The Oculus Quest 2’s absorbent foam pads will inevitably become sweat-stained and dirtier the longer you use them. Worse, the foam causes skin irritation, to the point that Oculus recalled the Quest 2 and is offering a replacement silicone cover.
While you can get that for free, there are other options on the market that are worth considering. Alternative third-party covers made of leather, silicone, or other more comfortable materials are easier to clean and have better venting to prevent lens fogging. Starting with our personal favorite, the KIWI Design Facial Interface, here are the best Quest 2 face covers when it comes to coziness and cleanliness.
The best Oculus Quest 2 face covers
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One of the biggest Oculus Quest 2 issues is excess lens fogging. The basic facial interface traps your heat and sweat inside the headset, which inevitably fogs up your POV — especially when playing active games or exercise apps. Thankfully, several third-party replacement covers include vents to allow more air circulation, which daily VR users will find incredibly useful.
Of those alternatives, the KIWI Design Facial Interface wins because it gives you four vents: two pairs on the top and two pairs on the bottom. This allows cool air to flow in from below and warm air to escape up top. In our tests, it did the best job of preventing fogged-up lenses, no matter the temperature of your room. Yes, that includes both sweaty summer days and cold winter nights, if you can believe it.
KIWI even sells an optional glasses spacer that’s designed to work with the special shape of this face pad replacement, too. You’ll definitely want to make sure to pick this one up, as the default Quest 2 glasses spacer that comes in the box doesn’t work super well with KIWI’s design.
While I found the KIWI face cover padding to be extremely comfortable, note that its noseguard does let in some decent light leakage. If that does prove to be an issue, the KIWI Design Facial Interface uses velcro strips that are compatible with other face covers! I often use the KIWI interface in addition to padding from VR Cover — another pick on this list — which helped close the gap.
With a similar price to the KIWI interface, this AMVR accessory is your best bet if you want a vented face cover that has a more efficient light-blocking nose guard. Rather than relying solely on large vents, the AMVR model has a combination of “ventilation and exhaust holes” to keep the Quest 2 mostly fog-free in our tests. It doesn’t work quite as well as KIWI’s four-vent design, but it’s far better than the default Meta pad or silicone pads.
The seven-in-one bundle of the AMVR Facial Vent and Pads have the following: the facial interface bracket; two leather face covers sized 8mm and 12mm; two side foam pads to cushion near the straps; a light-blocking nose pad; and a lens cover to protect it during transit and block harmful sun rays.
You’ll especially appreciate the multiple face covers, as they’ll allow you to pick more or less padding based on your face’s size and shape. And the side cushions don’t just add comfort; they also prevent light leakage from above your eyes. Conversely, it’s entirely possible that some folks might find the extra padding on the sides of their eyes less comfortable than KIWI’s padding.
While I don’t wear glasses when playing in VR, many users report that the AMVR face cover is fantastic for glasses-wearers thanks to the extra opening width provided by the wider pads. We highly recommend this mode — though we do suggest you skip the orange model and get the black one instead. The orange color will catch the light inside the headset and prove distracting, defeating the purpose of its light-blocking parts.
The best VR experiences happen when you’re so immersed that you completely forget you’re wearing the headset at all. The XROS VR Face Cover is designed with comfort in mind starting with four layers of materials with a thick and wide pad to comfortably distribute the weight of the headset as much as possible. The material is easy to clean and XROS says that you can even machine wash it.
The breathable fabric helps you to keep cool and comfortable during fitness games. This fabric also allows for enough airflow to reduce the amount of fog buildup inside the headset. Having fog constantly build up on your lenses can be a pain to deal with and can make it that much harder to get into a game quickly. An extra rubber flap also reduces the amount of light coming in by your nose.
One of the more interesting features XROS includes is a trade-in program to improve sustainability. This program allows users to trade in their XROS VR Face Cover for a new one in 6-12 months following the purchase. This will also come with 50% off a replacement unit. While it’s hard to be sure if shipping a used foam face pad away to be recycled is actually a net positive for the environment, it can be for your wallet.
