Ready to dive into the world of swim goggles? Here’s a look at the different types of swim goggles for clarity, comfort and speed in the water.
Swimming is an awesome form of exercise. For those of us who choose it as a sport, it’s also a lifestyle.
And whether you are a beginner splashing around in the shallow end or chasing Olympic glory, having the right type of swim goggle for your swimming workouts is crucial.
While the benefits of swim goggles are relatively straightforward—keeping water out of the eyes and enhancing vision under the water—goggles vary widely by features, price, and function.
In recent years, swim goggles have seen significant advancements, such as the development of smart swim goggles, customizable gaskets, and improved anti-fog technology. As a result, the variety of available swim goggles continues to grow.
In this guide to the different types of goggles for swimming, we’ll examine the full range of swim goggles so you can pick the best swim goggles for you and hit the water confidently and clearly.
Let’s dive right in.
Types of Swimming Goggles
Here is a list of the different kinds of swim goggles for swimmers:
- Kids’ Swim Goggles
- Swim Masks
- Training Swim Goggles
- Antifog Swim Goggles
- Open Water Swim Goggles
- Prescription Swim Goggles
- Customized Swim Goggles
- Racing Swim Goggles
- Smart Swim Goggles
Next, we will look at each type of swim goggle in greater detail.
Kids’ Swim Goggles
Kids’ swim goggles are designed primarily for fun, comfort, and safety.
Swim goggles designed for children come in bright and fun colors and are smaller compared to regular swim goggles to fit comfortably on smaller faces.
The goggle gaskets on swim goggles for kids are also slimmer to allow for narrower eye sockets. The lens features on swim goggles for kids are limited, with mostly colored and clear lenses to maximize vision.
Kids’ swim goggles are meant to protect the eyes and help kids build confidence by putting their face in the water as they learn to swim.
Swim Masks
Sticking around in the recreational part of the swim pool, we have swim masks, another type of eyewear for swimming.
Swim masks are larger than your standard swim goggle and cover the eyes and the nose. Swim masks have a much larger frame compared to swim goggles and are designed for recreational swimming, snorkeling, and other underwater exploration.
Swim masks are an ideal option for the casual lap swimmer who wants maximum field of vision as they give a panoramic view under the water.
Training Swim Goggles
The largest category of swim goggles is the daily driver, the training swim goggle, an essential piece of swim training equipment to help you conquer your swim practices.
Training swim goggles are priced economically, with tons of high-quality goggles like the Speed Vanquishers, Swedes, Speedo Speed Sockets, and Sporti S3 goggles retailing for $20 or less.
Training swim goggles are built to help you crush it at swim practice and daily training. They should be comfortable, durable, and functional for your training environment.
See also: How to Choose the Perfect Set of Swimming Goggles
The biggest consideration for choosing the right training goggle is the lens clarity and field of vision. For darker swim pools, look for a clear or colored lens. Outdoor swimmers will want to opt for a tinted or polarized lens to reduce eye strain and reduce glare.
Classic swim goggles like the Swedes are an excellent all-around training goggle that gives a wide range of fields of vision, tons of lens options, and low price points. Other popular training swim goggles include the Speedo Vanquishers and the Speedo Speed Socket.
Younger age group swimmers will find that many of the popular swim goggle brands feature youth sizes to accommodate for smaller faces.
- Note: In reality, every training swim goggle is also a racing goggle. We will cover swim goggles that are designed for maximum drag reduction and competition later, but countless Olympians have used training goggles, whether Swedes, Vanquishers, or other “training” swim goggles at the highest level of competition.
Antifog Swim Goggles
Swim goggles all come with an antifog coating on the inside of the lens. As every experienced swimmer knows, this coating inevitably wears off, either from repeated chlorine exposure or from errant finger wipes.
In the past, swimmers relied on spit and other antifog goggle solutions to replenish the antifog coating.
That’s until the Arena Swipes came along, the first truly antifog swim goggle. The goggles, which come in both a pool version and an open water model, reset each time you give it a gentle wipe on the inside of the lens.
For swimmers who do long, unbroken bouts of training in the pool and don’t want to pause and clear the goggle lens, the Swipes are the first type of swim goggle that gives actual long-term antifog protection.
Open Water Swim Goggles
Open water swim goggles are made for open water success, whether that’s going for a leisurely ocean swim or open water races and triathlons.
Open water swim goggles feature a larger lens and gasket to provide swimmers with a better field of view; perfect for seeing over breaking waves and past the bubbling mess of a hundred of your fellow swimmers off the start.
Open water swim goggles almost universally feature polarized lenses to eliminate glare and reduce eye strain when swimming outdoors.
See also: 8 Best Open Water and Triathlon Swimming Goggles
These goggles also have strap buckles that are on the side of the gasket versus on the back of pool goggles for easier mid-swim adjustments.
Prescription Swim Goggles
Prescription swim goggles are specialized goggles that provide clear vision under the water for swimmers with vision impairments, whether nearsighted or farsighted.
Prescription swim goggles are an awesome solution for swimmers who require corrective lenses while swimming but don’t want to wear contacts in the pool or wear glasses under over-sized swimming goggles.
Optical swimming goggles are surprisingly affordable, and popular swim brands Speedo and Sporti offer prescription versions of their best-selling goggles.
Customized Swim Goggles
Customized swim goggles are specially designed and manufactured to meet the size and shape of the unique structure of a swimmer’s face.
