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With a great pair of winter boots on your feet, snow, ice, and the frigid temperatures won't stop you from having fun or getting your work done.
We considered insulation, tread pattern, lacing systems, and more to find the best winter boots.
The Columbia Bugaboot Plus IV Omni Cold-Weather Boots are our top pick, thanks to the comfort, support, and amazing insulation properties of these boots.
My favorite boots are comfortable, supportive, and have great treads for hiking on all sorts of terrain. They're reliable, they look great ... and they tend to spend many months of the year tucked away on a shelf instead of on my feet. Why? Because they're just not winter boots.
Boots have to provide two qualities to be suitable for use during the winter: insulation and water-resistance. If your boots can't help keep your feet warm and they can't keep your feet dry, then they're just not suitable for wintertime use. And of those two imperative qualities, waterproofing is the most important factor.
Once your socks grow sodden after snow, slush, or rain inundate your footwear, the insulation properties of the boots are no longer of much importance. In the winter, a wet foot is going to be a cold foot, and one more prone to blisters and infection. So while you can always help keep your feet warm with a pair of socks (or with layered socks), you have to use waterproof boots if you'll be hiking, working, or just walking around in areas liable to see snowfall or rain during those colder months. It's no coincidence that most of the boots on our list have the word "waterproof" right in the product title.
But what makes a great winter boot, beyond the warmth and dryness? It's largely relative. You need a winter boot that offers sufficient traction for activities in which you partake, but you don't need the same level of aggressive tread pattern for slushy sidewalks as you do for snowbound trails. You want enough support to help prevent a rolled ankle if you slip on ice, but your winter work boots probably don't need a calf-high rise. You want a lacing system that's snug and secure, but you also want it to be as simple as possible, as you might be wearing gloves or dealing with frosty fingers.
In short, you need to choose a boot that fits the places in which you'll use it and the tasks at hand in said locations. Don't choose a winter boot because it has lots of nifty features that seem clever and keen; choose a winter boot that's going to serve your purposes. We've rounded up the best winter boots you can buy for different use cases and styles. Read on to see which of our picks is for you.
Here are the best winter boots for men:
Updated on 11/13/2018 by Owen Burke: Updated prices and added new picks to replace out-of-stock items.
Read on in the slides below to check out our top picks.
SEE ALSO: The best men's hiking boots you can buy
Best winter boots overall
Why you'll love them: With the Columbia Bugaboot Plus IV Omni Cold-Weather Boots on your feet, you are going to be toasty warm even when the weather isn't, thanks to the advanced insulation and lightweight design.
The Columbia Bugaboot Plus IV Omni Cold-Weather Boots will keep your feet dry if you stand in a stream or puddle. Seriously, you could just step right into the water, and provided it didn't crest the impressive seven-inch rise of the shaft, your feet would not get wet. And were the stream or puddle into which you stepped freezing cold, your feet would stay nice and warm, too. That's because these exceptionally well-made winter boots come with a 200-gram insulation and an Omni-Heat reflective lining that radiates your own body heat right back at you.
You know those metallic emergency blankets (also called space blankets) that people wrap themselves in after an accident or after running a marathon? Columbia's Omni-Heat technology uses much the same approach. The lining consists of multiple little dots of a radiant metallic material that reflects your foot's warmth back into the boot instead of absorbing it and drawing the warmth away from your extremities.
And to top it off (or... bottom it off, to be more precise) these boots have an outsole featuring excellent traction that's lightweight and offers a plenty of energy return. The boots are an ideal choice for winter treks, whether you're hiking across miles of woodland terrain or simply plodding across town on a cold wintry morning.
People don't like the Columbia Bugaboot Plus IV Omni Cold-Weather Boots ... they love them. A fan named Sean called them "worth every penny if you live somewhere where there is heavy snowfall," while an owner named Joey said they were "absolutely amazing" and sharing that he "tested waterproofness by having on no socks and sticking [my] foot in a bathtub filled with water. Even while fully submerged, my foot was dry."
