The best heated gloves we tested:
Best heated mittens: Snow Deer Heated Mittens
Best heated gloves: Snow Deer Upgraded Heated Gloves
You can have the best jacket, snow pants, base layer and winter hat in the world, but if there’s one thing that can truly put a damper on your outside adventure, it’s cold hands. While there are many winter gloves on the market, if you’re looking to step it up a notch and ensure your hands truly stay warm and dry, heated gloves are the way to go.
From firsthand experience, I can attest that heated gloves are a true game changer. After spending every single weekend skiing this winter, heated gloves have allowed me to spend all day on the mountain — even though I typically get cold quite easily.
From shoveling snow to spending all day out on the slopes, there’s a heated glove or mitten that will fit your lifestyle. To find the best one for you, we tested 16 different pairs. Here are the two that stood out.
For those looking for absolute warmth —?without compromising comfort, quality or fit —?the Snow Deer Heated Mittens are the best option. With a low price point, up to nine hours of heat and many features you’d want to see in a mitten, we think these are the best heated mittens for most people.
If you prefer a glove fit over a mitten, then the Snow Deer Upgraded Heated Gloves won’t steer you wrong. With warmth throughout your entire hand, including your fingers and thumb, you’ll never have to stop your outdoor adventure due to cold hands. Also featuring a reasonable price, up to nine hours of warmth and many desirable features, these are a great buy.?
Best heated mittens: Snow Deer Heated Mittens
$80 at Amazon
If you’re looking for mittens that will keep you warm in bitter-cold temperatures, then the Snow Deer Heated Mittens are by far your best choice. Within 60 seconds of turning on the battery, I could feel the warmth radiating throughout the entire mitten. And unlike some other mittens where the heating elements could only be felt on just the top of the hand, the Snow Deers kept the entire mitt, including my fingers and thumbs, incredibly toasty.
These mittens offer three different heating levels —?high, medium and low —?giving you the perfect amount of warmth based on your activity and the outside temperature. With the press of a button on the top of the mitt, you can easily change to a different setting, and the battery indicator alerts you to how much juice you have left.
When using an infrared thermometer, this glove reached an incredibly high 154 degrees Fahrenheit,?offering the second-highest temperature of the gloves we tested behind the Shaalek Heated Gloves. This was at the highest setting, where the battery lasted about two and a half hours. While the Snow Deers had a slightly shorter battery life compared to most of the other gloves (the average was approximately three hours on high), you’ll most likely stick to the medium and low settings with them, due to their high temp when on the hottest setting.
At the medium setting, the mitten proved to have one of the best balances of warmth and battery life in our pool, hitting 125 degrees Fahrenheit for a full four and a half hours. At this temperature, the mitten provided more warmth than most of the others we tested, even when they were on the highest setting,?ranking in the top third comparatively. And unlike many of the other mittens which radiate little to no heat while on the lowest setting, this mitten still reached 86 degrees Fahrenheit (the baseline temperature was about 67.7 degrees). This, paired with an impressive battery life of nine hours on low, means you’ll have no problem keeping your fingers warm for extended periods of time. If you want to keep them at a higher setting for longer and the charge from the 7.4-volt, 2,200mAh batteries isn’t enough, you can also purchase backup batteries to keep your hands toasty all day long.
Besides taking the temperature of each of the mittens with a thermometer, we also performed our own real-life testing by wearing them on the ski slopes for over four house on a cold winter day. We found that toggling between the low and medium settings provided the perfect warmth with zero cold spots. We also wanted to compare the warmth of the Snow Deer Mitten to a non-heated but still incredibly insulated and high-end mitten. To do this we wore the Snow Deer Mitten on one hand and our own beloved Swany Ladown Mitten on the other. At the end of the two hours, the Snow Deer Mitten outperformed the traditional mitten for two major reasons. While both hands stayed comparably warm, our thumb was significantly warmer in the Snow Deer, thanks to the heating coils lining the digit. Additionally, our hands were never sweaty in the Snow Deer Mittens,?something we experienced with the Swany Ladown Mitten due to the excessive insulation.
