Our guide to the best sunglasses for cycling is your one-stop shop for cycling sunglasses. In this article, we arm you with all the info you need to choose your new cycling sunglasses, level up your cycling performance and leave your rivals in the dust.
The best cycling sunglasses give you a tangible advantage on the road, helping you ride with confidence and class. Whether you're smashing out sportives or battling buddies in a time trial, you need eyewear that enhances your performance and gives you the edge, time after time.
Contents:
1. What Are the Key Cycling Sunglasses Features to Look Out For?
When you’re out on two wheels, you need to be completely focused on the road ahead, and the best cycling sunglasses are precision-engineered to help you do just that. SunGod’s cycling sunglasses are designed to keep your attention on what’s important. Discover the key features that make SunGod cycling sunglasses the eyewear of choice for the world's cycling elite:
Premium lens clarity to enhance your vision - SunGods use market-leading 8KO® nylon lens technology to enhance your vision as you ride. This lens technology is clearer, lighter and tougher than industry-standard polycarbonate. It works by reducing the level of light distortion as it passes through your lenses, creating a cycling lens that's as clear as the surface of the human eye.
100% UV protection - All SunGods offer 100% UV protection. This means they block out harmful UVA and UVB rays as you ride, reducing the risk of long-term eye-health issues like cataracts, and keeping you riding into later life.
Durable designs that last a lifetime - All SunGods are backed by our unrivalled Lifetime Guarantee, meaning we’ll repair your sunglasses if they break (or you break them), free of charge. Because we know that keeping your gear in play is better than throwing it away. We've repaired over 7000 pairs of SunGods to date, as part of our mission to See Better. Plus, our best cycling sunglasses feature triple-layer scratch-resistant lenses and ultra-durable frames, for complete durability no matter what your ride throws at them.
Anti-fog design for clear vision - The best cycling sunglasses keep your vision completely clear, even during your toughest, hottest sessions. SunGod cycling sunglasses do just that; carefully engineered airflow optimization and anti-fog lens coatings are designed keep your lens crystal-clear.
Worn by the best - It's a no-brainer: world-class athletes choose world-class eyewear. SunGod's cycling sunglasses are worn by INEOS Grenadiers, the 7x Tour de France-winning cycling team.
2. Best Sunglasses for Complete Coverage
Wind, dust and debris can have a huge impact on your cycling performance, causing sore, watering eyes and even longer-term damage from scratched corneas. The best cycling sunglasses offer full coverage, to protect your eyes and optimise your vision, even in the toughest conditions. If you're looking for complete coverage, SunGod's Full-Frame Vulcans™ and Velans™ sunglasses are the right cycling sunglasses for you.
3. Best Sunglasses for 360° Field of View
A wide field of vision is key to safety and performance when you're riding. Our Zero Frame cycling sunglasses enhance your awareness of surroundings, allowing for earlier detection of hazards, quicker decision-making and faster reactions. Our Zero Frame Airas™ and Ultras™ feature completely frameless design, giving that barely-there feel on every ride and keeping you ahead of the pack.
4. Best Sunglasses for Changing Light Conditions
If you ride in changing light conditions, whether that's dawn or dusk commutes or multi-day rides in varying conditions, you need photochromic lenses. Our Iris™ photochromic lens technology transitions lighter or darker in response to UV exposure; the brighter the weather, the darker your lens turns.
Whether you’re pedalling in the morning sun, evening light, or on a grey day, there's no need to change your lens; it does the hard work for you. Available in 8KO® Iris™ HV Blue and 8KO® Iris™ Smoke, our photochromic transition lenses are available across our entire Pace Series™ collection of cycling sunglasses.
Pauline wears:
5. Best Sunglasses for Maximum Airflow
Airflow is everything in eyewear design. For the hottest, hardest rides, you need a pair of sunglasses designed to maximise the flow of air to your face, keeping your face cool and your sweat levels down. When you pair our airflow-optimised sunglasses designs with our anti-fog lens coating, which you'll find on every pair of SunGods, you create the ultimate cycling sunglasses for fog-free outings. We recommend Top-Frame and Zero-Frame designs if you ride hard, sweat lots and prioritise keeping the the cool air flowing.
6. Best Sunglasses for Customisation
Want your cycling sunglasses to match your kit? Or perhaps you want the flexibility to mix and match your fit based on the day, increasing airflow for hot rides or coverage for rainy ones? SunGod cycling sunglasses are fully customisable, in terms of colourway, lens type and fit. Each pair comes with 4 different-sized nosepads to help you find the perfect fit for your face; our Vulcans™, Airas™ and Velans™ even offer a choice of frame set-ups, which you can switch up at home. Plus, with up to 10 different lenses to choose from, including low-light, clear, and photochromic options, you can optimise the perfomance of your SunGods to suit your ride.
And with tens of thousands of colour combinations on offer, you know you'll look the part too.
7. Best Sunglasses for Every Face Size
Every face is unique, and the best sunglasses for cycling will stay in place as you pedal.
Best for Smaller Faces
The SunGod Velans™ are our recommended cycling sunglasses for riders with small-medium face sizes. These measure 55mm (height) x 140mm (width) x 120 (arm length).
The spherical lens offers complete optical precision, with Full-Frame and Top-Frame options for complete coverage and maximised airflow respectively.
The Velans™ are worn by INEOS Grenadiers rider Tom Pidcock in the 2023 Tour de France.
Best for Larger Faces
For cyclists with medium to large face sizes, we recommend the Airas™ and Vulcans™ cycling sunglasses:
SunGod Vulcans™: Featuring a cylindrical 8KO® lens and Top-Frame & Full-Frame options. Measuring 66mm (height) x 143mm (width) x 122 (arm length).
SunGod Airas™ : Like the Vulcans™, the Airas™ also offer a cylindrical 8KO® lens and measure 66mm (height) x 143mm (width) x 122 (arm length), but with Zero-Frame and Bottom-Frame options.
8. See Better with SunGod.
At SunGod, we create performance eyewear that helps you unlock improved performance, on and off the bike. With market-leading lens technology, our everyday sunglasses are the perfect accessory for your rest days too.
We're on a mission to See Better, which means better products, with a better customer experince, that are better for the planet. All SunGod eyewear is backed by our unrivalled Lifetime Guarantee and certified Carbon Neutral, so whichever SunGods you choose, you can relax safe in the knowledge that your SunGods are built for life.