Most professional gear testers eschewed the bathtub test and instead wore their Columbia boots out into the wilderness. A writer with The Wirecutter said they offer "the best balance of warmth, waterproofing, and walkability," while the Gear Institute review called these boots "comfortable out of the box" and noted the roomy toe box.
Pros: Amazing insulation quality, reliably waterproof, good traction on snow, ice, and varied terrain
Cons: Too warm for use except in winter, rather large and bulky
Best classic winter boots
Why you'll love them: L.L. Bean's shearling-lined 10-inch boots are the warmest of the bunch, but any of the Bean Boots will serve you well through both fall and winter, and they go with most outfits.
L.L. Bean's boots were introduced in 1912, and haven't changed much since. That's because they haven't had to.
Leon Leonwood Bean did generations of anglers and hunters a serious solid by tacking together these remarkably warm and dry boots. The Bean Boots went on to become the genesis of his stardom more than a century ago. Today, you'll find them everywhere from the backwoods of Maine to the boroughs of the Big Apple.
While many of L.L. Bean's products are being made offshore these days, the company continues to craft a select few of its products stateside, including the beloved Bean Boots.
Constructed using rubber bottoms and soles, a steel shank, full-grain leather uppers, and 3M Thinsulate, these boots have hardly changed since the start. Of course, there was no 3M nor Thinsulate in the early 20th century, but the design, the leather, and the rubber have all remained the same.
One thing that has changed L.L. Bean's boot game is variety. There are more than 30 styles of Bean Boots to choose from with an array of linings so there's a pair for each season.
These boots are part of the history of exploration and expedition themselves, having gone to war for the United States Army and forayed both poles. They are also storied to have found their way onto Ernest Hemingway's feet, who, according to GQ, even went so far as to recommend them himself.
The endorsements don't stop there. Popular Mechanics recently discussed The Never-Ending Greatness of L.L. Bean's Boots, and GQ has sung L.L. Bean's praise for years. One staff member here at Insider Inc. made a pair of these boots last more than 30 years. Here's proof.
Reviews on L.L. Bean's site are almost entirely positive across the board, yielding a 4.6/5-star rating, with only a handful of negative reviews coming from customers who seemed to get the odd bad pair.
Unfortunately, L.L. Bean's lifetime guarantee was discontinued, and purchases only come with a one-year warranty from here on out. We're sad to see this longstanding tradition go, but will still stand by Bean's boots unless the quality itself starts to drop. — Owen Burke
Pros: Sturdy, high-end leather and rubber, steel shank for support, not outrageously priced, hand-stitched
Cons: Maybe not the most fashion-forward boots you'll come across this season (or next), but their beauty lies in their utilitarianism
Best affordable winter work boots
A good work boot helps you accomplish your tasks without you even knowing it's there. Work boots need to be supportive and protective yet lightweight enough for the long hours required at the construction site, the farm, or the landscaping job. They need to keep your feet warm and dry in the winter, but not be so heavily insulated as to make feet sweat when your body temperature is raised. And of course, work boots need to be tough enough to endure the abuse that comes with the toughest jobs.
The Ever Boots Ultra Dry Insulated Waterproof Work Boots score high marks when tested against every one of the aforementioned standards, and they even have one more attribute worth noting: They look great. While aesthetics might have little effect on how well you get your work done, you might as well choose a work boot that looks good, right?
Made with full grain leather, these boots are a great choice for workers in areas where winter precipitation can be heavy. Beyond that waterproof leather, they have watertight stitches, water-resistant laces, and a seal added along the sole to help make sure no snowmelt, rain, or slush ever soaks through to your feet.
These boots have a solid 4.5-star rating with hundreds of reviews posted on Amazon. One customer calls them "warm and waterproof" while another says they are "sturdy and at a good price."
A gear tester with AllThingsWaterproof.com called the Ever Boots Ultra Dry Insulated Waterproof Work Boots "ideal for construction, landscaping, gardening" and more, while a MyWorkWear.org writer noted the affordable price and the "high-quality materials and exceptional workmanship."
Consider stepping down a half-size because, in our experience, these boots tend to run large.
Pros: Great price point, reliable waterproofing, classic work boot look
Cons: Sizes run too large, break-in period required
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