The new Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV offers maximum safety on ice and snow, as the center studs improve acceleration and braking grip, while the studs on the shoulder areas maximize grip during turning and lane changes.
Strengths & weaknessesIce, SnowComfort, WetRelative to its rivals across every test we hold
Built from every independent test result and vetted owner review we hold for this tire - the evidence is all further down the page. Data updated January 2026.
The Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV demonstrates why Finnish expertise in winter conditions remains unmatched, delivering the test's best overall performance with exceptional ice grip capabilities. This tire excels particularly in winter handling scenarios, offering quick steering response and allowing drivers to change direction confidently without losing control on both ice and hard-packed snow. The grip balance is well-calibrated and the tire maintains excellent control even under pressure. However, the superior winter performance comes with trade-offs on wet surfaces, where it exhibits longer braking distances and earlier aquaplaning compared to competitors. On dry asphalt, the steering feel is somewhat non-linear, though the behavior during emergency maneuvers remains reassuringly predictable.
How good is the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV in the wet?
Across the 2 wet-braking tests it has featured in, the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV stops 2.8% longer than premium rivals, 5.8% longer than mid-range rivals and 8.3% longer than budget rivals. It has a Tire Reviews wet score of 31/100, and owners rate it 7.5/10 in the wet from 4 reviews.
How good is the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV in the dry?
Across the 2 dry-braking tests it has featured in, the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV stops 0.1% shorter than premium rivals, 2.1% longer than mid-range rivals and 2.3% longer than budget rivals. It has a Tire Reviews dry score of 53/100, and owners rate it 7.3/10 in the dry from 4 reviews.
How good is the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV in the snow?
Across the 2 snow-braking tests it has featured in, the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV stops 0.7% shorter than premium rivals, 6% shorter than mid-range rivals and 0.2% shorter than budget rivals. Across the 2 snow-traction tests, it is 1.1% worse than premium rivals, 4.6% better than mid-range rivals and 2.7% better than budget rivals. It has a Tire Reviews snow score of 97/100, and owners rate it 8.8/10 in the snow from 4 reviews.
How good is the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV on ice?
Across the 2 ice-braking tests it has featured in, the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV stops 17.3% shorter than premium rivals, 25.6% shorter than mid-range rivals and 46.9% shorter than budget rivals. Across the 2 ice-traction tests, it is 9.6% better than premium rivals, 18.7% better than mid-range rivals and 39% better than budget rivals. It has a Tire Reviews ice score of 97/100, and owners rate it 8/10 on ice from 4 reviews.
What does the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV replace?
Questions and Answers for the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV
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Across 4 owner ratings the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 SUV averages 76%. Owners rate Snow Grip highest at 8.8 out of 10 and Handling lowest at 6. 2 of those reviews come from owners past 10,000 miles.
Owner ratings averaged from 4 ratings
Owner score76%
Snow Grip88%
Wear83%
Ice Grip80%
Comfort78%
Wet Grip75%
Dry Grip73%
Road Feedback70%
Handling60%
Featured reviews
Most helpful 86%
“I have these tires on an F-150 and also in a 255/55R18 on a Touareg, studded in both applications. They are my go-to tire for the conditions that I drive in, which is snow and/or ice-covered roads, typically in a -30...”
“At any point there might be ice, snow or gnarly outside, the tires tend to loose grip in every bend, roundabout, turn or whatever. While driving normally when the roads are nice, they sure do the job! They are good at...”
“I have the hakkapelitta 10 on my 2014 VW Caravelle (only front wheel drive) as a dedicatet winter tire. Here in northern Norway the roads are covered with hard packed snow and ice for almost 5 months of the year...”
At any point there might be ice, snow or gnarly outside, the tires tend to loose grip in every bend, roundabout, turn or whatever. While driving normally when the roads are nice, they sure do the job! They are good at stopping on ice, and snow, they are mostly good at accelerating, however almost every time you put a sideload this tire skids about
I have these tires on an F-150 and also in a 255/55R18 on a Touareg, studded in both applications. They are my go-to tire for the conditions that I drive in, which is snow and/or ice-covered roads, typically in a -30 deg F to 10 deg F (-35 to -12 deg C) temperature range. On dry pavement, they are a notably more squirmy than my summer tires. They also cost me 5% in fuel economy. Braking distances are notably longer than summer tires if driving on dry pavement, but I should note that drive pavement is an exception for my location.
These tires are focused on snow and ice, and suffer a bit in other categories as you might expect.
I have no hesitation to buy the best tire money can buy, and have settled on these. I will note that I think they are no better (maybe slightly worse) then the discontinued Hakkapeliitta 9 SUV. I suspect they reduced studs a bit to improve noise or reduce how much damage they do to roads.
Check out how the BEST all seasons tires perform against premium summer and winter tires!
Whily noisy because of the studs, it's a low pitch that you can easily tune out. I found the tires to be, for an extreme snow tire, excellent in the dry, and good in the wet. I also found that I had good control in slush. In normal turning, the tire can feel a bit vague due to sidewall flex, however under heavier corners I can feel the tire "sit" over the sidewall, and it becomes very stout. In a RWD car (with an aftermarket LSD), I never got stuck this winter, even living on a dirt road with an uphill driveway. I've driven about 3,000 miles on the tires in a quite warm winter (mostly between 20 and 40 degrees fahrenheit), and they look just about new as of now. I've hit some notable potholes and the tires did not pop or bubble, which pleased me. Despite being a sedan, I figured the SUV tire was a good fit due to the body roll, and weight capacity, and this has proven true. Overall, an extremely safe, durable tire, with impressive snow and ice traction. I will be purchasing these again, or their successors in a few years time.
Which tires do you drive?
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I have the hakkapelitta 10 on my 2014 VW Caravelle (only front wheel drive) as a dedicatet winter tire. Here in northern Norway the roads are covered with hard packed snow and ice for almost 5 months of the year. Occasionally we get a change in the weather pattern and it dumps a lot of rain on the icy roads.
After two winters i can now say that the hakkapelitta 10 is the best option for those extrem conditions. They grip well on the slippery surfaces in high speeds and loose traction in a slow and controlled manner. Before, i lived in the southern parts of Norway, where i had the hakkapelitta R8, which is a non studded winter tire. It felt like that the non studded winter tire was better in digging itself throug deep snow and it was quieter when cornering, but that where the only advantages of the non studded winter tire to the hakkapelitta 10.
It is hard to judge how the treadwear is after now 20.000km of winter driving. The tires get only driven on mostly hard packed snowy and icy country roads and in the town. There is not that much driving on bare asphalt in the winter months, so the rubber of the tires almost doesn`t wear at all. Like 1mm after two winters. And the studs are still all there, still looking like new. Here in the nordics we usually buy new winter tires when the old ones get so old that the rubber hardens. The last studded winter tires i had to change had still 6mm of depth in the profile and all the studs where still there, but they were 8 years old which hade made the rubber hard.
