Excellent
Salomon is a major player in the outdoor gear space, with products ranging from ski and snowboard equipment to trail running and hiking shoes. The brand has made an impressive effort to innovate recycled and recyclable ski helmets and trail running shoes, but it lags in key areas, such as reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and incorporating recycled materials into its products. Still, in an effort to manage chemical and environmental impacts, the brand has been a Bluesign System Partner for many years. Salomon also offers excellent transparency into its sustainability practices. Want the full picture of sustainability at Salomon? We’ll break it down below.
This sustainability analysis evaluates both product- and brand-level initiatives to capture the full scope of Salomon's efforts to reduce its environmental impact. Our research draws from Salomon's published sustainability data, third-party certifications (a cornerstone of our process), and correspondence with brand representatives. We have independently researched over a dozen Salomon products to date, giving us a broad understanding of the brand’s use of low-impact materials, chemistry, and manufacturing practices.
For more, you can explore our analyses of other outdoor brands, or use our advanced search to find products that align with your sustainability values.
In terms of sustainability, Salomon receives an “Excellent” transparency rating. On its product pages, the company has a tab titled “Features and Fabrics,” which provides a detailed breakdown of the materials used in each product and includes a sustainability section. Salomon provides information about its greenhouse gas tracking efforts and other sustainability information in its detailed annual impact report. Additionally, the company responded to our inquiries via email in a timely manner. Where Salomon falls a bit short is in its sustainability webpage; while the page includes links to sustainability reports and certifications, it lacks other information, such as details about materials, PFAS elimination efforts, or greenhouse gas emissions reduction.
Compared to other brands in the outdoor industry, Salomon uses a minimal share of recycled content in its products, but has taken impressive steps to innovate recycled and recyclable footwear and ski helmets. Fewer than half of the Salomon products we’ve researched feature recycled materials, and in total, the brand used only 8% recycled materials in its soft goods in 2024 (down from 10% in 2023). It did not report on recycled content statistics for hard goods. When compared to other brands, this is a very small amount of recycled content. Notably, we’ve primarily researched Salomon footwear and helmets; these two product categories have been slower than others, such as apparel, outerwear, and backpacks, to swap virgin materials for recycled materials.
Although its overall recycled-material statistics are underwhelming, we appreciate that Salomon has made a strong effort to develop recycled and recyclable hard goods, which few other brands in the industry have managed. In 2021, it launched a primarily recycled and fully recyclable road running shoe, the Index series, which can be deconstructed into TPU, used to make ski boots, and recycled polyester, which can be made into recycled yarn. In 2025, Salomon launched the Brigade Index MIPS helmet, which is made of polyolefins that can be recycled into flowerpots and car bumpers at the end of life (although the helmet is not made with recycled materials). All in all, we appreciate Salomon’s innovation in the recyclable hard goods space, but it has a long way to go when it comes to using recycled materials in its products.
Although Salomon is a Bluesign System Partner, it uses very few Bluesign-approved materials in its footwear, helmets, and ski boots. Unlike other brands, Salomon does not report on its total use of Bluesign-approved materials across its products. Bluesign-approved materials are subject to high standards for chemical safety and environmental responsibility throughout the supply chain, and System Partners commit to using these low-impact materials across their products. Salomon uses Bluesign’s restricted substances list, and since 2022, it has been advocating for the development of more Bluesign-approved materials for footwear. Footwear products have lagged behind apparel, backpacks, and outerwear in adopting Bluesign-approved materials; thus far, we have not found these low-impact materials in the Salomon footwear we’ve researched. Still, we appreciate that the vast majority of Salomon products are free of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which releases chlorine-based chemicals linked to cancer, immune system damage, and hormone disruption.
