REASONS TO BUY
Affordable
Extremely durable
Easy to adjust
REASONS TO AVOID
Heavy
Not very comfortable
Poor ventilation
Black Diamond Half Dome Review
A durable and adjustable option that excels as an entry-level helmet or for users on a budget
Our Best Buy winner is a great deal for a durable helmet.
Credit: Cam McKenzie Ring
RELATED: Best Climbing Helmet
Our Verdict
The Black Diamond Half Dome is easily the best value if you're looking for an entry-level climbing helmet. While it isn't exceptionally lightweight, nor as comfortable as the best climbing helmets on the market, it gets the job done. This helmet offers a wide range of adjustability and a super durable shell that has lasted some of our testers for years. Plus, it has all the features we look for in a standard climbing helmet, like headlamp clips and an adjustable chin strap. It is the perfect helmet for climbers just getting into the sport or for ice climbers who need a durable shell to deflect small pieces of falling ice.
Editors' Note: We updated this review on May 15, 2023, to include additional information about how this helmet compares to the rest of the market.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
Black Diamond Half Dome | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  |  | | ||
| Price | $57.74 at Amazon Compare at 3 sellers | $63.22 at Backcountry Compare at 2 sellers | $94.95 at REI Compare at 2 sellers | $70 List $66.60 at Amazon | $44.96 at Backcountry |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | A very popular, albeit clunky helmet at an unbeatable price point | You will barely notice wearing this comfortable, ultra-lightweight helmet | A highly adjustable climbing and ski mountaineering helmet with a low weight and fair price | A lightweight and inexpensive helmet that provides great value, if it fits | A great value that can take some serious abuse |
| Rating Categories | Black Diamond Half... | Petzl Sirocco | Petzl Meteor | Singing Rock Penta | Petzl Boreo |
| Comfort (30%) | |||||
| Adjustability (20%) | |||||
| Weight (20%) | |||||
| Ventilation (10%) | |||||
| Features (10%) | |||||
| Durability (10%) | |||||
| Specs | Black Diamond Half... | Petzl Sirocco | Petzl Meteor | Singing Rock Penta | Petzl Boreo |
| Measured Weight (Size Medium or M/L) | 12.7 oz | 6.1 oz | 8.5 oz | 7.2 oz | 11.0 oz |
| Shell Style | EPS Foam with ABS Shell | EPP and EPS Foam, Polycabonate Top Piece | EPS, Polycarbonate | Polycarbonate Shell, EPS Foam | ABS Shell with EPP and EPS Foam |
| Certifications | EN12492 | EN12492, CE Ski Touring | EN12492, CE Ski Touring | EN12492 | EN12492 |
| Number of Sizes | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Number of Colorways | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Warranty | 1 year | 3 year | 3 year | Not disclosed | 3 year |
Show full specification details ▼Hide full specification details ▲
Our Analysis and Test Results
The updated version of the Half Dome has more ventilation, a new design and look of the headlamp clips (which still work just as efficiently), and a smaller adjustment wheel on the back of the head. It still feels very similar to the old Half Dome, and you don't need to run out and buy a new one just because there's been an update. But if you are currently looking for a durable and inexpensive helmet, we highly recommend checking out what may just be the most popular climbing helmet of all time.
Women's Helmet Available
Black Diamond also makes a women's-specific Half Dome that accommodates a ponytail.
Performance Comparison
The Black Diamond Half Dome is the most affordable helmet in this review, making it a great choice for beginners. It is surprisingly comfortable despite its weight, and its incredible durability makes it a great value.
Comfort
The Half Dome is a decently comfortable helmet. Soft padding cushions the head from above and in the front, and an adjustable harness system in the back holds the helmet firmly in place. The helmet is nicely shaped like a head, ensuring no unwanted pressure points.
That said, there are a couple of areas of discomfort that we can't ignore. The first one is the weight – which we will account for below – but that plays a significant role in this helmet being less enjoyable to wear than much lighter competitors. It's also really warm. We recognize that this is a ventilation issue but affects comfort significantly, especially on hot days. Lastly, the chin strap V-yoke does not sit as comfortably against our heads as some other helmets.
There is a dense grey EPS foam serving as a liner inside the hard outer shell. Black foam and felt pads are velcroed onto that foam, providing cushioning and sweat absorption. While this helmet fits comfortably, its comfort rating suffered due to how heavy and hot it is compared to the competition.
Adjustability
The Half Dome is incredibly easy to adjust and offers a wide range of size adjustments, ensuring that even people with very small heads can wear a large-size helmet.
