Outdoor Gear Lab

It seems to us that Petzl didn't fully consider the female form when designing this harness, changing only a few proportions from the men's version, and of course, the color. Women and men tend to have very different anatomies, particularly in the hip area. If this harness fits, you will probably love it, but for most of us that just wasn't the case...." go to full review

To be honest, we were a little disappointed to see that Mammut had changed so many of the things that we liked about this harness. While the comfort and excellent sizing remain the same, the lack of versatility propelled the Camp Supernova to the top spot instead.go to full review

We have a few mixed feelings about this harness. While it is light and mobile, and great for steep sport climbing, it is not very comfortable to hang in, and truth be told, sport climbers spend a lot of time in their harnesses either working a route or belaying someone who is. If we could be sure that you'd never have to hang in this harness for more than a minute, we'd recommend the Siren in a heartbeat, but the reality is a little different, and we think a harness like the Camp..." go to full review

We've seen the older version of this harness at crags and gyms all across the country for a reason, and this updated model is sure to be just as popular. It's affordable and comfortable, which is not always an easy feat for a manufacturer. Although it's deemed an "entry level" harness, we know many expert climbers who use it for those very reasons as well. While we prefer the Camp Supernova as a high end sport or all-around harness, the Black Diamond Primrose is a..." go to full review

The new AR-385a from Arc'teryx is an impressive piece of engineering, and you're sure to get many compliments and questions about its design when wearing it. While we really liked many aspects of this harness, it didn't quite measure up to some of the other models that we tested. It's designed to be an all-around do-it-all harness, and while it does have all the necessary components to fit that slot, we just couldn't get past how uncomfortable the leg loops were..." go to full review

Black Diamond wanted a harness for the woman who does it all, and we think they delivered a great product with the Lotus, which is why we've given it our Top Pick for Trad and Ice Climbing award. It was a close runner-up for our Editors' Choice award, and in a few instances we actually preferred it over the Camp Supernova. If you are a pick wielding, desert tower scraping, hard-charging lady who wants one harness to rule them all, you won't be disappointed with this one...." go to full review

While other harness manufacturers have a "female" version of most, or all, of their lineup, oftentimes these models seem to be identical versions of the men's, only in purple. Camp went back to the drawing board with the Supernova, and designed from the bottom up a harness that compliments a woman's physique and unique proportions. They also made it comfortable, lightweight, and completely versatile, and it blew all the competition out of the water. From sport to trad, to..." go to full review

The Bod fits a wide variety of leg size and waist combos. The leg loops are highly adjustable and, more importantly, they are quick to adjust. If you are teaching a big class of new climbers, this harness is easy to fit to someone quickly. Also, the harness is relatively compact. Climbing gyms love these harnesses because they can throw them in one bin and have them take up relatively little space compared to harnesses with more volume. Lastly, they are time-tested and bomber. It is hard to..." go to full review

This is the most popular mountaineering harnesses ever made because it is simple, inexpensive, and gets the job done. This is a Black Diamond Bod Harness without the padding on the waist and no belay loop. This makes the Alpine Bod a lighter and faster drying climbing harness, two important factors in the mountains. It does come with gear loops.go to full review

This is one of the first harnesses we have seem from Metolius with a self-locking buckle. It is not as smooth as others we have tested but still works well. Its main drawback is it uses a traditional foam padding sewn to webbing for its comfort/strength. We find it is not as comfortable as other harnesses of similar weights that split up the webbing various ways to spread the weight out more. The foam is on the lighter side and isn't very comfortable for extended hanging or semi-hanging..." go to full review