Before we determine the right helmet size for your children, we need to clarify a fundamental question: When do children need to wear a bicycle helmet? Simple answer … actually always when they are riding a bicycle or a balance bike. Even if they are not riding themselves, but are in a child trailer, in a child seat, or riding in a cargo bike, their head should have suitable protection!
Another interesting question: How do you get the kids to wear the helmet? It definitely helps if your child has a helmet that they find “cool”, and with the wide selection of children’s helmets available today, you are sure to find one that satisfies your daughter or son visually.
But even more important is an optimal fit! Therefore, the helmet size must fit the child! If it is too small, it will chafe and press – and your child will refuse to wear it. If it is too large, it will slip in a crash and not adequately protect the head.
Let’s go – find the right children’s helmet!
Here we have a simple step-by-step guide for you to help determine the right helmet size for children. Afterwards, there are more tips for selecting a safe bicycle helmet for your child.
How to measure a child's bicycle helmet size
The most important step when buying a suitable children’s helmet is measuring the head circumference, as this determines the helmet size.
To determine the helmet size you need:
- a measuring tape
- or a string and a ruler
Here’s how to proceed:
- Especially important for toddlers: Choose a time when your child is in a good mood. If necessary, you need to provide some distraction so that they stay calm and you can measure their head.
- Wrap the string or measuring tape around the child’s head.
- The measuring tape should fit loosely, it should not cut in or hang loosely.
- The measuring tape should sit about one centimetre above the eyebrows and be guided horizontally around the head.
5. If you use a measuring tape, you can read the head circumference directly.
6. If you used a string, you need to remember the point where the ends of the string meet and measure the length with the ruler.
Now you can start looking for a helmet in the right size.
What helmet sizes are available for children’s helmets?
Children’s helmets come in sizes like "45-49cm" or "49-53cm". The helmet size corresponds to the head circumference in cm, so if you measured 52 cm, you need a helmet that fits this measurement. You would need to buy our example helmet in the second size.
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Helmets can be adjusted in size and therefore usually cover a certain range (about 5 cm head circumference). |
Only a few manufacturers still specify sizes like S, M or L. Most of the time you will find size in centimeters in the selection menu. If the measurement does not seem suitable, you can check the products of another manufacturer, as sizes are not always the same.
Your child is exactly between two helmet sizes
If the head circumference is exactly between two helmet sizes, you can buy the larger helmet. It can usually be adjusted. If your child wants a helmet without an adjustment system (e.g. a skate helmet), you should order both helmets just to be safe and calmly try which fits better.
How to properly fit the children’s helmet on the head
A rule of thumb applies to all bicycle helmets: The lower edge of the helmet should be parallel to the ground. This means that the position of the helmet shifts with the seating position. The lower a cyclist sits, the further back the helmet will be worn. This adjustment is important because it ensures that the field of vision is not impaired by the helmet. Depending on the shape of the head, the seating position can also change the circumference you need to measure!
Since smaller children usually sit very upright on the bicycle, the head circumference shown at the top of our graphic is usually the correct one. Older children may sit more hunched over, which also shifts the position of the helmet!
How to adjust the children’s helmet to the right size
You can usually adjust a bicycle helmet, only skate helmets and full-face helmets do not work this way.
Adjusting adhesive pads
Especially with children’s helmets, padding of different thicknesses is often included. They are attached with Velcro fasteners inside the helmet, you can simply try out which fits most comfortably and then secure them in the helmet.
Adjusting the head ring
In the second step, you put the helmet on your child’s head and turn the wheel at the back, which closes or opens the retention system of the head ring inside the helmet. It must not press, but if your child shakes their head, it must also not fall off, even with the retention straps open.
Sometimes (but more often with helmets for adults) you can adjust the distance of the head ring to the lower edge of the helmet. This allows you to customize the helmet even more.
Adjusting the retention strap
Some helmets have a clamp that holds the front and rear straps together, which is adjusted first. The two straps should form a triangle around the ears, but leave about 1 cm space to the ear.
For other helmets, these straps are permanently sewn. Then this step is omitted.
Now the width of the chin strap is adjusted. Close the buckle and adjust the length of the strap until there is still room for two fingers between the chin and the strap.
Finally, the end of the strap is secured – done!
Since the attachments at the ears and also the buckle of the chin strap tend to loosen over time, you should check the correct fit of the children’s helmet from time to time.
Image © Fox Racing
What helmet size fits children at what age?
Right away – as with clothing or bicycles, it is somewhat difficult to choose a children’s helmet simply based on age.
- Children grow at different rates, the height (and thus the helmet size) at certain cut-off dates can vary significantly. Therefore, it usually does not work to shop with the motto “On the tenth birthday, helmet size XY fits”.
- People, whether tall or short, can be very different in their proportions. This applies not only to the body; each of us has our own head… and it can be larger or smaller, elongated or wide, round or narrow, and thus require a completely different helmet size than expected.
- Finally, growth spurts make it difficult to predict the right size at a specific time. Perhaps it has already happened to you that you bought shoes for your child and a week later they were too small? A growth spurt then threw a wrench in your plans! Fortunately, this is rarely the case with bicycle helmets, as they are almost always adjustable in size. But with a growth spurt, the helmet size can change almost “overnight”!