It adjusts by a sliding plastic band on the back of the head, tightened and loosened by spinning a wheel one way or the other with one hand. This wheel is smaller and easier to turn than previous versions, making it even more user-friendly. The large range of adjustability makes this helmet a great choice for users who want a helmet for all seasons, sometimes wearing their helmets against their heads on warmer days and sometimes layering a hat or hood underneath when the weather turns colder.
The click-wheel design on the back of the helmet is easily adjustable, but is also fairly bulky. Simply turn this wheel with one hand to tighten or loosen. This helmet has the widest range of adjustment, making it a good choice for use by people with small heads, or multiple climbers one after the other.
While the size itself is a cinch to adjust, we found the V-yoke system, the webbing that goes around the ears and attaches to the chin strap, a real pain to adjust. It takes a lot of fiddling to move the chin strap into a different location if you feel too much pressure against your throat. It's also easy to over-tighten the rear band, something easy to fix but which can lead to a headache after a couple of hours.
While the location of the chin strap along the v-yoke system is adjustable, we found that it takes a lot more fiddling to force the webbing through than comparable Petzl or Mammut helmets.
Weight
Our size large helmet weighs 12.7 ounces when measured on our independent scale. This helmet is one of the heaviest that we tested.
While this may not seem very heavy, our experience over many years of testing says that wearing a helmet this heavy adds a significant amount of fatigue and discomfort to a long day. We firmly believe in trimming weight in your climbing equipment whenever possible, especially for helmets, to improve your overall climbing experience.
On our independent scale, this helmet weighs 12.7 ounces. Not only is this slightly heavier than the previous version, but is far and away the heaviest we tested. This negatively affects our comfort level and our willingness to even wear the helmet.
Ventilation
The Half Dome is among the market's least-ventilated helmets. Five relatively small holes adorn each side of the helmet, with one more in the back and none on the front. The lack of ventilation makes the Half Dome one of the hottest helmets we've ever tested.
Our testers immediately noticed their heads sweating when wearing this helmet on even mildly warm days. Most foam helmet options allow for far more airflow, which is greatly welcomed, especially on sunny sport climbs through the summer.
Despite having more vents than the previous version, the Half Dome is the least ventilated helmet in our review. Not visible underneath the orange shell is the fact that foam restricts the size of these vents even further, so they aren't as big as they look. We found this helmet to be very warm.
Features
The Half Dome has four plastic clips that easily hold a headlamp in place. While we have come to appreciate the elastic cord and hook design on the backs of some helmets because they can also hold ski goggles, the Half Dome is not a helmet we would wear on ski mountaineering missions.
It is straightforward to slide a headlamp band up and underneath the clips, which also have small teeth on the ends that effectively hold the bands in place. These clips were easier to use than similar designs found on other helmets.
With four very simple and easy clips to hold the headlamp band in place, it doesn't get any easier than the Half Dome. No other helmet could accept a headlamp as quickly as this one.
Durability
The Half Dome has a heavy-duty, hard plastic ABS shell with EPS foam on the inside. This design is far more durable than the lighter-weight, thin polycarbonate shells that protect the foam on EPS helmets. This design has proven to be among the most durable for long-term use, which is why you often find the Half Dome among guide service rental fleets.
Although it does pass CE and UIAA specifications, it is important to note that we are not commenting, judging, or making recommendations based on this helmet's ability to take repeated blows from rocks, ice, or other projectiles. Our only real comment on durability is that compared to the competition, you can really toss this helmet around without worrying about denting it much, and the ABS shell even resists scratching fairly well.
Testing the ever-popular BD Half Dome, while belaying in Smith Rock State Park, Oregon, USA.
Should You Buy The Black Diamond Half Dome?
This helmet is one of the most affordable choices in the market today, and it is a real bargain. It does everything a climbing helmet has to do, like protect the user's head and not crumple when stuffed into a pack. It could offer better comfort, but if you aren't going to be climbing all day, every day, then this helmet's level of comfort is just fine. This is the best choice if you are on a budget and need a helmet to begin climbing outside. That said, there are more comfortable helmets that don't cost much more.
What Other Climbing Helmets Should You Consider?
This helmet is very similar to the Petzl Boreo, which also has a thick ABS shell and comes at a relatively low price. If your budget has some wiggle room, we highly recommend the affordable Petzl Meteor. The Meteor performs nearly as well as the best helmets on the market, is almost as lightweight as the lightest helmets, and costs just a bit more than the Half Dome. If you want to step it up, our favorite all-around climbing helmet is the Black Diamond Vision MIPS, thanks to its low weight, great comfort, and excellent protection.
—
Andy Wellman and Jeff Dobronyi
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