The 10 Best Crampons in 2023

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Whether you’re walking on icy sidewalks and streets, doing a winter hike, or conquering a mountain in the ice, these top microspikes and crampons will keep you safe and grounded.

If you’re like us, you probably end up with at least one bruised hip or knee (or ego) after slipping on the winter ice. While we all love watching a silly video of someone slipping in ice, it can be seriously dangerous—especially if you're on a winter hike or mountaineering expedition. That's where crampons and microspikes come in.

These devices range from from lightweight traction cleats that are easy to slip over your boots, all the way to the steel-spiked powerhouses that give adventurers grip on vertical walls of ice. We found all the best crampons and microspikes to keep you safe this winter, whether your escapades include traversing glaciers or traversing the driveway.

Ice traction comes in a variety of styles, from minimalist trail-running styles and wire-wrapped, rubber grips for walking around town, to pointed, spiked shoe wraps designed for ice climbing and glacial travel. Most people don’t need crampons for scaling frozen waterfalls or walking across miles of glacial ice, but we've covered all types of spikes so you can get what you need.

Adventurer’s crampons, which usually have inch-long spikes, aren’t practical to wear walking about town or across a black-ice-covered parking lot. Microspikes and micro-cleats are lower profile, providing more traction than rubber soles, and are ideal for walking around an ice-covered town or jogging in the snow.

The most distinct difference in ice traction devices is between technical crampons and non-technical crampons or microspikes. Non-technical devices have a softer means of attaching to the bottom of the shoe or boot, such as highly elastic rubber and Velcro straps or buckles, and are made for more casual use. Many non-technical spikes can even wrap onto your normal sneakers or trail runners.

Technical crampons typically have a steel stabilizer on the bottom, securing to the boot by clamping onto the heel and/or toe welts. These are designed for use with heavier-duty adventure boots, like mountaineering boots or ski boots. The spikes are thicker, longer, and honestly, more dangerous. Wearers can easily gash their legs or pants with an errant step in these, so they're not applicable for casual use. However, on ice or glaciers, you can use them to stomp or kick into hard ice for purchase and traction.

Cleats, coils, and studs are used to add traction. Traction devices with coils and small studs are usually designed for walking, working and running on city trails. Micro- and nano-spikes, a.k.a. spikes shorter than one-half inch, provide even more traction and are best suited for trail running and hiking.

The spikes or points on technical crampons are usually one-half to one inch long. Crampons intended for hiking and glacial travel are meant to grip icy surfaces with anywhere from eight to 12 points, including some on the front of the toe. Crampons designed for ice climbing and mountaineering have 12 or more points, including aggressive toe points, which allow climbers to kick into the tough ice on a wall to gain a foothold.

Most crampons and ice traction devices are made of stainless steel, carbide steel, or aluminum. Stainless steel is the most rust-resistant and durable, which means they can last for years. Aluminum and titanium are best for treks where you need to save every last gram you can.

I've used various means of ice traction for years and have relied on everything from basic coiled traction devices to ice climbing crampons to get around town and go further out on winter backcountry experiences. In choosing the best ice traction devices, we considered the various use cases where you need winter traction, as well as price and durability. We read reviews from other professional reviewers as well as verified consumers to make sure we only recommended the best microspikes and crampons.

For more great winter gear, check out the best winter gloves, snowshoes, and men's puffer jackets.

The Kahtoola Microspikes traction system is the original best of the best, and still the one to beat for most purposes. With 12 stainless-steel spikes per foot connected by stainless-steel chains, everything about these microspikes screams grip—grip over frozen logs, icy snow piles, frozen lakes, and more. These are ideal for most people who need serious winter traction, whether they’re hiking or walking on a frozen trail.

The rubber upper of these crampons accommodates a wide range of shoe sizes, and it's durable and long-lasting. They’re also designed to handle temperatures as low as -22 degrees Fahrenheit.

Another longtime winner for ice traction is the Yaktrax Pro traction device. These stainless-steel coils provide great traction for everyday activities like shoveling snow, grabbing groceries, or going for a walk in the park on ice.

