11 Best Winter Boots for Men 2025: Tested and Reviewed by Style Editors

When it comes to the doldrums of winter, we assume your first thought is outerwear. Dramatic topcoats and puffed-up down jackets—that sort of thing. But the best winter boots for men will happily remind you that you’d get nowhere in the cold weather without some heavy duty footwear.

Yes, you won’t have to worry about mosquitos bites, but you will have to protect yourself from frostbite. That requires a pair of boots that can stand up to winter’s wrath while keeping your precious little piggies nice and warm. We’re talking monster-truck snow boots to plow powder, big honkin’ hikers to trek through frigid trails, insulated leather boots to brave the icy winds.

If you’ve learned anything from us, you know it’s just as much about form as it is function. Because what good is a pair of winterproof boots if they won’t jive with your outfit? Over the years, we’ve trudged through all kinds of mess to test the best winter stompers for every style and budget—below, you’ll find our selects for the season.

• The Best Winter Boots Overall: Danner Mountain Light, $440
• The Best Budget Winter Boots: Baffin Yukon Boots, $195 $176
• The Best Snow Boots: Sorel Caribou Waterproof Boot, $200
• The Best Winter Work Boots: Red Wing Moc Toe Boot, $310
• The Best Winter Chelsea Boots: Blundstone 566 Thermal Boot, $210
• The Best Winter Boots for Fashion Guys: Diemme Roccia Vet Boot, $530

Thanks to its classic style and bombproof quality, Danner has held its seat in the pantheon of hiking boots for decades thanks to its iconic Mountain Light boots It may not be gorp’d up with all the modern-day bells and whistles like lightweight mesh, or Thinsulate, but what it lacks in 21st-century amenities, it makes up for in sheer durability. The Mountain Light has a full-grain leather upper that’s constructed in a single piece, which prevents debris and water from entering, matched with chunky Vibram lug soles, and resoleable Goodyear welt construction (i.e., you and your offspring are gonna love these).

If you’re a fan of more relaxed silhouettes, the Danner Mountain Lights will look incredible with any pair of pants you have in your wardrobe, from jeans to corduroys and even wool trousers. They take some time to break in, but have been far and away the most stylish and durable pair of boots I’ve ever owned. While they don’t have any insulation, the leather uppers are plenty thick and keep warm enough for below-freezing temperatures when you pair them with a good thick wool sock.

Duck boots are divisive. When done right, they can win over even the biggest haters. Enter the Baffin Yukon Boots. Unless you’re blissfully ignorant to the mega-machine that is fashion, you probably haven’t heard of Baffin. That’s because the brand is best-known for its real-deal winter gear that’s proven its chops in Canada’s iciest climates. You won’t see its products on the runway (at least, not yet), but you can certainly find some boots that are as stylish as they are bombproof. We picked the Baffin boot for that exact reason. They come with the traditional duck boot rubber uppers which make them completely waterproof, attached to a good quality leather shaft that’ll keep debris and snow out easily.

Thanks to the multi-layer boot system, the removable inner boot provides excellent insulation in the extreme cold while maintaining breathability and moisture wicking capabilities. That makes them well-suited for arctic temps, so unless you’re spending most of your day doing research at the south pole, you’ll be fine. Whether you’re shoveling deep snow, mucking it through post-blizzard slush, or stomping your way up Fifth Avenue, we can’t imagine many situations these boots can’t handle. I love the removable liner because, more times than not, rocking the boot in Megatron mode is overkill, especially since you spend most of your time indoors during deep winter anyway. Plus, the blacked-out colorway is undeniably sick.

If you’ve searched “best winter boots” (clearly, you have), you’ve no doubt seen these puppies around. There’s a reason they get so much love. The Sorel Caribou Boots take after traditional duck boots with its chunky rubber uppers and tall suede leather shaft, but where they separate is the toasty shearling and felt lining, plus easy lacing system, which take the duck to new heights. These are among the comfiest winter boots not only because of the plush insole, but also because of the recycled felt inner boot. There’s something a little more refined, a little more chiseled about these boots compared to L.L.Bean’s eponymous winter boot, which is a plus.

Red Wing’s Moc Toe boot is instantly recognizable, but not immediately cited as a winter boot. In our eyes, the workwear staple deserves a spot on this list for several reasons. The first is its chunky, squishy platform Vibram outsole which is slip-resistant and built for long days on your feet. The second is the damn-near impenetrable full-grain leather uppers.

Red Wing’s proprietary leather is tanned in-house and is notorious for its durability, not to mention its grueling break-in period. While they aren’t built with any sort of insulation or weather-proofing, the hearty leather material is effective at blocking chilly winds and keeping water at bay, especially with good leather maintenance. You will definitely need to pair them with a chunky wool sock to keep up with the dropping temperatures and apply some waterproofing products like Sno-Seal, but that’s a small price to pay for a boot that will last you several lifetimes. Breaking in a pair of Red Wing boots is no joke. But once you power through, they’ll be your go-to boots for the worst conditions and beyond.

“You call those winter boots?!” shout the Northeasterners in unison. Don’t get it twisted. They may look exactly like the boots you’ve seen in every specialty coffee shop, but you can’t judge a boot by its leathery cover. These are the winterized version of the classic Blundstones and feature a toasty Thinsulate lining as well as an uber plush removable shearling footbed to help you thrive in the winter weather. On top of that, it’s still completely waterproof like its non-insulated counterpart, which means you should have no fear of puddles or slush. I wanted to resist liking these boots, but real recognize real, and these Blundstones are handsome, comfy, and ripe for a winter beating. There are no other boots in my closet that goes with as many outfits as these do. And when you factor in the solid price point, the cost-per-wear goes through the roof.

