The best gardening gloves of 2025 for every type of task, tested and reviewed – ryan
One of the greatest joys of gardening is getting your hands dirty, but who among us actually wants our fingers caked with soil, poked by thorns or scraped by tough weeds? No matter what kind of yard work you’re doing, a pair of the best gardening gloves is an absolute must. Good gloves will protect your hands and keep them clean, but they’ll also help firm up your grip and make certain tasks more comfortable, thanks to targeted padding. Some pairs even look great, with cheerful patterns and bright colors.
To unearth truly great finds, I talked to seven professional gardeners about what to look for in a pair of gardening gloves. I asked them for their go-tos and was happy to hear that for everyday tasks, you don’t need to spend more than $10 a pair. “I would say my favorite gloves, first of all, are just wearing gloves,” says Helen Lawson, a spokesperson for Monrovia, one of the country’s top growers of ornamental and edible plants. “People laugh, but you’d be surprised how quickly your hands can get tired or your fingertips get sore.”
With that in mind, I put a dozen pairs of the highest-rated gardening gloves to work, trying them out in my own yard while I pulled weeds, cleaned up debris and raked. I also subjected each pair to expert-approved durability and comfort tests. (Insert an “it’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it” joke here!)
Keep in mind that finding the best gardening gloves is not a one-size-fits-all situation. There’s a good chance you’ll want a couple of pairs for different tasks. For example, thin, rubberized gloves are best when you need lots of flexibility and movement, while thicker work gloves are ideal if you’re hauling rough materials or doing cleanup. Once you have your perfect pair(s), you’ll be set for the season — why not try starting a hummingbird garden?
Table of contents
Best gardening gloves of 2025
Sizes: (Women’s) XS-L | Material: Biodegradable nylon with a nitrile palm | Color: Green
For everyday gardening, you can’t go wrong with these stretchy nylon gloves. Between their sturdiness, comfort and grippiness, they offer exceptional value.
But what’s coolest is that once they’ve reached the end of their life, they’re designed to biodegrade in a fraction of the time of traditional gloves. For anyone who cares about their impact on the environment (aka most gardeners), this is an intriguing feature. The brand uses a proprietary additive called Reclaim that attracts microbes when the gloves enter a landfill. This helps them break down in as little as five years, based on standards established by the independent American Society for Testing and Materials.
I first heard about these gloves from Katie Tamony, chief marketing officer at Monrovia. Because she goes through gloves quickly, she looks for something inexpensive yet durable. “I used to buy gloves for the look, like I would want something that had a pretty pattern on it. Now I go for gloves that have a good grip and are the right size,” she says.
This pair is indeed grippy, with a nitrile palm and fingertips that helped me hold onto slippery weeds and stones. I didn’t expect them to work as well as they did because the coating is smooth, not textured like it is on most similar gloves. But even after rubbing it with sandpaper, it resisted any abrasions.
I sprayed the gloves with a hose to test how long they would take to dry. While they got soaked almost immediately, they dried out in about an hour, whereas many other fabric gloves I tested stayed damp.
I have small hands and found the size small gloves roomy but comfortable. The nylon felt cool and breathable, and other than a little dirt slipping down my wrists, the gloves kept my hands clean when I reached into a big bag of potting soil (I suspect this wouldn’t have been a problem if I had tested an extra-small pair.) The material also offers a decent amount of protection against brambles and thorns, despite being a thin knit.
A bonus (okay, make it two): These gloves can go in the washing machine, and the fingertips are touchscreen compatible, handy when you want to snap pics of your fabulous flora!
Pros
- Affordable
- Resists abrasions
- Machine washable
- Made from biodegradable fabric
- Offers decent protection against sharp objects, especially considering the thin knit
- Touchscreen compatible
Cons
- Does not repel water
- Fits slightly large, especially around the wrist
$10 at Ace Hardware
Sizes: (Women’s) S-L | Material: Polyester with a rubber palm | Colors: Four color combinations (each set comes with two colors) including red and green; purple and apple green; pink and light blue; and multi-colored florals
It doesn’t get any gentler on your wallet than this six-pack of gloves, which rings in at just over $2 per pair! Made from polyester with a rubber palm, these gloves have a nice, snug fit, especially around the wrist. My hands stayed pristine after digging deep into a bag of potting soil.
