The Best Basic Snorkel Set

For this guide, we spent more than 10 hours researching and more than 20 hours testing many different snorkel sets. I interviewed Aric Branchfield, a Pennsylvania-based dive instructor. I also spent over an hour at Charleston Scuba, where divemaster Jordan Schneider discussed the high points of a good snorkeling setup. After we made our picks, I emailed with Baptiste Savary, digital manager at Subea; Mike Tobin, engineer at Cressi; and Melissa Rodgers, communications director at U.S. Divers.

As for me, I live on the water in Charleston, South Carolina. I’ve snorkeled recreationally for over 30 years, and I’ve completed my PADI open-water scuba diving coursework. I have covered watery goods for Wirecutter since 2015, too.

I’m the author of Ghost Wave and co-author of Taschen’s Surfing: 1778–Today and The Ocean: The Ultimate Handbook of Nautical Knowledge.

For this guide, we focused on bigger kids and adults who want to snorkel recreationally in clear-watered oceans, rivers, lakes, or pools. Of course, many resorts will provide snorkel gear for free or for rent, but as Schneider pointed out: “Your mask, snorkel, fins and booties. That should be your stuff, fitted to you.”

You can buy the components in each of these sets individually, of course. But for this guide, we made our choices based on the overall quality of the combined components in each set, especially given the lower price and convenience you get from buying it all in one go.

Though the gear we’re reviewing here—particularly the masks and snorkels—may function in other underwater settings, these sets are recommended for snorkeling or recreational swimming only, not for freediving, spearfishing, or scuba. Why? In freediving or spearfishing environments, divers typically use low-profile masks that allow them to equalize and prevent “mask squeeze” at depth using little valuable air from the lungs. The masks we recommend here won’t do that. Plus, most freedivers and scuba divers use stiff, high-propulsion fins when they dive. None of the fins we recommend will offer the level of thrust needed to propel copious gear through the water.

I spent 10 hours submerged in snorkel research on Amazon, LeisurePro, SwimmersOutlet and DiversSupply. I looked at known and unknown brands, reading hundreds of reviews and talking to experts along the way. Based on my conversations with experts, long hours of online research, and my personal experience snorkeling above reefs from Key West to Eleuthera to Cozumel, I established that a good snorkel set includes the following qualities:

Mask materials and fit: A good mask should be made with tempered, high-strength glass lenses. Bonus points are tacked on if the lens features angled glass at the edges for panoramic or even peripheral visibility. Glare-reducing or contrast-enhancing tints drive up the price and aren’t really necessary for recreational snorkeling.

Good masks also tend to have wide, easily adjustable straps that split to spread comfortably across the back of your head. It’s best if the strap attaches to the frame of the mask itself, as opposed to the silicone of the face skirt. Finally, the strap should be built with a ratcheting design, which allows for easy adjustment.

During testing, we found that our favorite masks had face skirts that were soft and pliable with both inner- and outer-edge gaskets, to keep the mask watertight on a variety of face shapes. A good mask should also offer even, comfortable pressure all the way around the face—particularly around the nose. (Pro tip: The nose pocket should make it easy to squeeze your nose to equalize the pressure in your ears. To test fit, get your hair out of the way and press the mask to your face and inhale lightly through your nose. The mask should hug your face for several seconds with no leaks.)

Fin materials and fit: Good fins have comfortable heel straps and foot pockets with a wide range of adjustability. The straps should also have a ratcheting system with a wide section at the heel, to spread pressure, and a heel loop is great for easy entry and exit. Loops at the end of each strap (for “on the fly” adjustments) are a bonus. Good fins should also have a balance of flex and rigidity in the water, feeling firm on the down “power” stroke, and flexible on the upstroke. Generally, we found that a length between 17 and 24 inches is good for traveling snorkelers of any height.

Snorkel materials and fit: Snorkeling should be a calm, low-intensity pursuit, but a good snorkel should still have high air volume and offer little to no restriction during heavy breathing. Our favorite snorkels were designed with a splash guard up top (to prevent water entry), and a locking dry valve (to keep the snorkel water-free if you dive or submerge beneath a wave). Good snorkels should also have a replaceable silicone purge valve, which makes it easy to expel any water that may have collected at the base of the snorkel. The mouthpiece is also important—it shouldn’t cause jaw fatigue, even if you’re in the water for extended periods of time.

