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Jenny Lucas-Hill is a writer, content creator and a long distance age-group triathlete whose ongoing quest to achieve some form of swim gains means you’ll often find her sporting semi-permanent goggle marks and a lingering hint of eau de chlorine.
For such a small bit of kit, goggles can have a big impact on your swimming experience. From gaskets that are either letting half the pool in, or pressing so hard on your eye sockets you end up looking like you’ve been in a boxing match. To lenses that fog up so badly you end up swimming wildly off course every time you hit the open water. Finding the best goggles can feel a bit like searching for the holy grail. So to help you get one step closer, we’re bringing you our pick of the best swimming goggles for triathlon – from pool training to open water – so you can focus on nailing your swim sets, not faffing with your eye wear.
Best all-rounder for pool and open water swimming
TRI-FIT RAPID X swimming goggles
I’ve been using the TRI-FIT RAPID X goggles for four months now, and not once have I been tempted to fish my old ROKA goggles out of the depths of my swim bag. The 3D gasket technology means these goggles conform to your face shape, without needing to do much adjustment on the headband at all. Throughout months of pool swimming, they haven’t fogged or leaked once. And out in the open water, the visibility has been superb – both on sunny days and in overcast conditions. I’ve raced in these a few times now, and even after getting a pretty heavy blow to my right eye during the swim at Challenge Roth, they stayed in place. I was also grateful for the soft gaskets and the flexible material in the nose piece – where a punch to the eye before would probably have led to hard plastic parts cutting into the skin, I came away from my mid-race boxing match unscathed.
I also wore these for IRONMAN Tallinn, where a last minute change of swim location saw us battling it out with the waves (and the jellyfish) in the Baltic Sea. Still, even while being tossed around like a rag doll in chillier than expected water – the TRI-FIT RAPID X didn’t let me down on the fogging or leaking front. If anything, I could see all my jellyfish swim buddies a little too clearly!
While one person’s holy grail goggles can be another’s holy trash – when we got a selection of random age-groupers at Challenge The Championship to take the TRI-FIT RAPID X goggles for a splash at the practice swim, pretty much everyone came out of the water raving about them. You can check the video out here to see what I mean! With an RRP of £30 GBP these goggles feel like incredibly good value for money, and they come with their own hard case for storage which is a nice, premium touch.
Best open water goggles for early morning race starts
ZONE 3 Vapour Swim – Photochromatic
If you’re racing a triathlon either early or late in race season, choosing your race day goggles can have an extra layer of complication. Because early morning starts when it’s not the height of summer might mean that you’re getting into the water when the sun is yet to rise. Meaning a smoked or mirrored goggle would be too dark. But particularly for long distance racing, things could quite quickly brighten up – leaving you squinting into the sun’s glare for the whole of the second lap if you opt for clear goggles.
ZONE 3’s Vapour Swim goggles with the photochromatic lens option solves this problem. Giving you the best of both worlds – clear lenses when you need them, self-tinting when the sun makes an appearance.
Best mask swimming goggles
Aquasphere Vista Pro
If you’ve struggled to find ‘traditional’ swimming goggles that work for your face shape, it’s worth giving a mask-shaped goggle a try instead. The wider frame profile means there’s more flex to fit your face. And if you don’t get on with the feeling of pressure around your eyes of a regular, small-gasket goggle – the mask distributes the pressure away from the delicate eye area. Which can also help with goggle marks if yours tend to linger long after you’ve hopped out of the pool!
There are a few different options out there for swimming mask goggles, but TRI247’s top recommendation is the Aquasphere Vista Pro. The wide silicone ‘skirt’ gives the best chance of a comfortable fit for a range of different face shapes. And the buckle strap fastening offers further adjustability to find the right fit. The fact that the wide skirt is clear also means these goggles don’t look too much like you’re about to go snorkelling – for a mask-style goggle, they’re still pretty sleek looking.
Best smart goggles to level up your swim training
FORM Smart Swim 2
If you’re serious about improving your swim splits, then the FORM Smart Swim 2 goggles may well be a worthwhile investment to ensure you’re focusing on the right things to get faster and more efficient. The augmented reality display takes a bit of getting used to, but once you do – the real time metrics can be a really useful tool to make sure you’re swimming in the right energy zones for the prescribed session and constantly fine-tuning weak spots in your technique.
