themselves on making the most of technologies to design aerodynamic and innovative helmets such as Air King and Air Pro+ that the Astana Premier Tech riders will wear at the Tour de France. Besides road cycling helmets, they also have helmets for gravel, mountain and dirt biking in their line up.
Popular Limar Helmet Models
- Road : Limar Air Pro+
- Offroad : Limar Air Pro
- Urban : Limar 360º
- Kids : Limar Kid Pro
More info : Limar
Liv
Liv is part of the Giant Bicycle family, who is the largest bike manufacturer in the world based in Taiwan. Liv is Giant Bicycle’s brand for women cycling. Under the Liv brand, there is a wide range of bikes to accessories and clothing; all specifically designed for a female cyclist’s needs.
Popular Liv Helmet Models
- Road : Liv Rev Pro MIPS
- Offroad : Liv Infinita SX MIPS
- Kids : Liv Luta MIPS
More info : Liv
Louis Garneau
Canadian Olympic cyclist Louis Garneau started the brand under his own name in 1983 from his parent’s garage in Saint-Augustin-des-Desmaures, Quebec. Today, they make a range of cycling accessories and apparel from jerseys to helmets and bags. Although not their main focus, Louis Garneau also makes gear for nordic skiing.
Popular Louis Garneau Helmet Models
- Road : Louis Garneau Course
- Offroad : Louis Garneau Raid MIPS
- Urban : Louis Garneau Majestic
More info : Louis Garneau
Lumos
Lumos is most well known for its Kickstarter campaign to develop a bike helmet with built-in front and rear lights back in 2015. Since then, it has gone from strength to strength and improved on its bike helmet offerings. There are now four models of urban helmets in their line up, all with built-in lights
Popular Lumos Helmet Models
- Urban : Lumos Kickstart
More info : Lumos
MET
Although MET have been around for a while, they rose to prominence in 2020 when Tadej Pogacar won the Tour de France wearing their Trenta 3K Carbon helmet. Based in the Valtellina Valley in the Italian Alps, MET is just 100km away from the mystical Stelvio pass. They have a wide range of helmet for road, offroad, downhill and urban cycling.
Popular MET Helmet Models
- Road : MET Trenta 3K Carbon
- Offroad : MET Parachute MCR
- Urban : MET Grancorso
- Kids : MET Eldar
More info : MET
Nutcase
Nutcase was founded in 2000 by a former Nike Creative Director, Michael Morrow from his garage. Nutcase’s focus is on family and this is obvious through their helmet lineup. There are multiple designs to choose from helmets for parents, kids, toddlers and even babies.
Popular Nutcase Helmet Models
- Adult : Nutcase Onyx
- Youth : Nutcase Little Nutty
- Baby : Nutcase Baby Nutty
More info : Nutcase
Oakley
Perhaps better known for their performance cycling sunglasses, Oakley released their first road cycling helmets, the Aro range in 2017. There are now four models in the Aro range, the Aro 3 Lite, Aro 3, Aro 5 and Aro 7 which is for time trials.
Popular Oakley Helmet Models
- Road : Oakley Aro 3
More info : Oakley
POC
Swedish-based POC is known for designing good-looking helmets and sunglasses. Their product line up covers road and offroad cycling and snowsports. They are also the inventor of the SPIN (Shearing Pads INside), a technology that protects against rotational forces similar to MIPS.
Popular POC Helmet Models
- Road : POC Ventral Air SPIN
- Offroad : POC Tectal
- Urban : POC Omne SPIN
More info : POC
Rudy Project
Better known for their wide range of performance eyewear for outdoors, Rudy Project has quite a strong bike helmet lineup which is seldom being talked about.
Popular Rudy Project Helmet Models
- Road : Rudy Project Spectrum
More info : Rudy Project
Salice
Salice is a century-old, family-owned Italian brand based at the shores of Lake Como. Their line up is mainly road bike helmets across a wide range of price points, catering for cyclists with all budgets. The helmets still retain the Italian flair; stylish and yet functional.
Popular Salice Helmet Models
- Road : Salice Stelvio
- Urban : Salice Vento Urban
More info : Salice
Scott
Unbeknown to many, Scott Sports also has bike helmets in their product offerings in recent years. Perhaps more well-known for their road and mountain bikes, Scott like many other brands have moved to expand their offerings from apparel to accessories and even tools. Up until 2020, Team BikeExchange has been riding on Scott bikes and also wearing Scott helmets in the World Tour.
Popular Scott Helmet Models
- Road : Scott Cadence
- Offroad : Scott Fugaa
- Urban : Scott Vivo
- Kids : Scott Spunto
More info : Scott
SH+
SH+ is an Italian outdoor company that has been around for 40 years. Their focus is on making protective gear for cycling and ski sports.
Popular SH+ Helmet Models
- Road : SH+ Shalima Pro
- Urban : Salica Shake City
More info : SH+
Smith Optics
Smith Optics is an American outdoor brand started in 1965 by Dr Bob Smith who was an orthodontist and ski bum. Their product offerings started with skiing gear and gradually expanded into multiple outdoor sports such as cycling and watersports today. Smith Optics now has sunglasses, helmets, and apparel for cycling.
Popular Smith Optics Helmet Models
- Road : Smith Persist
- Offroad : Smith Forefront 2
- Urban : Smith Express
More info : Smith Optics
Specialized
Specialized is one of the leading brands in the cycling industry. Their product range is among the most complete with everything from bikes to accessories, apparel, components, and tools. Their helmets come with the ANGi crash sensor that automatically contacts your emergency contact with your last known location.
Popular Specialized Helmet Models
- Road : S-Works Prevail 2
- Offroad : S-Works Ambush
- Urban : Specialized Align 2
- Kids : Specialized Shuffle
More info : Specialized
Suomy
Soumy started in Italy back in 1997 by Umberto Monti and the help of his two brothers Valter and Maurizio. Its first helmet is not for cycling but for motocross, followed by fencing in 2000 and MotoGP. It wasn’t until 2014 that Soumy entered cycling and today has an extensive lineup of helmets for road cycling.
Popular Soumy Helmet Models
- Road : Soumy Glider 2
- Offroad : Soumy Free
- Urban : Soumy E-Cube
More info : Suomy
Thousand
Based in Los Angeles, Califonia, Thousand produces stylish and high-performance helmets targeting bike commuters. Their most popular model, the Thousand Heritage comes with more than ten color choices. Best of all, there’s a free accident replacement policy.
Popular Thousand Helmet Models
- Urban : Thousand Heritage
- Kids : Thousand Jr.
More info : Thousand
Uvex
Uvex Sports is part of the larger German Uvex Group which is a third-generation family business. Today, Uvex sports make glasses, goggles, and helmets for cycling, equestrian, and winter sports.
Popular Uvex Helmet Models
- Road : Uvex Race 9
- Offoad : Uvex Finale Light
- Urban : Uxev City Active
More info : Uvex
