The helmets used by construction site workers are mainly designed for head protection when objects are dropped from heights. Construction helmets are also casually called "hard hats" in industries. Common construction helmets are mostly categorized as type 1 according to different standards. All type 1 helmets have to pass type 1 standard impact tests, which are top impact tests-the helmet is fixed and is impacted by a free falling impactor on the top crown of the helmet shell. The purpose of this study was to develop an approach that can determine the performance characterization of a helmet. A total of 31 drop impact tests using a representative type 1 helmet model were performed at drop heights from 0.30 to 2.23 m, which were estimated to result in impact speeds from 2.4 to 6.6 m/s. Based on our results, we identified a critical drop height that was used to evaluate the performance of helmets. The peak impact forces and peak accelerations varied nonproportionally with the drop height. When the drop height is less than the critical height, the peak force and peak acceleration increase gradually and slowly with increasing drop height. When the drop height is greater than the critical height, the peak force and peak acceleration increase steeply with even a slight increase in drop height. Based on the critical drop height, we proposed an approach to determine the safety margin of a helmet. The proposed approach would make it possible to determine the performance characteristics of a helmet and to estimate the safety margin afforded by the helmet, if the helmet first passes the existing standardized tests. The proposed test approach would provide supplementary information for consumers to make knowledgeable decisions when selecting construction helmets.