Skip to content

The best lens caps for 2026

Three different parts share this name and only one of them is sized in millimetres. A front cap fits the filter thread and is bought by that number; a rear cap fits the lens mount and is bought by system; a body cap closes the camera when no lens is on it, and the last two are frequently sold as a pair because they are needed at the same moment. On the front, the mechanism matters more than it sounds: a centre-pinch cap can be removed with a hood fitted because the grips are inboard, while an older edge-pinch cap cannot, and that single difference decides which cap survives a season. A tether — a short cord to the lens or the strap — is the difference between a cap that is lost in a field and one that is not, and some caps are supplied with the anchor already fitted. Rear and body caps are simpler but not interchangeable between systems, and a mount-shaped cap from another maker will not lock. Material is plastic almost everywhere, and a metal front cap is a weight penalty in exchange for a fit that does not slacken. Multi-packs are common and cheap; what matters is that the pack states the sizes it contains rather than a range. We compare cap type, thread or mount fit, pinch mechanism, tether provision, material and pack contents.

The accessories that earn their place in the bag

  1. JJC 52 mm centre-pinch lens cap with its elastic keeper cord attached

    JJC 52 mm centre-pinch, with a tether and a 3M pad

    Four euros for a 52 mm centre-pinch cap with an elastic keeper, two ways to attach it, and nine lenses named.

    Cap type
    A front cap for the filter thread, in the title and the fifth bullet. Not a rear cap and not a body cap — the distinction matters on this shelf, and the hub above compares front caps on how they pinch and whether they tether
    Thread or mount fit
    52 mm, with NINE LENSES NAMED in the fifth bullet across three systems: Canon EF-S 24 mm f/2.8, EF-M 18-55 mm, RF 35 mm F1.8 Macro; Nikon AF-S 18-55 mm, 35 mm f/1.8G, Z 24-50 mm, Z 40 mm f2; Fuji XC 15-45 mm and XF 18 mm f/2 R. The same bullet adds where to check: the thread size is on the barrel or under the cap
    Pinch mechanism
    CENTRE-PINCH, in the third bullet — squeeze the middle to fit or release. The centre pinch is what allows a hood to stay on: a cap gripped at its rim cannot be reached inside a hood, and the fourth bullet says outright that this one works with filters and a hood at the same time
    Tether provision
    SUPPLIED, with TWO fixings: one universal elastic lanyard, attached either by a 3M adhesive pad to the lens barrel or looped through the cap’s own mounting hole, in the first and third bullets. A cap on a cord is a cap that is not lost, and this is the only tether on this shelf
    Material
    ABS, in the fourth bullet, described as light and durable — the only material named on this shelf
    Pack contents
    Two items: one cap with a centre clamp, and one universal elastic keeper, in the first bullet
    Amazon reference
    B0DCJMYGFH (same reference on 6 Amazon marketplaces)
    EAN
    6974413519401
    • An elastic keeper with two fixings — a 3M pad or the cap’s own hole
    • Nine lenses named across Canon, Nikon and Fuji, plus where to read the thread
    • The adhesive pad leaves a mark on the barrel where it is stuck

    Best for: A 52 mm lens whose cap keeps getting lost, used with a hood or a filter permanently fitted.

    ≈ £4 / 4 €
    Check price on Amazon
  2. Canon E-58II black lens cap lying face up

    Canon E-58II, 58 mm — three bullets, two irrelevant

    Four euros for Canon’s own 58 mm cap, from a listing whose three bullets are a colour and two camera specifications that have nothing to do with a cap.

    Cap type
    A front cap — the Canon E-58II, identified by part number in the title. The "II" marks Canon’s revised centre-pinch design, replacing an older rim-grip cap, which is the single most useful fact about it and appears nowhere in the bullets
    Thread or mount fit
    58 mm, carried only by the part number: E-58II. No bullet states a diameter, and no lens is named — where the 4 € JJC on this shelf names nine
    Pinch mechanism
    NOT STATED. The E-58II is a centre-pinch cap, which is why it can be removed inside a hood, and the page does not say so
    Tether provision
    NONE. No cord, no hole and no keeper
    Material
    Not named
    Pack contents
    Not stated. What the three bullets do contain is: "colour: black"; "Intervall-Aufnahme Y" — interval shooting, yes; and "USB Konnektivitätstechnologie" — USB connectivity technology. The last two are fields from a camera-body template, published on the listing for a piece of plastic with no electronics in it
    Amazon reference
    B00A2BWAKK (same reference on 6 Amazon marketplaces)
    EAN
    4960999795904
    • Canon’s own part, so the fit and the pinch action are the originals
    • The E-58II part number identifies it unambiguously
    • Two of its three bullets are camera specifications — interval shooting and USB

    Best for: Replacing a lost original cap on a 58 mm Canon lens, bought by part number.

    ≈ £5 / 4 €
    Check price on Amazon
  3. LENS-AID universal lens cap showing its centre pinch and ribbed outer rim

    LENS-AID 55 mm, centre pinch AND outer grip, 17 sizes

    Six euros for a cap that can be squeezed in the middle or gripped at the edge, from a range of seventeen diameters — and it fits a filter’s thread as well as a lens.

    Cap type
    A front cap sold as a replacement, in the fourth bullet, for a lost original or as a spare kept permanently in the bag. That is the honest framing of what this shelf sells: nobody buys their first cap
    Thread or mount fit
    55 mm here, from a published range of SEVENTEEN diameters — 37, 39, 40, 43, 46, 49, 52, 55, 58, 62, 67, 72, 77, 82, 86, 95 and 105 mm, in the fifth bullet. The range includes the odd sizes that are hardest to find: 39, 40 and 43 mm belong to old primes and adapted lenses, and 86, 95 and 105 to large telephotos
    Pinch mechanism
    BOTH, and it is the only cap on this shelf that offers the pair: the third bullet says it can be squeezed on the inside OR the outside, and stays comfortable to use with a hood or a filter fitted. Centre for a hood, rim for cold fingers
    Tether provision
    None
    Material
    Not named
    Pack contents
    Not stated. What the second bullet adds instead is unusual: compatibility with Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fujifilm, Tamron and Sigma lenses AND with round filters of matching diameter — a cap that screws onto a filter rather than only onto a lens
    Amazon reference
    B0BL7KV8WY (same reference on 5 Amazon marketplaces)
    EAN
    4260668674074
    • Centre pinch and outer grip, the only cap here with both
    • Seventeen diameters published, including the hard-to-find 39, 40 and 43 mm
    • No tether, where the 4 € JJC has a keeper cord

    Best for: An odd thread size a maker no longer supplies, or a bag where one spare cap should fit a filter as well as a lens.

    ≈ 6 €
    Check price on Amazon

Each amount in a write-up is what the listing showed when that page was written. The figure next to the product is pulled in as you read, and it is the one that counts.