In this article you’ll find the best summer road bike helmets to keep you as cool as possible no matter how hard you push yourself.
Doing any road cycling without a helmet is a stupid at best, but when the temperature is rising and you’re putting in some hard effort on a bike, helmets can get hot and uncomfortable very quickly. More than once I’ve found myself getting frustrated with sweat dripping into my eyes and onto my glasses.
The best helmets have all kinds of neat tricks to keep the temperature down. From brow vents, to moisture-wicking anti-microbial liners, helmet webbing to funnel airflow across the scalp, and intricate ventilation system to suck cool air into the helmet and vent hot air.
Staying cool is a very important aspect of the helmet being comfortable to wear. And a great fit without the creation of hot spots, besides being well ventilated, is another big plus in the comfort department.
The helmets on this list feature one or more of these technologies and are considered best-in-class in the ventilation department. So besides protecting you in case of a crash, these summer road bike helmets will be a great addition to your road cycling getup.
Giro Agilis MIPS
The Giro Agilis MIPS is a mid-tier road bike helmet for a reasonable enough price.
The biggest difference between this helmet and the much cheaper Isode MIPS is the number of vents and fit system.
This helmet is markedly different from the Isode by incorporating 32 instead of 22 vents. The number of vents isn’t necessarily indicative of its cooling characteristics, but in this case the Agilis indeed does a better job of controlling airflow and keeping your head cool.
Furthermore it offers the hardbody polycarbonate reinforced shell besides the MIPS Evolve technology. And it has the lighter Roc Loc 5 fit system keeping the weight of this helmet around 300 grams for a medium. The padding is anti-microbial as well.
It makes for an incredibly comfortable helmet for a price half that of its more premium counterparts. It seems that for the top-of-the-line safety features like MIPS Spherical and dual-density EPS liners you also have to pay top dollar. Although this kind of makes sense, there’s no denying that the Agiliis offers a tremendous value-for-money package.
The shell wraps the edges of the entire helmet, making it more sturdy and resistant to liner damage and comes it a number of excellent color combinations. It’s one of my favorite mid-tier helmets, where you get almost all of the features you need for a decent price.
- Excellent, high-quality road racing helmet. Extremely comfortable yet very affordable.
- None
Giro Aether Spherical
The Giro Aether Spherical is arguably a better value-for-money proposition than the far more expensive Aries Spherical.
That’s because it boasts the exact same crash technology in a slightly different package. MIPS Spherical crash technology to reduce rotational impact forces, a multi-density EPS liner, and a reinforced polycarbonate shell. All are the same.
The Roc Loc 5 Air fit system is also featured, ensuring a great fit of the helmet with multiple ways to adjust the padding, vertical height and circumference. To keep you cool, air is ingeniously guided along your head.
There are many colors to choose from to fit the rest of your outfit or your bike. All in all a no-brainer if you value safety and are willing to spend the money on a premium helmet such as this one.
- One of the best value-for-money helmets in the premium segment.
- Still pretty expensive
Giro Aries Spherical
The Giro Aries Spherical is one of the safest if not the safest helmet within its category. It also has the highest suggested retail price at 300 USD. On its product page Giro boasts the helmet having the lowest Virginia Tech helmet rating (lower is better), and you have to if you charge this price.
So what exactly do you get for the money? This is one of a couple of helmets offering the MIPS Spherical technology, which reduces rotational damage with a ball-in-socket helmet setup. Furthermore the polycarbonate shell is reinforced with twin bridges on each side, alongside a roll-cage-like reinforced band. It all makes for an incredibly strong helmet that doesn’t weigh more than your average similar helmet.
It has silicon beads so sweat doesn’t drip into your eyes, or runs down your glasses, which is a feature far more useful than you might think.
The helmet is tightened on your head with the Roc Loc 5 Air fit system, something featured in all of their premium models. And something that does a great job of keeping the lightweight lid in place.
- Virginia Tech's best-rated helmet in terms of safety
- The most expensive helmet within its category
POC Octal MIPS
I will not hide the fact that I’m a fan of the Swedish brand, and with the POC Octal MIPS they’ve created another fantastic-looking product to their already impressive lineup.
Always striving to cram their products with the best technology the Octal MIPS features the Integra version of this crash technology, which means the slip plane is customized to the specifics of this helmet. The helmet has a unibody build for enhanced structural integrity in case of a crash.
It’s touted as being extremely lightweight, with a stripped down EPS liner and fit system, but it isn’t really. 270 grams sits just below the average for a premium bike helmet such as this one, and if you really want the lightest helmet you have to look somewhere else.
Personally, I feel again that this helmet is the best-looking of the whole bunch, but am acutely aware of the subjectivity of that statement. And I have read a number of comments from people being less favorable about its above-average width. Nonetheless is the craftsmanship of this helmet undeniable, and it has a safety rating to match.
- Distinctive design, excellent fit.
- None
POC Ventral Air MIPS
The POC Ventral Air MIPS is a premium road bike helmet from the Swedish brand.
POC offers cleanly designed products crammed with the best technology within its specific product category. In the case of the Ventral AIR, it offers the MIPS Integra technology within a unibody shell. It’s a custom fit slip plane for a helmet with excellent structural integrity.
In terms of comfort they offer their rather finicky adjustable 360-degree fit system. However, once set up it proves a solid fit, no hot spots, and great ventilation.
The helmet has been wind-tunnel tested. I don’t have any comparison data between helmets, but it speaks volumes about POC’s approach towards road bike helmet design.
The helmet is known for its ability to keep your head cool during the hottest summer rides.
