I have always associated gloves with one of three things; to protect my hands from the cold, to look cute and/or to be sanitary. The thick mittens I wear when outdoors during winter are not ideal for doing precision oriented work and therefore are not relatable to anti static gloves. Delicate and aesthetically pleasing lace or thin cloth gloves may be cute, but they are not at all suited for any kind of work. Sanitary gloves for medical and food prep applications are disposable and made from a stretchy plastic, but are probably the most relatable glove type to anti static gloves.

Anti static gloves have a couple things in common with sanitary gloves. Because the wearers of anti static gloves are protecting themselves and the mechanical or electronic equipment they work with from electrostatic discharge damage, they need to be able to wear their gloves every day for detail focused applications to do with machinery. Therefore, like sanitary gloves, the anti static gloves must be tight so the employee wearing them may do their work without hindrance. Unlike sanitary gloves, the anti static style is reusable and should be washed after each use.

Most anti static gloves are made from porous cloth for the comfort of the employee who wears them all day while working with circuit boards, cell-phone and computer components or related static prone objects. This can be a carbon nylon or nitrile knit, among other options. Regardless of the glove material, it is the pads added to fingertips, palms and other key points of the glove that really matters. That fabric or plastic, often pieces of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), is what dissipates the electrostatic discharge from an object, which keeps the wearer of the gloves as well as the equipment safe. Pieces of PVC are stitched onto the key points of contact on the gloves.