2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test

Dry BrakingCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 29.4 MHankook Winter i pike RS2: 33.44 M
Wet BrakingCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 28.9 MKumho WinterCraft Ice: 37.3 M
Wet HandlingCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 33.5 sKumho WinterCraft Ice: 36.5 s
Snow BrakingGoodyear UltraGrip Arctic 2: 50.6 MCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 54.5 M
Snow TractionGoodyear UltraGrip Ice 2: 5.7 sCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 6.3 s
Snow HandlingMichelin X Ice North 4: 52.3 sCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 55.9 s
Ice BrakingNokian Hakkapeliitta 10: 36.4 MCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 57.2 M
Ice TractionNokian Hakkapeliitta 10: 3.6 sCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 6.7 s
Ice HandlingNokian Hakkapeliitta 10: 54.1 sCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 74.7 s
Subj. NoiseContinental VikingContact 7: 10 PointsKumho WinterCraft Ice: 5 Points
PriceCST Medallion Winter WCP1: 300 Michelin X Ice North 4: 650
If you live in a part of the world that sees an extreme winter such as the Northern USA, Canada, and the Northern parts of Europe, you'll know that regular central European winter tyres just don't cut it. 

Winters which see snow on the roads for many months and lots of ice need extreme winter tyres, and there are two types to choose from. The original is the studded winter tyre, a tyre which has studs (pieces of metal) inserted into the soft winter compound allowing the tyre to really bite into the snow and ice below. 

Sadly, as great as studs are, they're damaging to the roads which is why tyre companies invented a category of winter tyre called studless friction winter tyres. While these don't have studs, they do have a vastly improved ability on snow and ice when compared to a "normal" winter tyre, and with advances in compounding technology they are quickly becoming an excellent alternative for all but the most extreme climates.

To find out which of these are best, and to see the difference between studded winter tyres and studless friction winter tyres, the excellent testers at the Finnish magazine Tekniikan Maailma have tested nine studded winter tyres and seven studless winter tyres in the same test, all in 205/55 R16, to show us the differences in the dry, wet, snow and ice performances! 

Unfortunately our website doesn't currently allow us to highlight which tyre is studded and which is a friction winter tyre, it's marked in the results at the bottom of the page which is the best we could do, sorry!

The tyres on test are

StuddedFriction Studless
▪ Bridgestone Noranza 001
▪ Continental IceContact 3
▪ Goodyear UltraGrip Arctic 2
▪ Hankook Winter I*Pike RS2
▪ Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi32
▪ Michelin X-Ice North 4
▪ Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10
▪ Pirelli Ice Zero 2
▪ Westlake IceMaster Spike Z-506
▪ Continental VikingContact 7
▪ CST Medallion Winter
▪ Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 2
▪ Hankook Winter I*Cept IZ2
▪ Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51
▪ Michelin X-Ice Snow
▪ Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3

Studded VS Friction Winter Tyres

The differences between the two categories of tyre are certainly interesting, and even a little surprising in parts.

Starting with ice, in every ice test all the studded tyres out performed all the friction tyres by a reasonable margin, this is not surprising.

In the snow, the two types of tyre were essentially even, with the first seven places of snow handling alternating between studded and friction! If one type of tyre had to win, it would be the studded tyre, but the margin was almost nothing.

In the dry and wet, the CST friction tyre out performed the pack, but but given it's poor performance on snow and ice it's probably because its design is more of a central european winter tyre intended for milder climates. Dry braking had nearly all the tyres separated by just one meter with a small advantage to the studs where as wet braking had larger margins with a small advantage to the friction tyres.

Unsurprisingly, the studless friction tyres were all considerably quieter than the studded tyres, and on average had a lower rolling resistance.

See below for the full data and the overall results at the bottom of the page.

Dry & Wet

Snow

Ice

Environment

Results

1st: Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10

Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking5th31.4 M29.4 M+2 M93.63%
Wet Braking12th35.9 M28.9 M+7 M80.5%
Wet Handling5th35.3 s33.5 s+1.8 s94.9%
Snow Braking8th51.5 M50.6 M+0.9 M98.25%
Snow Traction10th5.9 s5.7 s+0.2 s96.61%
Snow Handling7th53.3 s52.3 s+1 s98.12%
Ice Braking1st36.4 M100%
Ice Traction1st3.6 s100%
Ice Handling1st54.1 s100%
Subj. Noise8th7 Points10 Points-3 Points70%
Price15th650 300 +350 46.15%
[Studded] The new tyre from Nokian is excellent on ice, feeling predictable and calm with direct steering, good in the snow and good dry braking distances.
Average wet braking.