Salomon has been slower than industry leaders to phase out PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, from its products. Still, it removed forever chemicals from its shoes in 2021, but has yet to complete its full phase-out across its product line. PFAS were once common in waterproof and water-resistant outdoor gear, but most brands have phased the chemicals out of their products due to their adverse health impacts and environmental persistence. In 2025, California and New York enacted legislation banning PFAS use in textiles, and most major outdoor brands complied in an effort to continue selling products in these two states. At the end of 2024, Salomon reported that 94% of its products were PFAS free, with the aim to phase PFAS out of all its products by the end of 2025. By the beginning of 2025, most outdoor brands had completed their phase-outs (although standout brands in this area, like Fjallraven and Keen, stopped using intentionally-added PFAS in 2015 and 2018, respectively). We hope to see Salomon remove PFAS from the remainder of its products in the coming months.
When it comes to responsibly sourced natural fibers, Salomon is making respectable progress in some areas and misses the mark in others. It only uses leather from Gold- or Silver-rated Leather Working Group-certified suppliers, ensuring that leather comes from suppliers that adhere to high standards for chemical management and environmental impact. Few Salomon products incorporate down insulation; although the brand does not report on its down sourcing, several jackets we’ve researched feature down that is certified to the Responsible Down Standard, which provides assurance that ducks and geese are raised in accordance with high animal welfare standards. The brand also uses a small amount of wool in its products, but does not disclose the origins or relevant certifications, leaving a gap in our understanding of the brand’s sourcing practices.
Salomon’s parent company, Amer Sports, has been a member of the Fair Labor Association since 2020, but unlike other brands we’ve researched, it is not an accredited member. Accredited members are evaluated on an ongoing basis for demonstrating continuous improvement to address working conditions and protect workers' rights, while non-accredited members like Amer commit to fair labor practices, but are not evaluated against the Fair Labor Organization’s standards. However, some of Salomon’s suppliers are audited by Fair Trade, which ensures that factories maintain fair working conditions. Other tier 1, or finished goods, factories are audited by the Social and Labor Convergence Program, Better Work, Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production, amfori Business Social Compliance Initiative, and others. Salomon’s parent company, Amer Sports, owns five winter sports manufacturing facilities across Europe that are certified to the ISO 14001 standard for environmental management systems as well as the European Union’s Ecomanagement and Audit Scheme (EMAS). Adhering to the ISO 14001 allows companies to lower their environmental impact, follow legal requirements, and meet company sustainability goals. All in all, we think Salomon is making good progress toward ensuring fair working conditions at its supplier factories.
Salomon has made a respectable effort to reduce the impact of its packaging, both by replacing virgin materials with recycled ones and by reducing its total packaging volume. It aims to eliminate half of its single-use packaging by 2030, but has yet to report on progress toward its goal. The brand has replaced its virgin poly bags with 100% recycled alternatives and, in 2021, began packaging all its footwear in Forest Stewardship Council-certified materials sourced from recycled content or with paper from responsibly managed forests (unfortunately, we were unable to confirm whether these paper-based materials are recycled). To reduce its packaging volume, the brand removed filling paper from its shoes and alpine boots, saving an estimated 40 tons of paper each year. In 2017, Salomon also reduced the amount of cardboard used in its packaging, and it eliminated glue and water-based ink to improve recyclability.
Unlike brands that lead the way in this area, Salomon has made limited progress toward offering repair services for its products in the United States. In France, where the brand is headquartered, it partners with Green Wolf Repair to fix damaged products. Salomon and Green Wolf began offering repair services at its Annecy, Chamonix, Lyon, and Toulouse locations in 2023, but have yet to expand these services to the U.S. The brand provides a five-year warranty for alpine bindings, three years for winter sports outerwear, and a two-year warranty on all other products. Salomon publishes how-to videos on its website on topics like repairing a quicklace system (replacement quicklaces can be requested under warranty). It also stocks a variety of spare parts for skis and snowboards, like buckles, power straps, binding components, pole baskets, laces, binding ratchets, and more.