The Snow Deer Mittens are also constructed well, with no loose threads and reinforced leather on the palm, making it easy to hold our ski poles. This was on par with the other mittens tested, so despite having the lowest price point in the mitten space, quality was not compromised. The inside of the mitten is also soft to the touch — within the top quarter of all gloves and mittens tested — and our hands never got too clammy.
When you’re wearing a heated glove or mitten, it’s important that they’re waterproof. If they’re not, not only will your hands get wet and cold but the wiring and battery inside could also be at risk. To test whether or not all the gloves could keep your fingers dry, we left them out in a snowstorm for an hour and then checked the inside for any dampness. The Snow Deer Mittens passed with flying colors, staying completely dry on the inside,?which wasn’t the case with all the gloves and mittens we tested. While most fared the storm quite well, about a third of them were saturated with water or dampness inside. Snow Deer doesn’t say these are fully waterproof, but we found them to be quite water-resistant. If you want extra protection, Snow Deer also has a version it claims is completely waterproof, but we didn’t test them.
Lack of dexterity is an issue with all mittens, especially bulky heated ones, since your fingers aren’t separated. However, the Snow Deer Mittens have integrated finger slots to help with mobility. We still had some challenges zipping a coat while wearing the Snow Deers, but in general, the extra dexterity did help us perform ski tasks like buckling helmets, gripping poles and putting on boots better than the other mittens we tried.
Plus, since the Snow Deers have touchscreen capability — a feature found in all the other mittens we tested —?we could even answer phone calls. However, we ultimately found gloves —?not mittens — with both thumb and pointer finger touchscreen capability to give us better usage of our phone. We found the mittens to be true to size and appreciate the wide variety of sizing options?ranging from XXS to XXL.
The mittens also offer a unique cuff pocket, which is large enough to hold money, a credit card or even chapstick. You’ll also find pull cords to ensure no water or wind enters the glove and a wrist guard if you’re looking for a snugger fit —?two features that were common among most of the mittens tested.
The one feature we would have loved to see, however, is wrist straps,?although this wasn’t found in most of the other gloves we tested either. When skiing, not being able to have the mittens dangle from my wrists was a nuisance. That being said, this shouldn’t be a deal breaker, as you can always purchase generic wrist straps separately and add them to the mitten. In fact, we took wrist straps from our old gloves and tied them onto the outside loop. The Snow Deer Heated Mittens also didn’t have a nose wipe, but this wasn’t a feature we found on most of the less expensive gloves and mittens.
If you’re looking for a mitten that will give you the most amount of warmth possible —?without breaking the bank —?then these are the perfect option. With three different settings, up to nine hours of battery life and features that rivaled the rest of the gloves we tested, you’ll be quite impressed. Whether you’re hitting the ski slopes, sitting outside at your favorite sporting event or just outside for a walk, rest assured that your entire hand will stay warm for an extended time with the Snow Deer Heated Mittens.
Best heated gloves: Snow Deer Upgraded Heated Gloves
$129 at Amazon
If you were sold on the Snow Deer Heated Mittens but prefer a glove, then the Snow Deer Upgraded Heated Gloves are the pick for you.
With five individual fingers, these gloves offer more dexterity, enabling us to zip a jacket and unclip a ski helmet more easily. The touchscreen capability on both the pointer finger and thumb also made it easier to text on our phone —?a feature that was found on most of the gloves we tested. However, compared to all those other gloves, we found that the Snow Deer gloves worked exceptionally well.
As most know, the separated fingers of a glove come at a cost. As a general rule, mittens?are warmer than gloves since mittens group your fingers together so they can share warmth (minus your thumb). Gloves, on the other hand, don’t allow each finger to share the same body heat so if one finger gets cold, it has a harder time warming up.
This rang true in our testing, as not only did we feel a difference when wearing the gloves but the temperature reading in our standardized test was about 10 degrees lower on the Snow Deer Upgraded Heated Gloves than their mitten counterparts (at the high and medium settings). While these gloves still kept our fingers incredibly warm, we found ourselves using the medium setting more during a cold day on the ski slopes.
While they’re not quite as warm as the Snow Deer Mittens, these gloves had the same impressive battery life —?up to nine hours —?and stayed dry on the interior when sitting outside in a snowstorm for an hour.
