The Best Ski Goggles
Good goggles are still a genuine essential rather than a nice-to-have, for the same reason as ever: you cannot ski terrain you cannot see, and flat light hurts more than cold does.
Lens tint is the decision that matters. A low-light rose, amber or yellow lens lifts contrast on a grey day and is the single biggest improvement most people can make. A dark mirrored lens is for bluebird spring days and is useless in cloud. If you only own one, buy the middle: a lens rated around 20 to 40 per cent visible light transmission covers most conditions badly and nothing well.
So buy a frame with a quick lens swap. This is the real change since 2009. Magnetic and lever-release systems from Smith, Anon, Giro and Oakley now let you change lens in a lift queue with gloves on, and most ship with a second low-light lens in the box. That combination replaced the old advice to own two pairs.
Photochromic lenses are the other option worth knowing: one lens that darkens and lightens with the conditions. They cost more and react slightly slower than swapping, but they mean never carrying a spare.
Fit still beats specification. Try them on with your helmet, in the shop, together. A gap between goggle and helmet brow is a cold stripe across your forehead all day, and a frame that does not seal on your nose fogs no matter what the lens costs.
Do not wipe the inside. The anti-fog coating is on that surface and rubbing it off is how a good pair becomes a bad one. Shake out the snow and let them dry.
Part of the guide to ski and snowboard.