When should you replace a motorcycle helmet?

Where the five-year guidance comes from

The Snell Memorial Foundation, which runs one of the best known voluntary helmet standards, recommends replacing a helmet every five years. Many manufacturers give similar guidance in their owner's manuals. Shoei, for example, recommends replacement five years after purchase, and Arai gives a similar period. Some brands count from the date of manufacture, others from first use, and the numbers vary a little. Check the manual for your helmet.

The reasoning is not that a helmet suddenly stops working on a set date. It is that the comfort liner, glues, resins and padding all degrade with use, sweat, hair oils, cleaning products and UV light, and that helmet design and standards keep improving. Five years is a practical, conservative interval that covers most use.

What actually wears out

A helmet is a system. The outer shell spreads an impact, the EPS foam liner crushes to absorb energy, and the comfort liner and cheek pads hold the helmet in the right position on your head. The retention strap keeps it on. Each of these parts ages differently.

Replace it after any crash or hard impact

The EPS liner is designed to absorb one impact by crushing. Once it has crushed, it does not spring back, and that area offers much less protection the next time. The damage is often invisible from the outside. A shell can look perfect while the foam beneath it is compressed.

That is why helmet makers say to replace a helmet after a crash in which your head hit anything, and many say the same after a hard drop onto pavement, especially with a head inside or from a height. A tip off a seat onto grass is different from a fall off a moving bike onto concrete. If you are unsure, many manufacturers will inspect a helmet, and our page on a motorcycle helmet after a crash goes deeper.

Note.Do not buy or ride a used helmet with an unknown history. You cannot see whether its EPS liner has already absorbed an impact.

Signs you need a new helmet sooner

Run the fit checks from how should a motorcycle helmet fit once a season. A helmet that has gone loose is less likely to stay in position in a crash, even if nothing else is wrong with it.

• It has been in a crash or taken a hard hit
• The helmet now moves or rolls when you do the twist and roll-off checks
• Cheek pads and crown liner are flattened and new pads no longer fix the fit
• Cracks, dents or soft spots in the shell, or bits of EPS crumbling inside
• Frayed strap, rusted or bent D-rings, or a buckle that does not latch firmly
• The helmet has been exposed to fuel, solvents or strong cleaners
• It has been stored somewhere very hot, like a car trunk in summer, for long periods

How to find your helmet's age

Most helmets have a manufacture date on a sticker under the comfort liner, on the chin strap, or stamped inside the EPS liner. It is often shown as a month and year or a small date wheel. The ECE label on the chin strap carries an approval number and a production serial. A DOT label on the back of the shell does not usually show a date.

If you bought the helmet new, keep the receipt with the manual. That gives you the purchase date many makers count from. If the helmet sat on a shelf for a while before you bought it, that shelf time matters less than your riding time, but it still counts toward the materials' age.

Making a helmet last its full life

Store the helmet indoors, at room temperature, away from fuel cans and solvents, and not hanging off a mirror where it can fall. Wash the removable liner regularly with mild soap; sweat and oils break down padding. Clean the shell with water and a mild cleaner, never with petroleum-based products. See how to store a motorcycle helmet and how to clean a motorcycle helmet.

When it is time to replace, use the occasion to check whether your size or head shape advice has changed, and look at current models certified to the newer ECE 22.06 standard as well as DOT. The best full face motorcycle helmets guide is a good starting point, and how much a good helmet costs explains what extra money buys.

Shop current full face helmets →

Frequently asked questions

Do motorcycle helmets really expire? There is no legal expiry date. The common five-year replacement interval is guidance from Snell and many manufacturers, based on materials aging and liners compressing with use.

Should I replace my helmet if I dropped it? If it fell from a seat onto soft ground, inspect it and it is often fine. If it hit hard pavement from height, or with your head inside, follow the manufacturer's guidance, which is usually to replace or have it inspected.

Is an unused helmet in its box still good after five years? It has seen less wear than a used one, but materials still age. Check the manufacture date and the maker's guidance before relying on it.

Can I just replace the liner instead of the helmet? Replacing the comfort liner and cheek pads restores fit. It does not restore a crushed EPS liner or an aged shell, so it does not reset the helmet's life after an impact.