Available in multiple sizes, the Pros are easy to slip over shoes and boots and the velcro strap over the laces helps ensure they won’t slip off your shoes. The low-profile nature of the coils means they don’t affect your stride—you might not even notice them underfoot.

If you’re out on a job site in the winter and need reliable traction, STABILicers Maxx 2 heavy-duty traction cleats are your go-to.

These crampons cover your entire shoe sole with a grippy rubber sole studded with 15 replaceable stainless-steel bolts. They provide good traction on a variety of surfaces and won’t cause as much damage to surfaces like plywood that more aggressive microspikes will.

They secure onto work boots with velcro straps and are easy to put on and take off when you go inside. They’re also available in multiple women's and men's sizes.

If you’re looking for some crampons that can take on some of the toughest conditions, like mountaineering and glacial travel, but that you can still use with your normal hiking boots, the 10-point Black Diamond Contacts should be on your list. The center bars mean the crampons can fit shoes between sizes four and 12 (a larger center bar can accommodate larger shoes).

Unlike other, more technical crampons, the heel and toe cups allow the Contact crampons to fit most shoes and boots and secure with a strap that pulls the cups together. They offer great purchase on snow and glaciers but aren’t intended for ice climbing and vertical mountaineering. Meanwhile, the ABS plates help keep snow and ice from clumping underfoot.

You might be surprised to find that our friends have sworn by these Yaktrax Icetrekkers on muddy trail runs and hikes in the deep muck of Hawaiian islands. The beads can spin on the stainless steel cables, allowing them to shed muck and snow, yet they still grip ice on wintry treks.

With a low profile, they’re ideal for city use as well as on the trail. The rubber upper makes them easy to fit a range of boots and shoes and they fold down compactly when they’re not in use.

These Kahtoola Exospikes are among the lightest full-foot trail traction devices we’ve seen. They’re also some of the most effective. With 12 studs placed at the most important traction points on the foot, these crampons offer great grip for trail running in the winter.

With rubber surrounding the 12 spikes, they also provide some extra shock absorption so you don’t feel the small spikes underfoot while running.

If you need a serious mountaineering crampon that still allows a ton of flexibility, the Petzl Lynx is a must-have and well worth the price. Still, there’s no other technical mountaineering and ice-climbing crampon we’ve seen that accommodates for boots with or without front toe welts, as well as adjustability for single or multiple toe points. You can also configure the toe points closer or further from the front of the boot and set them asymmetrically.

If you’re not planning on climbing a frozen fall or taking on challenging couloir climbs, this pair isn’t something you need, but if you are, this is even more versatile than Black Diamond’s amazing Cyber crampons.

The Hillsound trail crampons are somewhere between a microspike and a secure crampon, thanks to the velcro strap that helps secure the spikes and rubber over the forefoot.

The carbon steel spikes underfoot are about two-thirds of an inch long, making them a little longer than microspikes and shorter than mountaineering crampons. The large plates of the cleats provide more stability underfoot as well, making them ideal for trekking with some weight.

Need ultralight, compact crampons for light mountaineering or ski mountaineering missions? The Leopard FlexLock crampons are as light as most microspikes, but are designed for heavier duty activities.

Rather than relying on a center bar to size the crampon to the boot, the Leopards use a cord to adjust sizes, cutting significant weight. They also reduce weight by using less durable and more malleable aluminum, rather than steel, for their spikes. As such, they’re not meant for ice climbing or couloir climbing, but are suitable for lighter missions.

These cheap microspikes have 19 stainless steel spikes connected by chains—the most spikes we’ve seen on a pair of crampons.

However, some customers have complained that the stainless steel chains connecting them aren’t as durable as those from other companies. Still, if you’re looking for an inexpensive pair of microspikes for hiking and walking in the winter, these are a decent option.

Chris Meehan is an internationally published writer, author, and editor with more than two decades of professional experience. He has authored multiple adventure guidebooks with Falcon Guides and his work focusses primarily on the nexus between sustainability and outdoor adventure. He is an experienced gear reviewer, tester, and travel writer who has explored multiple continents.

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