Gear bags: Every snorkel set comes with a gear bag, and the best ones feature a mesh portion (or at the very least, a drain plug) to facilitate freshwater rinse and draining. Ideally, the gear bag should be substantial enough to double as a carry-on bag, too.

Price: We considered snorkel sets for beginners, priced at approximately $40 to $100. We found that anything below $40 wasn’t worth buying.

Based on these criteria, we narrowed our choices to 11 models for testing.

First, my wife, kids, and I unpacked the snorkel sets and made notes. Nothing appeared to be damaged out of the box. All the fins came with inserts to prevent deformation when squished in a bag. (We recommend keeping these inserts in your fins when they’re not in use, to maintain their shape.) The gear bags ranged from simple, rinsable pull-string mesh bags to engineered, sewn fabric units with bike-messenger-style straps. Sets from Cressi and U.S. Divers came with basic instructional rundowns in legible English.

Unlike swim goggles, snorkel sets have plenty of potential failure points. The most common complaints among online reviews include snapped straps where the snorkel connects to the mask, or where the mask connects to the head strap, or where the fin meets the foot. So before water testing, we yanked and twisted straps, and flexed the fins and snorkel clips hard, subjecting them to the outer limits of what they’d likely endure.

Then, we spent two days swimming in a pool in Charleston, South Carolina, with all 11 sets. Along with a few friends, I kicked as hard as I could in the fins, diving repeatedly with the masks and chilling at the deep end to see how well the masks allowed for pressure equalization with a squeeze of the nose. We also tested how well the valved masks purged air and water. With the snorkels, we dove to see if the “dry” models really worked as advertised and even swam alongside one another, splashing the snorkels with gusto in an attempt to sneak water past the splash guards. This narrowed the list pretty quickly.

With our top five picks in hand, we loaded up the kids and drove to Ichetucknee Springs State Park in Florida. We rented a big inflatable raft and three inner tubes to hold our diving gear and food. Then, we floated. At 72 degrees Fahrenheit year-round, the spring-fed Ichetucknee is not necessarily frigid—but it’s bracing enough that a long submersion will leave you shivering. In contrast with the steamy air, this colder water provided a great test for the masks’ antifog properties.

We floated down the river for seven hours, regularly tying off to stop and test our gear. We rated fins on their propulsion amid stronger currents and their ability to withstand the grasp of eelgrass and mud.

After returning to Charleston that week, my last step was ocean testing. I took our final picks to Folly Beach in South Carolina and swam downshore in the surf zone, letting the waves pound my mask and snorkel.

I also bodysurfed with the fins—even though they’re not necessarily designed for it—thrusting them off the sandy seafloor. And I ventured fairly far offshore on a day when chop and current created the rolling, snorkel-defeating conditions you might find at an open-water spot off Eleuthera, or the windward side of Oahu.

From toughness to comfort to fit, finish, and price, there’s plenty to like about the Cressi Palau Short Fin Set. If treated well, this set could last for years, and it’s unlikely to fail when you come face to face with your first dolphin (or barracuda).

The Cressi Palau snorkel set comes in a fitted nylon bag with a clear front window and single shoulder strap, bound together with tightly sewn seams. The bag is just the right size for all your snorkel gear, plus an apple, a small bottle of water, some sunscreen, a bottle of antifog compound, and a digital camera. Lacking mesh construction, this gear bag isn’t meant for in-bag rinsing, but it has a brass drain hole at the base, which means you can still load your gear even when it’s wet.

Cressi’s Onda mask also stands the test of time: It doesn’t offer a panoramic view or a plethora of features like some of the other models we tested, but the Onda has been on the market for some 25 years. It features a single, flat pane of clear, tempered glass, and is solidly bonded into a tough, scratch-resistant plastic frame. The lens is angled slightly downward to give snorkelers a better view of the world below, which is a nice touch. We didn’t find lens fogging to be a problem with this mask, either—a coating of old-school spit did the job.

The Onda’s face skirt is made of soft, transparent silicone with a watertight double gasket along much of its length. All of our testers (even my then 12-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son) found this mask to be watertight. We also loved that it wasn’t complicated with unproven technology or a nose-purge valve. The Onda’s straps are made of soft, hypoallergenic silicone with a series of ridges that easily ratchet through the strap with the lift of a button; and that same button locks the strap when it’s released. Attached to the Onda’s face strap is a small, tough, black plastic clip that connects the mask to the Supernova snorkel via a tough thumb-actuated button. This genius little device allows for a one-handed release of the mask and snorkel.