These were some of the most comfortable gloves we tried (right behind Outdoor Research’s Sureshot Gloves and Seirus’ HeatTouch Atlas Gloves) and offered complete movement of our fingers and thumbs, which was not the case in all the gloves we tested. Made of the same material as the mittens, you’ll find sheep’s leather on the entire palm and fingers, and a soft interior. Like the Snow Deer mittens, these gloves also offer a pull cord, a wrist cinch and 7.4-volt, 2,200mAh rechargeable batteries. We found the gloves true to size, with multiple sizing options from XS to XXXL.
We ultimately loved these gloves. While they might be a smidge less warm than the mitten version, they are the perfect addition to your outdoor wardrobe if you’re looking to give your fingers more movement and dexterity. They have most of the features you need (besides wrist straps), are one of the most comfortable gloves we tested and can keep your entire hand warm for up to nine hours, all for a comparatively low price of $129.
Everything you need to know about heated gloves
Heated gloves are exactly what they sound like:?a regular glove or mitten with a rechargeable battery heater in the cuff to keep your hands nice and warm. But with so many options available, there are some key components you’ll want to keep in mind.
First, you’ll want to determine if you prefer a glove or a mitten style. Gloves separate your fingers and thumb, allowing you more mobility with everyday tasks. Meanwhile, mittens have two sections —?one to keep all four fingers together and one for the thumb. While mittens don’t allow for the same dexterity as gloves do, they typically keep your hands the warmest.
There are a few options that try to blend the two styles, including lobster or claw gloves, which separate your pointer finger from the rest to give you a bit more dexterity. You can often buy glove liners to go inside your favorite pair of mittens too, which adds both dexterity and warmth (but might be too warm depending on the temperature and activity). Both of these are great options; however, they aren’t popular in the heated glove market quite yet.
You’ll then want to consider the temperature desired, which might depend on what you plan to do. If you’re camping or spending a lot of time outside without much activity, you’ll most likely want a glove or mitten that provides the most warmth possible. But if you won’t be outside for long or you might break a sweat like when skiing or shoveling the driveway,?look for a glove that offers more subtle heat.
Along with the warmth provided, a key feature of a heated glove is its battery life. The rechargeable batteries found in gloves typically last anywhere between two and 12 hours —?depending on the glove and the heat setting used (with most offering three different heat settings). If you’re only looking for gloves to use while taking the dog for a walk in the early morning, then most gloves will keep their warmth for that time frame. But if you’re looking to catch the first and last chair on the ski slopes, you’ll want a glove that lasts all day. Many gloves and mittens also offer the option to purchase a second set of batteries to ensure you don’t run out of heat when needed.
Last but not least, you will want to be mindful of weather resistance, comfort and any extra features. Your outdoor activity might determine how much this matters to you. For example, if you’re looking to play outside all day in the snow with your children, then waterproof gloves and mittens are probably more of a necessity than those who are looking for extra warmth while watching an outdoor sporting event.
How we tested
To help find the best heated gloves and mittens, we picked 16 of the most popular ones available and put them to the test. From controlled tests at home to wearing them on the ski slopes and even leaving them outside in a snowstorm, we were able to assess each glove to the fullest. We then evaluated each glove based on three categories: warmth, comfort and features.
Warmth
- Temperature: Using an infrared thermometer, we tested the interior heat of each glove at the 15-minute, 1-hour, 2-hour and 3-hour marks. This test was repeated at all heat settings — typically high, medium and low. We also wore each glove for a minimum of two hours while skiing in New Hampshire and Vermont, with temperatures around 20 degrees Fahrenheit — allowing us to gauge the warmth of each glove.
- Battery life: During our temperature testing, we noted the battery life for each setting option.
- Initial heat-up time: While wearing each glove, we turned on the battery and timed how long it took to feel the heat kick in.
- Water resistance: During a wet and heavy snowstorm, we left the gloves outside for an hour at the beginning of the storm to test the interior water saturation.
Comfort
- Fit: We evaluated how well the glove fit (with the battery) when wearing a winter jacket, as well as if it fit true to size.
