Bottom line: Which snowboard brands are the best for you?
Looking to get straight to the point? Here’s the bottom line…
From the 19 best snowboard brands we could find, we shortlisted our 4 favorites. The brands we like the best are:
- Nidecker
- Yes. Snowboards
- Salomon
- GNU
We analysed the product offering from each to give our top picks for specific snowboards.
Here are the best snowboards from leading brands this year:
- Nidecker Score - The best cheap snowboard
- Yes. Pick Your Line - Top all mountain board
- Salomon Huck Knife - The best snowboard for beginners
- GNU FB Head Space Asym C3 - Top rated freestyle board
Read on to see how we picked, more details on brands, boards, and our big list of the 19 coolest snowboard brands available right now...
How We Picked
Browsing snowboard gear, comparing pricing and specs? That’s not a "job" for us, as it’s something we do daily, as do a lot of adrenaline/gear junkies. So, we already knew what the 19 top snowboard brands were before we researched and wrote this.
19 brands? That would leave you with a ton of choice, too much in fact. So we analysed brands and their product offering deeper, to give you a clearer vision of which brands and boards are deserving of your cash, condensing the list to our top 4 picks.
To pick the 4 best snowboard brands (+ boards) below, we took into account:
- Price
- Warranty
- Board design
- Brands offering boards for men, women and kids
And for specific boards we looked at the above, but also compared:
- Rocker type
- Flex
- Base
- Compatibility for bindings
- Core
Here’s the 4 best snowboard brands and board picks (all available here) we came up with as a result of our research....
Shortlist: Top 4 Snowboard Brands + Board Picks
If you want to get the best bang for your buck, you’ll want to stick to the top 4 snowboard brands mentioned on our shortlist. They are:
- Nidecker
- Yes.
- Salomon
- GNU
Below we’ve got a quick overview of each brand, as well as a recommendation for the best snowboard in each brand’s range.
Nidecker
Our Pick For: The Best Cheap Snowboard Brand
Nidecker didn’t start out as a snowboard brand. Founded in 1887, the company focused on producing the likes of ladders, chairs and wheel barrows. It wasn’t until 1912 that they became involved in the skiing and snowboarding industry.
Since then, they’ve established themselves as one of the best snowboard brands in the world, working with other brands to produce the very best, including Yes. Snowboards, who are also in our shortlist.
Board Pick: Nidecker Score
Let’s start with the Nidecker Score. Nidecker is a brand that needs no introduction in the snowboard industry. They have a range of boards suitable for beginners, intermediates and experts. And within their range, they have a ton of boards for men, women and kids.
We came across the Nidecker Score a while back after trawling through online reviews (which are really good by the way, you can see some here).
Nidecker have produced a great allrounder here, and it’s perfect for beginners looking to move towards the intermediate level.
And, it won’t break the bank. At around $320, it’s the cheapest board on the list, and our pick for the best cheap snowboard. If you’ve read our guide to snowboard cost, you’ll know a budget of $500-600 is reasonable - even for a beginner snowboard - so this really is a mega cheap deal.
All the reviews we read confirm that this is a board perfect for progression, partly thanks to the CamRock design which makes riding easy in almost all conditions; piste, off-piste and park.
Unlike a lot of snowboard brands, Nidecker has been able to make this low maintenance, but performance isn’t compromised. It’s durable enough to last you a decade and beyond, and the fact it absorbs wax easily means you’ll be gliding down the slopes effortlessly, this season and next.
If you’re sick of the low quality you get with hire boards and want something cheap, you can’t go wrong with the Nidecker Score, available here for a little over $300.
Yes.
Our Pick For: The Best All-Mountain Snowboard Brand
Ever heard of Burton Snowboards? Haven’t we all!
Yes. Snowboards was founded by David Carrier-Porcheron, JP Solberg, Romain De Marchi, and Tadashi Fuse in 2009...all of which were fired by Burton Snowboards.
Working in collaboration with Nidecker, they were able to make a dent in the snowboarding industry within a matter of a few years, and they are considered to be one of the top snowboarding brands of the 21st century.
Board Pick: Yes. Pick Your Line
We’ve chosen the Yes. Pick Your Line as the best all-mountain snowboard.