Though I find the idea of white gardening gloves a bit ridiculous, dirt brushed off these better than the other light-colored fabric pair I tried from Garden Works (read more about them in the “others we tested” section below). You can also toss the Cooljob gloves in the wash if needed.
The rubberized palms showed some signs of abrasion after I rubbed them with sandpaper, but during regular use, they seemed to hold up just fine. I’m curious how they’ll do after a full season, but I also have five more pairs if these wear out.
Considering how breathable and comfortable they feel, I was surprised how well they protected my hands against thorns. They’re not foolproof, but they performed the best of the fabric gloves I tried.
Pros
- Extremely affordable
- Machine washable
- Snug fit
- Decent protection against brambles
- Lots of color options
Cons
- Rubber wears out a bit faster than other gloves
- Long drying time
- Limited sizing
$14 at Amazon
Sizes: (Unisex) S-L | Material: Polyester and spandex with a latex palm | Color: Lime green/blue
Not one, not two, but three experts I spoke to named Mud as a favorite for gardening gloves. And both Diane Blazek, executive director of the National Garden Bureau, and Suzanne DeJohn, a writer for the National Gardening Association, called out this Super Grip pair. “For general gardening use, my go-to is nitrile gloves. They are inexpensive, waterproof (on the areas with the coating), offer excellent dexterity and are surprisingly long-lasting,” says DeJohn. “For more protection, I like Mud gloves — similar but with thicker fabric and a heavier waterproof coating.”
These are knit from a polyester-spandex blend, so they have a ton of stretch, and the palms are an ultra-textured latex. I found them comfortable and breathable, and they lived up to their name when it came to grip. I easily held slick rocks, and the latex palms gave me extra leverage when I was pulling weeds. I also appreciated the bright, highlighter-like color, which made this pair easy to find in my shed.
They did a decent job protecting my hands against sharp thorns, despite how light they are. In our “rain shower” test, the knit soaked up water, but the palms stayed fairly dry. “If it’s really wet, I go for Mud gloves,” adds Lawson. I can see why!
Pros
- Affordable
- Lightweight and breathable
- Bright color makes them easy to find
- Latex palm is extra grippy
- Machine washable
Cons
- Long drying time
- Limited sizing
$4 at Amazon
Sizes: (Women’s) S-XL | Material: Goatskin leather with a suede cowhide cuff | Color: Pale gray
Many gardeners who work with roses and other thorny shrubs go for gauntlet gloves, which reach up to the elbow for more protection. I did test a couple of pairs and liked them (read more about them in the “others we tested” section below). So why did these buttery beauties from Womanswork win the title?
Well, you can’t beat their versatility. Like gauntlet gloves, they’ll protect you from sharp, pointy objects: They’re made from durable goatskin with a wide cuff that came up to my mid-forearm, so they covered more of my skin than any of the standard gloves I tried. But this pair is also a workhorse if you’re lifting heavy objects, raking or digging.
The leather is supple and felt amazing against my skin. It conforms to your hands over time, which made me especially happy because when I first put this pair on, it was too large, especially in the fingers. This caused some chafing on both my hands between my pinky and ring fingers.
I was especially impressed by the way this pair held up to water. Even after a soaking, my hand stayed dry, and the gloves themselves dried out within an hour. When I talked to Lawson, she sang the waterproof praises of Womanswork leather gloves, and they totally lived up to the hype. “If I could only wear one pair of gloves, it would be a pair of goatskin gloves. They’re pretty waterproof; if they get wet, they’ll dry out. They also give you good touch, but are sturdy,” she said. “And Womanswork makes the prettiest ones.”
