Every angler knows how important their hands are to the sport, no matter whether they’re a beginner or a professional. In fact, they’d have a pretty hard time fishing without their hands on top form.
They’re needed to control the rod, bait the hook, and feel the nibbles from the fish. There is no questioning the fact that your hands need to be looked after before and during a fishing trip.
Ice fishing is a whole different experience than regular fishing. The environment is harsh and freezing, which is dangerous for your hands.
Your body’s natural response to freezing environments is to constrict the blood flow as much as possible. This is why your feet and, yep you guessed it, your hands are the first to feel the cold and turn numb.
With numb hands, your fishing ability is reduced to almost nothing and you’ll find your trip much less enjoyable and productive. This is why ice fishing gloves are an absolute necessity when planning an ice fishing trip.
They need to be sufficiently insulated, comfortable, and flexible enough to allow you to still fish properly.
Below we’ve found the best ice fishing gloves that are available right now on the market. We’ve also included a buyers guide to tell you a little more about ice fishing gloves, as well as answer some frequently asked questions to make sure that you have enough information before committing to one pair of ice fishing gloves.
Best Ice Fishing Gloves – Reviews
- Exceptional Insulation: KastKing ThermoGrip Full Finger Winter Gloves feature 3M Thinsulate and tricot fleece lining with 78% recycled polyester, ensuring warmth even in damp conditions. An additional...
- Advanced Weather Protection: These ski gloves have a waterproof, windproof and breathable shell with an additional (DWR) treatment and membrane to keep your hands dry and warm in wet or snowy...
- Comfort and Versatility: Featuring pre-curved fingers with an accordion knuckle design for optimal dexterity, and a soft tricot lining for comfort. Touch screen friendly thumb and index finger allow...
- Enhanced Durability: Abrasion-resistant synthetic leather palms with silicon printing provide superior grip and reduced wear. Microfiber patch between the thumb and index finger provides added...
- Intelligent Functionalities: The adjustable wrist strap guarantees a snug fit, and the water-resistant pocket adds convenient storage. Longer cuffs shield against harsh winds, and the detachable wrist...
- ENHANCED PALM: The palm is made of neoprene fabric with excellent abrasion resistance and laminated with partially synthetic leather and irregular silicone non-slip coating for a firm grip even in wet...
- Functional 3 cutting fingers----The fitting slots of the three fingers and thumb allow you to expose only the fingertips without exposing the entire hand to cold weather. Allow your fingers to freely...
- Friendly touchscreen fingertips----the use of non-slip touchscreen leather in the thumb and index fingertips allows you to use the touch screen phone without exposing your fingers to cold weather. It...
- High-quality materials----the gloves are made of fleece lining, waterproof and soft neoprene design, which can keep hands warm in cold conditions and have excellent scratch resistance and wind...
- Adjustable gloves---The adjustable wrist strap Velcro strap is suitable for wrists of any size and fixes the wrists without falling. To provide a safer and more comfortable fit, the wristband keeps it...
- Convertible Mitt: Easily converts from warm mittens to fingerless gloves with magnets; Thus freeing your fingers for fishing, knot tying, line stripping, pocket opening, photography, texting, running,...
- 3M Thinsulate: The gloves are insulated with 40 grams 3M thinsulate, orange microfiber fleece and 4-Way stretch shell that provide warmth without excess bulk or loss of dexterity. The insert windproof...
- Silicone Palm Grips: Partial synthetic leather and premium Anti-Slip silicone enhance grip and prevent daily wear and tear; Ergonomic leather in palm to gain the better grip on the fishing rods,...
- Enhanced Nighttime Security: Reflective strips across the back of each of these mittens help the wearer be seen during the short, dark days of winter. making you more visible during those early...
- Size Tips: The gloves are labeled as men's size, women should choose gloves a size smaller than you normally wear. If you usually wear women's size L, you should choose size M when buying. Please...
