I like Yamahas but they are all pretty good now
i think 500 plus is better
4x4 is a must however I ride it 2 wheel drive as much as possible
winch is needed
chains are nice however I only put them on when I get stuck. I don’t like running with them, it’s a rougher ride , loud ,the bike digs into the snow deeper so you have to push more snow so it slows you down , burns more gas and can help you get stuck in big drifts by diffing in so much where without them you could skip over top of the snow drift