So, you are trying to decide which bindings are the best for you, and you wonder, “what bindings do the pros use?” Pro snowboarders rely on their gear daily, pushing themselves and their equipment to the limits. If the pros trust it, so should you. Let's take a look at some of the biggest binding manufacturers and point out the models that the pros choose for their personal setup.

Burton

There is no doubt that Burton is the biggest snowboard company in the world. They have been making boards, bindings, and boots for well over 20 years and have a load of advanced technologies and design features that make their bindings some of the most popular in the game. So let's look at some of the models that the pros choose.

Burton Cartel X

The most popular binding amongst Burton team riders, the Cartels are the preferred binding for Olympic gold medalist Red Gerrard and snowboarding icon Mark McMorris. They are also used by Brock Crouch, Ben Ferguson, Carlos Garcia Knight, and Mikkel Bang, amongst many others.

Burton Lexa X

The Lexa X is a very popular binding amongst the pros on the women's side. One of the most progressive riders in women's freestyle, Anna Gasser, rides the Lexa X, along with Zoi Sadowski-Synnot, Tessa Maud, and Kurumi Imai.

Burton X

The Burton X is the favorite binding of the halfpipe icon Danny Davis and a few other Burton team pros.

Burton Malavitas

The Malavitas are an iconic freestyle binding. The list of pro riders who prefer the Malavitas is quite impressive, such as Olympic gold medalist Ayumu Hirano and contest-mainstay Darcy Sharpe.

Union

Another one of the leading binding manufacturers in the world today is Union. Union has a heavy-hitting team of park riders, all-mountain rippers, and backcountry riders. They produce bindings for every type of rider and are one of the most respected companies. The list of team riders is too long even to list a fraction, and all the riders are absolutely insane snowboarders, so we will just list a few standouts here.

Union Force

The most well-known binding in the Union line, the Force is the go-to for the freestyle riders on the team. The most well-known riders are likely Arthur Longo and Kevin Backstrom. Both ride the Forces, but other team athletes that strap into these bindings are Sebbe De Buck, Roppe Rautiainen, and Scotty James.

Union Trilogy

The Trilogy is the top-of-the-line women's specific binding that is designed for all-mountain riding. They are super responsive, high-performance bindings that work well in the park and the backcountry. They are the go-to for legends Jamie Anderson and Jess Kimura.

Union Falcor

The Falcor is the pro-model of none other than Mr. Travis Rice. These bindings are designed to keep this snowboarding pioneer comfortable and connected to his board. As you probably guessed, they are a binding built for big mountain riding and crazy lines. They can handle everything Mr. Rice throws at them!

Union Ultra

The Ultra is a more playful freestyle binding made specifically for those who will be tearing up the rail section all day long. So it should come as no surprise that creative rail masters Mike Rav and Scott Stevens use these bindings daily.

Nitro

Not only does Nitro make killer boards, but they also have some of the best bindings in snowboarding that are trusted by some heavy-hitting professional riders. Let's take a look at which models are chosen by the pros.

Nitro Team Pros

The Nitro Team Pros are the top-of-the-line Nitro freestyle binding. They are trusted by a number of top riders, including Markus Kleveland and Tor Bergrem. These stiff, strong bindings are also trusted by Nitro riders Bryan Fox, Ludvig Billtoft, and Jared Elston.📷

Nitro Teams

The Nitro Teams are an iconic binding and are the base model of the Team Pro. This binding offers a slightly less stiff feel and is the preferred binding of great Nitro riders Sam Taxwood and Griffin Siebert.

Nitro Poison

The Nitro Poison is the top-of-the-shelf women’s binding and is the choice for most of the ladies on the Nitro team. This list includes riders such as Christy Prior and Miyabi Onitsuka.

Rome

Rome is also one of the biggest binding companies out there. They have a small team of amazing, skillful riders who rock Rome bindings. Stale Sandbech rides the Rome Cleavers while creative Finnish rider Rene Rinnekangas rocks with the Rome 390 Boss bindings.

Ride

The Ride team also has some well-made bindings and iconic riders who push the Ride bindings to the limit. On the men's side, Jake Blauvet, Jed Anderson, and Brandon Davis, along with the other team riders, favor either the Ride C-8s or the Ride A-10s, depending on the conditions and terrain. There are also some heavy-hitting ladies who rock Ride boards and bindings. The favorite binding is the aggressive A-9 binding used by Jill Perkins and Hana Beaman.

Flux

Flux is known for making one thing: great bindings. They tend to have a more flexy freestyle feel, but their binding line covers big mountain riders and park rats alike. The Flux team includes John Jackson, Chris Corning, and Chris Rasman.

Jones

Jones is not a leading binding producer, but they are well known for making stiff, responsive, freeride-oriented bindings. Their lineup reflects this as some of the best big mountain riders in the world trust their gear. Team riders include Jeremy Jones, Victor de Le Rue, Elana Hight, and Robin Van Gyn.

Salomon

Although Salomon may not come to the top of your mind when you think about bindings, they have some great gear and some amazingly talented riders. On the men’s side, there are freeride rippers and amazing competition riders all mixed in. The list includes Bode Merrill, Louif Paradis, Nils and Hans Mindich, Judd Henkes, Zak Hale, and Sven Thorgren. On the women’s side, the team is just as impressive with riders such as Maddie Mastro and Desiree Melancon.

In Conclusion

That covers it for the major players in binding manufacturing. Of course, a few other companies produce bindings, but these are the major players! These companies all produce high-level bindings and have a great team of riders that test and improve their equipment and technology, but for the sake of this article, this is where we will end! If you are looking to trust what the pros trust when it comes to bindings, these products all make wonderful options. If you are interested in checking out any of these bindings, have any questions about these or other bindings, or are looking for any personalized gear recommendations, reach out to one of our amazing Snowboard Experts! Happy riding!