Leather replacement covers typically win the day for comfort but require taking apart your headset to install a new gasket, and removing the leather covers to clean them can be tricky; you may want to invest in a few silicone covers instead. They slide directly over the stock Quest 2 foam interface, then come off in a flash when you want to wipe off sweat and germs from your intense Beat Saber session.
Another reliable VR Cover accessory, these silicone covers will provide a cool, sweat-wicking surface for playing active games. In our tests, they stayed secure on your face better than some of the leather pads when moving around fast, so you don’t have to readjust your headset constantly.
You can buy three of these for the same price as any of the above options and swap between them after every session, so you’re confident it’s thoroughly sanitized. Or you can buy these in addition to any of the above picks; a silicone cover will slide over a leather cover in a pinch.
If silicone covers have a downside, it’s that their sweat-repelling material will cause sweat to drip down your face and into the headset, so you’ll want to pair this with some absorbent headband and other Quest 2 workout accessories. But overall, there’s very little downside to stocking up on a few of these. You can even change up the headset color to match your mood!
The Meta Quest 2 Fit Pack is a set of two replacement face covers directly from Meta. This kit comes with two different sizes of pads to accommodate wider faces so you can get the perfect fit. Getting a good fit for your headset can improve image quality as well as comfort for longer play sessions. If you were looking to get something straight from Meta for your headset, this is one of your best bets. One thing to keep in mind is that some users report focus and fitment issues using the Fit Pack with glasses.
This kit also comes with two light blockers to help reduce light bleeding from around the nose. Since noses come in all shapes and sizes, some folks will end up getting a lot more light coming in that can be distracting and pull you out of the action. All of this comes together to help you get more immersed in your VR content without the pesky outside world distracting you from the action.
On a quest for the best face covers?
The best Quest 2 face covers aren’t just for people who regularly play hardcore exercise VR games. Pressed tight against your skin for hours, the Quest 2 facial interface is bound to absorb sweat, dirt, and bacteria. Oculus’ official cleaning guide (opens in new tab) suggests non-abrasive antibacterial wipes, but those may only get what’s on the immediate surface and not what has seeped into the stock foam. That’s why you’ll want a PU leather or silicone cover that doesn’t absorb anything, letting you wipe away bacteria.
If you want to pick just one cover that won’t let you down, try the KIWI Design facial interface. Its padding will envelop you in a way that’ll make the Quest 2 feel much more natural. In addition to that, KIWI’s excellent vent design fixes the issue of foggy lenses that plagues most VR headsets by offering superior airflow to the face. Pair it with a Quest 2 head strap replacement, and your headset will become even more comfortable for long sessions.
If you really want to go all-out, pick up the KIWI Design facial interface and a few of VR Cover’s Cool XG foam pads. You can drop these cooling pads right onto the KIWI Design facial interface, thanks to similar Velcro adhesive designs, and get both the best ventilation for a fogless play session and the most comfortable pads on the market. That’s especially true during the extra-sweaty summer season.
Early adopters can get a free replacement
You can also request a free Quest 2 silicone cover from Oculus (opens in new tab) as part of its voluntary recall. You’re eligible to receive one as long as you bought your Quest 2 before 8/24/2021; otherwise, you should have gotten one in the box.
Unfortunately, if it weren’t free, we wouldn’t necessarily recommend this pick. It takes about a month to arrive, is rather flimsily made, and some users say it’s a struggle to get it to stick on top of the foam interface. We got our copy on in about five minutes — it slowly molds to fit the gasket — and it seems to be extremely prone to little scratches and scuff marks at the slightest provocation.
On the other hand, it’s free! You can never have too many silicone covers, making this the perfect backup when your other covers are sweat-stained and you don’t want to wash them right away. It’ll slide right over the foam interface and give you the basic protection you need, even if it isn’t as colorful or well-molded as the VR Cover silicone covers.