Custom swim goggles seek to alleviate the most common issues that swimmers face with swim goggles, including leaky goggles, uncomfortable fit, and headaches from extended wear.
TheMagic5 Swim Goggles, yes, the company that was on Shark Tank, are the only swim goggle brand currently making customized swimming goggles.
For swimmers who struggle to find that “perfect” fit or who get headaches from wearing swim goggles for hours on end, a set of custom swim goggles can be just the ticket for a more comfortable swimming experience.
Racing Swim Goggles
Competition swim goggles are made for maximum speed and drag reduction for race day success.
Racing goggles have a very hydrodynamic design, with extra slim goggle sockets, head straps that don’t fold and slide around, and clear lens so that you can time those walls perfectly and keep an eye on the competition.
Racing swim goggles create a hydrodynamic profile that lessens the risk of “catching” water when diving in, giving swimmers peace of mind that their swim goggles won’t fill with water off the swim start.
Swim goggles designed for competition tend to be more expensive compared to your standard training goggle.
Smart Swim Goggles
Smart swimming goggles are a relatively new innovation to the world of swimming, with the FORM Swim Goggles being the first to dive into the water with a heads-up display back in 2019.
Smart swimming goggles incorporate real-time tracking and a digital display inside your goggle lens to help you track every last aspect of your swim training. The two best smart swim goggles on the market at the time of writing are the O/G., the FORM Swim Goggles, and the FINIS Smart Goggle.
Smart swim goggles, as you can imagine because of the high-tech features, are also the priciest swim goggles on the pool deck.
How do I choose the right swim goggles?
Choosing the right swim goggles depends on your specific needs and preferences. Factors such purpose, lens, peripheral vision, gasket type, antifog, and price are all things to consider when shopping around for a set of new swimming goggles.
How do I make my swim goggles last longer?
Swim goggles can wear down from chlorine and UV exposure, the anti-fog coating eventually degrades, and dirt and grime can build up from getting tossed around in your swim bag. To care for and clean swim goggles, and to extend their lifespan, rinse with fresh water after swimming, use an anti-fog spray or towelette to reset the anti-fog coating, and store them in a goggle case to prevent scratches and dirt build-up.
Wrapping Things Up
Swim goggles are one of the essential pieces of swim gear for the pool and open water for swimmers of all levels.
The right goggles help you see clearly under the water, protect the eyes from pool chemicals, reduce eye strain, and can even enhance your swim workout via real-time tracking.
Whichever type of swim goggle you choose, investing in a quality set of goggles can help improve your time and swimming times in the water.
Image credits: The author
ABOUT OLIVIER POIRIER-LEROY
Olivier Poirier-Leroy is a former national-level swimmer, author, swim coach, and certified personal trainer. He’s the author of YourSwimBook, a ten-month logbook for competitive swimmers.
He’s also the author of the recently published mental training workbook for competitive swimmers, Conquer the Pool: The Swimmer’s Ultimate Guide to a High-Performance Mindset.
It combines sport psychology research, worksheets, anecdotes, and examples of Olympians past and present to give swimmers everything they need to conquer the mental side of the sport.
Ready to take your mindset to the next level in the pool?
Click here to learn more about Conquer the Pool.
I feel like Swedes worked when I was younger and had supple skin, but now those goggle marks last all day.
Speedo hydrospex classic for this dinosaur. I find that they last longer when you clean and dry after each use.
Go with the Gertrude Ederle model.
If you wear vanquisher 2.0s ur a nerd lol
Swedish googles are the worst googles I ever wore. The amount of pain in my eye sockets was so intense it was physical pleasure to take them off. I will never understand why they are still around with all the modern google options.
Tell me you are newbie without telling me you are newbie
You weren’t training hard enough if your goggles were the primary source of discomfort.
SWEDES GOOD
SWEDES FRIEND
ROBERT BAD
Minimalist swimmers are like minimalist runners takes a little time to get your body used to it but then it’s one less thing to wear out or break.
About 5 years ago, I started having really bad eye problems due to the suction created by modern goggle gaskets. I tried everything, and Swedes were the only thing that worked. I can tolerate gaskets again now, but Tyr Socket Rockets (cushioned Swedes) are still my favorites.
Big fan of these, too.
agree. They always hurt my face growing up.
Mirrors are tough
IMO Speedo speed sockets 2.0 are the GOAT for practice and competition. The most comfortable while still being low profile, they have as good of field of vision as any goggle, and they look cool. There’s definitely a reason you see them more at high level meets than any goggle. The only goggle close to them as far as wearers are Arena Cobras, which are phenomenal goggles I just think they aren’t very comfortable for practice, and I like to race in what I practice in, so it ends up being SS’s for both
Speedo Vanquisher only. I never was a fan of the nosepiece on the speed sockets. I don’t think I’ve used a different pair of goggles since I was very young and wearing the kids goggles.
I was Sweds all the way until I tried something else and realized I was a dummy.
An excellent article that gets right to the heart of things, viz. anti-fogging properties and proper fit, without trying to ‘sell’ one brand over another. And the associated links are also helpful for old guys like me who are ready to upgrade and buy. Incredibly, I’m old enough to remember when goggles were actually PROHIBITED for competitive swimming, but you have to go back a long way for that era. Thankfully, this article finds sets of goggles for indoor, outdoor, kids, recreation, and everything in between. thankX!