OutdoorMaster Pro Ski Goggles – Test and Review

Updated April 9th, 2024

The OutdoorMaster Pro ski goggles are one of the most popular ski goggles on Amazon. I jumped at the opportunity to try out a pair recently to see how good a goggle that cheap can really be. The answer is clear. They are an incredible snow goggle for the price. They easily stand up to ski and snowboard goggles that cost several times as much. Let’s dig into the details about what makes them so good.

Outdoormaster Pro Ski Goggles Review and Test

My first experience with OutdoorMaster gear was a few years ago. My best skiing buddy showed up with this cool set of magnetic lens goggles he bought off Amazon. He asked me what I recommended and I said Smith I/O’s. He has always been cheap with outdoor gear so he of course when to Amazon looking for a bargain.

Back to the point. These cheap goggles had a magnetic snap in lens. They looked just as good as a set of Smith i/o’s. They had every feature you would find on a $200 set of ski goggles. I was really impressed by them and jealous that he could swap lenses out on the chair lift in seconds. It took me 5 minutes in the lodge or the car to do it. I’ve liked OutdoorMaster snow goggles ever since.

Pro XM vs Ultra XM

There are now 2 versions of the OutdoorMaster Ski Goggles Pro. There is the OutdoorMaster Pro XM or Classic which is the cheap goggle everyone knows and loves that is found on Amazon. There is the Pro Ultra XM or Plus version which has the same frame but a higher tech lens, for enhanced clarity. These lens use similar technology to the Smith Chromapop, Oakley PRIZM, and Giro Vivid lenses. In this review we’re going to look at the Pro XM or Pro Classic. The Pro Plus version is also available on Amazon as the OutdoorMaster Zealot Ski Goggle.

Price

A set of OutdoorMaster Pro goggles will set you back $40-$50 on the OutdoorMaster website. You can use our coupon code below to make them even cheaper. Lets take a look at what $40-$50 gets you from any of the well known, name brand goggles. It gets you a very plain looking generic goggle. It will have a yellow or red medium VLT lens. It will have single layer foam. You won’t be able to swap lenses. See the images below for the cheapest offerings from Oakley, Anon, Smith, and Giro.

See our article OutdoorMaster goggles vs Smith goggles to see how these compare to Smith I/O Mag goggles.

Magnetic interchangeable lens

These goggles have a really slick magnetic lens swapping system. The lens is held on with 8 pairs of magnets around the frame. The lens is held in securely and I’m not worried it will fall out while skiing. The magnets are strong enough to grab the lens and pull it in from a couple inches away.

Huge selection of lenses

There is a large variety of lenses available. There are 20 basic lenses including 3 polarized options. There are 15 premium lenses (what would come with the Pro Plus goggles) with higher tech lenses for better clarity and color differentiation. They offer a variety of colors, VLT (Visible Light Transmission) levels, Mirror vs non-mirror finishes, polarized lenses and even some photochromic options. There really is a different lens available for almost every weather condition or style your going for.

For reference, a 100% VLT lens is clear and good for night skiing. A 10% VLT lens is very dark and good for a really bright day. A 20%-60% VLT is good for low light or flat light conditions. See this article from KALWAL for a good explanation of VLT

Basic lens run $25-$30. Premium lenses run $60-$70

All the lenses have 100% UV400 protection for your eyes. They are all double pane lenses with anti fog coating.

All have a spherical lens shape for better clarity. They are made from injection molded polycarbonate.

For this review, I have the 15% VLT blue lens, 38% VLT blue lens, and 99% VLT clear lens. This should cover a wide variety of different weather conditions and night skiing.

UV Protection

All the lenses have 100% UV400 protection for your eyes. This is true across both lens series. You should always get good eye protection from UV rays no matter how much you spend.

Anti-Fog

All the lenses are double pane with an anti fog coating on the inner side. There is plenty of venting in the frame. Similar amounts to what I see on a set of Smith i/o goggle frames. They have all the anti fog technology that the big names have to keep you from fogging up.

The frame

The goggle frame is made of flexible TPU plastic. It is flexible enough to be comfortable but isn’t so soft you are worried about it breaking. It feels similar stiffness to most high end goggles with interchangeable lenses.

The frame has a 3 layer foam around the rim for padding. They feel comfortable on my face. They are a huge improvement over the 1 layer foam found on a lot of other similar price basic ski goggles.