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1st: Continental VikingContact 7

Continental VikingContact 7
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking13th31.8 M29.4 M+2.4 M92.45%
Wet Braking6th33.8 M28.9 M+4.9 M85.5%
Wet Handling11th35.6 s33.5 s+2.1 s94.1%
Snow Braking5th51.1 M50.6 M+0.5 M99.02%
Snow Traction4th5.8 s5.7 s+0.1 s98.28%
Snow Handling2nd52.7 s52.3 s+0.4 s99.24%
Ice Braking11th46 M36.4 M+9.6 M79.13%
Ice Traction10th5.1 s3.6 s+1.5 s70.59%
Ice Handling10th65 s54.1 s+10.9 s83.23%
Subj. Noise1st10 Points100%
Price12th600 300 +300 50%
[Friction] Very good on ice and snow.
Poor wet performance.

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2nd: Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 2

Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 2
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking13th31.8 M29.4 M+2.4 M92.45%
Wet Braking3rd33.5 M28.9 M+4.6 M86.27%
Wet Handling7th35.4 s33.5 s+1.9 s94.63%
Snow Braking8th51.5 M50.6 M+0.9 M98.25%
Snow Traction1st5.7 s100%
Snow Handling4th53.1 s52.3 s+0.8 s98.49%
Ice Braking12th46.5 M36.4 M+10.1 M78.28%
Ice Traction12th5.4 s3.6 s+1.8 s66.67%
Ice Handling12th66.6 s54.1 s+12.5 s81.23%
Subj. Noise2nd9 Points10 Points-1 Points90%
Price7th500 300 +200 60%
[Friction] Easy to drive on snow with good levels of grip, good ice performance.
Poor dry performance.

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2nd: Goodyear UltraGrip Arctic 2

Goodyear UltraGrip Arctic 2
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking12th31.7 M29.4 M+2.3 M92.74%
Wet Braking10th34.9 M28.9 M+6 M82.81%
Wet Handling5th35.3 s33.5 s+1.8 s94.9%
Snow Braking1st50.6 M100%
Snow Traction1st5.7 s100%
Snow Handling2nd52.7 s52.3 s+0.4 s99.24%
Ice Braking2nd37.9 M36.4 M+1.5 M96.04%
Ice Traction4th3.9 s3.6 s+0.3 s92.31%
Ice Handling3rd55.1 s54.1 s+1 s98.19%
Subj. Noise8th7 Points10 Points-3 Points70%
Price8th550 300 +250 54.55%
[Studded] Best in test on snow, excellent on ice, good handling in all conditions.
Average dry braking.

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3rd: Michelin X Ice North 4

Michelin X Ice North 4
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking4th31.1 M29.4 M+1.7 M94.53%
Wet Braking15th37.3 M28.9 M+8.4 M77.48%
Wet Handling15th36.2 s33.5 s+2.7 s92.54%
Snow Braking3rd51 M50.6 M+0.4 M99.22%
Snow Traction4th5.8 s5.7 s+0.1 s98.28%
Snow Handling1st52.3 s100%
Ice Braking3rd38.8 M36.4 M+2.4 M93.81%
Ice Traction3rd3.8 s3.6 s+0.2 s94.74%
Ice Handling2nd54.5 s54.1 s+0.4 s99.27%
Subj. Noise8th7 Points10 Points-3 Points70%
Price15th650 300 +350 46.15%
[Studded] Best in snow handling, good on ice, good dry braking.
Slow wet handling and long wet braking, expensive.

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3rd: Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3

Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking11th31.6 M29.4 M+2.2 M93.04%
Wet Braking2nd32.3 M28.9 M+3.4 M89.47%
Wet Handling8th35.5 s33.5 s+2 s94.37%
Snow Braking3rd51 M50.6 M+0.4 M99.22%
Snow Traction4th5.8 s5.7 s+0.1 s98.28%
Snow Handling6th53.2 s52.3 s+0.9 s98.31%
Ice Braking14th49.5 M36.4 M+13.1 M73.54%
Ice Traction14th5.6 s3.6 s+2 s64.29%
Ice Handling11th65.8 s54.1 s+11.7 s82.22%
Subj. Noise2nd9 Points10 Points-1 Points90%
Price8th550 300 +250 54.55%
[Friction] Good in all winter conditions, low rolling resistance.
Poor dry drivability.

