A good hiking hat is an important part of your gear when you’re out on the trail. Providing protection from the sun, the rain, or the cold, it will help keep you feeling comfortable throughout the day.
In this guide to the best hiking hats for women, I’ve listed some of my favorite options for different weather conditions and shared my tips for choosing the perfect hat.
If you need more help, we created a section to help figure out what to look for when buying a hat for hiking.
Alternatively, if you’re after a quick solution, you’ll find a quick overview below.
Quick Overview: Best Hiking Hats For Women
Here’s a quick overview of the best women hats for hiking. You’ll find more details on each hat below. You can click on the links to see the products on Amazon.
- GearTOP – Ideal for summer
- TrailHeads Fleece Ponytail Hat – Ideal for women with long hair
- Women’s Hiking Hat With Large Neck Flap – Perfect for all sorts of temperatures
- Muryobao Women’s Ponytail Sun Hat – Perfect if you wish to wear it in different styles
- FURTALK Winter Beanie Hat – Ideal for winter
GearTOP UPF 50+ Wide Brim Sun Hat
Available in sizes 7 to 7.5, GearTOP is a lightweight and comfortable hiking hat for women and is available in 5 different colors. It features a breathable mesh panel that allows for good air circulation, which will help you stay cool no matter how warm the temperature is during your hike.
It also offers excellent protection from the sun, with a wide brim to shield your skin from the harmful rays that can lead to premature aging and an Ultraviolet Protection Factor of 50.
You have several different options for wearing this hat – you can choose to keep the brim wide or flip it. Alternatively, you can snap the sides with the stainless steel buttons for a completely different look.
The drawstring closure allows you to keep it comfortably in place all day and there is also an adjustable drawcord at the back to ensure the perfect fit.
Made from high-quality polyester, the fabric feels comfortable against your skin and is machine washable on a gentle cycle, so keeping it clean is a breeze.
Despite the generous width of the brim, this hat is easy to carry with you anywhere – just fold it and pop it into your backpack.
TrailHeads Fleece Ponytail Hat With Drop Down Ear Warmer
TrailHeads Fleece Ponytail Hat is the best hiking hat for women with long hair, as it is designed to comfortably accommodate a ponytail via a subtle opening at the back.
This is sewn with reflective stitching, enhancing your visibility in dark conditions. There are also silver reflective accents on the hat’s brim.
It is super soft and comfy to wear, made from a stretchy spandex/fleece fabric that easily conforms to all different sizes. It has a circumference of 22 to 23 inches and the brim is 2.5 inches long.
Available in three different colors, it has a cozy feel that keeps you warm in cool conditions. And should temperatures drop even further, it features innovative drop-down flaps at the sides.
These provide additional coverage at your ears and neck, keeping you extra warm. The curved bill at the front is great for both shielding your eyes from the glare of the sun, and also for keeping snow out of your face when winter really hits!
This is a versatile hat that looks great for hiking but is also ideal for trail running or even wearing around town.
Women’s Hiking Hat With Large Neck Flap
This walking hat for women is made from stain-resistant nylon. It is completely waterproof, making it ideal for hiking in all sorts of conditions, and it feels so lightweight that you will hardly know you are wearing it.
What’s more, if it happens to get wet, it dries extremely quickly, so you are always ready to go! It will stay in place in the windiest conditions thanks to the convenient chin strap, which has a locking toggle to help you achieve a perfectly comfortable fit. This can be removed any time you would prefer to wear it without.
Blocking 99% of UV rays, this hat offers UPF 50+ sun protection, with a 4.6-inch wide brim to fully protect your skin. It also offers plenty of protection at the back of the neck, which is an area we tend to forget but one that can burn pretty badly when temperatures are high.
This is an incredibly comfortable hat to wear, with mesh side vents designed to keep the air flowing so that you stay cool. It also features a moisture-wicking 1.18-inch workout sweatband.
This is really useful when the going gets tough, as it absorbs sweat from your face and brow and stops it from running into your eyes. This hat is designed to fit all sizes. It has a head circumference of 23.2 inches and features an elastic drawcord with a toggle that you can use to adjust the size to fit you perfectly.