- Water-repellent and windproof fabric outer shell that works with plush fleece lining provides better insulation and keeps your hands warm and dry in cold conditions
- Thumb, index and middle finger openings allow you to change terminal tackles, swap lures, bait up, or show off trophy without losing temperature
- Slip-proof, durable synthetic leather on gripping palm area for enhanced strength and firm grip on gear or slippery fish as well as protecting hands from spiking
- Hook-and-loop closure for adjustable and tight fit that keeps out the wind and help keep hands warm
- Ideal for fishing, hunting, safari, hiking, traveling, photography and any other outdoor activities in cold days
- 【Thinsulate Liner】Thinsulate is much warmer when compared to other fleece or wool fingerless gloves. They don't make your hands sweaty and allow them to stay warm and comfortable instead. They are...
- 【Waterproof & Windproof】The waterproof cold weather gloves are made of 360° fully waterproof and windproof fabric. With 4 windproof and waterproof layers inserted, that would be the ideal choice...
- 【Magnetic Flip Finger Slots】The gloves are designed with magnets, which can hold the thumb and forefinger back when you want them exposed or quickly snap back. Besides, they work with your fingers...
- 【Touch-screen & Anti-slip Palm】 It is equipped with a touchscreen design, these ice fishing gloves can operate any screen device easily with both thumb and forefinger, and the anti-slip silicone...
- 【Adjustable Wrist Hook and Loop Strap】Our gloves are suitable for different wrist sizes with an adjustable wrist velcro strap, which can lock the heat inside and keep the cold wind out.
- FLIP TOP DESIGN – Flip top glomitt with magnetic closure to keep the flap in place. Full finger waterproof glove built-in.
- DURADRY FABRIC – Lightweight, tough, and durable 210 denier polyester fabric.
- INSULATED – Features 120gm of 3M Thinsulate Platinum insulation. High-loft, water-resistant, and super warm.
- DWR – Fabric features DWR (Durable Water Repellent) to help resist water droplets.
- REINFORCEMENTS – DWR treated goat skin palm and thumb reinforcements are strategically placed with ice fishing tasks in mind.
- Exceptional Insulation: These fishing gloves are made with a 3-in-1 soft shell fabric, keeping your hands warm in cold conditions through multi-layered construction. The 3M G120 Thinsulate polyester...
- Versatile Convertible Design: Adapt to your environment effortlessly with KastKing winter fishing gloves that can be transformed into 2-finger open gloves for unrestrictive finger mobility. The...
- Cold Weather Construction: Designed to excel in cold environments, these ice fishing gloves boast water-resistant, windproof, and breathable properties. Constructed from waterproof and breathable...
- Enhanced Durability: For added durability and grip, the cold weather gloves feature abrasion-resistant PU palm material. Reinforcing this durability are stitched patches at the fingertips, ensuring...
- Smart Functionalities: KastKing fishing gloves come with user-friendly features like pull-tight cinch wrist straps for effortless adjustment and extended gauntlet cuffs with drawcord closures to keep...
Best Ice Fishing Gloves – Buyers Guide
Now we’ve looked at the best five ice fishing gloves on the market, you may be wondering how you’re supposed to choose between all the impressive options. Well, every angler is different and some gloves are going to work better for different people.
There are some important factors to consider when choosing a new pair of gloves to ensure that they’re going to work for you. Ice fishing without gloves can increase the risk of frostbite, so it is vital that you choose the right gloves for you and your fishing trip.
By remembering these factors that we’ll be listing below, you’ll be more likely to pick a pair of gloves that are going to aid you well during your ice fishing excursions.
Type of Glove
There are two types of gloves that can be constituted as ice fishing gloves, water-resistant and waterproof, which both have their benefits and drawbacks. The first type is gloves made out of both waterproof and water-resistant materials such as Thinsulate, GoreTex, and Polar Fleece. The second type is made from neoprene.
Gloves made from neoprene are similar feelings to wetsuits and are completely waterproof, provided there are no holes or faults in the fabric. As long as you don’t submerge your whole arm in the water, these gloves will keep your hand completely dry.
However, some anglers find neoprene gloves to be too restrictive and find it difficult to move their hand properly. Neoprene is also not that durable as a fabric and therefore may wear quicker than other types of gloves. On the other hand, gloves made of fabric like GoreTex and Thinsulate are almost never fully waterproof and often falter down their seams.
As you can see, there is no perfect material for ice fishing gloves as they both have disadvantages. Having said that, you still need a suitable pair of gloves for your trip so you need to do some research on your own. Would you rather completely waterproof gloves or more mobility in your hands?
