Ski boots are expensive. Sorry.
But — if you’ve searched the internet and come away with prices like $750 — it’s possible to get great ski boots for under $500. In fact, you can get ski boots for significantly less than $500.
However, price isn’t everything. Saving money is a bit pointless if you can’t bear to wear your ski boots. Your ski boots are so important that it’s worth spending the extra money if it means getting the right boots.
With that, here’s how to assess ski boots (and make sure you get ski boots that fit your feet and meet your needs), which are my preferred budget-friendly ski boots, and where to get ski boots at the best price.
What makes ski boots good?
I’ve talked about why your ski boots are so important before, where I outlined my two overarching reasons why your ski boots should be the first piece of ski gear you buy.
But it’s absolutely mandatory that your ski boots are comfortable. It’s pretty much game over if your ski boots hurt your feet or are so uncomfortable that you can’t wear them for more than a few runs.
You must be able to wear your boots for at least a few hours to master ski skills. And, even if you’re tough, pain and discomfort makes it difficult to focus on skiing well and building skills.
With all that said, it’s imperative that you try ski boots on before you commit to them. There’s just no other way to know for sure if a boot is going to be comfortable.
Yes, a good boot fitter can modify a ski boot shell to fit your feet. But it’s much easier to make your ski boots comfortable if they fit decently out of the box.
And — even with extensive fitting — it can be impossible to make a pair of boots comfortable, if they were an extremely poor fit to start.
So take the time to try on ski boots before you buy them. Many ski shops will even match an online price, to help you get the best price on your ski boots.
With all that out of the way, this is my take on the best ski boots under $500.
Best ski boots under $500
I can’t say what boot will work for you. I don’t know your foot shape, your skiing style, or anything else I’d need to know to make a true ski boot recommendation.
However, these are the ski boot brands that I find are often priced at $500 or lower. And, in my experience, these companies make solid ski boots.
K2 ski boots
There was a time when K2 didn’t make ski boots.
But they bought some ski boot manufacturing equipment. They’re in the ski boot business, now. And, in my experience, they make excellent ski boots.
Also, as promised, even the high end K2 ski boots frequently go on sale for $500 or less.
I rode a pair of the old K2 Spyne ski boots for over 150 days before I finally replaced them with a 3-piece boot. Actually, I still have them. They’re still in good shape, even after seven years. Even the liners are totally usable.
As far as I can tell, the new generation of K2 ski boots is just as well-made. There’s a good chance that you can find a pair for less than $500. And they’ll deliver amazing value.
Full Tilt ski boots
I’ve made my argument for Full Tilt ski boots before. And I stand by that argument.
The short version of my argument is that Full Tilt boots are outstanding boots for most skiers. They’re quite comfortable. They’re affordable. And you can upgrade them with new tongues if you’d like to make your boots stiffer.
Full Tilt boots are an all-around great deal. My only caveat is that they may not be the right boot for more advanced skiers who have really developed a preference for how they like their ski boots to flex and fit.
For example, I find Full Tilt ski boots to be incredibly comfortable. But I prefer a different flex pattern. So I prefer the Dalbello 3-piece boots.
But, my preferences aside, Full Tilt ski boots are a great option for almost any casual skier.
Atomic ski boots
The first pair of boots I ever bought for myself were a pair of Atomic ski boots. That was a long time ago…
However, since then, I’ve had the opportunity to both own and try out newer Atomic ski boot models. And they’ve always been awesome. The Atomic Hawx series is one of the best ski boots on the market, I think. I’ve also always been able to get Atomic boots on sale.
Also, some of the mid-high performance Atomic ski boots are priced right at $500, even when they’re not on sale. So… Atomic ski boots. 10 of 10. Would recommend.
Where to find affordable ski boots
Here’s a fun fact: I’ve only purchased one new pair of ski boots in my entire ski life. All my other ski boots have been used. It’s probably saved me thousands of dollars.
To be fair, a few of my “used” ski boots were never skied in. The previous owner had simply tried them on and determined they wouldn’t work.
Lessons learned:
Used ski boots can be a great deal.
Try your ski boots on before you buy them. Or you might end up selling new used boots to me.
The bottom line here is that used ski gear is one of the best ways to get ski equipment without delaying your retirement for two decades.
Fortunately, people know this. Businesses know this. So there are good places to get used ski gear.
Geartrade is one of my favorite used gear sites. They do a great job of categorizing and curating used ski gear for you. And they also do a great job of facilitating the purchase process.
SidelineSwap is another used equipment site. They also categorize and curate used gear for you, as well as facilitating the checkout process.
Personally, I find the search function on SidelineSwap to be slightly more robust that Geartrade. But the two sites are very comparable.
When it comes to buying anything used, you can’t go wrong at least checking Ebay. I’ve gotten some great deals on ski boots from Ebay. And they have the simplest purchase process.
You, too, can get great ski boots for under $500
Even after all my talking, ski boots are still expensive. But you can get quality ski boots under $500.
And, ski boots are so important that it’s totally reasonable to get your own boots and use rented skis for a few seasons, if that’s what your budget demands. Good boots will deliver a massive improvement to your skiing and ski experience. And ski boots hold up for a long time.
So don’t be afraid to splurge a little bit on your boots (within reason). But, with a little leg work, you probably won’t have to splurge.
The Casual Skier 