CE Level 1 vs Level 2: What It Actually Means Across Your Entire Riding Gear
You see "CE Level 2" on a jacket, a pair of gloves, and a set of boots. Sounds consistent. Sounds like Level 2 means the same thing everywhere.
It doesn't.
CE Level 1 and Level 2 appear across three completely separate safety standards for motorcycle gear - body armor, gloves, and footwear - and each standard has different tests, different thresholds, and different things it does and doesn't measure. The numbering system is the same. What the numbers mean is not.
This guide covers all three. By the end you'll know exactly what you're buying - and which corners are worth cutting and which aren't.
Start here: the two systems that already confuse people
Before we even get to levels, it helps to know that motorcycle gear has two separate CE rating systems that riders regularly mix up.
Garment class (EN17092) - rates the jacket, pants or suit itself - abrasion resistance, seam burst strength, tear resistance, and overall construction quality across different impact zones. Classes run B, A, AA and AAA. This tells you how well the garment performs in a crash overall - not just in a slide, but whether seams hold, fabric tears, and the construction stays intact where it needs to. We cover this in depth in this blog post, and this one.
Impact protector level (EN1621) - rates the armor inserted inside the jacket or pants - how much impact force gets through to your body. Level 1 and Level 2. This is completely independent of the garment class.
A jacket rated AA can come with Level 1 protectors. Or Level 2. The garment rating tells you nothing about what's inside. Both ratings matter, and they measure completely different things.
Now - here's where it gets more complicated. Gloves and boots have their own Level 1/Level 2 systems, under completely different standards. Same labels, different tests, different thresholds. Let's go through each one.
Body armor: EN1621
This is what most people mean when they talk about Level 1 vs Level 2 in motorcycle gear. It covers the impact protectors for shoulders, elbows, knees, hips, chest and back.
How the test works: a standardized weight is dropped onto the protector and the force transmitted through is measured.
Level 1: Maximum mean transmitted force of 18 kN. No single reading above 24 kN. Level 2: Maximum mean transmitted force of 9 kN. No single reading above 12 kN.
To achieve certification, Level 2 protectors must transmit no more than half the average impact force permitted for Level 1. Individual products often perform significantly better than the minimum requirements. For most road riding - anything beyond slow urban commuting - Level 2 is the right choice for shoulders, elbows, knees and hips.
Is Level 1 enough for everyday riding?
It depends more on your riding than on a single speed number. As a practical rule of thumb, many riders reserve Level 1 for predominantly urban riding and choose Level 2 whenever higher speed roads are part of the journey. So for example, think city riding under ~45 km/h - Level 1 is great. Level 2 for anything faster - is a useful starting point, but it misses something: most crashes don't happen at your average speed, they happen at the worst moment of your ride.
A more useful question is - what's the highest-risk part of your typical journey? A quiet commute through town is a different risk profile from a dual carriageway stretch, even if both feel like everyday riding. Some practical reference points:
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Short urban commute, mostly 30–50 km/h zones, low traffic: Level 1 is a reasonable choice.
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Regular road riding at 70–110 km/h: Level 2 is worth it - the force difference in a real fall at those speeds is significant.
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Touring, longer distances, mixed road types: Level 2 without question.
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Back protection: Level 2 always, regardless of where or how you ride. Spinal injuries don't scale with speed in a way that makes Level 1 a safe gamble (you are of course free to make your own decision - but we highly recommend!).
One practical note: if you already own a jacket with Level 1 protectors, upgrading just the armor is usually straightforward and often inexpensive. You don't need new gear - just new protectors.
Important: back protectors are different. Back armor falls under EN1621-2, not EN1621-1 like limb protectors. Same Level 1/Level 2 labelling, completely different test with different coverage requirements. Most safety specialists recommend Level 2 back protection wherever practical. Spinal injuries are catastrophic. We strongly recommend Level 2 back protection because the extra protection usually comes with only a modest increase in cost and bulk.
D3O, SAS-TEC and Smoothways: what's the actual difference?
