205/65 R16 - Best winter tyres 2026 - market overview, tests, reviews

Great price for a premium tyre

Blizzak LM-001

205/65 R16 95 H

£101

Upper-middle

EuroWinter HS01

205/65 R16 95 H

£87

Best price in last 6 months Lowest price among well rated tyres.

Best price in last 6 months

WINTER SOTTOZERO Serie III

205/65 R16 95 H

£106

Best price in last 6 months

ALPIN 5

205/65 R16 95 H

£128

Blizzak LM-005

205/65 R16 95 H .

£131

Best tyres in tests (2026)

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1

Premium

WinterContact TS 870

'25#1

'24#1

'24#1

9.9

Price from

£131

Price from£131

Expert summary

Continental has been dominating the winter tyre segment for years, and the TS870 is no different. It is very well-balanced and offers great mileage, making the premium price point worthwhile in the long run.

#2

theTyre Lab.comRecommended#2 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Lateral guidance on snow

100%

Snow cornering

95%

Wet circle cornering

94%

+22

Dry braking

66%

Snow traction

65%

Price/value

63%

Test results

2025225/45 R17#1(Test winner)

2024205/55 R16#1(Good)

2024205/55 R16#1(Exemplary)

2024205/55 R16#8(-)

2023225/45 R17#1(Good)

2023225/45 R17#1(Test winner)

2022185/65 R15#1(Good)

2022225/45 R17#1(-)

2022225/45 R17#1(Test winner)

2022225/45 R19#1(-)

Price variants (1)

205/65 R16 95 H EVc

B C 72dB

£131

mytyres.co.uk

£131

In stock · Free shipping

2

Premium

Winter

'25#1

'25#2

9.6

Price from

£105

Price from£105

#4

theTyre Lab.comRecommended#4 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Snow traction

100%

Snow cornering

100%

Comfort

100%

+10

Wet circle cornering

47%

Dry handling

42%

Aquaplaning - longitudal

26%

Test results

2025225/40 R18#1(-)

2025225/40 R18#2(Exemplary)

Price variants (1)

205/65 R16 95 H

C C 71dB

£105

mytyres.co.uk

£105

In stock · Free shipping

3

Premium

Blizzak 6

'25#1

'25#2

'25#3

9.2

Price from

£110

Price from£110

Expert summary

Blizzak has always been a winter tire focused on wet conditions, but with its sixth model, Bridgestone has promised improved snow performance and reduced rolling resistance. Early tests suggest they have delivered on these promises—Blizzak 6 is unmatched in wet conditions and excels on snow, making it ideal not just for city climates.

#8

theTyre Lab.comRecommended#8 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Snow safety

100%

Lateral guidance on snow

96%

Gravel traction

91%

+26

Exterior noise

52%

Price/value

34%

Interior noise

29%

Test results

2025235/50 R19#1(Test winner)

2025275/35 R19#2(Very good)

2025225/45 R17#3(-)

2025215/55 R17#3(Good)

2025225/40 R18#3(Exemplary)

2025225/40 R18#3(Good)

2025245/45 R19#4(Highly recommended)

2025225/40 R18#6(-)

2025215/55 R17#6(Very good)

2025215/55 R17#7(Good)

Price variants (2)

205/65 R16 95 H

. . .dB

£133

mytyres.co.uk

£133

In stock · Free shipping

205/65 R16 99 H

B C 70dB

£110

mytyres.co.uk

£110

In stock · Free shipping

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£143

In stock · Free shipping

4

Upper-middle

WinterCraft WP52+

'25#4

'25#5

8.7

Price from

£86

Price from£86

Expert summary

The Kumho WinterCraft WP52+ is a winter tyre from the established South Korean manufacturer, designed for use on passenger cars during cold weather conditions. Serving as an updated successor to the standard WinterCraft WP52, this model is engineered for winter driving. Its main focus is delivering traction on cold, snowy, and icy roads, though specific technical modifications over its predecessor are not detailed.

#11

theTyre Lab.comRecommended#11 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Dry braking

95%

Wet braking

93%

Wet handling

88%

+10

Snow traction

47%

Comfort

42%

Aquaplaning - cross

31%

Test results

2025225/40 R18#4(Good)

2025225/40 R18#4(-)

2025215/55 R17#5(Good)

Price variants (1)

205/65 R16 95 H

B C 72dB

£86

mytyres.co.uk

£86

In stock · Free shipping

5

Upper-middle

W462 Winter i*cept RS3

'25#2

'25#4

'24#4

8.2

Price from

£94

Price from£94

Expert summary

There aren’t many things to dislike about the Winter i*cept RS3, except perhaps for slightly lower mileage and higher rolling resistance. For its price, it performs well in all weather conditions.