The snorkel’s mouthpiece is perfectly engineered: It’s stout but small and soft enough to be unobtrusive, producing no mouth fatigue, even after long forays underwater. A tiny, replaceable silicone purge valve rests at the snorkel base, which is connected to a ribbed silicone pipe that hangs unobtrusively off the side when not needed. Atop the snorkel is Cressi’s patented splash guard and “dry valve,” which keeps out water with a floating, sliding plunger. Submerge and the plunger floats up instantaneously, blocking water. Surface and it immediately drops back down to allow for the free flow of air.

Cressi’s diminutive Rondine Palau fins don’t look like they’d give much propulsion, but our testers were impressed by the fins’ balance of flex and rigidity. At 17 inches, these fins were shorter than most of the other sets we tested, but that makes them easy to walk in and even easier to travel with. A sizable slot at the toes drains water away, reducing drag. The fin blades are well-built, with a soft, but durable rubber coating bonded to the front edge to prevent wear. As far as comfort goes, the fins are designed to be snug—they’re a hybrid of a full-foot “shoe” fin and an adjustable-heel fin. The fin secures to your foot via a ratcheting system similar to that on the mask. We found it easy to loosen on the fly while swimming, but tough to tighten while in motion. The wide thumb loop, though, makes pulling the heel strap on and off a cinch. The sides of each blade are comprised of a tough segment of stiff rubber and thermoplastic, and the foot pocket is soft rubber, meant to be worn with bare feet or a thin bootie sock. I mostly went barefoot in these fins, with nary a blister.

If you want the added propulsion of a slightly longer fin, we’d suggest the Cressi Palau Long Fin Set. The longer Rondine Palau fins measure 22 inches and feature a water-channeling V shape along the end of the blade. Otherwise, the sets are identical.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

The Palau’s storage bag doesn’t allow for an easy in-bag rinse. This isn’t a dealbreaker, though, because the bag is durable enough to act as a carry-on when you travel.

We were also lukewarm on the Rondine Palau fins’ heel strap. It functions, but not as well as that of some of our other picks. The fins lacked end loops, which made the strap difficult to grip, and it was especially hard to grab with wet or suntan-lotioned fingers. Many times, when we’d pull the strap to lock it more tightly, it would not hold, forcing us to pull the strap with one hand and push the lock button down with the other. Cressi advertises the short Palau fins as tough enough for bodyboarding and bodysurfing, but though I did bodysurf with them in small waves, I wouldn’t take them out in heavy conditions for fear the straps would not hold.

When you're looking for a budget option for a snorkel set, it’s best to focus on simplicity, comfort, and function. With few potential failure points and solid overall performance, the Innovative Scuba Concepts Reef Snorkel Set does just that. One tester put it best: “It basically has the stuff you need, and nothing that you don’t.”

This Innovative Scuba Concepts snorkel set comes with a simple but tough drawstring mesh bag. Throw in your gear, rinse it off, and you’re good to go.

Our set also included a basic, comfortable, and easily adjustable black silicone mask with two straight-ahead, tempered-glass lenses. The double-gasketed face skirt fits a variety of faces, seals well, and has no uncomfortable pressure points. The nose pocket is of ample size and is plenty soft for equalizing finger squeezes. The strap is very wide and comfortable, and it could also be covered with the included soft fabric hair protector, to prevent hair pulling. We were less impressed with the on-the-fly adjustability of the mask’s ratchet straps: Adjusting the mask isn’t overly difficult—but with this set, it’s a two-handed job. The mask also lacks a purge valve: To empty any trickled-in water, you simply press your fingers to the top of the lens and exhale through your nose.

This set’s comfortable and high-volume snorkel lacks a dry-valve feature—if you dive, it will fill with water, requiring a solid exhale to purge that water when you surface. The snorkel does, however, offer a highly effective splash guard. It also features a replaceable purge valve at the base. The snorkel-to-mask clip was nothing special on this model, but it didn’t slide up and down annoyingly, nor did it break.