Traditional foam protectors made Level 2 a real trade-off - stiffer, bulkier, hotter. Modern viscoelastic materials have largely closed that gap. Here's how the three main brands in our range compare:
D3O - uses a rate-sensitive polymer - soft and flexible at rest, the molecules lock together instantly on impact. D3O protectors are typically among the thinnest and lightest Level 2 options available, with studded or low-profile constructions designed to maximise breathability without adding bulk. The Diablo Level 2, for example, is only 9.5mm thick and weighs 75–106g depending on the zone. Studded construction adds breathability. It is one of the thinnest and lightest Level 2 protectors currently available, and the one most riders describe as genuinely forgettable once it's in. You won't believe how often we get complaints from customers trying the gear that impact protectors are missing 😃 They are not - you just often can't feel them.
If wearability is your priority, it's among the most comfortable Level 2 protectors we've tested.
SAS-TEC uses a viscoelastic foam that stiffens under impact while absorbing and distributing energy - a different mechanism from D3O's rate-sensitive polymer, but similarly soft in normal use. Anatomically shaped for body contour. Available in both Level 1 and Level 2 across their range depending on the model - if you're buying separately, always check the specific certification on the product.
Smoothways memory foam construction with feathered edges - the borders taper gradually rather than ending hard, which removes the pressure points that make stiffer armor uncomfortable over long distances. The foam conforms to the body during use, improving comfort over longer rides. Lightweight and available in both Level 1 and Level 2. Worth noting: dense memory foam is not the most breathable material - if heat is a concern, D3O's open studded construction has a clear advantage here. But for riders who prioritise a soft, pressure-point-free fit, Smoothways is a solid option.
D3O, SAS-TEC and Smoothways are the brands you'll find most often in the gear we carry - but they're far from the only options. Many brands develop their own proprietary protectors. Shima, for example, uses their own in-house protection across their range. The Level 1 and Level 2 certification requirements are identical regardless of who manufactures the protector - the standard doesn't care about the brand name on the label. What differs between brands is construction, materials, thickness, and how the protector feels over a long ride. If a product description names a specific protector brand, that's useful detail. If it doesn't, the CE level certification still tells you what the protection actually delivers.
Why does my AA jacket come with Level 1 protectors?
If you've ever opened a brand new AA-rated jacket and found Level 1 protectors inside, you're not alone in finding that surprising. The short answer - the garment rating and the armor rating are genuinely separate standards, and a brand can achieve AA certification regardless of which protector level sits in the pockets. In practice, the reasons brands go with Level 1 are usually cost (Level 1 protectors are cheaper to source), weight (lighter protectors mean a lighter jacket overall), and historically, bulk - Level 2 used to mean noticeably stiffer armor before modern materials changed that. It's not a loophole, it's just how the two systems are structured. But it does mean you can't assume Level 2 protection just because the jacket fabric is AA-rated. Check the protector spec separately.
Can you upgrade your existing protectors? In most cases, yes. Most jackets and pants have standard-sized pockets for shoulder, elbow, knee and hip armor. If your current gear came with Level 1, check whether Level 2 protectors from any of these brands fit the same pockets. The back protector pocket upgrade is especially straightforward - and if your jacket has the pocket but didn't come with an actual protector, filling it with a Level 2 protector is one of the easiest safety improvements you can make.
Gloves: EN13594
Gloves have their own Level 1/Level 2 system - and it contains a catch that most buyers don't know about.
The catch - the knuckle impact test is optional for Level 1 certification. A pair of gloves can pass CE Level 1 certification with zero knuckle or impact protection. Level 1 only requires abrasion resistance, seam strength, tear resistance, cuff length and retention tests to be passed. Impact testing only becomes mandatory at Level 2.
This means "CE certified Level 1 gloves" may protect your palms in a slide but do nothing for your knuckles on impact. For a hand injury that happens constantly in crashes - knuckles hitting the road, another vehicle, or the ground - this matters a lot.
Understanding the KP marking - and what KP1 and KP2 actually mean
When you look at the CE label inside a glove, you'll see up to four elements: a motorcycle pictogram, the level number (1 or 2), the letters KP if the knuckle impact test was passed, and the standard reference number. So a glove label reads one of three ways:
"1" - CE Level 1, no knuckle impact test submitted. Passed abrasion, seam, tear, cuff and retention tests only. May have no knuckle protection whatsoever.
