The Best Freezer Work Gloves to Keep Your Hands Warm

The job of cold storage facility workers is not an easy one. Whether you are involved in meat processing, fresh produce warehousing, pharmaceutical storage, or other tasks, you are continually exposed to sub zero temperatures.

And when one is exposed to these cold environments for long enough periods, one is placed at risk of numbness, hypothermia, and frostbite, especially in the hands. For this reason, you will need protection from the best freezer work gloves.

Because of the challenges of working in the cold, a good pair of insulated work gloves should provide sufficient protection from the hazards of extreme cold and improve your performance while working in cold conditions. As such, you should expect a proper pair of freezer gloves to have the following qualities:

• Thermal insulation. The basic requirement of any freezer glove, thermal insulation, involves using special fabrics that maintain warmth inside the gloves. How much insulation you need will depend on how cold your work environment is and how long you need to stay there at a time. In general, though, a good target would be somewhere around 30°F to -30°F (or around 0°C to -30°C).
• Hand dexterity. Of course, having good insulation isn’t everything. Your gloves must allow you to move your hands without too much hindrance. Fabrics like Spandex, neoprene, or Lycra are very stretchable and will greatly improve hand dexterity in your insulated gloves.
• Waterproofing. Ice may stay cold in a freezer, but it can still melt with the heat of the worker holding it. This melted water can soak into your gloves and re-freeze, making your hands colder rather than warmer. Therefore, you should also look for waterproofing or water resistance in your ideal freezer gloves.

With all this in mind, the following is a collection of reviews of 12 freezer work gloves tried and tested. Although this is not an exhaustive list, these reviews should hopefully point you in the right direction to help you find the right pair for your job.

Top 12 Freezer Work Gloves Reviews

1. RefrigiWear Extreme Freezer Gloves

When recommending a good pair of freezer wear gloves, RefrigiWear is always a good place to start. This company has been developing cold work solutions from head to toe for over 60 years now, and their RefrigiWear Extreme model is one of the best examples of their expertise.

Their “Extreme” namesake refers to their impressive insulation. This is made possible by using three layers of insulation—a tricot fabric liner, insulating foam, and 100-gram 3M Thinsulate. The result is, naturally, a warmth that can handle harsh temperature drops in cold weather conditions.

A set of shock-absorbing pads on the palm provides another layer of material between your hands and whatever cold object you need to hold on to. Because icy goods can get slippery if you aren’t careful, RefrigiWear has inlaid a silicone grip across the palms to help you grip tight.

The gloves also offer impact protection for the back of the hand as well as the fingers and knuckles, giving you even more protection from whatever hard knocks come your way. A neoprene cuff keeps the gloves secured to your hands and also allows for a wear-and-go fit, thanks to its stretchy quality.

2. Superior Winter Work Gloves with Tight Grip Palms

What does it take to make a superior pair of gloves for freezer workers? Is it unmatched insulation against the cold? Is it almost-gloveless dexterity? Or could it just be a competitive price? For the winter work gloves by the Superior Glove Company, the answer to that is “a little bit of everything.”

These thermal gloves feature a dual-layer fabric shell that consists of a nylon outer layer and an inner fleece lining. This combination provides the benefits of both materials, with the flexibility of nylon and the insulation of the fleece.

However, from my experience using the gloves, the fleece liner tends to build up static electricity in my hands while I work, which can cause some mild stinging feeling sometimes.

The rest of the glove, however, functions quite well. The palms are coated with micropore PVC foam that stays flexible in extreme cold without becoming brittle like other rubbery coatings. This coating also has a crinkle grip texture that gives excellent grip even on wet surfaces, which is extremely useful when handling wet produce.

3. MCR Memphis Glove Safety N9690M Nylon Glove

When working in a freezer, our first instinct when shopping for gloves would probably be to get the warmest pair available. However, this might do more harm than good when we realize that our bulky pair makes it difficult to hold pens and grab onto small handles securely.

For tasks that require that level of precision, sleeker thermal gloves are required. And the Ninja Ice work glove from MCR Safety (formerly Memphis Glove) is more than practical for the job.

Its insulating liner uses thin acrylic terry fabric to provide reasonable insulation levels with a low profile, allowing us to move our hands more freely than with ones featuring thicker insulators.

