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Head-to-head Updated

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 vs Pirelli P Zero Winter — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 18 + 1 road tests and 30 + 9 owner reviews. How we score

Pilot Alpin 5 is ahead, 87–70

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Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
Tire AMichelin

Pilot Alpin 5

Winter

± 4

Tests 90 · 18 tests Owners 82 · 30 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 31 in 2025 ADAC Winter Tyre Test (dry braking)

Pirelli P Zero Winter
Tire BPirelli

P Zero Winter

Winter

± 8Provisional

Tests 69 · 1 test Owners 72 · 9 reviews

Best test result: #4 of 12 in 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test (wet handling)

Category by category

Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.

  1. 88

    Dry

    Pilot Alpin 5 +21
    67
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 14 / 1 tests9168
    Reviews found online8465
    Dry Braking (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–0100%95%
    Dry Handling (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–0100%99%

    Pilot Alpin 5: 60% × 91.1 + 40% × 83.7 = 88

    P Zero Winter: 60% × 68.2 + 40% × 65.2 = 67

  2. 91

    Wet

    Pilot Alpin 5 +17
    74
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 18 / 1 tests9475
    Reviews found online8674
    Straight Aquaplaning (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–096%88%
    Wet Braking (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–095%91%
    Wet Handling (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–098%98%

    Pilot Alpin 5: 60% × 93.5 + 40% × 86.4 = 91

    P Zero Winter: 60% × 74.6 + 40% × 74.3 = 74

  3. 87

    Snow

    Pilot Alpin 5 +18
    69
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 17 / 1 tests9465
    Reviews found online7874
    Snow Braking (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–0100%88%
    Snow Handling (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–0100%97%
    Snow Traction (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–0100%91%

    Pilot Alpin 5: 60% × 93.7 + 40% × 77.7 = 87

    P Zero Winter: 60% × 64.7 + 40% × 74.2 = 69

  4. 78

    Comfort

    Pilot Alpin 5 +7
    71
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 3 / – tests80≈ 70 (est.)
    Reviews found online7771

    Pilot Alpin 5: 40% × 79.5 + 60% × 76.8 = 78

    P Zero Winter: 40% × 69.5 (est.) + 60% × 71.2 = 71

    No road tests of comfort for P Zero Winter. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.

  5. 85

    Noise

    Pilot Alpin 5 +16
    69
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 14 / 1 tests9770
    Reviews found online≈ 67 (est.)≈ 67 (est.)
    Noise (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–0100%99%

    Pilot Alpin 5: 60% × 96.5 + 40% × 66.6 (est.) = 85

    P Zero Winter: 60% × 70 + 40% × 66.6 (est.) = 69

    No owner ratings of noise for Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter. The owner half is the owners’ average (67): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.

  6. 84

    Treadwear

    Pilot Alpin 5 +13
    71
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 5 / – tests84≈ 69 (est.)
    Reviews found online8275

    Pilot Alpin 5: 60% × 84.4 + 40% × 82.3 = 84

    P Zero Winter: 60% × 69.1 (est.) + 40% × 74.6 = 71

    No road tests of treadwear for P Zero Winter. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.35).

  7. 85

    Handling (owners)

    Pilot Alpin 5 +18
    67
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Reviews found online8567
  8. 74

    Efficiency

    Pilot Alpin 5 +8
    66
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Alpin 5P Zero Winter
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 14 / 1 tests7466
    Rolling Resistance (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 1–094%91%
Scores at a glance
CategoryMichelin Pilot Alpin 5Pirelli P Zero Winter
Relative Score 87 70
Dry 88 67
Wet 91 74
Snow 87 69
Comfort 78 71
Noise 85 69
Treadwear 84 71
Handling (owners) 85 67
Efficiency 74 66

Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.

Weight the categories that matter to you

Wet grip starts at “Important”. Treadwear starts at “Neutral” here: road tests measured it for at most one of the two tires, so it rests on owner reviews. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.

Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
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Important
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Less important
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Less important
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Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
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Not important
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Recomputed
Headline score
± 4

Pilot Alpin 5

± 8

P Zero Winter

The professional test results behind the scores

Per discipline: the average % of the best tire over every test both tires were in, and how many of those tests each one won. “Different tests” rows compare results from separate tests.

In the overall rankings of 1 tests that ran both, Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 finished ahead 1 times and Pirelli P Zero Winter 0 times.

DisciplineCategoryPilot Alpin 5P Zero WinterΔHead-to-head
Dry Braking Dry 100% 95% +5.3 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Dry Handling Dry 100% 99% +1.5 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Straight Aquaplaning Wet 96% 88% +8.1 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Wet Braking Wet 95% 91% +4.5 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Wet Handling Wet 98% 98% +0.1 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Snow Braking Snow 100% 88% +12.0 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Snow Handling Snow 100% 97% +3.4 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Snow Traction Snow 100% 91% +9.1 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Noise Noise 100% 99% +1.1 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Rolling Resistance Efficiency 94% 91% +3.6 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18
Also published by the testers (not in the score)
Overall Ranking Overall #1/12 #9/12 – 1–0 in 1 shared test Newest: 2024 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test · 245/45 R18

Pros, cons & observations

Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.

Tire A Pilot Alpin 5

Pros

  • Outstanding dry and wet grip and handling, feeling similar to a UHP summer tire
  • Great snow traction and stability for mountain driving and aggressive winter cornering
  • Excellent steering response and high feedback compared to traditional winter tires

Cons

  • Subpar performance and braking on pure ice or severe slush
  • Stiffer sidewalls can lead to a firmer, sometimes bumpy ride quality and transfer road imperfections
  • Fuel economy can be negatively impacted
All owner themes in the Pilot Alpin 5 review

Tire B P Zero Winter

Pros

  • Excellent snow and ice traction with confident handling in deep snow
  • Superior ride comfort and noise control compared to other winter and run-flat options
  • Strong dry and lateral grip for spirited driving on sports cars and sedans

Cons

  • Unpredictable or lower grip limits in dry and damp conditions for some sports car drivers
  • Abysmal wet braking performance reported by select high-performance vehicle users
  • Handling and overall performance can be disappointing when mismatched with heavy SUVs or high-torque applications
All owner themes in the P Zero Winter review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 B · Pirelli P Zero Winter
CategoryWinterWinter
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverPassenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available8156
Rim diameters16″ – 23″18″ – 23″
Tread depth—10/32″
Sidewall—Blackwall
Max pressure—50 psi
Sizes in common3434

Which one should you actually buy?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5

Pirelli P Zero Winter

Winner: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 — better dry, snow and handling. It leads or ties in every category we score. Pirelli P Zero Winter rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 9 reviews), so read this result as provisional.

Pick tire A You want the most grip on dry roads

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 scores 88 vs 67 on dry.

Pick tire A You drive through snowy winters

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 scores 87 vs 69 on snow.

Pick tire A You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 scores 85 vs 67 on handling.

Pick tire A Your priority is wet-weather safety

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 scores 91 vs 74 on wet.

Tire A · Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
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Tire B · Pirelli P Zero Winter
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Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Which is better in the wet, Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5, 91 vs 74 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5, 88 vs 67 on our dry score.

Which is better in snow, Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5, 87 vs 69 on our snow score.

Which is quieter, Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5, 85 vs 69 on our noise score.

Which is more comfortable, Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5, 78 vs 71 on our comfort score.

Which lasts longer, Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5, 84 vs 71 on our treadwear score.

Which rolls more easily, Pilot Alpin 5 or P Zero Winter?

Michelin Pilot Alpin 5, 74 vs 66 on our efficiency score.

How do we compare tires?

Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements), each result compared with every other tire in the same test and newer tests counting more. 40% comes from owner reviews found online, adjusted for how generously each site rates. Both use one scale: the average tested tire gets 70, the best 100. When a tire has only one of the two, the missing half is estimated from the other and the score stays closer to average; with no road test and fewer than five owner reviews it gets no score yet.

Handling is the exception: road tests measure it inside the dry and wet scores, so its own row comes from owner ratings only and starts as less important.

Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score. Full methodology