"1 KP" - CE Level 1, with the optional knuckle impact test passed. Single strike max 9 kN, mean max 7 kN. Better than plain Level 1, but a lower protection threshold than Level 2. This is what people often refer to as KP1.
"2 KP" - CE Level 2. Knuckle testing is mandatory at this level, so Level 2 always includes KP. Single strike max 4 kN, mean max 4 kN - roughly half the force threshold of Level 1 KP. This is what people refer to as KP2.
A Level 2 glove is always Level 2 KP. There is no such thing as Level 2 without knuckle impact testing.
When you see gloves described as "KP1" or "KP2" in product listings, this is the shorthand being used. In practice, the vast majority of quality road gloves on the market are Level 1 KP - Level 2 KP exists but is rare, found mostly in dedicated racing gloves. For most riders, Level 1 KP is both the realistic and practical target.
The other differences between levels worth knowing:
Cuff length: Level 1 requires a minimum 15mm cuff. Level 2 requires 50mm - a proper wrist-covering gauntlet. In a crash, gloves regularly slide off. A longer cuff means better retention. The retention test confirms this: Level 1 gloves must hold at 27 Newtons of pull force, Level 2 at 52 Newtons.
Seam strength is also higher at Level 2 - main seams must survive 10 N/mm of force vs 6 N/mm at Level 1.
Boots and shoes: EN13634
Footwear also uses Level 1 and Level 2 - but the rating is more granular than for armor or gloves.
Boots are tested across three protection properties: abrasion resistance, cut/impact resistance, and transverse rigidity (how well the sole resists being crushed sideways). Each gets its own Level 1 or Level 2 score. If you see three numbers on a boot label - for example 2/2/1 or 1/2/2 - those are the three protection ratings under EN13634:2015, which is still widely used.
If you see four numbers, the boot is certified under the newer EN13634:2017 standard - but the first number is not a protection level. It indicates boot height: 1 for ankle-height, 2 for a taller shin-height boot. So a label reading 1/2/2/2 means: ankle-height boot, Level 2 abrasion, Level 2 cut resistance, Level 2 rigidity. Marketing usually simplifies all of this to just "Level 1" or "Level 2" overall, which is why the label is worth checking directly.
The abrasion test shows the most significant difference between levels. In the critical upper zone, Level 1 material needs to survive 5 seconds of abrasion; Level 2 needs 12 seconds - more than double. The impact resistance requirements also differ: Level 1 boots are tested to 10 kN, Level 2 to 12.5 kN. Unlike CE armour standards, these figures are the test load the boot must withstand - not force transmitted through it - so the higher Level 2 number reflects a more demanding requirement.
What this means in practice: A Level 2 boot is meaningfully tougher in a slide. For everyday urban riding, Level 1 boots or shoes are a reasonable choice where wearability off the bike matters. For higher speeds, touring, or off-road riding, Level 2 is worth it.
A boot with mixed scores - for example 2/2/1 - has no single composite rating. There's no official way to call it "Level 1" or "Level 2" overall, because the standard intentionally reports each property separately. In practice, brands often market by their strongest score, so "CE Level 2" in a product description doesn't guarantee Level 2 across all three properties. The label on the boot itself always shows the full picture.
One honest limitation of the EN13634 standard: it doesn't specifically test ankle rotation or twist protection - a very common injury in motorcycle crashes. How well a boot protects your ankle in a low-speed tip-over or a foot-down incident depends on the construction and ankle support built into the boot, not just the CE rating number.
The full picture
Same label. Four different standards. Different tests, different thresholds, different things being measured:
The rating you care most about depends on what you're protecting. For body armor, the Level 1 vs Level 2 difference is quantifiable impact force. For gloves, the bigger story is that Level 1 may have no knuckle protection at all. For boots, it's primarily about how long the material holds up in a slide.
None of this is about whether to wear gear. It's about understanding what the gear you're actually wearing does - so you can make a real choice rather than trusting a label.
Questions about which level is right for how you ride? Reply - we actually read every message 😉