OTG prescription glasses compatible

These goggles are not a purpose OTG design (Over The Glass) for wearing over a set of glasses. They do work. I’ve worn glasses since childhood. I hate skiing in glasses and feel for the frustrations of anyone who does. These goggles fit over a set of normal size eyeglasses. The foam padding just squeaks past the side of my eyeglass frames. If you have large size lenses they might not fit.

Goggle strap

The goggle strap has an adjustable strap with silicone beads. The silicone beads are good for traction against your helmet. The strap won’t slide down your helmet if it doesn’t have a clip or strap holding it. There is enough adjustment in the strap to easily work with most helmets or without. There are a few inches of spare adjustment still on a size L helmet.

Frameless apperance

These goggles have a frameless lens design meaning the lens is completely on top of the frame. Very little frame is visible except the outboard ends where the strap attaches. The frames come in several color patterns with different color straps. The frameless appearance is on par with what you’ll find on high end goggles from other brands.

Lens case

They come with a hard case you can put spare lenses in. The case is padded with zipper closure. They also come with the typical drawstring bag for the goggles that also doubles as a lens cleaning wipe.

How well do they work?

Helmet Compatibility

Lets talk about how they fit with a helmet. No one wants to be a gaper with a huge goggle gap. The goggles have very good fit with the OutdoorMaster Kelvin helmet and OutdoorMaster Diamond MIPS helmet. They have little to no goggle gap at the top. They fit cleanly with the top and sides of the helmet. This pair really works well together. You can read my full review of the OutdoorMaster ski helmet here. You can see my full review of the OutdoorMaster Diamond MIPS helmet here.

Fit

These goggles are a similar size to Smith i/o. The lenses and frames are close in size and shape. I expect the goggles to fit well with anyone who ususally uses a medium fit size goggle. My wife who normally wears Smith i/o S with Asian Fit found them to be comfortable feeling on her face and nose.

Anti-fog

These goggles check off all the anti-fog features that most goggles have. Dual pane lens, anti fog coating and lots of ventilation. I expect good performance on humid and foggy days. I will be trying them out this winter with both the OutdoorMaster helmet and the Smith helmet. The Smith helmet has goggle defog venting to blow air into the goggles. The OutdoorMaster helmet does not have this feature. I’ll report back on the goggles defogging performance after we try them out both ways.

Lens clarity

I do not notice any distortion when looking through the lens. The clarity looks very good from the basic level lens. I am very pleased with the quality of the lens that is coming on these goggles. I don’t notice any significant glare looking at bright surfaces or water. I don’t have any of the polarized lenses which will perform better at reducing glare. I think the available lenses will work well in any light condition you throw at them.

Peripheral vision

Peripheral vision out of these goggles is very close to a pair of Smith i/o7s. The i/o7 was designed to have a wider field of view than i/o goggles. Outdoor Master goggles are right up there with the best field of view.

Lens swapping

The lens swapping feature on these goggles works really great. No issues with the magnets and how well the lenses stay attached. I find it is easiest to pop the lens out by pushing on the outboard end of the frame by the strap. This lets you pop the lens without touching the inner side of the lens with your finger. The fastest way to make your lens fog is by touching the insides and contaminating the anti-fog coating with oils from your skin.

I was able to move the goggles from my face to my helmet and back without popping out the lens wearing bulky warm ski gloves. If you grab the goggle from the top and bottom while wearing a hat you might be able to pop the lens in the process.

My ski friends who’ve been using them now for years have never lost a lens falling. We’ve had some quality yardsales during that time. My biggest worry for losing a lens is dropping it from the chairlift while putting it in the case. I’ve never lost a cellphone or anything else from the chair but sooner or later my day is coming.

This magnetic lens system works way better than it should for the price. For $50 I’d expect a snap in system such as the Hongdak ski goggle has, not a system on par or better than a $200 set of Smith or Oakley goggles.

Available with a single lens or 2 lens combo

These goggles are available with a single lens or now in a combo that includes a second lens. I don’t see the 2 lens combo available on Amazon. It is on OutdoorMaster’s website if you click here.

OutdoorMaster Discount Code

Use the Coupon Code ERO2022 for 10-20% off at OutdoorMaster.com

The Verdict

I really like these ski and snowboard goggles. I think they perform far above their $40-$50 price. My only wish is that they come with a second lens. I would recommend these goggles to any skier looking for a good set of swappable lens snow goggles to use on the ski slope. The goggle and helmet combo is my go to recommendation for anyone who wants to learn skiing or snowboarding.

See our review of the new OutdoorMaster Ultra XL and Vision XL Goggles for a step up in performance but still great price.