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Instead of relying on age indications, it is always safer to measure the child’s head before buying a bicycle helmet! |
Nevertheless, many helmet manufacturers provide age indications or recommendations for which helmet fits at what age, and they are usually a good guideline. But they do not replace the precise measurement of the suitable helmet size!
|
Age |
up to 3 years |
2 to 5 years |
4 to 9 years |
7 to 12 years |
from 12 years |
|
Head circumference in cm |
44-49 cm |
46-52 cm |
51-58 cm |
55-60 cm |
52-65 cm |
|
Helmet size |
XS |
S |
S/M |
M |
Adult helmets |
At the overlaps, you can see how inaccurate the classification of helmet size by the child’s age is! Measuring is always better!
How do you know that the helmet size is changing?
Little girls and boys quickly become big girls and boys, and the head naturally grows with them.
At some point, the helmet will no longer fit properly on the head, but you should ideally not let it get that far!
Here are some signs that the helmet no longer fits properly:
- Smaller children may not be able to specifically say that the helmet is pressing! They simply do not want to wear it.
- Look for pressure points on the sides of the head or on the forehead.
- The chin strap is difficult to close or cuts in.
- The child sweats more and more under the helmet, as the ventilation of the helmet no longer works properly.
If you notice that the helmet no longer fits properly, you can adjust the helmet width and the fit of the retention straps. If one of these (or both) has reached its limit, it is time for the next helmet size!
Why is the right size so important for a children’s helmet?
Of course, you can strap any helmet onto a child’s head. But that does not do your child any favours.
If the helmet size is too large for your child, the helmet does not sit well on the head. It slips, often right over the eyes, which restricts visibility and becomes dangerous. If the children’s helmet slips off the head in a fall, it cannot protect the head, and the consequences can be fatal.
If the children’s helmet is too small, it presses and chafes. Your child will then (rightly) refuse to wear the helmet at all.
Conclusion: If the helmet size is not correct, the helmet cannot efficiently protect a child’s head, even if it meets the required standards or includes safety technology like MIPS.
If a children’s helmet fits properly, cycling is much more fun! Image © Amber Faust on Unsplash
Does the shape of the children’s helmet also play a role, aside from the helmet size?
There are children’s helmets in all possible variants, even full-face helmets are available in small sizes. They come with a visor or without, in all colours, with patterns or more neutrally designed. In principle, it does not matter whether children wear a more neutral all-round helmet, want a mini-MTB helmet, or prefer a skate helmet. If you let your child choose for themselves, the chance is greater that they will wear the helmet without protest, which is the most important criterion!
Skate helmets on the bicycle?
If a helmet in a skater look meets the required standard for children’s helmets DIN EN 1080, it can be worn on the bicycle. However, these helmets often cannot be adjusted in size, as they do not have the necessary “inner workings”. Therefore, you need to measure the helmet size very accurately to ensure it fits!
The big exception: the full-face helmet
A full-face helmet is super cool, so it’s no wonder that many kids want one.
However, full-face helmets are relatively heavy and therefore more of a burden than good protection for smaller children. Full-face helmets usually cannot be adjusted and fitted to the right size. A full-face helmet covers part of the face, as only then can nothing worse happen in mountain biking accidents. The problem with this: The helmet restricts the all-around view and often also impairs hearing. The mini-biker misses everything that happens on the sides. In the terrain, the advantages may outweigh, but on the way to kindergarten, it is dangerous!
Special helmets like full-face helmets are particularly cool, but rather unsuitable for everyday use on a children’s bicycle! Image © 100%
What helmet size does your child need in winter (with a hat)?
Many children also ride their bicycles to school or their balance bikes to kindergarten in winter, so a helmet should naturally be worn in the cold as well. To ensure that their ears do not get cold underneath, it is necessary for a hat to fit under the helmet.
This is how a children’s bicycle helmet works in winter with a hat:
A thin hat can usually be worn under a helmet without any problems, provided the helmet size allows for it. Special helmet hats in small sizes are particularly recommended here, as they are thin but still windproof. They are often even water-repellent and therefore particularly suitable for the cold season. If the temperatures are not too frosty, a headband or a multifunction scarf. You should ensure that the headband does not slip into your child’s face and obstruct their view.
By the way, the hat is often the reason why a larger helmet is purchased. Many parents notice in autumn that no hat fits under the children’s helmet and then start looking for a new one. However, we recommend keeping the smaller helmet for the winter, as it may fit again in spring without a hat.
Another tip: Many children also like to wear a cap under the helmet in summer. However, baseball caps are usually made of rather stiff material, which means that the bicycle helmet may no longer fit properly. It disguises, hovers too high above the head, the straps no longer fit … and thus the helmet can no longer protect properly. So better take off the cap and then put on the helmet, that’s how head protection works optimally!
Now find the right bicycle helmet for your child…
… and it is well secured on the children’s bicycle while riding. Especially younger kids do have the occasional fall, here’s another parent tip: bicycle gloves for children often prevent worse injuries! Children tend to wear their helmets with less fuss if parents lead by good example and never ride without one on the bicycle. Here are the adult helmets …
New helmet after a fall & the durability of bicycle helmets
Information on the durability of bicycle helmets! | Replace bicycle helmet after a fall?
Read more: Children + Bicycles in the Bike Blog
When can children ride a balance bike? | Learning to ride a bicycle with or without training wheels
Title image © Rascal
