10 of the BEST Winter Tires for 2020

Here are my top winter tires for the 2020 winter tire season. As usual, all these tires have been picked based on my own testing experiences, other tests from around the world, and user reviews. Think of this as one big meta analysis of the best winter / snow / studded tires on the market. This video covers European, Nordic and North American winter tyres / tires, and covers cars, SUV's and Electric vehicles (EVs.)

This was a COVID safe production, hence no tires with me. And no, I don't know what I I'm doing with my hands.

Other videos you should watch if you're trying to make up your mind if you need to fit winter tyres / all season tires / nordic studless friction tires / studded winter tyres etc:

If you'd like to know more about how a winter tyre works, watch the previous version of this video from 2018.

Tyres discussed in this video:
Continental WinterContact TS860
Continental WinterContact TS860 S
Bridgestone Blizzak LM005
Michelin Alpin 6
Goodyear UltraGrip 9+
Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
Goodyear UltraGrip Performance+
Hankook Winter I'Cept RS2
BFGoodrich gForce Winter 2
Kleber Krisalp HP3
Dunlop WinterSport 5
Vredestein Wintrac Pro
Continental IceContact 3
Michelin X Ice North 4
Nokian Hakkapeliitta 9
Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3
Continental VikingContact 7,
Michelin X Ice Snow
Bridgestone Blizzak WS90

If you have any tyre thoughts of your own, head over to the tyre reviews website and leave your own review :)

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Time Indexes
0:00 Introduction
0:13 What are winter tyres
0:34 Winter Tyre Types
2:39 Best Winter Tyres
6:13 Best All Season Tyres
7:32 Best Studded Winter Tyres
8:26 Best USA / Extreme / Nordic Winter Tyres
9:02 Electric Vehicle / SUV Winter Tyres
9:45 Conclusion

[tyrereviews]

This was a COVID safe film, hence no tyres. Also, I've no idea what I'm doing with my hands when I don't have tyres to hug 😥 If you have any of your own tyre experiences you want to share, head over to www.tyrereviews.com and leave your review 😁 Also, subscribe if you haven't already

[donready]

Last year, in Huntsville, Ontario, we had 3 civics on a steep, snowy, icy driveway from hell. Blizzaks, a no name, and Hakkepelita R3s were the tires. The R3 was the best, it could go up the driveway from a standing start. We tested them on the rutted, icy roads. They all worked but the R3 won. With snows and a great handling front wheel drive car, I drive the same speeds summer and winter.

[hl]

I went with the all season tires based on the previous test this year. According to various tests, they perform just as well in mild winter snow when compared to some good dedicated winter tires. This channel and their website are super informative.

[happybeerlove]

I used to think I was the only one that obsessed over tyres until I found my peeps 😜 love this channel

[evansisgreat]

2:08 this is so useful. I live in the SE of England but go home to Scotland a few times over winter and was able to choose the right tyre to keep me safe on all of my journeys. Really appreciate the time and effort that goes into all of this.

[calom]

Here in north of Canada we love Nokian with metal stud they awesome .
My first car was a firebird 1987 just like in k 2000 !!
Those Nokian with stud are unbeatable when u going up will in a rear wheel drive cars in winter .

[procerator]

Bad news: I've bought a set of winter tyres because I had no time to wait for this video.
Good news: it was Bridgestone Blizzak LM005

[carlsagan]

The day they can give me retractable studs like in Timothy Dalton's The Living Daylights, is the day when we will have reached peak tyre technology.

[stevel]

As usual, I don't understand why you don't have a million+ subs.

[chuck]

Jon's videos like these should be mandatory watching for drivers going through driving lessons. New drivers don't need to know if a Cup 2 beats an Eagle F1 Supersport R on the track, but this is definitely good info.

