Background: This study evaluated mechanical properties of glass ionomer cements (GICs) used for atraumatic restorative treatment. Wear resistance, Knoop hardness (Kh), flexural (F s ) and compressive strength (C s ) were evaluated. The GICs used were Riva Self Cure (RVA), Fuji IX (FIX), Hi Dense (HD), Vitro Molar (VM), Maxxion R (MXR) and Ketac Molar Easymix (KME). Methods: Wear was evaluated after 1, 4, 63 and 365 days. Two-way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc tests (P = 0.05) analysed differences in wear of the GICs and the time effect. F s , C s , and Kh were analysed with one-way ANOVA. Results: The type of cement (p < 0.001) and the time (p < 0.001) had a significant effect on wear. In early-term wear and Kh, KME and FIX presented the best performance. In long-term wear, F s and C s , KME, FIX and HD had the best performance. Strong explanatory power between F s and the Kh (r 2 = 0.85), C s and the Kh (r 2 = 0.82), long-term wear and F s of 24 h (r 2 = 0.79) were observed. Conclusions: The data suggested that KME and FIX presented the best in vitro performance. HD showed good results except for early-term wear.