If you’re about impressing the menswear homies, turn your gaze to Diemme. In recent years, the Italian boot brand has made headway in fashion circles thanks to stylish insiders and podcasters.

Diemme’s melding of traditional craftsmanship with a modern-day lens is what makes its boots so unique and the Roccia Vet Sport is the best example of that. With a lace-to-toe lacing system, D-rings, and stitchdown construction, it gives off a traditional alpine boot silhouette of the 1970s while the lightweight technical fabric upper and waterproof lining bring it 50 years into the future. This is the boot you can wear to go on a winter hike, even though you know that’ll happen maybe twice at the most. They’re as capable on the trail as they are in the concrete jungle, and if you’re considering a boot that will adapt with the time, peep these.

Balenciaga

Alaska Shearling Boots

$1,400

Mr Porter

Despite debuting these beefaronis during its spring/summer 2024 runway show, Balenciaga’s Alaska boots are bred for winter with a floor-to-ceiling shearling. Don’t be afraid to tuck your baggy jeans into these either—it’s one of the few occasions where the advanced style move actually works.

Bogs

Ultra High Tall Insulated Waterproof Work Rain Boot

$110

Amazon

Bogs’ popular boots are encased in an impenetrable rubber upper that reaches to the calf and can power through deep snow like a raging yeti. And with the neoprene lining keeping you dry and warm, your feet will never even know there’s a blizzard outside.

Muck Boot

Woody Max Rubber Insulated Hunting Boots

$200 $133

Amazon

Designed for trudging through freezing sludge in dense woods, these Muck Boots will glide through whatever city-slickin’ activities are on your agenda. And that includes hunting for some complements from the local fashion snobs.

Ugg

Classic Short Boot

$180

Amazon

We wouldn’t recommend these cozy classics for any sort of wet situation, but there’s no denying the plush warmth they provide. And if you’re hellbent on wearing these in slightly damp weather, do apply a suede spray before you head out.

ROA

Rubber Boots

$665

Mr Porter

Built with thick rubber all the way to the ankles and a water-resistant fabric shaft, ROA’s technical boots are expert puddle jumpers and snow plowers. Add to that the Vibram Arctic Grip outsoles and you’ve got a well-equipped pair of winter kicks.

• Warmth: There’s no room for flimsy thin boots in winter, so the best winter boots are beefy and come with some form of extra insulation, whether it be something like Thinsulate, Primaloft, natural wool insoles, or a modular system that includes a removable liner.
• Water-proofing: When you’re dealing with wet conditions and freezing temperatures, waterproof winter boots are essential. Good winter boots should use materials like Gore-tex and rubber to keep sleet, slush, snow, and rain at bay. We also looked for boots that are constructed in ways that help keep snow and rain out, like gusseted tongues and vulcanized rubber soles.
• Grip: A slick road and bad shoes are a perfect pairing if you want to end up eating concrete. The best winter boots have excellent grip and use hearty lug soles with deep grooves for extra traction.
• Easy to don and doff: Winter’s annoying enough and when you’ve got thick gloves on, tying your boots can be the last straw. We looked for boots that had an easily adjustable lacing system if not slip on style.

Style is subjective, we know—that’s the fun of it. But we’re serious about helping our audience get dressed. Whether it’s the best white sneakers, the flyest affordable suits, or the need-to-know menswear drops of the week, GQ Recommends’ perspective is built on years of hands-on experience, an insider awareness of what’s in and what’s next, and a mission to find the best version of everything out there, at every price point.

Our staffers aren’t able to try on every single piece of clothing you read about on GQ.com (fashion moves fast these days), but we have an intimate knowledge of each brand’s strengths and know the hallmarks of quality clothing—from materials and sourcing, to craftsmanship, to sustainability efforts that aren’t just greenwashing. GQ Recommends heavily emphasizes our own editorial experience with those brands, how they make their clothes, and how those clothes have been reviewed by customers. Bottom line: GQ wouldn’t tell you to wear it if we wouldn’t.

We make every effort to cast as wide of a net as possible, with an eye on identifying the best options across three key categories: quality, fit, and price.

To kick off the process, we enlist the GQ Recommends braintrust to vote on our contenders. Some of the folks involved have worked in retail, slinging clothes to the masses; others have toiled for small-batch menswear labels; all spend way too much time thinking about what hangs in their closets.

We lean on that collective experience to guide our search, culling a mix of household names, indie favorites, and the artisanal imprints on the bleeding-edge of the genre. Then we narrow down the assortment to the picks that scored the highest across quality, fit, and price.

Across the majority of our buying guides, our team boasts firsthand experience with the bulk of our selects, but a handful are totally new to us. So after several months of intense debate, we tally the votes, collate the anecdotal evidence, and emerge with a list of what we believe to be the absolute best of the category right now, from the tried-and-true stalwarts to the modern disruptors, the affordable beaters to the wildly expensive (but wildly worth-it) designer riffs.

Whatever your preferences, whatever your style, there's bound to be a superlative version on this list for you. (Read more about GQ's testing process here.)

Production Credits:
Photographs by Bowen Fernie
Styled by Tyler Austin