Pros
- Extremely durable
- Water resistant
- Covers most of your arm without being a gauntlet glove
- Completely protects against thorns
- Made in America
Cons
- Fits slightly large
- Stitching around the fingers is bulky
- Pricey
$46 at Amazon
Sizes: (Men’s) S-XXL | Material: Goatskin and Lycra with a silicone palm | Color: Brown
Many of the gloves I tested were women’s, while a few were unisex. I admit that this was the only pair with men’s sizing, which is why I crowned them “best for men.” But I’d recommend these to anyone, as long as they fit. I tried the smallest size available, and though they were roomy, they were also extremely well made.
These babies are made from goatskin, which several of the pros I spoke to prefer over other types of leather. “I never recommend cowhide, just goatskin, because it’s more supple,” says Daryl Beyers, a landscape designer, gardening teacher and author of The New Gardener’s Handbook. “It’s what you want when you’re out there with a saw, picking up big sticks, digging a hole.”
I had no problem hauling rocks and branches wearing this pair, and the leather felt smooth against my skin. Considering how padded they are — they are reinforced around the knuckles and palm, with silicone patches stitched on top — they were super comfortable. My hands felt extremely protected when I ran them against a rose bush in our thorn test and pulled stubborn weeds.
This was also one of the only pairs of gardening gloves that repelled water when sprayed them with a hose. I noticed droplets beading up on the palm, and when I put the gloves back on, my hands stayed dry. My only gripes are that the leather showed signs of wear when I rubbed it with sandpaper … and, well, I wish they made these gloves in smaller sizes!
Pros
- Water resistant
- Targeted padding feels surprisingly comfortable
- Machine washable
- Super protective
Cons
- Pricey
- Leather scuffed during testing
$29 at Amazon
Factors to consider when choosing gardening gloves
The best gardening gloves are not one-size-fits-all, in more ways than one. You’ll likely need different gloves for different tasks, so think about what kind of work you do in the garden. Do you plant a lot of containers, demanding more dexterity? Are you mostly raking or using tools that could give you callouses? Do you often work with roses or thorny shrubs?
Ryan McEnaney, spokesperson for Bailey Nurseries and author of Field Guide to Outside Style, shared these, ahem, “handy” tips for choosing a glove material and style:
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For roses or other thorny plants, you’ll want a glove that offers good protection. A nice leather glove is key for that. Leather not only provides great protection but also lasts longer.
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For delicate tasks, like planting seeds, you might want a slimmer glove, and latex-coated gloves work well because they give you more flexibility.
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For casual gardening, you can get by with a cheaper pair of gloves. But if you’re taking on more intense projects, it’s worth investing in a higher-quality pair.
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For working with chemicals, having backup pairs of gloves is really important. You’ll want to wash them thoroughly between uses.
Looking sharp! Leather gloves like these are key when planting or pruning thorny rose bushes. (Jessica Dodell-Feder/Yahoo)
Your old gardening gloves can also clue you in on what to buy, says Lawson, who advises looking for wear patterns. For example, if you see the palms are worn out, make sure your new gardening gloves have padded palms.
How we tested gardening gloves
I’m not kidding when I say I got down and dirty with these gardening gloves. I wore each pair while working in my own yard (a mix of grass, stones and flower beds), pulling weeds, cleaning up sticks and debris, spreading mulch and doing some light pruning. I noted how comfortable they felt and how well they protected my hands. I also consulted with our experts to develop these four durability tests:
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“Rough and tumble” test: I rubbed medium-grit sandpaper over common touch points, including the palms and fingertips, to see if the material showed signs of wear.
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“Can you dig it” test: While wearing the gloves, I reached deep into a big bag of potting soil to see if any dirt escaped into the gloves and got on my hands. I also checked the gloves themselves — did they easily brush clean? Did damp soil stick to them?
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“Thorn in my side” test: I ran my hands down the stems of thorny young rose bushes to check the gloves’ ability to protect my skin.