- Dexterity: During a regular ski day, we wore each glove for at least two hours to determine how easy it was to maneuver regular tasks. This included holding ski poles, carrying skis, fixing ski goggles, putting on a helmet, buckling boots and zipping a coat.
Features
- Touchscreen compatibility: We tried using our iPhone while wearing the gloves, noting how easy it was to text, make a phone call and open apps.
- Battery indicators: We noted whether or not the glove includes a battery indicator to communicate how much juice is left.
- Material: We evaluated the material of each glove to test the quality in cold and/or wet conditions.
- Bonus features: We checked the quality and quantity of any additional features, such as wrist straps, nose wipes and glove clips.
Other heated gloves we tested
Ororo Buffalo Heated Gloves 2.0
$130 From $110 at Amazon
The Ororo brand is top of mind for many when it comes to heated apparel, but these gloves didn’t live up to the hype when compared to many other brands. While the glove provided three hours of battery life on the highest setting, the heat temperature was in the bottom third when measured against the entire testing pool. And at the medium setting —?where the battery lasted an impressive five hours — we felt minimal heat. The battery is also on the larger side, impacting our comfort when worn with a winter jacket. On the plus side, you can charge the battery with a universal Micro USB cord, whereas most of the others require a specific charger and could be problematic if left at home.
Ororo Amsterdam Heated Mittens 2.0?
$150 From $105 at Amazon
These mittens radiated heat significantly better than the other Ororo gloves we tested and also had a strong battery life —?although still not as good as our top pick, the Snow Deer Heated Mittens. But similar to our winning mittens, the interior offers individual finger slots. Our main concern with these mittens is that when sitting outside for an hour during a snowstorm, the interiors became pretty wet,?especially in the thumbs. Even 24 hours later, the mittens were quite damp on the inside, while all other gloves and mittens were perfectly dry.
Ororo Twin Cities 3-in-1 Heated Gloves
$150 at Amazon
From a warmth perspective, these gloves fell right between the Ororo Buffalo gloves and Amsterdam mittens we tested, with a similar battery life. The main difference is that these gloves include a thick interior liner that houses the battery and heating grid. This allows you to wear the liner or glove separately, or both together. Similar to the Ororo mittens, these gloves retained moisture, which seeped into the liner throughout the day. The gloves are also incredibly bulky when wearing the liner and glove together and were our least favorite from a comfort standpoint.
Savior Heat Heated Ski Gloves
$170 From $98 at Amazon
These gloves have a very similar look and feel to our pick for the best gloves, the Snow Deer Upgraded Heated Gloves. From the features offered to the material used, you’d think they were the same exact glove. These let off similar warmth to the Snow Deer?at all three heat settings, but we found that the battery lasted slightly longer on the Snow Deer version. The Snow Deer gloves are also slightly less expensive.
Savior Heat Heated Mittens
$120 $99 at Amazon
If you’re a fan of the Snow Deer Heated Mittens but prefer an option without the interior finger separators, then this is an excellent option. While the Snow Deer mittens radiated slightly more heat and the battery life was a tad longer, this will be negligible for most. For a full mitten option, these will keep you nice and toasty throughout the day. But be aware, the battery insert is inside the glove with a Velcro close?instead of a zipper. While we didn’t experience any issues while wearing the glove, this pocket seemed less secure than the others we tested.
Venustas Heated Gloves
$130 From $84 at Amazon
The gauntlet-style cuff of these gloves offered a nice fit when wearing a winter coat, but our main gripe with them is the battery placement. As one of the few gloves that offered a battery on the top of the cuff, the glove was slightly heavier and not very comfortable when also wearing a watch. Comfort aside, the gloves offer quality material and radiate heat throughout; they also lasted seven hours on the lowest setting. However, we found that the touchscreen capability didn’t work well.
Akaso Heated Gloves
$91 From $64 at Amazon
Offering a similar look and design to the Venustas gloves we tested, these gloves radiated slightly less heat, the battery length was slightly shorter on the lowest setting and there was some interior dampness after being left outside in the snow for an hour. Although, the touchscreen capability was significantly better than that of the Venustas glove.