We’re impressed with Salomon’s work to develop recyclable helmets and shoes; the brand was the first in the outdoor industry to introduce a recyclable ski helmet, the Brigade Index MIPS. It also launched the Index.03 road running shoe, which you can send back to Salomon for recycling at the end of life for free (be sure to register your product). While the brand currently sells only a handful of recyclable products, it plans to design more circular products going forward. Salomon aims to offer at least one repair, recycling, second-hand sale, or rental program for its entire product line by 2030. When we researched the brand at the end of 2025, it offered only three recyclable products in the U.S., and we were unable to differentiate which products were repairable.
While Salomon is making progress on the recycling front, it has yet to launch a resale platform for used Salomon products. Other brands like Arc’teryx, Brooks, and The North Face offer re-commerce platforms to help keep gear in circulation for longer. The brand has not disclosed any plans to launch a resale platform in the future.
Outdoor brands track their greenhouse gas emissions to understand their total footprint and where they can reduce their impact. Salomon began tracking its emissions in 2019, which is roughly when most outdoor brands began tracking (very few brands tracked their emissions before 2018). It set a target to reduce Scope 1 and 2 emissions (from owned assets and purchased electricity) by 50% by 2030, and Scope 3 emissions (from its supply chain, transportation, and materials) by 30% by 2030, compared to its 2019 baseline year. As is the case for all Amer Sports brands, Salomon aims to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. All of Salomon’s targets are verified by the Science Based Targets Initiative, which ensures they are aligned with the Paris Agreement's warming thresholds.
So, how do Salomon’s emissions data stack up against its goals? After its 2019 baseline year, it reported emitting 226,227 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). In 2024, it reported emitting 315,768 tCO2e—an almost 40% increase from its baseline measurement. The brand is targeting a total measurement of 156,778 tCO2e by 2030, but to date, it has not reduced its net emissions at all. Salomon has reduced its Scope 1 and 2 emissions (which account for just over 2% of its total emissions), but has yet to make progress in the Scope 3 category (which accounts for almost 98% of its total footprint). Compared to brands like Fjallraven, which in 2024 reported reducing its net emissions by 25% from its baseline, Salomon lags behind. Still, we appreciate its in-depth data reporting and transparency surrounding its emissions.
Annual impact reports offer an in-depth look into a brand’s sustainability practices. Both Salomon and its parent company, Amer Sports, publish excellent annual impact reports with detailed information about their practices across many of our sustainability criteria. We love that Salomon’s annual impact report clearly shows its greenhouse gas emissions over time (which many brands avoid reporting due to rising totals). The brand clearly reports on its total use of recycled materials and responsible leather, but does not include information about Bluesign-approved materials. It also describes its progress toward implementing more responsible manufacturing practices and goals to increase the circularity of its supply chain.
Salomon’s Salomon Foundation supports outdoor professionals in need of support after accidents and non-profit organizations focused on helping disadvantaged communities gain access to mountain sports. It aims to allocate over 20 million dollars to the foundation by 2030. In 2024, the Salomon Foundation supported just under 50 mountain professionals and their families and 23 nonprofit organizations, which range from Snowboarders of Solidarity to Rise Up. Additionally, Salomon has been a member of the Textile Exchange since 2022. Members of the Textile Exchange work together to further the impact of the organization's responsible material certifications, such as the Responsible Down and Responsible Wool standards.
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These products are among the most sustainable on the market and earn our Better Trail Certified distinction. They often meet 80% or more of our sustainability criteria for their category.
These products are solid, middle-of-the-pack options for sustainability. In general, they meet at least half of our sustainability criteria for their category.
These products are among the least sustainable in their product category and have significant room for improvement. Most meet about 25% or less of our sustainability criteria.
Better Trail Certified Process
The world of sustainability can be murky, but Better Trail is here to help bring clarity. We’ve exhaustively researched thousands of outdoor gear products, communicated with brands, and created a detailed and rigorous ratings system to bring it all together for you. At the pinnacle is Better Trail Certified.
Better Trail Certified products score 4 out of 5 or higher in our sustainability ratings and generally meet around 80% or more of our criteria. While it’s true that no product is 100% sustainable—all take resources to create and arrive at your doorstep—these products are industry leaders and among the most sustainable on the market.
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