Best overall dog harness: Kurgo Tru-Fit Smart Dog Walking Harness
The Kurgo Tru-Fit is hard-wearing, has front and back attachment points, is easy to put on, and offers sizes and adjustments to fit most dogs.
*At the time of publishing, the price was $32 .
The Kurgo Tru-Fit Smart Dog Walking Harness is a great option for most dogs and their owners because it’s well made and has dual attachment points. The vest-like design doesn’t put extra pressure on a dog’s throat if they tug. It’s also easy to put on, and it has a lifetime warranty covering manufacturing defects.
The Kurgo Tru-Fit’s sturdy, vest-style design features heavy-duty polyester fabric and nylon straps, with metal rings and sizers, as well as easy-to-close, tough plastic buckles. Comparatively, the Rabbitgoo Dog Harness is half the price of our pick, but the vest isn’t as soft, and its webbing is thinner and more easily prone to fraying. As with most harnesses we tested, the Tru-Fit’s dual attachment points move the pressure from pulling the leash lower, to the dog’s chest or back, depending on which attachment point you use.
The vest is also a no-brainer to put on: Unlike the Blue-9 Balance and the PetSafe 3 in 1 Harness, the Kurgo Tru-Fit has no confusing straps, and it’s clear which side is the front and which is the back. It took us only a minute or two to adjust the straps to fit finicky Baxter the boxer snugly but not too tight—soon he was bounding around the backyard as if he weren’t wearing a thing.
This harness is sold in sizes for dogs weighing from 5 to 110 pounds or with chest measurements from 12 to 44 inches. Only the 2 Hounds Design Freedom No Pull Dog Harness surpassed it, by accommodating dogs weighing from 14 to 250 pounds (the 2 Hounds Design model’s traditional strap style offers more size flexibility than Kurgo’s vest-style harness does). You’ll find five easily changeable adjustment points for a snug fit—a snug harness gives you more control over your dog than a loose one, and it prevents the shifting we experienced with some other harnesses we tested, such as the PetSafe Easy Walk.
Wirecutter software engineer Jasmine Khoury purchased a Kurgo harness for her parents’ beagle-dachshund mix and said the fit is superb. “The multiple adjustable areas have worked out really well because their dog is a long chubby girl with a small head, and she hasn’t been able to slip out of it,” Jasmine said.
The Tru-Fit did well in all our tests and didn’t warp under stress from weight. And cleaning required only regular detergent and the delicate cycle on a washing machine—it took two washes to totally eliminate the vinegar smells from our test, a result on a par with that of most of the other harnesses we looked at.
Even if Baxter had shredded the harness or if it had warped in testing, Kurgo would have responded to a claim, as it offers a lifetime warranty, on all its products, that even covers damage done by your pet. The company replaces harnesses with defects for free, but it charges a small fee to replace a harness with normal wear and tear or chewing damage. Wirecutter staffers have reported successfully requesting replacement Kurgo products after just a few weeks of use, and Kurgo’s customer service has never questioned their returns or asked for a receipt (a bonus for people who tend to misplace UPC barcodes and receipts).
Think of the Kurgo Tru-Fit Smart Dog Walking Harness’s design as being like a life vest: It fits, but the fit can be bulky or sit too low or high, depending on body shape. So don’t be surprised if you need to exchange your initial purchase for another size. (If your pup is between sizes, Kurgo recommends sizing up.) For example, even though the Tru-Fit is marketed for dogs weighing up to 110 pounds or with chests measuring up to 44 inches in diameter, in our experience the largest size fit a bit snugly on Watson, our 115-pound Bernese mountain dog, who has a 39-inch chest but a thick double coat. And Sutton, our 9-pound Chihuahua mix, who has a 14-inch chest, easily slipped out of the smallest harness, which is designed for dogs weighing as little as 5 pounds or with chests as small as 12 inches across.
The harness’s broad chest and back plates, although padded and soft, cover more area and could be irritating on a dog that has sensitive skin. And although the Tru-Fit’s front attachment point helps keep dogs from pulling, this harness is not quite as good for rambunctious pets as our runner-up, the 2 Hounds Design Freedom No Pull Dog Harness, whose front attachment point is even lower on the chest for more control.
