Best Winter/Snow Tires

Drivers who travel in snowy conditions and those who just want the best grip possible in wintry weather should consider winter/snow tires. They provide optimum grip to stop, go, and take sharp turns on snow or icy roads.

These tires are suitable for any vehicle—front-, rear-, or even all-wheel drive—but always use them in sets of four for the best grip and balanced handling.

All winter/snow tires that we’ve tested have impressed us with their grip in wintry conditions, but most of them have less grip on dry and wet roads than all-season tires. This is reason enough to take them off come spring, let alone that winter/snow tires wear much more rapidly.

The short answer is sooner than you may think. Buying before the first frost ensures that the local tire shop has good inventory. By the time snow is falling, finding the right model in your size can become difficult. Because tires are manufactured well in advance in the off-season, inventory usually won’t be replenished until the following year.

In the early fall, inspect your all-season and/or dedicated winter/snow tires for tread depth, condition, and age. Check the tread depth using a quarter, placing George Washington’s head down in each major groove. If the top of his head is just about flush with the tread, then you’ll need new tires soon. Tires lose snow traction as they wear; they depend on tread blocks for grip. We generally recommend shopping for new tires when the tread is down to 4/32 of an inch. After that point, our tests show there’s a significant decrease in grip, affecting safety. This is especially true with snow. Ultimately, err on the side of caution. It’s better to buy sooner rather than later.

Consumer Reports tests more than 40 tire models every year, those suited for cars, SUVs, and trucks. This extensive program involves purchasing, installing, and evaluating about 800 tires every 12 months. We test them at our track in Connecticut for wet and dry braking and handling, ride comfort and quietness, and resistance to hydroplaning (when water gets between the tire and the pavement). We perform our snow-traction tests at our Auto Test Center and sometimes in northern Michigan. Ice-braking evaluations are done at a skating rink.

The Overall Score for winter/snow tires emphasizes snow traction and braking on ice, the main motivations for buying such tires in the first place. Winter/snow tires typically have a tread compound that stays pliable in the cold and numerous biting edges for gripping snow and ice. The trade-off is a shorter tread life.

Below, we present the best tires in several winter-ready categories and a smart alternative to steer you in the right direction.

Our dynamic ratings chart allows you to fine-tune your selection based on criteria that matter most to you, and our tire finder will match tires to your specific car.

Detailed ratings on more than 130 models are available if you’re a ConsumerReports.org member.

See the complete tire ratings.