The relatively compact, 20-inch-long fins that come with this set were actually identical to a model we saw in a competitor’s snorkel set. It’s a fairly generic design, to be sure—but again, it was perfectly functional. The foot pouch is wider on this model than on our other picks, meaning that unless you have fairly wide feet, you’ll be well-served by wearing booties or neoprene socks. The strap system features finger loops at the heel and at each end, allowing for one-finger adjustments.

The Icon, Cozumel and Admiral sets, all from U.S. Divers: Though the Icon set was priced right, the fins were floppy, and the silicone of the mask and snorkel mouthpiece was hard and uncomfortable (the set’s since been discontinued). The Cozumel set featured a full-shoe fin with a comfortable fit, but the rest of the set mirrored the Icon. The Admiral set featured U.S. Divers’s Trek-model short fins. And though its non-valved mask did feature soft silicone and solid strap buckles securely integrated with the rest of the mask, the set lacked the fit, finish, and snorkel and fin comfort of our top pick.

SealBuddy’s Fiji Panoramic Snorkel Set: The purge-valve mask makes squeezing your nose for equalizing impossible, and the face skirt collapses when subjected to any pressure, making the mask very uncomfortable at the nose.

Promate’s Snorkeling Scuba Dive Panoramic Set: This set showed promise, especially when we realized that it came with the exact same fin as our Innovative Scuba set. But the dry snorkel was simply not as comfortable at the mouth as the Innovative set, and we found the mask pressed too hard at the nose.

The Phantom Aquatics Legendary Panoramic Set: Although we liked the nifty clips on its form-fitting soft silicone mask, we ultimately passed over this set because the fins were too flimsy and we were concerned about the long-term strength of the mask clips and buckle.

We have removed our former full-face pick, the Subea Easybreath. We no longer recommend this style of mask to beginning snorkelers. People have raised concerns that the design of some similar masks may be linked to some drowning deaths in Hawaii. Although a direct link has not yet been proven, we no longer think these masks make sense for a beginner. (The version of the mask we tested is also no longer available.)

If you want your gear to last and fit well, here are some tips, straight from the mouths of our experts:

1. Always rinse and store your gear after use. Chlorine, sun, and salt can ultimately degrade and stiffen silicone. Sand will get into everything, making for sticky valves.
2. Antifog compounds for plastic swim goggles are different from those of glass dive masks. Do not use them interchangeably.
3. Some masks build up a microscopically thin film of off-gassed silicone molecules on the lenses by the time the mask reaches you. This can make it fog easily. Wear it around the house for awhile. If it fogs heavily, consider cleaning the inside with a white, nonabrasive toothpaste, then rinse it very well.
4. Test a new set for failure points before you travel.
5. Breathing through a mouth snorkel is not a natural feeling. So if you’re not experienced with snorkeling, take your new set to the pool to practice in the shallow end.
6. Don’t ratchet your mask down too tight. It will generally seal better if the skirt is just gently pressing against your face.
7. If you decide to take a “resort diving” course be sure it is a “Discover Scuba” course certified by the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI). Feel free to ask the instructor a leading question or two: “I hear there’s some really cool coral down at 70 feet, we can go down that deep, right?” If the instructor answers in the affirmative, run.
8. Snorkeling should be a low-energy pursuit. Don’t overdo it.
9. If you’re not experienced with snorkeling, take your new set to the pool to practice in the shallow end. Want a watertight mask? Shave. Absent that, a thick coating Vaseline on your beard or mustache can help keep out the water.
10. Antifog compounds can irritate your eyes. A good layer of wet, old-fashioned spit rubbed in the lenses can work as a pretty good surfactant, spreading out water molecules in a microscopic layer so they won’t fog.

After talking with our experts and spending almost 20 hours in the water with these snorkel sets, we’d strongly recommend investing in a snorkeling vest like this one from SealBuddy, especially if you’ll be snorkeling in open water, wind, or currents. These unobtrusive little lifesavers can be inflated by mouth to give you buoyancy if you’re fatigued.

You might also consider buying a pair of neoprene socks for protection from sharp reef, shells, and blisters.

If you’ll be in the sun for a while, a good rashguard is important. You’ll also want to bring along sunscreen. (If you’re diving a reef, strongly consider a sunscreen free of potentially coral-damaging oxybenzone and nanoparticles.)

This article was edited by Ria Misra and Christine Ryan.