How to Choose the Color of Your Motorcycle Helmet?


When choosing the motorocycle helmet, the most common question motorcyclists asks is which color is best for them. In fact, you need to know and consider many things before choosing the color of the helmet, such as temperature, visibility, and other things, and you will be shocked to see how the color affects them.

The color of the helmet is much more important than you think, it has a lot of different roles, especially for your safety, and for the design, what you like may not be what you need. There are many other factors you have to consider and you have to choose your motorcycle helmet according to them.

Which color should I choose for my motorcycle helmet? The best helmet’s color that will make you look good and feel safe when riding is white. It is the most recommended color while all other colors can also be good but not as white because white is proven to be the safest helmet color for riding. It looks good for other riders, does not absorb lots of heat from the sun and it significantly reduces the risk of a life-threatening accident.

There are also other colors that make you look good and safe for other riders while there are also many dangerous colors. So, it is important for you to read this guide because, in this guide, I will show you how to choose the color of your helmet.

How to choose the color of your motorocycle helmet?

man wearing black motocross helmet

Choosing a color for a motorcycle helmet is a lot more important than you think helmet color has some very significant roles, especially for your safety.

For example, a New Zealand study showed that motorcyclists who use a black helmet have a 24 percent risk of crashing while riders using a white helmet have only 19 percent. Comparing both, this means riders who use a black helmet have more than 5 percent chance of crashing than riders who use a light helmet. This is just one study; there are tons of other studies that prove this.

So, here are some important factors for you to consider before choosing your motorcycle helmet.

The visibility that the helmet color provides

The most important thing you need to consider before choosing the color of your motorcycle helmet is undoubtedly the level of visibility that the color of the helmet provides, while in most cases, white is the best option for most people because it provides the best level of visibility. But bear in mind that this may not be the case in some places. For instance, if you live in Canada, which is full of snow, white color will not be good, and in places where there are gray clouds and rain, orange or red helmet will the best option for you. So, it depends on where you ride, and it is important that you know what type of weather you will ride in the most. Below are some other examples:

  • If you know you are going to ride in rainy weather with gray clouds, then red or orange colors may be a better choice because they look better for other riders.
  • If you live in a warm area where you always experience sunny days, then it is better to ride with a white helmet which gives the best level of visibility.
  • If you live in a snowy place, you might be better off getting a black helmet or any other color except gray and white to make it look more visible.

As you can see, the color of the helmet depends on the level of visibility, which blends with the type of climate and weather environment you know you’re going to ride most of the time.

In addition, it is important for you to note that if you wear a light-colored helmet, the level of vulnerability will be much more higher and stronger than the level of the vulnerability of wearing a dark-colored helmet since the rider will easily spot you and stop, which lowers the chance of a serious accident. It’s also important to know that what car riders spot first when they see you is your head which is your helmet, not other safety gear. So, no matter how bright your safety gear is, it will not match the level of visibility that a bright helmet will provide you.

But if you still want and prefer a dark color helmet, it doesn’t mean you can’t get a dark color but simply know that you’ll be less likely seen by other riders at night while riding, and if you’re to choose a dark color, I would at least recommend that you wear other clothes like pants, gloves or a light-colored shirt so that you can at least still be seen by other riders.

The level of heat and sun absorption

Another factor you also need to consider when choosing the color of your helmet is the level at which the helmet absorbs heat and guess what? White color or bright colors, in general, are better here because if you do not know, bright colors absorb much less heat from the sun than dark colors that can be even worst in some cases where the sun is much. If you will ride with a black helmet that has vents in the summertime, it will be very difficult because of the heat it absorbs.

You should also understand that the closer the helmet color is to black, the higher the chance that it will absorb more heat, and the closer the helmet color is to white, the lower the chance that it will absorb more heat. So, if you really would not like to be warm while riding, the best thing is to buy a clean white helmet.

Helmet color design (Choosing your preferred color)

So, after showing you the two main safety factors you need to consider before choosing the color of your helmet, now it’s time for your personal preference which is definitely also important because you must love the color of the helmet if you don’t like how the helmet look, I guess you won’t want to wear it.

First of all, you need to know which color you like the most and also take into account the color of your motorcycle and other safety equipment like riding suit, gloves, etc.

And if you still want to get a dark-colored helmet, like black or dark blue, although it is more dangerous, I recommend you only get one if your safety gear and a motorcycle is light in color so that you will still be seen by other riders while if your motorcycle and safety gear is dark in color, it is dangerous for you to get a dark-colored helmet.

On the other hand, if you prefer a light-colored helmet, that will be so amazing because you will be much safer, especially if it is a white-colored helmet which is the safest while there are also those who prefer helmets with combinations of different colors which I would recommend less. I would recommend a solid and clean helmet the most.

Is it really that important to get a bright and not a dark helmet?