- Superb ventilation in a unique looking road bike helmet.
- Very expensive
Lazer G1 MIPS
The Lazer G1 MIPS is marketed as one of the lightest helmets in its category. And to be fair it is.
Yet I want to put the 235 grams of this helmet in perspective, because the average road bike helmet weighs 280 grams. That’s 45 grams heavier and something you will not notice while riding.
On the other hand, things like ventilation and fit are far more important things with respect to comfort than a couple of grams less. And luckily this helmet performs exceptionally well in that area. You get 2 different sets of padding to fully customize the fit.
Unlike your classic dial at the base of your skull you actually modify the fit with a wheel on top of the helmet. This non-indexed dial draws the helmet tight around your head around the entirety of its circumference.
Although it does a fantastic job of creating a superb fit, the two strings underneath the helmet look rather delicate. And I’m familiar with fit systems breaking with helmets being stuffed into bags. So that’s something you might want to keep in mind if you’re not the type of person who’s really careful with her/his material.
In terms of safety it offers MIPS technology and sits just behind Giro’s Aries Spherical, so its most important feature is taken care of. And a helmet cover is included to marginally increase aerodynamic properties or protect you from the rain.
- One of the both lightest and safest helmets.
- Delicate fit system. You pay a hefty price to safe a few grams.
Lazer Sphere MIPS
The Lazer Sphere MIPS is an excellent choice if you want a helmet with a proven track record in safety without paying an absurd price.
When looking at the catalog of helmet manufacturers you can see an exponential increase in price to obtain the latest technology or the lightest variants. The Lazer Sphere MIPS is an excellent example of this, where a decent price get’s you all the latest bells and whistles in a slightly heavier package than Lazer’s top dog.
MIPS technology, the ARS fit system with the non-indexed dial on top of the helmet, and a weight of 280 grams, which is the exact average for road bike helmets all make for a great package.
- Excellent value for money.
- Delicate fit system
Kask Protone Icon
The Kask Protone Icon stylish looks underwrites its premium nature as the best road bike helmet the brand has to offer.
Extremely lightweight at 230 grams, the helmet has huge intake vents which are reinforced. A well-chosen color-scheme provides a sharp contrast between the glossy or matt polycarbonate and the black reinforced EPS liner.
The amount of ventilation achieved, makes this one of the best helmets for hot and summer rides. And well-placed vents in the front alongside the CoolMax padding keep your head dry and prevent hot spots and sweat from going places where you don’t want it to go.
The Octo Fit system does a perfect job of fastening the helm evenly around your head, offering both vertical and horizontal adjustment.
Everything pro peloton riders use can be had for a small fortune, and the same goes for this helmet, which is incredibly expensive. But for that money you get an exceptionally well-designed, highly ventilated, and comfortable road bike helmet.
- Incredible levels of comfort and ventilation in one of the best-looking road bike helmets.
- Extremely expensive
Specifications summer road bike helmets
Name | Price | Technology | Shell | Liner | Visor | Fit | weight (gr) | eyewear port | rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Giro Agilis MIPS | 100 USD | MIPS/Hardbody | polycarbonate | EPS | none | Roc Loc 5 w. Slimline buckle | 300 | ||
Giro Aether Spherical | 225 USD | MIPS Air/Spherical/Aura II | polycarbonate | Progressive Layering 3-layer EPS | none | Roc Loc 5 Air | 280 | yes | 12.51 |
Giro Aries Spherical | 300 USD | MIPS Air/Spherical/Aura II | polycarbonate | Progressive Layering 3-layer EPS | none | Roc Loc 5 Air | 275 | yes | 8.4 |
POC Octal MIPS | 200 EUR | MIPS Integra/Unibody | polycarbonate | EPS | none | lightweight system | 270 | yes | 10.59 |
POC Ventral Air MIPS | 260 EUR | MIPS Integra/Unibody | polycarbonate | EPS | none | adjustable 360-degree fit | 295 | ||
Lazer G1 MIPS | 250 USD | MIPS | polycarbonate | EPS | none | ARS | 235 | 9.23 | |
Lazer Sphere MIPS | 160 USD | MIPS | polycarbonate | EPS | none | ARS | 280 | 10.23 | |
Kask Protone Icon | 275 EUR | MIT/Inner Frame | polycarbonate | EPS | none | Octo-fit | 230 |
Johan van Seijen
FoundeR Restoration.bike
Johan van Seijen is the founder of restoration.bike. His passion for cycling in general, and restoring older bikes turned into a website to share his knowledge with a broader audience. Starting out on his father’s road bike and riding classics as the Amstel Gold Race and Liege Bastogne Liege he has shifted his attention to trail, XC, and gravel riding since. No matter how much he loves writing about everything related to cycling, nothing beats actually using his ever-expanding bicycle collection.
You might also like
The 6 most important criteria on how to choose a road bike helmet
As someone who’s tasted pavement unwillingly more than once, I can tell you how important road bike helmets can be. In this article I’m going
The 8 top selling cycling helmets
With this article I’ll be sharing the top selling cycling helmets of the last few months. The list is compiled based on aggregated sales statistics from Amazon worldwide, including United States, Cana
The top 7 lightest road bike helmets in 2023
In this article I’m going to give my views on the lightest road bike helmets money can buy.
I can appreciate a road cyclist’s ambition to save grams from an already light setup, and looking to do so
The top 5 most expensive road bike helmets in 2023
One of the most enjoyable articles to write for any product category is how far your money has to go to cover the absolute cream-of-the-crop. The topic here being the most expensive road bike helmets