Because the insulation is so thin, however, it cannot provide enough warmth for extreme temperatures. But for most frozen material handling jobs, the dexterity that we get from these gloves is much more valuable.

The gloves are treated with an HPT coating that helps repel water. Hence, it more than makes up for the thinner insulation by keeping cold water from soaking into the glove fabric and reaching our hands.

The combination of the fabric shell and rubber-coated palms allows the gloves to achieve a 3232 protection rating based on the EN388 standard. Such a qualifying construction ensures great resistance against cuts, scrapes, punctures, and tears, which helps the gloves last longer.

4. Youngstown Winter Plus Performance Glove

Youngstown is renowned for its catalog of work gloves that deliver reliable and consistent performance in a wide range of industries. Their Winter Plus Performance model is the manufacturer’s take on the freezer work glove and offers a remarkably thoughtful feature set.

For instance, the gloves are designed with a microfleece inner liner. This structure provides a good amount of protection from the cold while also giving the gloves a soft, cushioned feel like wool mittens.

This inner liner does tend to bunch up when I take off the gloves, though, making putting them back on again tricky. Thankfully this doesn’t affect the performance of the gloves in any way.

The outer layer of the gloves is completely weather-resistant to help keep the hands dry in all conditions. As someone who has done jobs handling wet produce, the extra protection from the elements is a really nice touch.

This feature is helped further by the velcro strap on the cuff, which lets me customize the fit to the exact tightness that I want.

5. RefrigiWear Double Insulated Leather Work Gloves

With so many work glove manufacturers out there today, there is bound to be a pair of freezer gloves that will work best for every specific use case. All of the gloves we’ve seen so far have helped prove this point, and these RefrigiWear gloves are no exception. Designed for ultimate cold protection, this extreme freezer glove uses every trick in the book to make that possible.

For one, the bright yellow insulated freezer gloves are built with a thick, heavy-duty cowhide leather shell. The glove parts are held together with Kevlar stitching to produce an adequately tough pair of gloves that will hold up to whatever abuse we can throw at it.

However, the thick insulation of the gloves does limit the number of sizes available. Specifically, these gloves do have dimensions smaller than Large.

The gloves’ cuffs are done up in a safety cuff design that extends further beyond the wrists than the typical design. These extended cuffs improve the hand protection coverage of the gloves.

The gloves are reinforced with PVC abrasion pads for added durability on high-wear areas—specifically the middle of the palms and the fingertips. This design provides an extra barrier to shoulder the wear and tear before it reaches the leather material.

6. G&F GripMaster Cold Weather Work Gloves

There is a common theme among all of the freezer glove reviews we’ve seen so far, and it is that they are typically bought to replace whatever low-quality gloves are given to you by your employer.

But for cold storage warehouse staff managers, giving freezer workers better gloves could substantially affect their morale and productivity. The GripMaster gloves from G&F are one such option.

These gloves immediately stand out from the crowd with their vivid high-vis orange shell. While it doesn’t seem all that practical when worn by just one worker, it becomes a perfect workplace safety option when worn by an entire team. And, it is made easier by the gloves being available in bulk packs of a dozen pairs.

And that’s not to say that the gloves themselves are no good—far from it, in fact. A soft fleece inner liner is underneath the bright orange shell, which provides a good amount of comfort and protection for the typical refrigerated warehouse.

Unlike most dip-coated freezer gloves, G&F uses a double-dipped palm, which makes them much more durable than their single-dip counterparts. Besides, the design results in better dexterity of the hands when gripping and handling small objects.

7. Ergodyne ProFlex Waterproof Work Gloves

Glove design has come a long way from stitching layers of fabric or leather together by hand. Engineered fabrics and sewing machines have made it possible for insulated freezer work gloves to have combinations of materials that would have been unthinkable in the past. The Ergodyne ProFlex gloves are an excellent example of modern glove design.

Ergodyne used a dual-zone approach in these ProFlex gloves instead of a single uniform layer of thermal insulation. Hence, the gloves provide a unique balance of warmth and dexterity by using thinner insulation on the palms and thicker insulation on the back.

The outer shell of the gloves is also treated with DWR, which allows the fabrics to repel water and keep the hands dry. This shell is reinforced further with abrasion-resistant pads on the palms and fingers that protect against sharp objects.

Besides modern materials, these gloves are also made to handle modern technology. The thumb and index fingers of the gloves are equipped with touchscreen-compatible pads that let you use smartphones and tablets without needing to take off your gloves.

8. Superior Winter Work Gloves with Fleece Lining

It should be no surprise why there are two gloves from the Superior Glove Company on this list. I have used many of their gloves before and have had very positive experiences all around. These gloves live up to the reputation.

One of the best features of these gloves is their palms, which are made of water-resistant microsuede. I like them so much because they provide a lot of flexibility and hand feel while also protecting against abrasions thanks to its reinforced thumb crotch.

The gloves are also made with breathable finger insert panels. These panels are the ones that cover the space in between the fingers. The choice of breathable fabric really helps with comfort here, which is great as my hands can get quite clammy in some of the warmer gloves that I’ve used.

However, this does come at the cost of waterproofing, as water will get soaked in these finger areas and the back of the gloves.

Speaking of which, the back of the gloves is equipped with neoprene knuckle padding, which provides protection from knocks and scratches without affecting hand dexterity.

9. Wells Lamont Cold Weather Grip Gloves

Starting out as a humble glove maker in 1907, Wells Lamont is now among trusted industrial gloves manufacturers. Their Cold Weather Grip gloves are just one part of a massive and storied catalog of high-performance designs and are made to accommodate just about everyone.

And when I say “just about everyone,” I do mean it. Wells Lamont has made these gloves available in an extensive range of sizes, from XS to 3XL.

When we pair this with their excellent stretchy knit construction that provides a snug fit, these gloves should be able to accommodate hand sizes that most other glove manufacturers don’t bother to serve.

The gloves themselves are also of very high quality. They come in packs of two pairs each, which gives me a handy extra pair just in case I manage to lose one. I keep a spare pair in the bag I take to work as a backup, so I am always properly equipped if I forget to bring my main pair.

On top of the soft and stretchy thermal knit, the gloves are dipped into latex with a coarse but soft texture. Thus, they offer excellent grip for workers on different surfaces and objects. Such a pair also resists puncture and tear well for long-lasting use.

10. Dewalt DPG737L 2-in-1 Insulated Grip Glove

Dewalt is a brand best known for its expertise in hand and power tools. But as we see with the DPG737L, they have also dabbled in making personal protective equipment. And from my experience, these are quite excellent gloves for working in chillers.

What makes these gloves stand out for me is their unique glove-in-glove system. As its name suggests, these gloves come in two parts.

First, the thermal liner is made of thick 7-gauge acrylic wool to ensure we are warm when handling tasks in low temperatures. And the other is the outer layer, which is a dipped glove shell made of moisture-wicking nylon. These two layers contribute to a protective yet comfortable pair for workers.

While it seems strange to make gloves this way, a major benefit of this design is that washing these gloves are now much easier. This is because fleece and wool layers take much longer to dry than the outer shell, which can result in mold and mildew build-up if the gloves are not dried properly. Separating the two layers allows for complete drying, which I find very convenient.

The outer layer of the gloves is dipped with a latex coating that, unlike other gloves, extends all the way to the knuckles. This extended coating offers additional abrasion protection and adds another barrier to harsh weather.

11. Golden Scute Winter Work Gloves

As a Chinese-based brand, Golden Scute is not a very well-known name in the West. But from my experience using their gloves for working in freezer, I can say that there is a lot more to them than meets the eye.

For one, they have an excellent 3131 protection rating based on the EN388 standard. Such a qualification proves the ability to resist abrasion and tearing, which are common hazards that freezer workers have to deal with.

Inside the gloves is a thermal liner made of 10-gauge acrylic fleece. Compared to other fabric gauges, the 10-gauge fabric is soft and warm without feeling too thick.

The outside of the gloves is coated with two layers, the first of which is a waterproof latex coating that helps keep our hands warm without compromising dexterity.

On top of this is a 3/4 rubber dip that covers the entire palm and fingers up to the knuckles on the back of the hand. This dip serves as an extra protective layer that also assists with grip.

12. Wells Lamont HydraHyde Cold Weather Work Gloves

Although all of the gloves I’ve reviewed on this list are excellent in their own right, I feel that I’ve saved the best for last. These HydraHyde freezer gloves are one of the few models that I bought multiple pairs of, and for a good reason.

