How to Fit Your Motorcycle Helmet | Bell Helmets®

It’s not enough to wear a motorcycle helmet while riding – finding the best fit to meet your unique size and measurements is key to ensuring your lid does its job effectively. Here’s how to properly measure your head so that you can make the correct helmet purchase. It doesn't matter if you're in the dirt market or in the street market, the most important thing is that you size your head correctly.

How To Measure For A Motorcycle Helmet

You can use a fabric measuring tape, string, or a shoelace that you have at home. Here's what to do: Wrap the string around your head, measuring one inch above your eyebrows while encircling your head at its widest point. Record the length and compare it to a tape measure or ruler. Afterward, go to the Bell Helmets website and refer to the size guide. Find the number that matches your head measurement; this will determine your shell size.

How Should A Motorcycle Helmet Fit?

Now we're going to jump into the cheek pad, which is a super crucial part of fitting a full-face helmet for either dirt or street. The cheek pads should be tight up against the cheek, but not so tight that you're biting your cheeks and they shouldn't be so loose that you can just wiggle the helmet and have it move around. A nice, snug-fitting helmet is what you're aiming for.

For instance, on our Moto-10, we have magnetic cheek pads that come in multiple different sizes. Most people are going to be okay with the stock size pad that comes in the helmet, but if you do have a wider or narrower face, you may need to go up or down in cheek pad size.

The chinstrap should be snug against your chin. You don't want it to be too loose so that the strap can get over your chin and you don't want it to be so tight that you can't open your mouth. Typically, the width of your finger is a good place to start.

Customizing The Fit Of Your Bell Helmet

We provide the flexibility of optional pad sizes for numerous models within our helmet range, allowing you to tailor both the top liner and cheek pads to your preferences. This ensures that you can achieve a personalized and comfortable fit, enhancing your overall helmet-wearing experience. While the default pad size that comes with the helmet typically suits most individuals, those with wider or narrower faces may find it beneficial to adjust their cheek pad size to either thinner or thicker options for an optimal fit.

You should now have all the tools to properly determine the size of your next motorcycle helmet. You should feel confident that you know how to measure your head properly and understand the different cheek pad sizes and liners, and hopefully that instills confidence to make the right decision when looking for a new helmet.