Photochromic vs Polarized: Which Lens Is Better for Skiing?

For skiing and snowboarding, a photochromic lens is the better pick for most people. It gets darker in the sun and lighter when the clouds roll in, so one lens covers most of the day, and you can still see the shine off icy patches. A polarized lens is great at cutting glare, but it doesn't get lighter in flat light and it can make ice harder to spot. That's why our photochromic lenses go on our snow goggles and our polarized lens goes on our sunglasses.

Here's the difference between the two, when each one makes sense and which of ours to grab.

What's the difference between photochromic and polarized?

They sound similar but they solve two different problems.

Photochromic is about how much light gets through. The lens reacts to UV light. In bright sun it darkens, and when the light drops it clears up again. Our photochromic snow lenses go from about 65% VLT in low light to 16% VLT in bright sun. If VLT is new to you, it's the percentage of light the lens lets through, and our ski goggle VLT chart explains it in plain terms.

Polarized is about which light gets through. Light that bounces off a flat surface, like water, a wet road or a sunny slope, turns into glare. A polarized lens has a filter that blocks most of that bounced light. It doesn't change tint. A polarized lens is the same darkness at 9 a.m. in the sun as it is at 3 p.m. in a snow squall.

Is photochromic better than polarized for skiing?

For most days on the hill, yes. Mountain light doesn't sit still. You start the morning in sun, drop into the trees, ride under a cloud bank after lunch and finish in flat light. A photochromic lens follows along. At its lightest it sits in the 40 to 70% range we like for tree runs, and at its darkest it handles a sunny groomer.

Being able to read the snow matters more on skis than almost anywhere else. When you can see the shine on an icy patch, you can set your edges before you get there. A photochromic lens doesn't take that shine away.

If you'd rather swap than go photochromic, that works too. A darker lens for sun and a bright one in your pocket covers the same ground. We go through both setups in best ski goggles for changing weather.

Are polarized ski goggles good?

They're good at one job: cutting glare on bright days. If you ski a lot of sunny spring days and the glare off the snow gives you sore eyes, you'll feel the difference. But there are trade-offs on snow:

• Ice is harder to spot. The glare a polarized lens removes is the same shine that tells you a patch is icy. Hardpack and ice can start to look like regular snow.
• No help in flat light. A polarized lens doesn't get lighter when it clouds over. A dark lens on a grey day makes the bumps harder to see. For those days, see best ski goggles for low light and snowy days.
• Screens can be hard to read. Phones, watches and some car screens use a polarizing layer, so they can look dark or patchy through a polarized lens at some angles.

None of that makes polarized bad. It just makes it a sunny day tool, not an every day tool.

Are any of our snow goggles polarized?

No. The only polarized lens we make is the Black lens on our sunglasses. Our snow goggle lenses aren't polarized, and that includes our photochromic ones. We went photochromic for snow because polarization can hide ice from the rider. Polarization blocks certain light rays, which is great on water where the reflections are horizontal, but hills aren't just horizontal. Photochromic is different: the lens tints darker automatically when there are UV rays.

Here's where you'll find photochromic in our snow line:

• The Valorie Snow, our smallest frame, comes in Photochromic Black, Photochromic Green and Photochromic Purple, all 65% to 16% VLT.
• The Emily Snow, our largest frame, comes in Photochromic Black, 65% to 16% VLT.
• The Esme Snow, the goggle with our widest view, doesn't have a photochromic lens. Run Shred Green (24%) for sun and carry a Grape Ice lens (72%) for cloud and snow.
• Our kids snow goggle is on preorder, and every preorder comes with a Photochromic Green lens and a Grape Ice lens.

All three of our ski goggles use a magnetic lens, so if you want a second lens for full bluebird or full storm days, it's a quick swap. Lenses only fit their own frame, so buy the one made for your goggle. More on how that works in magnetic goggle lenses: how they work. Wear glasses? Our prescription goggle insert fits all of our goggles. You can see every frame in our goggles collection.

When do polarized sunglasses make sense?

Off the hill, polarized is great. The drive to the mountain with the sun low on a snowy highway, lunch on a sunny deck, spring days by the lake, a summer paddle. Those are the times glare is the whole problem and you don't need to read ice. That's where our Jenna sunglasses with the Black lens fit in.

One thing to know if you're thinking about photochromic sunglasses for driving: most car windshields block a lot of UV, and photochromic lenses react to UV. So a photochromic lens usually won't get very dark inside a car. On the hill or the trail, it works the way it should. Our Jenna and Steph sunglasses both come with a photochromic lens that goes from 65% to 16% VLT.

Do photochromic lenses work in the cold?

They do, but cold slows the change down. On a really cold day, a photochromic lens can take longer to switch, and it's usually slowest going from dark back to light, like when you drop off a sunny ridge into the trees. Most days you won't notice. On the coldest days, give it a minute, or carry a brighter lens if you know you'll be in the trees a lot. Our photochromic lenses change slower in the cold because of the chemical reaction, but we try to improve our process every year.

If you want to know how long the colour change keeps working over the years, we covered that in how long photochromic lenses last. And if you ride bikes too, the summer version of this question is in photochromic vs swappable MTB lenses.

What we run at Lake Louise and Sunshine

I run the Grape Ice fixed tint on low light days at Sunshine Village and Lake Louise Ski Resort, then photochromic Black or Green the rest of the time, since it tints dark automatically when the sun comes out.

FAQ

Is photochromic better than polarized?

For skiing and snowboarding, usually yes, because it changes with the light and doesn't hide ice. For driving, water and bright days off the hill, polarized is usually better.

Can a lens be photochromic and polarized?

Yes, some brands make lenses that do both. Ours don't. Our only polarized lens is the Black lens on our sunglasses, and our photochromic lenses aren't polarized.

Do polarized lenses protect your eyes from UV?

Polarization and UV protection are two different things. Polarized cuts glare. UV protection is its own rating, so check the lens for it either way.

Are polarized goggles bad for skiing?

Not bad, just limited. They cut glare on sunny days, but they can make icy patches harder to see and they don't help in flat light.

Do photochromic lenses work on cloudy days?

Yes. UV gets through cloud, so the lens reacts to whatever light there is. On a grey day it sits near the lighter end, which is what you want. For a full storm or night laps, a dedicated bright lens is still the best call, and we cover that in best ski goggles for night skiing.

Until next time, have a Good Day!