The short answer is yes. Your visibility when riding at night or in the morning is very important for your safety, and the darker your helmet is, the more you are likely to be injured.

If you don’t know, about 3000 people die every day in the world from car accidents, and a sizable percentage happens because car riders do not pay attention to motorcyclists, which is why it’s important to wear a bright helmet so that cars riders can clearly see you.

It is also important for you to note that another advantage of riding with a bright color helmet in the dark is that the rider will have more time to slow down in case the car rider does not see you and if he comes right at you at high speed, then he will press the brakes faster. But this is not the case if you are wearing a dark helmet, which means that by wearing bright helmets, you’ll save yourself from life-threatening benefits.

The roles, pros & cons of each motorocycle helmet’s color

Each color has its advantages and disadvantages in terms of places, weather, and of course, beauty. As we have some colors that are beautiful but not safe, we have colors that are very ugly but safe, and even a white color has its advantages and disadvantages. As a result of this, I decided to write about the advantages and disadvantages of each helmet’s color, and I am sure it will also help you to know which helmet color will suit you better.

White color

As I have often said earlier, white color is, in most cases, the best and safest for riding, while its advantage is that it will provide the best and perfect visibility for other car riders in any kind of weather, except snow. Know that if you live in a place where there is a lot of white snow throughout the year, then a white helmet will be less suitable for you.

In addition, white does not absorb heat which is another advantage, but in my opinion, the downside of white color is that it is less impressive and beautiful than other colors and it would not also fit most people’s motorcycle or safety gear because it is rare to import motorcycles or safety equipment that is white in color, so it is important to take this into consideration.

Red

תוצאת תמונה עבור Red

Red is a beautiful and very dominant color and you will be surprised to hear that it is considered as both light and dark color. This is because there are different kinds of red, but no matter what kind of red you choose, it does not matter because it is a very dominant color and people often choose it. Dark red is good for night riding because you will look visible enough to other riders, and in my opinion, red will go with most motorcycle colors because there are tons of red Honda motorcycles. However, the only drawback I found in red is that it absorbs heat but, of course, not up to black, so take that into account.

Orange

תוצאת תמונה עבור orange color

Orange is an excellent simple color. It is considered relatively bright. It is very visible to humans, while it even reminds people of a safety mark and it is visible in any kind of weather such as snow, winter, gray clouds, sun, and of course, the best thing about it is that it does not absorbs much heat.

In my own opinion, the disadvantage of this color is that it is not beautiful and only if you have a KMT orange motorcycle to match. An orange helmet will look less beautiful with any other motorcycles that are not KMT, but this may not be the same for you since this is based on my own opinion.

Yellow

תוצאת תמונה עבור yellow

The only advantage of yellow is that it does not also absorb heat. However, it is by far the least colored and most dangerous to ride with after black in the night because it will also not be seen at night or even in winter but good for daylight for other car riders since it is absorbed by the sun. It is also a less beautiful color to go with while I do not know even know a single motorcycle company except Suzuki that has yellow motorcycles.

However, if you do love the yellow color, no problem taking it but I recommend that you paste a black stripe on the helmet to make it look a little bit better for other car riders.

Green

תוצאת תמונה עבור green color

Green is a great color and does not also absorb a lot of heat which is excellent, and you can certainly ride a green helmet anywhere. There are those that like this color while some do not, but in the city, bright green looks better than dark green, so take note of this.

Blue

תוצאת תמונה עבור Blue

Blue is a very beautiful color and most people like it because it is quite suitable for Yamaha motorcycles. It just looks great and will fit anything but note that dark blue absorbs more heat than light blue. Another thing about blue is that it would look less visible at night, especially dark blue, but light blue will glow and make it easier for other people to see you.

Purple

תוצאת תמונה עבור purple

In my own opinion, the only advantage of purple is that it is very pretty. However, it is less visible to other riders, both dark and light purple. It also absorbs a lot of heat when riding.

Black

תוצאת תמונה עבור Black

Black is considered to be the worst helmet’s color because it will not be seen by other riders, which is very dangerous for your safety while riding. It will hardly be seen in the dark and even in winter and it also absorbs a lot of heat than any other color which is very annoying because you can’t even ride with a black helmet on sunny days, especially in summer, it will just be unbearable.

Know that some people still have a black helmet and are willing to take the risk and heat of black because it is the most beautiful color and blends with most of the motorcycles and all kinds of clothing more than other colors. It is the king in terms of beauty, so it is your choice to take the risk and accept the fact that black does not seem dark but absorbs a lot of heat it if you love the beauty of a black helmet or you do not buy a black helmet if you cannot take the risk.

Summary

For any questions, you may have or opinion on the article, feel free to write us a comment, and we will get back to you within 24 hours.

 Thanks for reading, until the next post.

Rob

I’m Rob, the owner of RX Riders Place. My family and I have a long history of riding dirt bikes and ATVs and want to share what we have learned.

Recent Posts