Best all-season tyres 2026: top tyres tested and reviewed
Only after visiting two test facilities and using lots of hi-tech kit could our team name the winning tyre from our eight contenders
We rarely experience extended periods of snow here in the UK, so it’s no surprise that the all-season tyre is increasingly popular both here and in regions of Europe with similar climates.
In some European countries it’s compulsory to fit winter tyres, which are designed for the cold (7°C and lower), from late Autumn to Spring, changing to summer tyres for the warmer months. It’s not the case in the UK and very few drivers bother, which is why traffic often slithers to a halt in ice and snow.
The all-season tyre solves that problem. Just like winter tyres, all-season designs carry the same 3 Peak Mountain Snow Flake symbol on their sidewalls, showing they are capable in the snow. However, their construction, tread design and compound are developed to perform better than a winter tyre in warm conditions, so they can be used all year round, hence the name.
Of course, all-season tyres are a compromise. No single design can be brilliant in the wet, dry and snow, so we measured their performance in all conditions to reveal the balance each has struck. We also tested our winning winter and summer tyres at the same time to show their relative performance. And as usual, we have included a budget all-season tyre to see what you get for your money.
What we tested
We revisit the very popular 205/55 R16 size this year and the contenders include our reigning champion, the Pirelli Cinturato All Season SF3, while the joint second-place tyres – the Continental AllSeasonContact 2 and Bridgestone Turanza All Season 6 – are also back. Michelin returns, too, this time with its new Cross Climate 3, and we also have entries from Falken, Linglong and Nokian. Our budget tyre is the Tomket Allyear 3.
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Cash £19,060As usual, all of the test tyres were sourced from the open market via an independent German supplier, ensuring that what we test is what you can buy. The nominated tyres all had a speed rating of V (149mph) and weight ratings of 91 and 94, with five brands opting for XL (extra load) spec.
EU label ratings are included for fuel economy (RR – rolling resistance) and wet grip (WG), ranging from A to E, with A being best. Pass-by noise (N) is measured in decibels, so the lower the number the better.
| Tyre | Load | Speed | Economy / Rolling Resistance (RR) | Wet grip (WG) | Noise (N - decibels) |
| Bridgestone Turanza All Season 6 | 94 | V XL | C | B | 70 |
| Continental AllSeasonContact 2 | 94 | V XL | B | B | 71 |
| Falken Euroall Season AS220 | 91 | V | C | B | 68 |
| Linglong Sport Master 4S | 91 | V | D | B | 69 |
| Michelin Cross Climate 3 | 94 | V XL | B | B | 72 |
| Nokian Seasonproof 2 | 91 | V | B | A | 70 |
| Pirelli Cinturato All Season SF3 | 94 | V XL | C | A | 72 |
| Tomket Allyear 3 | 94 | V XL | C | C | 72 |
| Summer: Continental PremiumContact 7 | 91 | V | C | A | 71 |
| Winter: Continental WinterContact TS870 | 91 | H | C | B | 70 |
How we tested the tyres
As with our Winter Tyre test, there were three main elements in our All-season test: snow, wet and dry performance.
Snow
For the snow elements we headed to Hankook’s Techotrac facility at Ivalo, Finland, some 200 miles inside the Arctic Circle. Conditions for testing were good, with track temperatures from minus 9 to minus 11 deg C. We tested acceleration from 3-25mph braking from 25-3mph, and handling on an undulating 0.75-mile track.
Wet tests
Wet and dry tests were carried out at Continental’s Contidrom in Germany, where temperatures were just above ideal. All-season tyres are designed to work below 7 deg C, but temperatures were a couple of degrees higher.
Straight-line wet braking from 50mph to zero was conducted on a rail, ensuring that the same piece of asphalt was used each time. Wet cornering was derived from lap times on a 57.5m-diameter circle, while the 1.1-mile wet handling circuit revealed each tyre’s grip, traction, handling balance and breakaway characteristics.
Straight-line aquaplaning measured the speed at which each tyre running in 9mm of water was slipping at 15 per cent. And in curved aquaplaning, each tyre was run through a curve flooded to 5mm at speeds from 37mph up to 56mph and the average residual lateral acceleration was calculated.
Dry tests
Dry braking distances were measured from 62mph down to zero. We measured lap times on a twisting, one-mile section of the dry handling circuit, revealing each tyre’s handling balance, grip, traction and transient stability.
A tyre’s EU label describes drive-by noise, but we measure noise in the cabin, which is what the driver hears. We recorded coastdown noise from 50mph on three surfaces and took the average. We measured rolling resistance – the energy required to turn a loaded tyre – to industry standards. The less energy required, the more economical a tyre will be.
Price
Where possible, prices were sourced from online retailer Black Circles; otherwise they are an average of prices from other retailers and reflect the cost of a fitted tyre at the time of writing. However, price plays only a small part in the overall result, because tyres are a safety-critical item.
Calculating a winner
The results for each test category are converted into percentages, with the top tyre rated at 100 per cent and the rest scored relative to this.
For the overall score, 50 per cent is wet performance, 20 per cent snow and 20 per cent dry, with the focus on braking and handling. The final 10 per cent is shared between the other tests.
