255/35 R21 - Best winter tyres 2026 - market overview, tests, reviews

Winter

29

Tyres

We recommend

Premium

Blizzak LM-005

9.0

£284

Buy Details

Price / Value

Winter i*cept evo3 W330

9.6

£231

Buy Details

Best deals

Premium

Blizzak LM-005

255/35 R21 98 W .

£284

Best price in last 6 months Great price for a premium tyre

Upper-middle

Winter i*cept evo3 W330

255/35 R21 98 W .

£231

Lowest price among well rated tyres.

Best tyres in tests (2026)

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1

Premium

Pilot Alpin 5

'25#1

'25#1

'25#2

10.0

Price from

£328

Price from£328

Expert summary

This is currently the best rated tyre we have and there is a reason for it - it combines sportiness on snow and dry and very good safety margins on the wet. It’s designed to maintain the joy of driving, even on winter tyres, but still manages to be safe at all times. 100% recommended.

Recommended

#1

2026

theTire Lab.comRecommended#1 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Snow braking

100%

Dry braking

99%

Snow traction

95%

+7

Aquaplaning - longitudal

66%

Aquaplaning - cross

55%

Interior noise

47%

Test results

2025225/40 R18#1(Exemplary)

2025275/35 R19#1(Outstanding)

2025245/45 R19#2(Highly recommended)

2025225/40 R18#2(Good)

2025225/40 R18#2(-)

2024235/35 R19#1(Exemplary)

2024245/45 R18#1(Exemplary)

2024235/35 R19#1(Test winner)

2023225/45 R18#1(Test winner)

View full review

Price variants (1)

255/35 R21 98 W

B C 71dB

£328

mytyres.co.uk

£328

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

2

Premium

UltraGrip Performance 3

'25#1

9.5

Price from

£288

Price from£288

Expert summary

The UltraGrip Performance 3 is one of the best tyres we have seen in the tests and on top of that it's top discipline is snow performance while maintaining great properties on wet, which makes it a great candidate for snowy climates.

Recommended

#3

2026

theTire Lab.comRecommended#3 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Snow braking

100%

Wet handling

89%

Wet circle cornering

87%

+7

Aquaplaning - longitudal

74%

Comfort

69%

Interior noise

63%

Test results

2025225/40 R18#1(Good)

2025215/55 R17#1(Exemplary)

2025245/45 R19#1(Highly recommended)

2025215/55 R17#2(Good)

2025225/45 R17#2(-)

2025275/35 R19#3(Very good)

2025225/40 R18#3(-)

2025235/50 R19#4(Good)

2025225/40 R18#5(Good)

2024215/55 R17#1(Good)

View full review

Price variants (3)

255/35 R21 98 V XL EVR

C D 73dB

£288

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£288

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

mytyres.co.uk

£292

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

3

Premium

Blizzak 6

'25#1

'25#2

'25#3

9.2

Price from

£256

Price from£256

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.

Recommended

#7

2026

theTire Lab.comRecommended#7 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Wet circle cornering

79%

Comfort

78%

Snow traction

76%

+6

Dry braking

53%

Exterior noise

52%

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)

View full review

Price variants (1)

255/35 R21 98 W XL Enliten / EV

B C 72dB

£256

mytyres.co.uk

£256

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£300

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

4

Premium

UltraGrip Performance+

'25#2

'23#3

9.0

Price from

£248

Price from£248

Expert summary

A typical premium tyre - very well balanced, great on all surfaces with low rolling resistance. Proven by many tests.

Recommended

#9

2026

theTire Lab.comRecommended#9 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Snow traction

91%

Aquaplaning - cross

90%

Snow handling

81%

+6

Wet braking

62%

Exterior noise

58%

Dry handling

52%

Test results

2025215/55 R17#2(Outstanding)

2023225/45 R17#3(Good)

2023205/60 R16#3(Good)

2022215/60 R16#3(Good)

2022215/55 R17#3(Exemplary)

2022215/55 R17#4(-)

2021235/55 R18#1(Exemplary)

2021225/50 R17#3(Good)

2021225/45 R17#3(-)

2021225/40 R18#5(-)

View full review

Price variants (3)

255/35 R21 98 V

C C 73dB

£294

mytyres.co.uk

£294

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£322

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

255/35 R21 98 V

C C 73dB

£248

mytyres.co.uk

£248

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

5

Premium

P Zero Winter 2

'25#3

'24#1

9.7

Price from

£284

Price from£284

Recommended

#4

2026

theTire Lab.comRecommended#4 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Wet braking

100%

Wet handling

100%

Wet circle cornering

100%

+4

Dry braking

58%

Aquaplaning - longitudal

11%

Aquaplaning - cross

11%

Test results

2025245/45 R19#3(Highly recommended)

2024235/35 R19#1(Test winner)

View full review

Price variants (3)

255/35 R21 98 W

A C 70dB

£284

mytyres.co.uk

£284

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£301

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

6

Premium

Wintrac Pro+

'25#4

7.2

Price from

£228

Price from£228

Performance

Wet circle cornering

89%

Wet handling

83%

Aquaplaning - longitudal

79%

+6

Interior noise

43%

Snow handling

37%

Dry braking

34%

Test results

2025215/55 R17#4(Exemplary)

2025215/55 R17#4(Good)

2025235/50 R19#4(Good)

2025215/55 R17#5(Very good)

2025225/45 R17#6(-)

2025245/45 R19#6(-)

2025275/35 R19#6(Good)

2025225/40 R18#13(Satisfactory)

2025225/40 R18#17(-)

View full review

Price variants (1)

255/35 R21 98 Y £228

mytyres.co.uk

£228

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£259

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

7

Upper-middle

Winter i*cept evo3 W330

'25#4

'25#5

'25#6

8.7

Price from

£231

Price from£231

Expert summary

Hankook sneaked in between the traditional premium tyres again with its Icept Evo3. It excels in aquaplaning resistance, which is crucial for european winters.