Yes. Snowboards pride themselves on producing the most durable snowboards. Their confidence in their board's durability is strong, given they offer a limited lifetime warranty.
Although this is a step up from the warranty offered by some of the other best snowboard brands, it is reflected in the price, which currently stands at around $600.
What makes this one of the best all-mountain snowboards? Like the Nidecker Score, the Yes. Pick Your Line features a CamRock setup. A small rocker in the tail, camber where your feet are locked in and a rocker that’s raised at the front.
All that combined means you get stability at high speeds and packed piste, but the raised nose allows you to flow on powder effortlessly. Any conditions, any time; the Yes. Pick Your Line is going to have you covered.
It’s worth mentioning, in order to put up with a range of conditions, the flex on the Yes. snowboard is going to be a little lower than the typical board. Without that, you’ll struggle at high speeds, and be compromising manoeuvrability at lower speeds.
Got a budget of around $600 and looking for the best snowboard brand producing all-mountain boards? We choose Yes., and their Pick Your Line board. You can get a cracking deal on it over at this store.
Salomon
Our Pick For: The Best Snowboard Brand for Beginners
If you’re like us you’re involved in a ton of extreme sports, so it’s likely you already own some Salomon gear. They make everything from ice climbing shoes to snowboards.
Founded in 1947, they’ve long been established as one of the best snowboard brands, and our pick for the best beginner snowboard manufacturer.
Most recently, Adidas saw an opportunity and bought the whole Salomon brand; so there's no questioning whether their gear is top of the line.
Board Pick: Salomon Huck Knife
Salomon as a brand needs no introduction in the snowboarding industry. And the Salomon Huck Knife is the worthy top pick for the best snowboard for beginners.
It sits in the mid-range in terms of cost. At the low end ($300+) you have the Nidecker Score, and at the other end of the spectrum ($600+), you’ve got the Yes. Pick Your Line. The Salomon Huck Knife? It weighs in at under $450.
Why is the Salomon suitable for beginners, besides price?
- Stupidly lightweight
- Full of pop
- Incredibly stable
- Predictable in all kinds of riding conditions
- Mega durable (and comes complete with a 2-year warranty).
Beginners to intermediate riders are going to have a ton of fun with the Salomon. It fits in the perfect mid range in terms of flex, pop and stability. It’s packed full of features, and is reasonably cheap all things considered.
Think the Salomon is the best snowboard brand for you? You can grab a deal on the Huck Knife board here.
GNU
Our Pick For: The Best Freestyle Snowboard Brand
GNU is owned by Mervin Manufacturing, a brand that is synonymous in the snowboarding industry. Alongside GNU, Mervin also owns the likes of Lib Tech, Roxy Snowboards and Bent Metal Bindings; all super cool snowboard brands in their own right.
Board Pick: GNU FB Head Space Asym C3
If you’re a beginner, we can tell you right now, this isn’t the board for you.
Instead, we’re picking this as the best freestyle snowboard, so it’s designed for experienced intermediates, or expert riders. That’s confirmed by the reviews we found here. Most riders buying this board are intermediate level and beyond.
The GNU FB Head Space Asym C3 isn’t just ridiculously poppy thanks to it being incredibly lightweight, it’s stable at high speeds too. The Magne-Traction® edges help to carve in any snow conditions, and the asymmetric construction means you can rip park, piste and off-piste without any problems.
And price wise, it’s not exactly expensive considering this is manufactured by one of the best snowboard brands on the market. You can grab it for around $500 here.
Full List: The 19 Best Snowboard Brands
- Arbor
- Burton
- CAPiTA
- DC
- Flow
- GNU
- Jones
- K2
- Lib Tech
- Never Summer
- Nidecker
- Nitro
- Ride
- Rome
- Rossignol
- Roxy
- Salomon
- United Shapes
- Yes.
In Summary
That’s it. Our guide to the best snowboard brands in the world, and our pick for the top 4.
You can grab all the boards mentioned on this list here.
Liked what you’ve read? We’re always updating this site with cool guides, like this one covering the best ski goggle brands. So, bookmark this page and pop back soon to see what’s new.