Outdoor Research Sureshot Heated Softshell Glove
$269 at Backcountry
If you’re looking for something slightly warmer than a liner but not as bulky as a winter glove, this soft-shell glove offers the perfect balance. With these gloves, you’ll have full movement of your entire hand, while also staying for your everyday outside activities. Unfortunately, though, on high heat, the battery lasted just shy of two hours, which was the shortest of the bunch. And while the battery life lasted for close to four hours on the low heat setting, not much heat?was provided. The gloves were also slightly saturated when being left outside in the snow. While we wouldn’t suggest these gloves for a cold or snowy day, they could be the perfect addition for an outside sporting event or walking the dog.
Outdoor Research Prevail Heated GTX Mitt
$339 at Backcountry
While sitting outside in the snow, these Gore-Tex gloves stayed completely dry on the inside. With a wrist strap, nose wipe, pull cord, superior touchscreen capability and a leather palm, these mittens have all the features you’d hope to find in a mitt —?especially for those participating in outdoor sports. On the high setting, the mittens provided heat —?although subtle —?for a full four hours, which was one of the longer lengths in our testing pool. However, the range of motion on the thumb was restricting, preventing us from completing simple tasks while wearing the mittens.
The North Face Heated Montana Inferno Etip
$250 $175 at Backcountry
These gloves from The North Face lived up to the brand’s known quality, with a full leather palm, leather around the knuckles and an incredibly soft, fleece-lined interior. They also feature wrist gaiters, a pull cord, a nose wipe, a wrist strap and a universal USB-C charger (in case you forget your charger at home). And with an oversized gauntlet, the glove —?with the battery inside —?was the perfect fit. After sitting outside in an hour of falling snow, these gloves appeared to be the warmest of the bunch.
Despite offering all the features, the glove just didn’t get that warm. But if you’re looking for just a little bit of extra heat?on an already heavyweight glove,?these will give you just that.
Sealskinz Filby Waterproof Heated Gauntlet
$260 $182 at Backcountry
Made of high-quality material, including goatskin leather, PrimaLoft Gold and a waterproof membrane and polyethylene coating to seal out the moisture, these gloves stayed incredibly dry while being outside in the wet snow. When turned on, the temperature was in the middle of the pack, although it was primarily felt on the top of the hand and not much on the fingers or thumb. On the high heat setting, the battery lasted for almost a full three and a half hours, allowing for extended warmth. While the gloves are less bulky than most, some might find the cinching on the wrist to be too tight. They are also the only gloves and mittens tested that didn’t offer any touchscreen capability.
Wasoto Heated Gloves
$100 From $50 at Amazon
As the least expensive price point in the bunch, these gloves performed surprisingly well. During both our temperature testing and our real-life testing, these gloves ranked in the top third in warmth and the battery length lasted a full nine hours on the lowest setting. These gloves offer many features, including wrist gaiters, a pull cord, touchscreen capability and an easy-to-read battery life indicator. While the gloves were slightly restricting in our finger movements, the large cuff made the glove easy to wear with any jacket type.
At the normal $100 price point, we’d recommend the Snow Deer Gloves, but if you’re able to get the Wasotos on sale and you’re looking to save a few bucks, you might want to consider these gloves instead.
Shaalek Heated Gloves
$100 $60 at Amazon
With five heat settings, these gloves were the warmest of the pack and had an impressive battery life of up to 12 hours. The style is very different from the rest of the gloves, with a bulky knuckle protector and a large battery on top of the cuff, making the glove much heavier and less comfortable. They have a cuff that can go under your jacket and a gauntlet to cinch around the outside for weather protection, but the fit doesn’t work too well with a true winter jacket. However, if you’re looking for the warmest glove possible with some extra protection and an extremely long battery life, this is a great option —?especially for the price.
Seirus HeatTouch Atlas Gloves
$250 at REI
If we were going solely based on comfort, these gloves would be a true winner. They are the most flexible and unrestricted glove we tested, allowing us to perform any task?with ease. But at this price point, the gloves didn’t keep us as warm as we would have liked. At the highest setting —?with a battery life of about two and a half hours —?we could feel warmth primarily on the top of our hands, but we didn’t feel any heat when the glove was turned down to the medium or lowest setting.