The seamless knit shell uses one of the softest nylon fabrics I tested in a freezer work glove and is very comfortable to use even throughout long workdays.

Thanks to the knit wrist cuffs that fit my wrists snugly, the gloves are also really easy to wear. They are effortless to adjust and don’t need much thought to put on—just pull them tight, and we’re all set.

This soft fabric shell is then dipped in grey latex in an extended 3/4 style like some of the other examples on this list. Unlike them, though, Wells Lamont uses a unique latex formula that is much more elastic. This addition keeps the grip consistent and performs reliably in all conditions.

What to Look for When Buying Freezer Work Gloves?

As we’ve seen from the above reviews in this article, freezer gloves come in many different styles. The reason for this is that manufacturers design their gloves to meet the needs of workers in certain use cases. And these use cases will call for different requirements in terms of features and specifications.

Generally, though, all cold storage gloves are designed with five main considerations in mind:

And when this happens, the package can slip out of your hands because the gloves don’t have the grip for handling wet objects. As such, freezer gloves must have a palm material that can grips well on both dry and wet surfaces.

It is important to remember that no work glove can be the best at all of these features, especially in balancing insulation and dexterity. The reason for this is simple physics: if you want better insulation, you will need to use more material, and more material will give the gloves less dexterity.

This is the same when done the other way around—better dexterity requires less material, which means your glove will not be able to insulate as much.

Until someone invents a wonder material that can achieve very high insulation at very low thicknesses, this tradeoff between insulation and dexterity will be something you need to consider when shopping for a new freezer work glove.

What are the Top-Rated Work Gloves for Below Zero Temperatures?

While most gloves for freezer workers function quite well at or above freezing, things get a lot more complicated when temperatures drop below zero. At that range of extreme cold, ice becomes a major issue as handling wet, icy packages can cause the ice to melt, soak into the gloves, and re-freeze again, which prevents the safety glove from working as intended.

For these work environments, the top-tier freezer gloves would be the ones that have both thick insulation and water resistance of some sort. Although this will come at the expense of finger dexterity, these two features will keep your hands safe when working in subzero temperatures.

How Do I Keep My Hands Warm While Working in a Freezer?

Now would be a good time to explain how cold storage gloves really work. Besides heated work gloves with battery-powered heating, most if not all cold gloves work through insulation—by keeping heat from your hands from radiating out into the frigid air of the freezer.

So, for your gloves to keep your hands warm, your hands have to be warm in the first place. That means you have to keep your hands active while in a freezer. Doing hand exercises encourages blood flow to your hands that helps generate heat that your gloves insulate to keep you warm.

Where Do I Buy Freezer Gloves?

As a general rule, a good place to buy your refrigerator gloves would be from industrial workwear suppliers. The reason for this is that, while you can get freezer gloves from your local hardware supply, these gloves will usually be regular winter gloves that aren’t built to industrial-grade standards for protection.

Proper industrial suppliers like Grainger are great places to start shopping for your next pair because their catalog contains proper industrial-grade equipment. And with locations in Canada, UK, and many authorized distributors around the world, it is really easy to get the right freezer gloves at a reasonable price.

If you need information that’s tailored more to your specific location, asking around on places like Reddit is a great way to get pointed in the right direction.

When are Freezer Work Gloves Required?

Although you aren’t legally required to do so, you should wear your freezer gloves whenever you are in a freezer or handling very cold packages. And even if you choose to ignore this advice, it only takes a few seconds inside a freezing workplace for you to want to put on those insulated freezer gloves.

Your gloves are classified as protective gear for a reason. Without your gloves, your hands are at risk of developing very severe cold injuries that can leave you unable to use your hands permanently.

Conclusion

The cold is not something to be underestimated. Without the right equipment to protect you, the freezing cold is more than capable of doing some serious damage to your hands.

Hopefully, this guide to the best freezer work gloves can give you the information you need to make an informed decision, and with it, you can be on your way to find the suitable freezer gloves for your cold store job.

Alexander M. Thompson

Hi, I am Alexander, forty-seven years old this year. I have been in the construction industry for twenty-five years and have provided a wide range of services. When it comes to expert guidance on site safety gear, you can put your trust in me.