The Kurgo Tru-Fit is tough but not indestructible. In our testing, we loosened the stitching where the webbing meets the vest seam when we tugged hard on it by hand to simulate a dog’s lunge. It also comes with an additional, small nylon loop and a carabiner to attach the harness to a seat belt or to use it as a training tool, yet Kurgo says the seat-belt loop isn’t crash-tested, so we don’t recommend depending on it as a safety measure while you’re driving. (The Center for Pet Safety independently certifies harnesses, and you can review its findings.)
Best for: most dogsAttachment points: front, backFeatures: reflective trim, seat belt loop (but it isn’t crash tested)Sizes: dogs weighing from 5 pounds to up to 110 poundsWarranty: lifetime warranty
For small dogs: Puppia Soft Harness
This stretchy harness is great for itty bitty breeds.
The Puppia Soft Harness is a soft, adjustable vest made to keep a toy-sized dog safe. Since these dogs can be squirmy or have low-slung bodies, a more-flexible fabric construction can stay in place better than nylon straps or a universal design like that of the Kurgo Tru-Fit vest. The Puppia is available in sizes small enough for use on a dog with a 9-inch chest, such as a 3½-pound Chihuahua.
The vest shape keeps the harness snug without putting pressure on your small pup’s delicate neck, and it works with a variety of dog body shapes thanks to its flexible materials and adjustable chest loop. This design is especially good if your dog is an escape artist and might slip one leg out from under a nylon harness strap and hightail it three blocks in a flash. But since the Puppia harness has no give in the neck area, finding a proper fit can be challenging. We recommend double-checking your pup’s measurements before purchasing the Puppia; the manufacturer advises adding ¼ to ½ inch to the neck measurement and measuring at the base of the neck for a proper fit.
No small-dog harnesses we found have front attachment points, but dogs this tiny are light enough for you to reposition using the rear point, if you need to correct bad behavior. We felt safer walking our small dog in the Puppia than in the Frisco Small Breed Soft Vest Dog Harness, which has Velcro instead of buckles to secure it in place; if the Velcro isn’t secure or wears down, a bony, contortionist canine could easily make their escape. Although the Puppia is lightweight enough to avoid weighing down the smallest dogs, it’s as strong as other vest-style harnesses we tested. We found that the buckles remained secure, and the webbing was durable, albeit a little scratchy.
The Puppia harness is easy to wash and comes in a wide variety of colors. Even though the harness fits dogs with chests from 9 to 41 inches—say, from a 3½-pound Chihuahua to a 60-pound Lab—we don’t recommend using it for non-toy breeds due to its lack of a front attachment.
Best for: small dogsAttachment points: backFeatures: lightweightSizes: dogs weighing from 4 pounds to up to 60 poundsWarranty: one-year limited warranty for manufacturer defects
A Safer, More Comfortable Solution for Your Dog
Harnesses are available in a wide array of sizes and styles. They limit pressure by dispersing the force across the entire front half of a dog’s body. Because the leash attaches to a harness at fixed attachment points instead of around the neck, your dog experiences less potentially damaging leash pressure.
As dog owners ourselves, we realize that sometimes dogs will take advantage of that and pull even harder. The only real solution to pulling is good training.
But for those dogs who are prone to pull or dart, some harnesses have second attachment points that discourage pulling. One of our test dogs — a fantastic skijor dog — provided great insight into pulling during our tests.
When selecting the best harness for your pup, there are many factors to consider. Dog harnesses vary by adjustability, leash attachment options, visibility, size, style, material, and durability.
Of all the available options, we carefully selected our picks for the best dog harness in several different categories. With a new high-quality harness for your and your beloved pup, your walks together will be more enjoyable and safer than ever before.
Scroll through to see all of our recommended buys, or jump to the category you’re looking for:
✅ Best Tactical Dog Harness 2022 [ Buyer’s Guide ]
The best dog harness can safely restrain your pooch and allow for better control in a myriad of situations. It also allows for a great connection between the human and canine. We put some of the top dog harnesses of the year to the test.
Going on walks, runs, and even rides together can form a joy-filled relationship between you and your furry friend. Exploring the world with your dog is one of the greatest gifts of dog ownership.
While out on walks, not only is the emotional bond between you and your dog strengthened, the physical bond of the leash also joins you together as a unit. For both you and your dog, a dog harness can be a helpful and comfortable difference-maker.
While necessary for some circumstances, collars can cause uncomfortable pressure on your dog’s spine and trachea. And they can be especially harmful to dogs with a tendency to pull while on a leash. Compared to a traditional collar, a well-fitted harness provides improved comfort and safety for your dog and much better control for you.