Performance

Lateral guidance on snow

100%

Wet side guide

100%

Dry steering response

100%

+21

Dry braking

38%

Rolling resistance

35%

Wet safety

33%

Test results

2025215/55 R17#2(Exemplary)

2025215/55 R17#4(Very good)

2024205/55 R16#4(Satisfactory)

2024215/55 R17#4(Recommended)

2024215/55 R17#5(Satisfactory)

2024205/55 R16#6(Good)

2024205/55 R16#14(-)

2023225/45 R17#4(-)

2023205/60 R16#5(Good)

2023225/45 R17#7(Satisfactory)

Price variants (3)

205/65 R16 95 H

B D 72dB

£94

mytyres.co.uk

£94

In stock · Free shipping

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£133

In stock · Free shipping

205/65 R16 95 H

B D 72dB

£127

mytyres.co.uk

£127

In stock · Free shipping

205/65 R16 95 H

B D 72dB

£137

mytyres.co.uk

£137

In stock · Free shipping

6

Budget

Polaris 6

'25#2

'25#9

'25#10

8.3

Price from

£89

Price from£89

Expert summary

Barum unveils the Polaris 6, a budget-friendly winter tyre from the Czech Republic that adopts design elements from Continental’s TS series, including a V-shaped tread for better snow performance. The Polaris 6 improves on the Polaris 5 with enhanced durability, reduced rolling resistance, and quieter operation, while maintaining solid wet and dry performance. Priced about 20% higher, it leverages Continental’s technology to offer greater value and reliable winter traction for cost-conscious drivers.

Performance

Exterior noise

100%

Price/value

100%

Snow acceleration

100%

+12

Aquaplaning - cross

38%

Aquaplaning - longitudal

36%

Snow cornering

21%

Test results

2025215/65 R17#2(Good)

2025225/40 R18#9(Good)

2025225/40 R18#10(-)

Price variants (1)

205/65 R16 95 H

C C 72dB

£89

mytyres.co.uk

£89

In stock · Free shipping

7

Upper-middle

Snowproof 2

'25#7

'24#6

'24#27

7.3

Price from

£85

Price from£85

Expert summary

The Snowproof 2 is the new version of the very popular first generation. As is usual for the nordic brand, It's great on snow while being more affordable than the premium brands.

Performance

Aquaplaning - cross

96%

Aquaplaning - longitudal

86%

Wet circle cornering

73%

+9

Comfort

30%

Snow traction

23%

Exterior noise

9%

Test results

2025215/55 R17#7(Good)

2024205/55 R16#6(Satisfactory)

2024205/55 R16#27(-)

2023235/55 R18#4(Recommended)

Price variants (1)

205/65 R16 95 H XL

B D 69dB

£85

mytyres.co.uk

£85

In stock · Free shipping

8

Upper-middle

Eurowinter HS02

'25#9

'24#7

'24#22

7.2

Price from

£83

Price from£83

Expert summary

The EuroWinter HS02 is one of the few affordable winter tires with good mileage and low rolling resistance. It offers strong driving characteristics, with only slight weaknesses on snow.

Performance

Dry steering response

75%

Comfort

75%

Wet circle cornering

73%

+14

Snow braking

5%

Lateral guidance on snow

0%

Snow handling - objective

0%

Test results

2025215/55 R17#9(Satisfactory)

2024205/55 R16#7(Satisfactory)

2024205/55 R16#22(-)

2023205/60 R16#11(Satisfactory)

Price variants (1)

205/65 R16 95 H £83

mytyres.co.uk

£83

In stock · Free shipping

9

Budget

Speed-Grip 5

'25#11

'25#14

'25#15

8.0

Price from

£92

Price from£92

Expert summary

We really like the new Speed-Grip 5 - it's not expensive, it's very good on snow and on top of that, it's got very low rolling resistance. What it lacks compared to the premium tyres is better wet performance, but given it's price it's definitely recommendable.

Performance

Interior noise

100%

Dry handling - objective

88%

Aquaplaning - cross

84%

+17

Wet handling

36%

Wet handling - objective

25%

Snow handling - objective

25%

Test results

2025225/40 R18#11(Good)

2025225/40 R18#14(Satisfactory)

2025225/40 R18#15(-)

2024205/55 R16#3(Exemplary)

2024215/55 R17#4(Satisfactory)

2024205/55 R16#6(-)

2023225/45 R17#6(Satisfactory)

2023225/45 R18#16(Satisfactory)

2023225/45 R18#19(-)

2022185/65 R15#3(Good)

Price variants (1)

205/65 R16 95 H

C B 72dB

£92

mytyres.co.uk

£92

In stock · Free shipping

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£130

In stock · Free shipping