Recommended

#12

2026

theTire Lab.comRecommended#12 Winter tires 2026

Performance

Aquaplaning - cross

96%

Aquaplaning - longitudal

81%

Snow handling

76%

+6

Comfort

63%

Snow braking

50%

Exterior noise

14%

Test results

2025275/35 R19#4(Very good)

2025225/40 R18#5(Good)

2025225/40 R18#6(Good)

2025225/40 R18#14(-)

2024235/35 R19#4(Recommended)

2024245/45 R18#5(Exemplary)

2024235/35 R19#6(Good)

2023225/40 R18#4(Exemplary)

2023225/45 R18#4(Highly recommended)

2023225/45 R18#6(Good)

View full review

Price variants (1)

255/35 R21 98 W

B D 73dB

£231

mytyres.co.uk

£231

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

tyres-pneus-online.co.uk

£260

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

8

Upper-middle

Eurowinter HS02 Pro

'25#9

'25#20

6.6

Price from

£218

Price from£218

Expert summary

EuroWinter HS02 is very good and quite sporty on dry and wet, but lacks some performance on the snow which is the reason for the not so good test results. Weaknesses in aquaplaning and rolling resistance doesn't help either.

Performance

Dry braking

74%

Exterior noise

73%

Dry handling

61%

+6

Snow traction

30%

Aquaplaning - cross

30%

Snow handling

27%

Test results

2025215/55 R17#9(Good)

2025235/50 R19#9(Sufficient)

2025225/40 R18#20(Satisfactory)

2025225/40 R18#20(-)

2024235/55 R18#8(Good)

2024245/45 R18#10(Satisfactory)

2023255/45 R20#7(Satisfactory)

2023225/60 R18#7(Satisfactory)

2023225/40 R18#9(Satisfactory)

View full review

Price variants (1)

255/35 R21 98 W £218

mytyres.co.uk

£218

In stock · Free shipping

Buy

255/35 R21 tyre test

Personalize →

Best tyres in your size

Dry

1. Michelin Pilot Alpin 5

92%

2. Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005

77%

3. GoodYear UltraGrip Performance 3

71%

4. Kumho WinterCraft WP52+

71%

5. Falken EuroWinter HS02 Pro

70%

6. Hankook Winter i*cept evo3 W330

69%

7. Vredestein Wintrac Pro

65%

8. Imperial SnowDragon UHP

64%

9. Bridgestone Blizzak 6

64%

10. Vredestein Wintrac Pro+

51%

Wet

1. Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005

87%

2. Goodyear UltraGrip Performance 3

76%

3. Hankook Winter i*cept evo3 W330

75%

4. Vredestein Wintrac Pro+

73%

5. Kumho WinterCraft WP52+

71%

6. Bridgestone Blizzak 6

70%

7. Michelin Pilot Alpin 5

67%

8. Vredestein Wintrac Pro

67%

9. Falken EuroWinter HS02 Pro

49%

10. Imperial SnowDragon UHP

29%

Snow

1. Michelin Pilot Alpin 5

87%

2. Bridgestone Blizzak 6

73%

3. GoodYear UltraGrip Performance 3

68%

4. Kumho WinterCraft WP52+

68%

5. Hankook Winter i*cept evo3 W330

67%

6. Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005

66%

7. Vredestein Wintrac Pro

55%

8. Vredestein Wintrac Pro+

51%

9. Falken EuroWinter HS02 Pro

31%

10. Imperial SnowDragon UHP

29%

This is a preview of our comprehensive tyre test. The full test includes:

Detailed breakdowns

Interactive sorting

Side-by-side comparisons

View Full Test Results

Price vs Quality

See how tyre price relates to test performance at a glance

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I'm looking for ...

Best snow tyres

Best tyres for EVs

Best ice tyres

Best dry-handling tyres

Best rain tyres

Quietest tyres

Most economical tyres

Best anti-aquaplaning tyres

Customer reviews

242 customer reviews for tyres in this size

Michelin Primacy 4 3.6/5 (122)

Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3 4/5 (47)

Michelin PILOT ALPIN 5 3.7/5 (20)

Falken EuroWinter HS01 3.7/5 (20)

GoodYear UltraGrip Performance+ 3.8/5 (13)

GoodYear UltraGrip Performance 3 3.3/5 (8)

Gripmax Status Pro Winter 3.2/5 (4)

Falken EuroWinter HS02 Pro 3.3/5 (4)

Kumho WinterCraft WP72 2/5 (4)

Other popular sizes

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255/35 R21 — Also available in

Summer(36)All season(3)

Top brands in 255/35 R21

Did you know ...?

255/35 R21 doesn't belong to the most popular dimensions for winter tyres - there are 5 tyre models available, which can be compared to 155/60 R15, 170/60 R17, 160/60 R14. Let's break down the sizing - 35 is height of the tyre, which is calculated as 35% of the tyre width (255mm), which means the sidewall height has 89.25 mm. The wheel diameter is R21, which means it fits to a 21 inch/533.4mm diameter wheel. The total circumference of the tyre is 2236.5 mm, which is very similar to 235/65 R16(2236.5 mm), 255/40 R20(2236.81 mm), 255/45 R19(2237.13 mm), 215/65 R17(2234.61 mm), 285/40 R19(2232.42 mm), 235/60 R17(2242.47 mm), 205/75 R16(2242.78 mm). There are multiple speed indexes available for winter tyres in 255/35 R21: V(240km/h), W(270km/h), Y(300km/h). The same goes for weight indexes: 98, 101.