There’s even a gap for your ponytail to pass through for added comfort.
Muryobao Women’s Ponytail Sun Hat
These cute Muryobao Women’s Ponytail Sun Hats for hiking come in a wide range of different colors, including purple, pink, sky blue, and red.
Designed for practicality, comfort, and style, each hat has a handy aperture at the back through which you can pass your hair. One size will fit most women and although the head circumference is 21 to 23 inches, you can guarantee a snug fit by using the elastic buckle at the back.
You won’t need to worry about strong winds while you are wearing this hat – the durable chin strap is easy to adjust to whatever position necessary to hold it firmly in place.
You are well protected from the sun, too, with a 3.35-inch wide brim shielding your skin and eyes from harmful rays. I love the versatility of this hat because you can change the way it looks very easily.
Just leave it as it is in a cowboy style, or use the snaps at the side for a completely different style! Even in the warmest conditions, this hat will keep you comfortable.
The mesh panels on the sides of the crown ensure the airflow that you need to keep you cool and there is also a built-in headband to absorb sweat.
And when it is time to take it off, it’s good to know that it folds easily to a compact size to pop into your backpack, but will quickly be restored to its original shape the next time you wear it.
FURTALK Winter Beanie Hat For Women
If you’re looking for the best women’s hiking hat for colder days, check out this gorgeous beanie from FURTALK. Available in lots of beautiful colors, it is made from 90% pure cotton with a Spandex lining.
Unlike some hats, this one feels lovely against your skin, offering plenty of breathabilities and not at all itchy. Thick and cozy, it is stretchable enough to fit most women and pulls right over your ears. Something I particularly love is the pompom that comes with this hat.
Bigger than most, it is gorgeous and super fluffy, made from raccoon faux fur. The good thing is that this pompom is detachable. That means that you can remove it when it’s time to wash the beanie, so it will keep its shape and fluffiness for far longer than it would otherwise.
And any time it starts to look a bit flat, a quick blast from your hairdryer will fluff it right back up again! Whilst this is the perfect hat for winter hikes, it looks so good that you can easily wear it at any time, making it excellent value for money.
What To Look For When Buying A Hiking Hat For Women
If you’re still wondering which hat to take, you’ll find things to look for when buying a woman’s hiking hat. We hope these criteria are going to help you find the perfect hat.
Comfort
You are likely to be wearing your hat for many hours at a time, so it needs to be as comfortable as possible. Ideally, a good hiking hat for women will be made with breathable material or feature mesh panels that allow the air to circulate well.
This can prevent you from overheating on very hot days.
You also want your hat to be lightweight – so lightweight, in fact, that you don’t even feel like you’re wearing it! The fabric should feel nice against the skin without causing any itching and it should preferably have a sweatband inside to keep your eyes free from drops of perspiration.
If you have a ponytail, then I’d recommend looking for a hat with a hole at the back to accommodate it – this makes it so much more comfortable to wear over a long period of time.
Sun Protection
This is very important in the summer as it is easy to burn without even realizing it. Look for a hat with a wide brim to adequately shield your face and eyes and check for the UPF rating.
It’s also a good idea to choose a hat that offers additional coverage for the vulnerable area at the back of the neck.
Adjustability
Many hats for hiking women are ‘one size fits all’, but ideally there should also be a way to achieve a snug fit.
This is usually via a drawcord that you can lock into position. If your hat features a chin strap, you should ensure that this can be adjusted too.
Foldable
There will be times that you will want to stow your hat in your backpack, so make sure you choose one that folds easily and is designed to easily return to its original shape the next time it is used.
Final Thoughts On Hiking Hats For Women
I hope you have found this guide to hats for hiking women useful and that you are well protected from the elements on your next outdoor adventure.
If you’d rather buy a beanie instead of a hat, make sure to read our guide to the best beanies for hiking.
Want to learn more about hiking? Read one of the following blog posts:
