Try on a pair of ski boots this autumn and you’ll struggle to avoid it: a dial instead of – or alongside – the buckles. At ISPO in Amsterdam, Patrick Hackl, Commercial Director at BOA, explained how the company went from four test partners to almost the entire ski boot market in just three seasons. We took a closer look at the numbers.
In snowboarding, BOA has been a household name for years: a dial, a thin steel lace and your boot is locked in. Ski boots were a different story. Power transfer is everything, and the buckle had gone unchallenged for around 50 years. Even so, BOA ran its first feasibility tests back in 2015/16, using existing components.
A long road followed. In 2018/19 BOA tested the concept with prototypes, between 2019 and 2021 came field and lab tests with injection-moulded parts, and from 2021 the first brand partners took it onto the slopes themselves. Those partners weren’t chosen at random: BOA already worked with K2 and Salomon in snowboarding, and with Atomic and Fischer through ski touring. ‘We wanted to start with partners who already trusted us,’ says Hackl.
The first BOA ski boots reached the shops in 2023, from four brands and with just one dial on the lower shell. BOA deliberately took it step by step. The full dual set-up with two dials only followed in 2025, when Dalbello, Head, Tecnica, Nordica, Rossignol and Lange also came on board.
‘You can’t just say: we feel it works, or our ambassadors say so. You have to come with data,’ says Hackl. Pressure mapping shows that a BOA boot spreads pressure evenly across the foot, while a traditional buckle boot creates a clear pressure point on the instep – exactly where many skiers suffer. BOA also measured lace tension throughout an entire race run, from tightening the boot to the descent.
According to Hackl, BOA was never worried about the strength of the laces. The real enemy lies elsewhere: anything that sticks out. Think knocking your boots against the car, walking up and down stairs in ski boots, or ski touring. So testing focused mainly on whether the system would last the full lifetime of a boot, on and off the piste.
Look at the models for the 2026/27 season and it’s clear where BOA sits. Among all-mountain and piste boots, BOA counted 417 models, 195 of which are available with BOA. For stiffer boots (flex 100 and above) that’s 56 per cent; for softer boots below flex 100 it’s around 30 per cent. Among freeride boots with a flex of 140, every single model has BOA.
Hackl says the gap makes sense. Softer boots are cheaper and are more often sold through other retail channels, where price matters most. BOA costs more than buckles, and a cheap version competing on price isn’t an option: ‘It never worked – we learned that several times over.’ BOA is, however, working on integrating the system better into the boot, to make it more attractive at other price points too.
You can see BOA’s rise on the shop shelf. In 2023/24 the all-mountain and piste segment had 16 BOA versions against 326 with buckles. For 2026/27 it’s 185 against 204. Whether it’s Head, Atomic, Fischer or Tecnica, you’ll now find ski boots with BOA from practically every brand.
The total number of versions rose from 414 to 480, even though hardly any more ski boots are being sold. That makes for crowded shelves. Hackl mentioned one brand that offers the same boot with the same flex in four variants: with buckles, with BOA on the lower shell, with BOA on the cuff, and with two dials. ‘That’s neither healthy nor sustainable.’ So expect the range to become easier to navigate over the next few years.
For skiers, this may be the most important point: the BOA system comes with a lifetime guarantee. If a dial or lace breaks, you can order a free repair kit at boafit.com/support/warranty, delivered to your door. Every part is designed to be repairable. And it rarely comes to that: according to BOA, the warranty rate is below 0.2 per cent.
Retailers get help as well. BOA has supplied key ski shops with spare-parts kits, training and materials, so staff can explain why a boot with BOA costs more. Through an online portal, shops can also order free parts and watch training videos.
Interestingly, brands are now coming to BOA themselves to say that all ski boots look the same. ‘Ski boots have looked the same for 50 years,’ Hackl replies with a wink. In the first phase, BOA deliberately worked with existing boots and moulds, adapting them. ‘Otherwise we might have ended up looking like an alien on the shelf.’ Now that brands are getting to know the system, BOA expects designs to become far more varied over the next five years.
Thinking about ski boots with BOA? Always try them on in a shop and, if possible, compare them with the same boot with buckles. Check that the dial and laces don’t press on your instep and that you can operate the boot easily with gloves on. Fit is still what matters most. A dial won’t turn the wrong boot into the right one.
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