Arm Guards: Reviews & Rankings
Forearm protection from string slap — scored honestly on price and coverage, since that's most of what separates them.
An arm guard does one thing: it keeps the string off your bow-arm forearm so a slap doesn't sting, bruise, or throw your shot. That's a $10-to-$45 problem with a lot of near-identical answers, so we don't pretend there's more science here than there is. We score what actually varies and publishes — the price, and how much of your arm it covers — and we show the rest (length, straps, material, ventilation) as the facts you'd want before buying. No invented protection ratings, because nobody publishes one.
How to read this: This is a commodity category, and the CareScore treats it like one: price carries most of the weight, coverage adds a lean toward guards that protect more arm, and everything else is shown for reference. A traditional leather bracer and a vented plastic guard both stop string slap — which you buy comes down to look, length, and price, all of which are on the page.
Arm Guards CareScore Leaderboard
All 6 products ranked by overall CareScore™. See the full best-of breakdown →
| # | Product | Use | Price | CareScore |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Easton Deluxe Bone Armguard | Molded target arm guard | $10.99 | 77 |
| 2 | Tarantula Flex Foam Vented | Vented foam arm guard | $11.99 | 76 |
| 3 | OMP Mountain Man Vented | Traditional leather arm guard | $14.99 | 71 |
| 4 | Legend Armguard XT | Vented foam arm guard | $16.5 | 69 |
| 5 | Bear Archery Fred Bear Logo Guard | Traditional leather arm guard | $29.99 | 51 |
| 6 | 3Rivers Archery Traditional Only Leather Guard | Long traditional leather guard | $44.99 | 41 |
Best Arm Guards for…
The same data, re-weighted for how you shoot.
Head-to-head comparisons
All 15 comparisonsWe auto-generate a spec-by-spec breakdown for every possible matchup.
Arm Guard buying guide
- Do I even need an arm guard?
- If the string ever touches your forearm, yes — and for most new archers it does, because a beginner's bow arm tends to hyperextend and drop right into the string's path. A slap at 40 lb draws blood and, worse, teaches you to flinch and bend your elbow to avoid it, which wrecks your form. A $10 guard removes the problem entirely while you learn to rotate your elbow out of the way. Experienced shooters with clean form sometimes skip it; nobody learning should.
- Short guard or long guard?
- Short covers the spot the string actually hits on most people — the inner forearm just below the elbow crook — and it's less bulky and hot. Go long if you shoot in loose sleeves the string can catch, if you have a low wrist or hyperextended elbow that puts more arm in the path, or if you're pulling heavy traditional weight where a slap really hurts. When in doubt, short is enough for target shooting; long is cheap insurance for hunting layers and trad bows.
- Leather, plastic, or foam?
- They all stop the string — this is purely preference. Leather bracers look right on a recurve or longbow and last forever, but they're warmer and pricier. Vented plastic and foam guards are light, cheap, and breathe on a hot range, which is why target and beginner setups lean that way. Buy the material that matches your bow's vibe and your climate; none of them protects meaningfully better than the others.
What the CareScore measures
The complete formula, bounds and data rules are published on the methodology page.
Street Price
58% weightFor a piece of gear this simple, price is most of the decision — an $11 vented guard and a $45 hand-tooled leather bracer stop the same string. It leads the score for a reason.
Coverage
42% weightHow much forearm it shields. A short guard covers the usual slap zone; a long one protects toward the elbow for loose sleeves, low wrists, or heavy draws. More coverage scores a little higher, but plenty of shooters want the minimum that works — so it's a lean, not a law.