In this article we will be looking at independent tire test data, and real world driver reviews of the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 and the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 to find out which tire is best for your own driving.
The good news is that both the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 and Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 are Ultra High Performance Winter tires designed to be fitted to Passenger Cars, which means comparing the two tires is relatively simple.
Both tires are hugely popular in the market place with drivers, and both have been featured in independent tire tests.
Independent comparison tire tests are the best source of data to get tire information from, and the good news is there have been nine tests which compare both tires directly!
Out of these nine tests:
While it might look like the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 is better than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 purely based on the higher number of test wins, tires are very complicated objects which means where one tire is better than the other can be more important in real world use.
Let's look at how the two tires compare across multiple tire test categories.
Looking at data from five tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during five dry braking tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 stopped the vehicle in 6.1% less distance than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Dry Braking: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Dry Braking winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:45.6M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 41.9M |
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:40.39M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 37.95M |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:43.6M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 41.4M |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:45.8M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 42.3M |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:43.3M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 41.8M |
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during one dry handling [s] tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was 2.63% faster around a lap than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Dry Handling [s]: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Dry Handling winner was calculated >>
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:46.01s | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 44.8s |
Looking at data from four tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during zero dry handling [km/h] tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was 2.08% faster around a lap than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Dry Handling [Km/H]: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Dry Handling winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:109.5Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 110.5Km/H |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:99.3Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 102.9Km/H |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:110.4Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 112.6Km/H |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:101Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 103.1Km/H |
Looking at data from seven tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during five wet braking tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 stopped the vehicle in 3.97% less distance than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Wet Braking: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Wet Braking winner was calculated >>
2020 Winter Tire Market Overview - 52 Tire Braking Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:35.2M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 31.9M |
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:55M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 49.9M |
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:30.36M | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 30.99M |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:52.4M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 49.8M |
2023 Winter Tire Test 54 Set Braking Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:36.1M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 34.3M |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:56.4M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 53.6M |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:48.8M | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 51.3M |
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during one wet handling [s] tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was 1.81% faster around a wet lap than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Wet Handling [s]: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Wet Handling winner was calculated >>
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:50.72s | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 49.8s |
Looking at data from four tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during one wet handling [km/h] tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was 1.45% faster around a wet lap than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Wet Handling [Km/H]: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Wet Handling winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:71.7Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 74.4Km/H |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:70.3Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 72Km/H |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:84Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 85.7Km/H |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:82.2Km/H | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 80.6Km/H |
Looking at data from two tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during two wet circle tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was 2.04% faster around a wet circle than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Wet Circle: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Wet Circle winner was calculated >>
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:12.73s | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 12.57s |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:12.71s | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 12.34s |
Looking at data from five tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during two straight aqua tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 floated at a 1.17% higher speed than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Straight Aqua: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Straight Aqua winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:89.7Km/H | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 86.1Km/H |
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:79.7Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 83.1Km/H |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:90.4Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 97.5Km/H |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:90.6Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 91.4Km/H |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:89.2Km/H | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 86.7Km/H |
Looking at data from four tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during four curved aquaplaning tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 slipped out at a 3.6% higher speed than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Curved Aquaplaning: Dunlop Winter Sport 5
See how the Curved Aquaplaning winner was calculated >>
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:83.4m/sec2 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 80.8m/sec2 |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:3.84m/sec2 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 3.82m/sec2 |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:2.29m/sec2 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 2.12m/sec2 |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:3.69m/sec2 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 3.14m/sec2 |
Looking at data from seven tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during six snow braking tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 stopped the vehicle in 3.05% less distance than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Snow Braking: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Snow Braking winner was calculated >>
2020 Winter Tire Market Overview - 52 Tire Braking Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:25M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 24.3M |
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:25M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 24.3M |
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:16.4M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 15.67M |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:31.8M | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 32M |
2023 Winter Tire Test 54 Set Braking Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:30.7M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 29.2M |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:30.7M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 29.2M |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:31.1M | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 30.2M |
