To keep cycling through the cold winter months, facing rain and road spray is inevitable. However, choosing the right legwear can prevent your rides from turning into soaking-wet miseryfests. We've racked up countless cold and wet miles to round up some of the top waterproof cycling trousers around, so you can choose the ideal pair for you and your riding.
Best budget waterproof overtrousers: B’Twin City Cycling Rain Overtrousers
Best casual cycling trousers to wear on or off the bike: Altura Grid Softshell Pant M Carbon
Best packable waterproof cycling trousers: Gorewear Gore-Tex Paclite Pants Men’s
Best money-no-object waterproof cycling trousers: Albion Zoa Rain Trousers
Leg muscles don’t work as well when they’re cold, and there are few better ways of making them cold than running water over them. Tights, trousers and overtrousers that fend off the wet are therefore a winter essential for many riders.
You have three main choices. Performance-orientated riders tend to go for bib tights; waterproof overtrousers fend off the rain so you arrive at the office with dry trousers; and cycling trousers look like regular trousers, but are shaped and detailed so they're comfortable for riding.
Waterproof trousers are ideal when you require complete rain protection, be it during your daily commute or off-road adventures. If you want a more inconspicuous off-bike look, consider trousers and jeans made from water-repellent cotton. These fabrics do a pretty good job of keeping the rain out for a while and look normal off the bike too.
A note on water resistance: it's just about impossible for a fabric to be totally waterproof and remotely pleasant to cycle in, so there's always a degree of compromise here. We've found the garments in this guide fend off water well enough that we'll happily use them in the rain.
How we review waterproof cycling trousers
We only give products to reviewers who would otherwise consider buying them, so that means waterproof trousers will be sent out to riders who have a use case for them and can compare to other cycling trousers they've used previously. It's no good sending them to a member of the team who only ever rides their bike outdoors in summer, so we ensure that doesn't happen when dishing out cycling trousers!
Cycling trousers are assessed on quality, durability, features, value and the all-important waterproofing/water resistance, and we judge things based on similar products in their category. Essentially, we're not going to compare a set of £200 fully waterproof cycling trousers to 20 quid ones that only claim to offer water resistance, and pan the latter for no being as good as the former.
Why you can trust us
All the trousers selected for this guide were included because they performed well in road.cc and off.road.cc reviews, not because someone in sales told us to do their client a solid. The road.cc staff members who write our buyer's guides are also keen and experienced cyclists too, so the product selections and advice will be based off our own experiences, with a smattering of assistance from other road.cc team members where appropriate. We have a specific chat on our internal messaging system where we discuss all manner of nerdy cycling tech-related things, so you can be assured that the info about waterproofing, fit, style etc will have been thoroughly researched.
Need to cover your top half too? Check out our guide to the best cycling jackets. If you're specifically after wet weather protection, narrow it down and head straight to our waterproof cycling jackets guide. You're here for trousers though, so read on for our top four overall, plus plenty of other recommendations and some bonus handy advice...
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4 comments
I've been wearing the new endura waterproof bib / dungaree style waterproof trousers for a few weeks now.
The amount of rain the last few weeks has been incredible but the endura pants are a game changer - keeping me bone dry in torrential rain and still pretty breathable as well.
I'm currently using craghoppers Steall trousers for my winter commute.
+ Different leg lengths available (hobbits of the cycling world rejoice)
+ Pockets with waterproof zips and storm flaps
+ Fleecy lining for comfort
+ They look like they've wetted out, but stay dry inside and seem to dry out really quickly, once the rain stops.
+ Double up for dog walking in the rain duties
+ Prevent the 'toilet accident' look when you've got a really good waterproof jacket and it all runs down your legs.
+ Very reasonably priced
X - the ankles are a bit flappy, so required strapping up to avoid chainring snags
Got some Regatta ones for 25 quid, so impressed I got another pair
Yup, the cheapest ones with the booties, also sold by Lidl are gamechangers, even in torrential downpours I arrive in work bone flippin' dry - 15 minute commute from the train station, West Wales. Once you've tried them you'll never go back.