The type of glove you choose will depend on what is most important to you. Some anglers need their hands to be able to move as freely as if they didn’t have gloves on, but some other fishermen cannot stand their hands to be wet. Of course, there is the fact that wet hands will become colder faster and reduce the mobility of your fingers as well.
Unfortunately, there is no clear defining answer to what type of gloves you should choose for ice fishing. You may have to test out some brands and styles to determine what type you prefer for yourself and your ice fishing style.
Size
It goes without saying that your gloves need to fit properly to be the most effective. There are two reasons why this is an important factor to remember when choosing your new gloves.
Firstly, ill-fitting gloves will allow cold air to reach your hand through the wrist cuff and allow it to create pockets of freezing air inside your gloves. This is going to affect your experience and performance.
The second reason is that if your gloves are too big, the material will be bunching up around your joints which will prevent you from being able to move your hands properly. Similarly, gloves that are too small will restrict your mobility and cause the same result.
Make sure that you check the size guide on the advert of your chosen gloves to make sure that you’re getting the correct size. You may need to measure your hand to get an accurate size, so make sure that you measure your hand with a measuring tape so that you can take out the guesswork of the size of your hand.
Durability
Your ice fishing gloves much be durable enough to last for at least the entire length of your ice fishing trip, if not season. If your gloves become damaged, you may have to cut your trip short to ensure the safety of your hands.
Your gloves will be around hooks and other sharp tools, so they need to be able to withstand touching these things.
While ice fishing, you’ll need to keep removing your gloves to tie knots and re-bait your hook. Your gloves must be durable enough to withstand being taken off and put back on repeatedly.
Things to look out for to ensure good durability is double stitching, tough materials, and additional layers.
Usability
The usability of your ice fishing gloves is in reference to how flexible they are and how much mobility they allow you to have. This is imperative due to the fact that you still need your hands to actually fish effectively. While you need to keep your hands safe and secure, you also need them to fish.
Water-resistant gloves often offer better usability as they are slightly thinner so you can actually bend your fingers further while wearing these.
It’s sometimes worth sacrificing a little insulation so that you can still use the gloves. You just need to find the right balance between warmth and usability.
Warmth
Speaking of warmth, this is, of course, another incredibly important factor to consider when choosing your new ice fishing gloves. The main reason you need to wear gloves is to keep your hands warm and away from the freezing temperatures.
As we mentioned earlier, your hands are more susceptible to frostbite than most other parts of your body.
The amount of insulation that a pair of gloves offers will affect how warm they keep your hands. Fleece is a very effective insulating material, as is Thinsulate and neoprene. For warmth, thicker materials are obviously recommended to better insulate your hands.
As we mentioned before, you have to find the best balance between warmth and the usability of your gloves. We’d suggest reading the customer reviews to see how other people found the gloves. This is a good indication of whether they’ll be usable while still keeping your hands warm.
Finger Holes
Finger holes are useful so that you don’t have to remove the whole glove for you to adjust something or tie a knot. Instead of exposing your whole hand, you’ll actually only have your finger and thumb exposed which is often just as effective as taking the whole glove off.
This also saves you time as you don’t have to put the whole glove back on. Finger holes are not a necessity for ice fishing gloves, but they are a handy feature to have, especially if you’re going to need your fingers free for a lot of your trip.
Grip
The best ice fishing gloves will also have some sort of grip on the palms so that you can hold onto your equipment and catches without the risk of them falling into the water.
No one wants to spend hours waiting for a nibble, only for the fish to slip right back into the water due to no grips on your gloves, so this is another important feature to look out for.
Comfort
Last but not least, your hands need to be comfortable enough for you to wear the gloves for your whole trip. The fit should be suitable and not digging into your hands at any point, and you should be able to use your hands properly without too much hassle.
How waterproof your gloves are may also affect the comfortability of them, as no one likes to sit around with wet hands.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I look after my ice fishing gloves?
Store your gloves in a cool, dry place after you’ve cleaned them thoroughly after using them. Handwashing them with soap and warm water will suffice, unless the label says that they can be machine washed. Leave them to dry completely before storing them away ready for next season. Make sure you keep them away from any dangers.
