Sportiva Tx4 La Sportiva Leather Boots La Sportiva TX Hike Mid Leather GTX Hiking Boot Men's Men vs Men Mephisto Curt Mt SNEAKER: which is safer?
Men Mephisto Curt Mt SNEAKER is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.
La Sportiva
Sportiva Tx4 La Sportiva Leather Boots La Sportiva TX Hike Mid Leather GTX Hiking Boot Men's Men
PFAS grade
Bad 20/100
Overall grade
Bad 0/100
Verdict
Skip
Hazard flags
⚑ 4
Material
Leather upper with Gore-Tex waterproof membrane
Confidence
45%
PossibleHeavy metals in leather tanning residues (chromium, cobalt)
LikelyVolatile organic compounds (VOCs) and adhesive off-gassing
PossibleAzo dyes in leather and synthetic trim
Our pick
Mephisto
Men Mephisto Curt Mt SNEAKER
PFAS grade
Good 65/100
Overall grade
Good 59/100
Verdict
Skip
Hazard flags
⚑ 1
Material
leather, textile, rubber sole
Confidence
55%
PossibleVolatile organic compounds (VOC) off-gassing from adhesives
Where these two actually differ
- We flag Heavy metals in leather tanning residues (chromium, cobalt), Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and adhesive off-gassing, Azo dyes in leather and synthetic trim and Mold and bacterial growth in moisture-trapped footbed on the La Sportiva and not on the Mephisto.
- We flag Volatile organic compounds (VOC) off-gassing from adhesives on the Mephisto and not on the La Sportiva.
- The La Sportiva is Leather upper with Gore-Tex waterproof membrane where the Mephisto is leather, textile, rubber sole, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
- The gap is 45 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Mephisto is the one to buy.
Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →
More waterproof boots: see the full ranking