What’s interesting about using the FORM goggles is that they can pick up on weak spots in your technique that you didn’t even know were causing you issues – head pitch is a great example. And with the premium subscription, you get “HeadCoach™” in-goggle visual coaching. The display means you can get real-time feedback while you try and rectify it. The 2nd edition of the Smart Swim goggles has a reduced ‘tech pack’ size. The reality is they’re not going to disguise themselves as bog standard goggles anytime soon, and they do look a little bit out there still. But they’re more subtle than the first version.
Alongside in-goggle coaching in real-time while you swim. With the premium subscription, you can also access a library of workouts and training plans for specific goals and distances. Plus, the goggles will sync with any workouts your coach as programmed into TrainingPeaks – or you can build your own in the app. If you struggle to stay focused and get the work done in the pool, and having a coach on deck to keep you on the straight and narrow during every session isn’t an option (which for 99.9% of us is the case). The FORM Smart Swim 2 goggles are a great way to add real focus and specificity to your swim training.
Best budget swimming goggles
Orca Killa 180 degree goggles
With an RRP of just £23.99, Orca’s Killa 180º goggles are one of the best value for money goggles out there. Offering budget-friendly performance without too much compromise. The 3D ergonomic gaskets are likely to work for most face shapes, and the mirrored lens option should be plenty versatile for pool and open water swimming for most people. The clip strap system is a little more fiddly than that on the TRI-FIT RAPID X goggles, for example, but it still offers easy adjustment.
Given how much you can spend on goggles – the Orca Killa 180º goggles give you plenty of performance for the price point and are worth a try if you’re fed up of spending the big bucks on goggles only to discover they don’t work for you.
Best pool swimming goggles for speed
Speedo Fastskin Pure Focus
Hitting the pool and looking to set a few new PRs? Trying to keep up with the fast group at your weekly masters session? If you’re looking for pool swimming goggles that are built for speed, take a look at the Speedo Fastskin goggles. These goggles feature a low-profile, ultra-sleek design with hydrodynamics at the forefront. In fact, Speedo claim they’ll give you a 5% drag saving versus their Fastskin Hyper Elite goggles. The ‘tensioning scale’ on the head strap is also a neat touch, so once you’ve found the right tightness you know precisely where to tighten up to if the strap loosens off over time.
And while that minimalist construction means you probably wouldn’t want to take these out into open water, as they’ll offer less field of vision to their more maximalist counterparts. If you’re looking for all the marginal gains you can get in the pool – these are well worth a go. Besides, if anything else, they’ll make you look the PRO swimmer part even if your splits don’t quite match up!
Best premium goggles
The Magic5 Custom swim goggles
The Magic5 goggles are the ultimate ‘I can’t find any goggles to fit my face’ goggles. And that’s because they’ll be made to fit the unique contours and curvatures of your face. After purchasing, you’ll then complete a 3D facial scan which is used to custom-make the goggles. In theory, they should fit near-perfectly. And if they don’t, The Magic5 will either use your feedback to refine the fit – or give you a refund.
Of course, that means you’ll have to part with a little extra cash – the goggles come in at around the £65-£75 mark. And if you’re someone who wants the option of a clear pair for the pool and a tinted pair of goggles for open water, you’ll need to invest in two pairs (there’s currently no photochromatic lens option). But if you feel like you’ve tested out every pair of goggles going and you still can’t get your perfect fit – The Magic5 might just be your solution. Just be prepared to wait a couple of weeks between ordering and delivery while your goggles get made.
Overall, the winner for the best triathlon goggles 2024 has to be the TRI-FIT RAPID X. These far surpassed my expectations, particularly given the bank balance-friendly price point, and they’re still looking as good as new even after a summer full of training and racing. Of course, goggles are such a personal thing so finding the right pair for your face shape can be a bit of trial and error – but hopefully this round-up of the TRI247 top picks will help you to refine your search. On the hunt for more open water swimming gear? Check out our pick of the best triathlon wetsuits and the best dryrobe alternatives.