[no-damn-alias]

I love the smell of new tyres. Recently I bought mew summer tyres as the current ends come to the end of their life. As it's an economy car they're very small with 165/70/14 and I fell asleep while hugging one on the couch. My wife was slightly jealous and the tyres had to move out on the balcony until fitment due to the smell. Needless to say I was very sad

[swmike]

I live in Stockholm, Sweden. In the winter we get mix of snow, ice, dry and wet asphalt. In the past 10 years I've driven on GOODYEAR ULTRAGRIP ICE 2 (two sets, two cars) which for me has been a great all round tyre without any serious downsides. Before, I had winter tyres which were great in snow/ice but dangerous on dry/wet asphalt. I will buy the same set again for my next car unless there is a better alternative available.

[toninocars]

Got mine winter tyres fitted two weeks ago and they transformed the whole feel of the car, much more comfortable than summer tyres when temperature goes down below 10C°

[Slick]

I live in Minnesota, USA, so use my comment accordingly. In the far north of the United States, such as where I live, we get extreme winter weather. Lots of snow and ice, and almost just as importantly, extreme cold. Days or weeks on end below zero Fahrenheit, and even -30+ degrees F & C. That’s REALLY cold. With all of that said, I SWEAR by Nokian winter tires. They’re a little difficult to get here, and I usually have to order them online and have them shipped to me, but they are so worth it. I have used Blizzaks, I’ve used Michelins, I’ve used Goodyears, and even General winter tires. Nothing compares to the Nokian tires that are designed, tested and developed in the extreme northern territories of Finland, Sweden and Russia. These guys really know what they’re doing. Nokian winter tires are designed for people who live in and drive in REAL winter weather. If you live in London, Seattle, or Los Angeles, this probably isn’t for you. If you live in Buffalo, NY, or Minneapolis, MN where I am, or any other northern area of the world with a significant winter, you absolutely have to consider Nokian. You can ill afford to drive your slush box around on all-season tires when the weather gets serious. All-season tires are a hoax, a fraud. They’re not all-season anything, unless you live in Arizona. Don’t buy into it. Get yourself some real winter tires and thank me later when you arrive home alive. Also, I don’t work for Nokian, I promise. I drive a semi truck for Coca-Cola.... in case anyone is wondering. Cheers!

[curtr.]

I’ve been running a set of A/S tires here in the Pacific Northwest in the winter (PSS’ in the summer) on my M2 based on your recommendations. We rarely get snow and anything below 20 degrees so I fitted a set of 18” Michelin A/S 3+’s on my winter wheels. I have had this set for two winters now and I love it; I can drive my car the way I want to safely all year long. I really appreciate you doing the research so that others like me can simply buy the right set for our situation. Thanks as always for the videos!

[vladpetrachegenerali]

Great video, as usual, Jonathan! It is full of useful information and very well documented and I always watch your videos with great interest. Personally, I live in Bucharest, Romania, and the best-suited tyre for our climate is definitely the Central Europe one that you mentioned in the video. Although, judging by the last winters where we had little to no snow falls, the next set of tyres is an all season one, for sure. That's the reason why I'm looking forward to you comparing the Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Gen 3 to Michelin CrossClimate 2. Keep up the good work, man!

[trevorshields]

Finally got to try Michelin Cross climate on my wife's A3 in the snow. First thing I noticed was steering and braking feel was very responsive. Yes they still slide a little when being a bit silly but the overall feel and grip they give you is so comforting.Even parking off road where the snow was hard and deep. Scraping the splash tray and bottom of the sills, to my surprise it just drove through with absolute no drama. I can honestly say I was well impressed.

[johnmacmillan]

i live in a mild winter region but i often drive in alps or to regions where are nordic winter conditions so my best experience was with nokian tyres

[PavelSkollSuk]

Great video. I have just one problem (Central Europe):
During week: In a city, where snow is 1-2 days a year and it is mostly just wet.
Weekend: Out in hills, where you have to remember there was a road somewhere around.

[VanAdventuresBavaria]

One of the few experts who is so honest and recommends all-season tires. Even here around Munich there is no reason for winter tires. If you don't go to the mountains, you don't need one.