The best running sunglasses are essential to reduce glare and improve clarity to ensure you stay sharp and focused, no matter the distance. Whether that be a casual 5km park run or striding to a new 10k personal best, to prepping for the infamous London Marathon, the best running eyewear enhances visibility to elevate your performance. In our expert guide, we’ll help you discover the top sunglasses for running, so you can confidently hit the road or trails with crystal-clear vision and unparalleled bounce-free comfort to help you perform at your peak.
Table of Contents:
1. What Are the Key Running Sunglasses Features to Look For?
The best sunglasses for running feature carefully thought-out design elements which enhance your running experience. That means you can focus on what matters in the moment: whether that's nailing your pace on road or where you place your next step on the trail. At SunGod, we design our road running sunglasses and trail running sunglasses to keep up with you, no matter your pace or distance.
Premium lenses offer world-class optical clarity - We've developed our market-leading 8KO® nylon lens technology , which is now available across the entire SunGod collection. This 2mm nylon lens material is tougher, clearer and lighter than industry-standard polycarbonate, offering ultimate clarity with every stride.
100% UV protection - Our best running sunglasses offer 100% UVA and UVB protection, to protect your eyes from damaging UV radiation as you run. You’ll even find polarised sunglasses in our collection, which reduce the sun’s glare and help you to stay on track with every step toward your personal best.
Anti-fog treatment for clear vision - Fogged-up sunglasses lenses are a common complaint from runners. The best running sunglasses are carefully designed to avoid this issue, and all SunGod running sunglasses do just that, featuring optimised airflow and anti-fog lens coatings for completely clear vision, even on your hardest, hottest runs.
Built to last, with a Lifetime Guarantee - Our running sunglasses, and all of our eyewear products, feature a Lifetime Guarantee. This means that if you break your SunGods, we’ll repair them free of charge. That's because we believe that keeping your running gear in play is better than throwing it away, reducing our collective impact on the planet.
Chosen by the best - The world's best runners choose the world's best running eyewear - simple. Our running sunglasses are worn by the most iconic trail runner of all time, Courtney Dauwalter, and 2023 Western States men's winner Tom Evans, to name just a few.
2. Bestselling Running Sunglasses
The SunGod Ultras™ are our bestselling sunglasses for running, whether you're tackling parkruns or ultramarathons. These spherical lens running sunglasses have a unique arm design which absorbs impact and ensures a zero-bounce experience with every stride, letting you focus on what matters.
The Ultras have won the prestigious Red Dot and iF Design awards for their industry-leading technology. Learn why these awards matter.
3. Best For: Variable Light Conditions
How do you know you're wearing the perfect running sunglasses? Simple - you forget you're wearing them. The best sunglasses for running are designed to enhance your run and optimise your vision, while feeling featherlight with zero bounce.
While all SunGod lenses can be changed to suit variable light conditions, our Iris™ Photochromic lenses change as you wear them, doing the hard work for you. These transition lenses darken or lighten in response to UV, for maximum optical clarity. That means whether you're running at dawn or dusk, you're out on a long run, or you're hitting the trails through varied terrain and woodland, your lens will adjust to give you ultimate clarity. Our photochromic lenses are available in:
8KO® Iris™ HV Blue
8KO® Iris™ Smoke
Available across our entire Pace Series™ performance sunglasses collection.
4. Best for: Enhanced Visibility
Lens clarity is absolutely essential to running performance; the clearer the lens, the better your vision and the more precise your step and stride. If lens clarity is important to you, then 8KO® lens technology is your answer. 8KO® lenses are made from a 2mm nylon material that distorts less light than industry-standard polycarbonate, meaning they’re scientifically as clear as the human eye. Now available across all SunGod products.
Discover the science behind 8KO® lens technology.
5. Best For: Customisation
Have full control over the design process with our customisable running sunglasses. With thousands of combinations of frame colours, lenses and icon options available, you can coordinate your best running sunglasses to match your outfit or your team colours. If you're interested in customising running sunglasses on a large scale, for your running team or club, check out our co-branded sunglasses options.
Plus, with a choice of 4 nose pads as standard in our Pace Series™, and conversion kits available so you can mix up your sunglasses frame style, you can adjust the fit, wind protection and ventilation of your running sunglasses to create your perfect eyewear.
6. Best For: Bounce-Free Comfort
When you’re running, there's nothing worse than facing the distraction of your sunglasses bouncing on your face. Our award-winning running sunglasses, the Ultras™, have won two awards for their innovative design, which features an all-new arm shape to absorb impact and reduce bounce as you run. With 4 sizes of nose pads to choose from and an innovative frame construction, the Ultras™ give you total stability and bounce-free comfort on every run.
7. Best Running Sunglasses for Every Face Size
Every runner is unique, and the best sunglasses for running will fit your pace and your face. All SunGod sunglasses are one-size, but certain models are better suited to smaller faces, and others are better for larger faces. Check out the sizes of our running sunglasses below:
Best for Smaller Faces
If you're a runner with a small to medium face size, we recommend the Sierras™, Velans™, Classics³ and Ultras™ sunglasses:
SunGod Classics³: These take you from your run to your relaxation with a timeless design that suits every face shape, and is ideal for a small or medium-sized head.
SunGod Velans™: A performance sunglasses model, with top frame and full frame options for complete versatility. Ideal for small to medium faces.
SunGod Sierras™: If you want top running performance in a more casual look, the Sierras™ are for you. Perfect for small and medium face sizes.
SunGod Ultras™: These running sunglasses have a spherical lens shape and provide unobstructed views of your run. Featuring a spherical 8KO® lens, ideal for all face sizes.
Best for Larger Faces
For runners with medium to large face sizes, we suggest the Vulcans™, Tempests™ and Ultras™ sunglasses:
SunGod Vulcans™: Built with a single cylindrical lens, these best running sunglasses provide extended peripheral vision and are perfect for a medium to large head.
SunGod Tempests™: A dual-lens design with a lifestyle feel, featuring hidden performance-enhancing elements such as Grip-Lock™ nose and ear pads.
SunGod Ultras™ : A single-lens performance sunglasses model, specifically for running. These ultra-flexible sunglasses have a universal fit, meaning they're great for both small and large faces. One-size-fits-all flexible frame.
8. See Better with SunGod.
At SunGod, we're on a mission to See Better, by creating performance eyewear that's better for the planet. From men’s sunglasses and women’s sunglasses, to ski goggles and cycling sunglasses, we’re passionate about creating better eyewear, with a better customer experience, that's better for our planet. All our sunglasses are certified carbon neutral and backed by our unrivalled Lifetime Guarantee.
Shop trail running sunglasses and road running sunglasses today.