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“Rain shower” test: I sprayed all gloves with a hose to see how well they repelled water and how long they took to dry. Once they dried, I checked the fit — was the leather still supple? Did the fabric around the wrist lose its shape?
We tested these gloves to see which ones could weather the elements best. (Jessica Dodell-Feder/Yahoo)
Other gardening gloves we tested
Garden Works Bamboo Fit Gloves ($14): I loved the fit and feel of these gloves. They offer a ton of dexterity, and the latex palm held up well to my tests. But the top of the glove is knit from bamboo fibers, which had some drawbacks: They snagged easily, and soil seemed to cling to them, an issue made more noticeable by the fact that these gloves are white!
Firm Grip General Purpose Gloves ($22): The sizing seemed a bit off — though the palms of the small gloves fit, the fingers were super wide, which made wearing them awkward. Soil easily escaped into the wristband (and all over my hands!), and these did little to protect me from thorns.
Amazing Stuff For You Garden Gloves ($10 for two pairs): These nylon gloves with nitrile palms are a solid bargain and performed nearly as well as the Cooljob gloves (our pick for the best budget gardening gloves). The only difference was that the Cooljob pair fit more comfortably and fared better in our “can you dig it” test.
Bamllum Leather Gardening Gloves ($10): These gloves have a lot of fans, but I’m not sure I understand what the fuss is about. The “leather” on the palms is actually microfiber, so they’re not all that durable. To the brand’s credit, they come in 14 pretty patterns and colors, and they are comfortable to wear. I’d consider them a good gift for a casual gardener, but I wouldn’t buy them for real yard work.
Wells Lamont ComfortHyde Leather Hybrid Work Gardening Gloves ($16): Dave Whitinger, executive director of the National Gardening Association, told me he’s a huge fan of Wells Lamont leather gloves, so I had high hopes for this pair, which features an adjustable wrist and the brand’s abrasion-resistant ComfortHyde leather on the palms. I wasn’t crazy about the fit — the gloves seemed short — but they did keep my hands clean. Unfortunately, the gloves also made my hands sweaty despite mesh panels on the top. And the sandpaper in our “rough and tumble” test quickly scuffed the fingertips.
Garden Works Leather Pro’s Gardening Gloves ($43): I also really liked these leather gauntlet gloves, and if I worked with roses all the time, I might invest in a pair. They definitely need to be broken in, as they chafed around my fingers.
Handlady Long Pruning Gloves ($20): This pair of gauntlet gloves earns raves on Amazon, and while I thought they were comfortable and protective, they did slip off my hands a bit, and the cowhide showed signs of wear in our “rough and tumble” test. Also, this is a small thing, but the color of these gloves looks nothing like what I ordered — I received pale gray/blue but expected beige.
Can we get a hand for some of our favorite gardening gloves? (Jessica Dodell-Feder/Yahoo)
FAQs
Which gloves protect against thorns?
Gloves made from leather (our experts like goatskin the most) offer the best barrier against thorns. To take your protection up a notch, look for gauntlet gloves, which reach up to your elbow.
What gloves are best for weeding?
Fabric gloves with a coated nitrile or latex palm are best for this task because they give you plenty of dexterity plus some protection against prickly weeds and dirt, which can dry out your skin, says Beyers. Adds Whitinger, “For gardening purposes, the thinner the better, in my opinion. There’s a lot of dexterity you can lose with really thick gloves. Not all gloves ‘fit like a glove.’”
Meet the experts
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Daryl Beyers, landscape designer, gardening teacher and author, The New Gardener’s Handbook
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Diane Blazek, executive director, National Garden Bureau
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Helen Lawson, spokesperson and retail partnership marketing coach, Monrovia
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Ryan McEnaney, spokesperson, Bailey Nurseries, and author, Field Guide to Outside Style
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Katie Tamony, chief marketing officer, Monrovia
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Dave Whitinger, executive director, National Gardening Association
The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.