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4th: Pirelli Ice Zero 2

Pirelli Ice Zero 2
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking2nd29.9 M29.4 M+0.5 M98.33%
Wet Braking4th33.6 M28.9 M+4.7 M86.01%
Wet Handling12th35.7 s33.5 s+2.2 s93.84%
Snow Braking6th51.4 M50.6 M+0.8 M98.44%
Snow Traction1st5.7 s100%
Snow Handling4th53.1 s52.3 s+0.8 s98.49%
Ice Braking7th41.8 M36.4 M+5.4 M87.08%
Ice Traction4th3.9 s3.6 s+0.3 s92.31%
Ice Handling9th62.7 s54.1 s+8.6 s86.28%
Subj. Noise8th7 Points10 Points-3 Points70%
Price8th550 300 +250 54.55%
[Studded] Best snow traction in test, short dry and wet braking.
Slowest studded tyre in ice handling, average wet handling.

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4th: Michelin X Ice Snow

Michelin X Ice Snow
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking6th31.5 M29.4 M+2.1 M93.33%
Wet Braking14th36.1 M28.9 M+7.2 M80.06%
Wet Handling8th35.5 s33.5 s+2 s94.37%
Snow Braking13th52.3 M50.6 M+1.7 M96.75%
Snow Traction10th5.9 s5.7 s+0.2 s96.61%
Snow Handling12th53.6 s52.3 s+1.3 s97.57%
Ice Braking10th44.4 M36.4 M+8 M81.98%
Ice Traction11th5.2 s3.6 s+1.6 s69.23%
Ice Handling13th68.6 s54.1 s+14.5 s78.86%
Subj. Noise2nd9 Points10 Points-1 Points90%
Price12th600 300 +300 50%
[Friction] Very good ice grip, stable driving in all winter conditions.
Poor handling in the dry.

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5th: Bridgestone Noranza 001

Bridgestone Noranza 001
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking6th31.5 M29.4 M+2.1 M93.33%
Wet Braking13th36 M28.9 M+7.1 M80.28%
Wet Handling14th35.8 s33.5 s+2.3 s93.58%
Snow Braking10th51.9 M50.6 M+1.3 M97.5%
Snow Traction4th5.8 s5.7 s+0.1 s98.28%
Snow Handling8th53.4 s52.3 s+1.1 s97.94%
Ice Braking4th39 M36.4 M+2.6 M93.33%
Ice Traction2nd3.7 s3.6 s+0.1 s97.3%
Ice Handling6th55.8 s54.1 s+1.7 s96.95%
Subj. Noise13th6 Points10 Points-4 Points60%
Price8th550 300 +250 54.55%
[Studded] Good on ice, short dry braking.
Poor grip in the wet, high noise.

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5th: Hankook Winter I cept iZ2 W616

Hankook Winter I cept iZ2 W616
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking6th31.5 M29.4 M+2.1 M93.33%
Wet Braking9th34.4 M28.9 M+5.5 M84.01%
Wet Handling8th35.5 s33.5 s+2 s94.37%
Snow Braking13th52.3 M50.6 M+1.7 M96.75%
Snow Traction10th5.9 s5.7 s+0.2 s96.61%
Snow Handling12th53.6 s52.3 s+1.3 s97.57%
Ice Braking15th51.7 M36.4 M+15.3 M70.41%
Ice Traction15th6 s3.6 s+2.4 s60%
Ice Handling14th70 s54.1 s+15.9 s77.29%
Subj. Noise2nd9 Points10 Points-1 Points90%
Price5th450 300 +150 66.67%
[Friction] Good in snow, low rolling resistance.
Poor grip and handling in the dry.

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6th: Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51

Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking6th31.5 M29.4 M+2.1 M93.33%
Wet Braking6th33.8 M28.9 M+4.9 M85.5%
Wet Handling12th35.7 s33.5 s+2.2 s93.84%
Snow Braking11th52.1 M50.6 M+1.5 M97.12%
Snow Traction10th5.9 s5.7 s+0.2 s96.61%
Snow Handling8th53.4 s52.3 s+1.1 s97.94%
Ice Braking13th48.8 M36.4 M+12.4 M74.59%
Ice Traction13th5.5 s3.6 s+1.9 s65.45%
Ice Handling14th70 s54.1 s+15.9 s77.29%
Subj. Noise6th8 Points10 Points-2 Points80%
Price3rd400 300 +100 75%
[Friction] Good in snow, low rolling resistance.
Poor handling in the dry.

