The best leather conditioners for cowboy boots

Bick 4 is the conditioner to buy if you only buy one, and the reason is a single property: it does not darken leather. That matters more on boots than on anything else, because the usual conditioners and oils will take a light brown boot several shades darker and there is no undoing it. Reviewers consistently note that Bick 4's non-darkening claim holds up, that it absorbs well and that it works across a range of leathers, with the caveat that it can leave a little surface build-up if you over-apply. Use it two or three times a year on a boot in regular wear, and after any soaking.

What you give up: You give up waterproofing. A conditioner is not a weather treatment - it keeps leather supple, it does not keep water out.

Lexol is the other name that comes up in every leather-care thread, and for most purposes it and Bick 4 are interchangeable. It is thinner - reviewers suspect a higher water content - contains no wax, and can leave a slight residue, but it spreads easily and is sold in sizes that make it the cheaper choice if you are also doing a saddle, a car interior or a jacket. On boots specifically, apply it thinly and buff; the residue people complain about is almost always too much product rather than the product itself.

What you give up: You give up Bick 4's guaranteed non-darkening behavior. Spot-test on the inside of the shaft before you put it on the vamp of a light boot.

Mink oil is a conditioner that also adds genuine water resistance, which makes it the right product for a boot that goes outside in bad weather and the wrong product for a boot you want to keep looking new. Fiebing's Golden Mink Oil softens, preserves and water-resists smooth leather, and the manufacturer's own guidance is to spot-test, because it can darken leather noticeably. Pair it with saddle soap rather than instead of it: clean with soap, then condition and weatherproof with the oil. On a light-colored boot, do not use it at all - use Bick 4.

What you give up: You give up color control. Mink oil darkens, sometimes a lot, and heavy repeated use can soften leather past the point where it holds a shape.

Saddle soap is a cleaner, not a conditioner, and confusing the two is the most common boot-care mistake there is. It is an astringent built for thick, well-oiled leather - it is very good at pulling dirt and stains out, and that same action is why you must follow it with a conditioner, because it takes oils with it. The correct order is: brush off dry dirt, clean with saddle soap on a damp cloth, let the boot dry away from heat, then condition. Done twice a year that routine is the entire difference between boots that last and boots that crack.

What you give up: You give up moisture. Saddle soap strips as it cleans, so using it without conditioning afterwards is worse for the leather than not cleaning at all.