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during one snow traction tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 accelerated 2.41% faster than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Snow Traction: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Snow Traction winner was calculated >>
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:5.39s | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 5.26s |
Looking at data from four tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during one snow traction tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 had 2.17% better snow traction than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Snow Traction: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Snow Traction winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:2909N | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 3005N |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:2824N | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 2687N |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:2755N | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 2944N |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:2172N | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 2260N |
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during one snow handling [s] tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was 3.34% faster around a lap than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Snow Handling [s]: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Snow Handling winner was calculated >>
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:89.18s | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 86.2s |
Looking at data from four tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during one snow handling [km/h] tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was 0.65% faster around a lap than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Snow Handling [Km/H]: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Snow Handling winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:61.5Km/H | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 60.2Km/H |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:44.1Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 44.3Km/H |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:59.1Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 60.6Km/H |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:59.8Km/H | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 60.9Km/H |
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during zero snow circle tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 provided 3.36% more lateral grip than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Snow Circle: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Snow Circle winner was calculated >>
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:2.88ms/2 | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 2.98ms/2 |
Looking at data from two tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during zero snow slalom tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was 5.25% faster through a slalom than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Snow Slalom: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Snow Slalom winner was calculated >>
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:3.71m/sec2 | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 3.89m/sec2 |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:3.15m/sec2 | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 3.34m/sec2 |
Best In Subj. Comfort: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Subj. Comfort winner was calculated >>
Looking at data from five tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during five noise tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 measured 3.72% quieter than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Noise: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Noise winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:74.8dB | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 70.1dB |
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:71.2dB | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 69.4dB |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:75.4dB | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 72.8dB |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:74.1dB | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 70.6dB |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:72.4dB | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 71.3dB |
Looking at data from two tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during zero wear tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 is predicted to cover 8.25% miles before reaching 1.6mm than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Wear: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Wear winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:42640KM | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 47970KM |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:39348KM | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 41387KM |
Looking at data from two tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during two value tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 proved to have a 11.1% better value based on price/1000km than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Value: Dunlop Winter Sport 5
See how the Value winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:14.77Price/1000 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 15.22Price/1000 |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:14.87Price/1000 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 18.12Price/1000 |
Looking at data from two tire tests, the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 was better during two price tests. On average the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 cost 16.37% less than the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
Best In Price: Dunlop Winter Sport 5
See how the Price winner was calculated >>
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:101.87 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 127.29 |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:590 | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 700 |
Looking at data from five tire tests, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was better during three rolling resistance tests. On average the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 had a 0.59% lower rolling resistance than the Dunlop Winter Sport 5.
Best In Rolling Resistance: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
See how the Rolling Resistance winner was calculated >>
2020 Auto Bild Performance Winter Tire Test 245/45 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:7.59kg / t | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 7.97kg / t |
2021 Tire Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:9.624kg / t | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 9.142kg / t |
2021 Auto Bild Sports Car Winter Tire Test 245/40 R18 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:8.51kg / t | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 8.43kg / t |
2023 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 |
✓ Dunlop Winter Sport 5:8.02kg / t | Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 8.46kg / t |
2024 Auto Bild Sportscars Winter Tire Test 235/35 R19 |
Dunlop Winter Sport 5:8.89kg / t | ✓ Michelin Pilot Alpin 5: 8.41kg / t |
Tire Reviews also collects real world driver reviews for the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 and Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
In total the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 has been reviewed 40 times and drivers have given the tire 83% overall.
The Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 has been reviewed 21 times and drivers have given the tire 88% overall.
This means in real world driving, people prefer the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.
In conclusion the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 performed better in curved aquaplaning, value and price, while the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 performed better in dry braking, dry handling [s], dry handling [km/h], wet braking, wet handling [s], wet handling [km/h], wet circle, straight aqua, snow braking, snow traction, snow traction, snow handling [s], snow handling [km/h], snow circle, snow slalom, noise, wear and rolling resistance.
Which tire is best for you depends a lot on your driving style and situation, plus what you want from the tire. Comparing all the data in the tire reviews database, on balance Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 seems to be the best tire overall.
However, it's important to note that both tires have their strengths.
Remember, the best tire for you might depend on which of these factors are most important for your specific driving needs and conditions.
Overall Winner: Michelin Pilot Alpin 5
This page has been developed using tire industry testing best practices. This means we are only comparing tests which have had both tires in the same test.
Why is this important? Tire testing is heavily affected by things like surface grip levels and surface temperature, which means you can only compare values from the same day. During a tire test external condition changes are calculated into the overall results, but it is not possible to calculate this between tire tests performed on different days or at different locations.
As a result you will see other tests on Tire Reviews which feature both the %s and %s, but as they weren't conducted on the same day, the results are not comparable.
Lots of other websites do this sort of tire comparison, Tire Reviews doesn't.