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6th: Continental IceContact 3

Continental IceContact 3
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking6th31.5 M29.4 M+2.1 M93.33%
Wet Braking5th33.7 M28.9 M+4.8 M85.76%
Wet Handling3rd35.2 s33.5 s+1.7 s95.17%
Snow Braking6th51.4 M50.6 M+0.8 M98.44%
Snow Traction4th5.8 s5.7 s+0.1 s98.28%
Snow Handling11th53.5 s52.3 s+1.2 s97.76%
Ice Braking6th40.9 M36.4 M+4.5 M89%
Ice Traction4th3.9 s3.6 s+0.3 s92.31%
Ice Handling7th57.8 s54.1 s+3.7 s93.6%
Subj. Noise13th6 Points10 Points-4 Points60%
Price12th600 300 +300 50%
[Studded] Good on snow and on ice, good wet handling, balanced.
Poor dry handling.

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7th: Hankook Winter i pike RS2

Hankook Winter i pike RS2
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking16th33.44 M29.4 M+4.04 M87.92%
Wet Braking11th35.4 M28.9 M+6.5 M81.64%
Wet Handling3rd35.2 s33.5 s+1.7 s95.17%
Snow Braking2nd50.7 M50.6 M+0.1 M99.8%
Snow Traction4th5.8 s5.7 s+0.1 s98.28%
Snow Handling14th53.7 s52.3 s+1.4 s97.39%
Ice Braking5th40.1 M36.4 M+3.7 M90.77%
Ice Traction7th4 s3.6 s+0.4 s90%
Ice Handling4th55.6 s54.1 s+1.5 s97.3%
Subj. Noise13th6 Points10 Points-4 Points60%
Price5th450 300 +150 66.67%
[Studded] Good on snow and ice, good wet handling.
Poor in the dry.

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7th: CST Medallion Winter WCP1

CST Medallion Winter WCP1
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking1st29.4 M100%
Wet Braking1st28.9 M100%
Wet Handling1st33.5 s100%
Snow Braking16th54.5 M50.6 M+3.9 M92.84%
Snow Traction16th6.3 s5.7 s+0.6 s90.48%
Snow Handling16th55.9 s52.3 s+3.6 s93.56%
Ice Braking16th57.2 M36.4 M+20.8 M63.64%
Ice Traction16th6.7 s3.6 s+3.1 s53.73%
Ice Handling16th74.7 s54.1 s+20.6 s72.42%
Subj. Noise6th8 Points10 Points-2 Points80%
Price1st300 100%
[Friction] Very good in the dry and wet.
Very bad in the snow and ice.

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8th: Kumho WinterCraft Ice

Kumho WinterCraft Ice
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking15th32.7 M29.4 M+3.3 M89.91%
Wet Braking15th37.3 M28.9 M+8.4 M77.48%
Wet Handling16th36.5 s33.5 s+3 s91.78%
Snow Braking11th52.1 M50.6 M+1.5 M97.12%
Snow Traction10th5.9 s5.7 s+0.2 s96.61%
Snow Handling8th53.4 s52.3 s+1.1 s97.94%
Ice Braking8th42.2 M36.4 M+5.8 M86.26%
Ice Traction8th4.2 s3.6 s+0.6 s85.71%
Ice Handling4th55.6 s54.1 s+1.5 s97.3%
Subj. Noise16th5 Points10 Points-5 Points50%
Price3rd400 300 +100 75%
[Studded] Good lateral grip on ice.
Poor in the wet, high levels of noise, long dry braking.

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9th: Westlake IceMaster Spike Z 50

Westlake IceMaster Spike Z 50
  • 205/55 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
Test#ResultBestDifference%
Dry Braking3rd31 M29.4 M+1.6 M94.84%
Wet Braking8th34 M28.9 M+5.1 M85%
Wet Handling2nd35 s33.5 s+1.5 s95.71%
Snow Braking15th52.5 M50.6 M+1.9 M96.38%
Snow Traction10th5.9 s5.7 s+0.2 s96.61%
Snow Handling15th55.3 s52.3 s+3 s94.58%
Ice Braking9th43.3 M36.4 M+6.9 M84.06%
Ice Traction9th4.4 s3.6 s+0.8 s81.82%
Ice Handling8th60.3 s54.1 s+6.2 s89.72%
Subj. Noise8th7 Points10 Points-3 Points70%
Price2nd350 300 +50 85.71%
[Studded] Good wet grip and dry braking.
Poor driveability in the dry, very weak in the snow and on ice.

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