What size motorcycle helmet? Measuring your head and checking the fit

Measuring your head

Take a soft tape measure. Put it around your head about a finger's width above your eyebrows, just over your ears and around the widest part of the back of your head. Don't pull it tight, but don't let it hang loose either. Measure two or three times and take the largest result. No tape measure? Use a piece of string and lay it along a ruler.

That circumference is what size charts work from. Caberg puts it in the product name: size L on the Caberg Roxter is for a 59 to 60 cm head. On the LS2 MX433 size L is also 59 to 60 cm, and MT Helmets gives 53 to 54 cm for the Genesis SV in size XS.

The brand's size chart

Letters like S, M and L don't mean exactly the same at every brand. AGV and Alpinestars give 59/60 cm for size L, as on the AGV K1 S and the Alpinestars Supertech R7. Schuberth sometimes gives the size as a number, as for the C5 in size 53; which circumference goes with it is in Schuberth's size chart. So always check the chart of the brand you choose, and look up your circumference in centimetres.

If you are right between two sizes, try both. Heads also differ in shape: one is rounder, another longer. Makers build their helmets on a shape of their own, so a helmet in your size from one brand can fit differently from another brand's.

Trying it on: how to check the fit

Put the helmet on and close the chin strap. Then check these points:

• Cheeks: the cheek pads sit firmly against your cheeks. On a new helmet that can feel quite tight.
• Forehead and back of the head: there is no pressure point. A pressure point that hurts after a few minutes won't go away on the road.
• Turning: shake your head. The helmet doesn't spin around your head; your skin moves with it.
• Rolling off: take hold of the back of the helmet and try to pull it forward over your head. With the strap closed it shouldn't come off.
• View: the top edge of the visor opening isn't in front of your eyes and you can look sideways without the shell in the way.

Keep the helmet on for a while in the shop. What feels fine in the first minute can press after a quarter of an hour.

Cheek pads and lining

On many helmets the lining and cheek pads come out for washing. Cheek pads are often sold separately too. Nolan sells its Clima Comfort cheek pads for the N87 Plus and for the N100-5 Plus this way, Premier its cheek pads for the Evoluzione. If the maker offers them in another size or thickness, you can fine-tune the fit with them; which ones exist is stated by the maker.

Chin strap: double D or buckle

A chin strap closes with a double D ring or with a buckle. A micrometric buckle clicks shut and adjusts in teeth; LS2 sells a micrometric retention system as a spare part. Which closure your helmet has is in the product data.

Men, women and smaller heads

A motorcycle helmet's size goes by your head circumference, whether you are a man or a woman. Makers often call a model "for men and women", as Bell does for the Qualifier and MT Helmets for a modular helmet. Some brands make models in small sizes such as XS, which also suit smaller heads.

Comparing prices

Every helmet is under helmets, with brands such as Caberg, Schuberth, AGV and LS2. Every size has its own EAN, and Piegga compares prices size by size. To find which type of helmet suits you, read the guide to full-face, modular and open-face helmets.