Nitrile vs neoprene gloves

We scored both materials from 1 to 10 on six points, using OSHA's glove chart, a Department of Energy table that rates four glove materials against about 100 chemicals. Neoprene averages 7.5 and nitrile 7.0. Neoprene wins on strong acids and acetone, and on stretch. Nitrile wins on oils and fuels, plus the chlorinated solvents used for degreasing. Dexterity is a tie. The scores are a buyer's guide, not a lab result for any one glove.

So the neoprene vs nitrile gloves decision comes down to a lookup. Name the chemical, find its row, then match the thickness to how long your hands stay in contact. OSHA requires employers to choose hand protection for the task, the conditions, how long the gloves are worn and the hazards involved. We follow the same order below.

Read this sheet as a general nitrile gloves chemical resistance chart, not a rating for any one glove. The chemistry rows come from Table 4 in OSHA's PPE guide, which grades each pairing very good, good, fair or poor. On neoprene gloves vs nitrile, the chart splits cleanly. Nitrile rates very good on gasoline, diesel and kerosene, and good on trichloroethylene (TCE) and perchloroethylene (perc), where neoprene rates fair. Neoprene rates very good on hydrochloric acid and phenol, and good on acetone, methyl ethyl ketone and lacquer thinner, all rated poor for nitrile. Both rate very good on sodium hydroxide, ethyl alcohol and isopropyl alcohol. OSHA marks some rows, acetone and MEK among them, for limited service only.

Chloroprene gloves vs nitrile is the same comparison under another name, since neoprene is polychloroprene, a synthetic rubber made from chloroprene (neoprene chemistry on Wikipedia). Thickness moves every row. OSHA notes that thicker glove material generally resists chemicals longer, but thick gloves can cost you grip and dexterity. Our heaviest glove, the 8 mil orange diamond grip nitrile, adds a diamond texture for oily or wet work. It is still a disposable glove with no chemical rating.

Start with how much contact you expect. UC Berkeley's glove guide splits work into incidental contact, meaning splashes, spills and overspray, and extended contact, meaning soaked materials or hands in the chemical. Disposable gloves cover incidental contact, and Berkeley prefers nitrile over latex there for its chemical resistance and the way it visibly rips when punctured. For extended contact, it lists thicker reusable gloves, neoprene among them.

That is where chloroprene gloves earn their place: work with acids, peroxides or phenol, which Berkeley rates neoprene good for. Our heavy duty gloves for chemicals belong on the other side of that line, as splash protection only. Wear them for incidental contact with cleaners, oils and fuels, and change them the moment a chemical lands on them. They carry no chemical-resistance rating, so for immersion or harsh solvents, check the SDS and the glove maker's permeation chart first. A shop wiping wheels with a degreaser is incidental contact. A worker soaking parts in a solvent tank is extended contact, and a thin disposable of any material is the wrong glove for that job.

Nitrile's weak spots fit on one line. OSHA's guide says it is generally not recommended for strong oxidizing agents, aromatic solvents, ketones and acetates. That rules it out for acetone, MEK or lacquer thinner. Our black heavy duty nitrile is listed at 5 mil and costs $79.95 for a case of 1,000. It handles oil, grease and shop splashes, and like every glove we sell, it has no chemical rating. If one job mixes grease with an acetone wipe-down, keep a separate glove for the acetone step instead of stretching one glove across both.

Neoprene chemical resistant gloves have gaps too. Purdue's glove guide lists disposable neoprene, like disposable nitrile, for incidental contact only, and says neither one is effective with many halogenated solvents. OSHA's chart rates neoprene poor on benzene, styrene, xylene and tetrahydrofuran, where nitrile rates fair. Wikipedia adds that some people are allergic to neoprene, and others get dermatitis from thiourea residues left over from making it. We do not sell neoprene, so for a glove built for long acid or solvent contact, buy from a supplier that publishes permeation data for that exact glove.