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Depending on where you live, winter tires can be crucial for commuting in tough winter conditions. Winter tires use sipes and grooves to move snow away and provide better traction, acceleration and grip to the tires. There are snow tires for regular passenger cars, trucks, SUVs and vans. Every tire option that will be listed will have a three-peak mountain snowflake symbol (3PMSF) for winter performance and include a warranty up to a certain mileage. In budgeting for this purchase, keep in mind that it's highly recommended you run a full set of four matched snow tires. The olden days when your grandpa would put on just two are long gone. Here are the best snow tires that are currently available for sale online.
Passenger cars
Studless
Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 - Starts at $112.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 14” to 19”
- EdgePerformance Technology Package
- 15% more block edges
- Multi-cell compound with bite articles
The Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 is a great winter tire for sedans, coupes, crossovers and minivans. It uses an EdgePerformance Technology Package and has interlocking sipes to keep the performance consistent throughout the life of the tire. It also has one of the best stopping distances out of every winter tire that has been tested by Tire Rack.
Continental VikingContact 7 - Starts at $116.99
Key features
- Specialized Nordic compound
- 3D sipes
- Interlocked block bridges
The Continental VikingContact 7 has a specialized Nordic compound that uses canola oil to help the tires adapt to icy or snowy conditions. This tire provides a quiet ride but can be a bit noisy on rough surfaces.
Michelin X-Ice SNOW - Starts at $132.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 15” to 20”
- FleX-Ice 2.0 compound
- Increased groove widths
- Full-depth sipes
This Michelin X-Ice SNOW uses a FleX-Ice 2.0 compound that can create micro-roughness on the tread surface to improve grip. Tire Rack testers say this tire has "Excellent road manners combined with balanced traction for all road conditions".
Goodyear WinterCommand Ultra - Starts at $148.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 16” to 18”
- Cryo-Adaptive compound
- V-tread pattern
- Hydrodynamic grooves
This Goodyear WinterCommand Ultra has a Cryo-Adaptive compound that’s molded into the tread pattern to increase snow traction and performance. The V-tread pattern uses hydrodynamic grooves that evacuate water and snow from the contact patch to maintain stability.
Yokohama iceGUARD iG52c - Starts at $168.03
Key features
- Advanced winter tire technology
- Resin-Coated Shelled Microbubbles
- BluEarth branding
This Yokohama iceGUARD iG52c uses advanced winter tire technology and resin-coated microbubbles to make them proficient in snowy and icy conditions.
Studdable
Firestone Winterforce 2 - Starts at $79.36
Key features
- Sizes range from 14” to 18”
- Special cold weather compound
- High sipe density tread pattern
These Firestone Winterforce 2 tires have a special cold-weather compound with wide lateral notches, deep circumferential grooves and open shoulder slots. These are a good bargain buy if you are looking for studded tires for the winter.
General AltiMAX Arctic 12 - Starts at $108.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 15” to 18”
- Highly directional tread pattern
- Serrated sipes and angled tread blocks
The General AltiMAX Artic 12 has a directional tread pattern and an arrow-shaped central rib that improves steering response and handling.
Cooper Evolution Winter - Starts at $119.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 15” to 19”
- Deep starting tread depths
- Two-ply side wall
These Cooper Evolution Winter tires have a very deep starting tread depth and a two-ply sidewall. This tire currently has a 100% rating from customers on Tire Rack.
Winter performance
Vredestein Wintrac Pro - Starts at $155.62
Key features
- Sizes range from 17” to 22”
- Resin- and silica-enhanced tread pattern
- Resistant to hydroplaning
The Vredestein Wintrac Pro uses a resin and silica-enhanced tread pattern to increase performance and traction. These tires can be a bit noisy but have great ride quality.
Bridgestone Blizzak LM-32 - Starts at $183.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 17” to 20”
- Lamellen edge effect sipes
- Stepped independent tread blocks
These Bridgestone Blizzak LM-32 tires have a Lamellen edge effect sipe that increases biting edges to give the tire more grip for winter driving.
Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 - Starts at $246.12
Key features
- Sizes range from 18” to 20”
- Snow platform indicators
- Helio Compound+
Michelin makes performance tires for every season, including winter. Their Pilot Alpin PA4 provides good handling and traction in most driving conditions, but they are very expensive.
Trucks and SUVs
Studless
Bridgestone Blizzak DM-V2 - Starts at $161.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 15” to 22”
- Adaptive NanoPro Tech Multicell compound
- Aggressive block edges
The Bridgestone Blizzak line has many great winter options to choose from. The DM-V2 is best suited for vans, crossovers, SUVs and smaller light trucks.
Bridgestone Blizzak LT - Starts at $201.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 16” to 20”
- Independent tread blocks
- High sipe density
The Bridgestone Blizzak LT is another Blizzak winter tire, but it is meant for medium to heavy-duty pickup trucks.
Studdable
Firestone Winterforce 2 UV - Starts at $120.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 15” to 18”
- High sipe density pattern
- Durable internal structure
The Firestone Winterforce 2 has sizes for not only sedans but for trucks and SUVs as well.
Firestone Winterforce LT - Starts at $194.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 16” to 20”
- Independent tread blocks
Firestone Winterforce LTs are another solid choice for medium to heavy-duty trucks. They can even work well on certain commercial trucks.
General Grabber Arctic - Starts at $222.99
Key features
- Sizes range from 18” to 20”
- High-quality steel belts
- Chip-resistant
- Great for trucks, SUVs and vans
The General Grabber Arctic tire is a durable tire intended for SUVs, trucks and vans. These tires are resistant to chips and cuts and utilize high-quality steel belts to increase braking performance.
Nokian Hakkapeliitta LT3 Studded - Starts at $305.00
Key features
- Sizes range from 16" to 20"
- Load-bearing stability
- Notched intermediary tread blocks
- Aggressive directional tread pattern
Nokian is based in Finland and well accustomed to dealing with heavy snow. These tires have stainless steel studs that help you maneuver through ice and snow and feel safe while driving regardless of the weather.
Winter Performance
Pirelli Scorpion Winter - Starts at $218.50
Key features
- Sizes range from 18” to 22”
- Snow booster ridges
- Different ribbed tread designs
- Pirelli Noise Cancelling System
If you drive a luxury or performance SUV in the winter, then Pirelli Scorpion Winter tires are your best choice. They are also one of the only high-performance winter SUV tire options that Tire Rack has at the moment.
Snow tires vs winter tires
The names for these tires are used synonymously to the point where it’s common to view them as the same thing. At this point, they are pretty much the same.
Studless vs studded winter tires
Adding studs to winter tires are much better at driving through snow than studless winter tires but they make more noise on regular roads and don’t serve much purpose outside of driving through deep snow and icy roads. Studless winter tires can be used more effectively for cold weather conditions without snow than studded tires.
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