PURPOSE: Sweat production is crucial to thermoregulation. However, sweating can be problematic for spinal cord injured individuals (SCI) as they display suppression of sudomotor and vasomotor responses below their level of lesion. Sweat gland density and eccrine gland metabolism in SCI are not well understood. METHODS: Consequently, this study examined sweat lactate [S-LA] (reflective of sweat gland metabolism), active sweat gland density (SGD), and sweat output per gland (S/G) in seven SCI athletes and seven matched (for arm ergometry VO2peak) able-bodied (AB) controls. Sweat collection device was positioned on the upper-scapular (right side) and medial calf (right leg) of each subject just prior to the beginning of the trial with iodine sweat gland density patches were positioned on the upper-scapular (left side) and medial calf (right side). Participants were tested on a ramp protocol (7 min per stage, 20 W increase per stage) in a common exercise environment (21 ± 1°C, 45-65 % relative humidity). RESULTS: An independent t-test revealed significantly lower (p<0.05) SGD for SCI 22.3 ± 14.8 glands/cm2 vs. AB. 41.0 ± 8.1 glands/cm2. But there was no significant difference for S/G between groups. S-LA was significantly higher (p<0.05) for test stage two for (11.5 ± 10.9mmol−1) (vs. AB: 26.8 ± 11.07mmol−1) but not for other exercise stages. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest SCI athletes had fewer active sweat glands compared to the AB group, but the sweat response was similar (SLA, S/G) between AB and SCI athletes. Results suggest similar intraglandular metabolic activity irrespective of a lower overall sweat rate.