Parts of a Helmet – Bicycle and Motorcycle Helmets Labeled

All 12 parts on the diagram

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Bicycle helmet 7

Shell A thin plastic skin over the foam. Most bicycle helmets are foam with a shell like this on top.
Vents Openings through the shell and the foam. They let air flow over the head.
Visor On many bicycle helmets it snaps on and can be taken off.
Straps Two straps on each side come together under the ear. One carries on under the chin.
Buckle Joins the strap under the chin. It opens to take the helmet off.
Foam liner Usually expanded polystyrene foam, EPS for short. It makes up most of the helmet.
Pads Makers call them fit pads or comfort pads. The federal bicycle helmet rule calls them comfort or fit padding.

Motorcycle helmet 5

Face shield A clear or tinted plastic shield that swivels up and down. It is also known as a visor.
Chin bar Covers the front of the chin on a full-face helmet. It is below the face shield.
Cheek pads Part of the soft padding inside the helmet. The shell is cut away here to show one.
Chin strap A motorcycle helmet is held on by a chin strap.
D-rings Each ring is shaped like the letter D. The free end of the strap is threaded through both rings, then back through one.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30, a name kept only where two independent sources use it: Wikipedia, Bicycle helmet and Motorcycle helmet, text only, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_helmet and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorcycle_helmet (shell, foam liner, ventilation, pads, helmet strap; outer shell, inner liner, face shield known as a visor, chin bar, chin strap, vents); the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute, https://helmets.org/guide.htm, https://helmets.org/fit.htm and https://helmets.org/visors.htm (shell, EPS foam, vents, visor, straps, buckle, fit pads); a bicycle helmet maker's owner's manual, https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-6202023 (visor, fit pads, straps, chin strap, buckle), with a second maker's manual that shares its wording and so is not counted separately, https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-6367148 (comfort pads); the federal definitions at 16 CFR 1203.4, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/1203.4 (comfort or fit padding, retention system); the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's guide to motorcycling excellence, read through archive.org's full-text search, https://archive.org/details/motorcyclesafety0000moto (outer shell, impact-absorbing liner, comfort padding, face shield, chin bar, chin strap, D-rings, cheek pads); a motorcycle helmet maker's owner's manual, https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-6339828 (outer shell, face shield, cheek pads, chin strap with double-D fastener); a children's book on helmets read the same way, https://archive.org/details/helmets0000blax (outer shell, air vents, inner liner, buckle); and two Consumer Reports bicycle helmet tests, June 1999 and May 1990, read the same way (foam liner, shell, vents, straps, buckle). Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; no maker's shape or mark, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

These are the parts of a helmet. The first drawing is a bicycle helmet, from the side and turned over to show the inside; the second is a full-face motorcycle helmet with part of its shell cut away.

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Two helmets, the same layers

Both helmets are built in layers: a shell outside, a thick foam liner inside it, and soft pads inside that. On the bicycle helmet, find the vents through the shell, the visor at the front, and the straps that meet under the ear and close with a buckle. On the motorcycle helmet, the face shield covers the eyes, the chin bar wraps the chin, the cheek pads sit inside, and the chin strap fastens through two D-rings.

Makers call a bicycle helmet's pads fit pads or comfort pads. Either answer is accepted.
An open-face motorcycle helmet has no chin bar. The full-face helmet drawn here has one.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a helmet called?

A bicycle helmet has a thin outer shell, a thick foam liner with vents through it, pads inside, and straps that fasten with a buckle under the chin. Many also have a visor at the front.

What are the parts of a motorcycle helmet?

An outer shell, a foam inner liner, soft padding that includes the cheek pads, and a chin strap, often fastened with two D-rings. A full-face helmet adds a chin bar and usually a face shield.

What is the foam inside a helmet called?

The liner. In bicycle and motorcycle helmets it is usually expanded polystyrene foam, EPS for short, and it sits just inside the outer shell.

What is the visor on a helmet?

On a bicycle helmet the visor is the small peak at the front. On a motorcycle helmet the word is also used for the clear face shield that swivels up and down over the eyes.