There’s a lot of focus on which is the best mouse to buy – whether that’s a normal everyday rodent, or a gaming mouse – but little thought is generally given to what mouse pad should be paired with the peripheral, if any thought at all. But of course, the surface that you’re mousing on is an important part of the overall experience of using a mouse.
With that in mind, we’ve picked out some of our favorite and top-rated mouse pads, the royalty of the mouse mat world if you will, for daily computing duties in the main, perhaps with a bit of gaming on the side. (Many mouse mats are designed specifically for gaming, but they can make great everyday mouse pad options, too).
While we have picked out a ‘best overall’ mouse pad below, it should be noted that these mats are something of a matter of personal taste, and their feel and glide is always going to be rather subjective, so bear that in mind. Furthermore, you may well be looking for something specific – like a really large mat, or one with extras like a built-in charger, or perhaps a really cheap pad.
So, we’ve covered a range of different categories below to ensure you get the right mouse mat for your particular needs, and one that suits your shiny new mouse (or indeed your old one, for that matter).
The best mouse pads 2022
(Image credit: SteelSeries)
1. SteelSeries QcK Gaming
The best mouse pad overall
Specifications
Surface: Exclusive QcK micro-woven cloth
Size: 250 x 210 mm – 1600 x 800 mm
Reasons to buy
+
Smooth and precise mousing surface
+
Great value for the quality you’re getting
+
Range of different size options
Reasons to avoid
–
Tracks more pet hair than others
The SteelSeries QcK is a cloth mat offering an impressive surface for mousing whatever your needs, whether that’s navigating around the Windows desktop or paying games on your PC. It’s officially a gaming mouse pad, but in truth, it’s a fine all-rounder due to its minimalist solid black design with just the SteelSeries logo in one corner.
There are no extra frills here, but having tested this mouse pad, we found that its exclusive QcK micro-woven cloth offers just a little more control over your movements while still delivering that smooth gliding action. That’s a nice balance that also makes it great for both gaming and work. Although if you do need a little bit more speed, there are better options on this list.
We also appreciate its beautiful rubber base. Not only does it do a great job of keeping the pad stable on the desk and minimizing slippage, but the rubber bits come in the shape of the SteelSeries logo as well, which is fun even though they’re out of your eyeshot.
There are various size options with this mouse mat, including plus-sized and mini versions measuring 450 x 400mm and 250 x 210mm respectively. So, should you wish to have a more expansive or a more compact mat, you’ve certainly got options.
The only thing is that its surface does tend to track more pet hair than other mouse pads we’ve tested. So, if you like to keep your setup pristine, you’ll have to spend some more quality time with your handheld vacuum cleaner.
(Image credit: Roccat)
2. Roccat Sense Core
The best budget mouse pad
Specifications
Surface: Premium micro-weave cloth
Size: 250 x 210 mm – 900 x 420 mm
Reasons to buy
+
Smooth gliding
+
A little bit of resistance for control
+
Mini is great for small setups
Reasons to avoid
–
Rubber base could be better
The Roccat Sense Core is cheaper than many gaming mouse pads in its class while still delivering the same level of gliding performance and feel. So, if every buck / quid matters, this is definitely the one to get. And, you might even appreciate its minimalist design, especially if you don’t want to be a little heavy on RGB lighting.
We tested five different mice – some for productivity, others for gaming – on it, and we found that its cloth surface offers that nice smooth gliding feel but also just that tiny bit of resistance. This slightest friction gives you a little bit more control and precision, which should help when you’re gaming and when you’re doing productivity tasks.
The rubber base is mostly effective at keeping things in place, but we do wish it had a better grip on a desk. It does move a little when you’re gliding more vigorously, like during intense gameplay. That said, if you’re not playing too hard, it should hold it position just fine.
It does pick up pet hair fairly quickly. However, it’s pretty easy to clean. A quick run with a vacuum cleaner should do the trick.
There are several different sizes on hand, from a mini one that’s only 250 x 210 mm in sight and an XXL that’s 900 x 420 mm. The mini size is especially handy for users with smaller setups or who travel regularly.
(Image credit: WFH Desks)
3. WFH Desk Pad
The premium desk mat for professionals who like color
Specifications
Surface: Micro-weave cloth
Size: 800 x 500 mm
Reasons to buy
+
Stays in place
+
Great colors and design
Reasons to avoid
–
Better suited for WFH desks
The WFH Desk Pad might be better suited on Work From Home Desks’ brilliantly modular desks – though that’s really mainly due to its angled corners – but it’s an excellent desk pad to consider even if you’re got a different desk. That’s especially if you are tired of the same black color and want a big splash of color on your desk to brighten it up.
This is more for productivity use than for gaming. However, having tested two gaming mice on it, it seems to work just fine with them as well, particularly if you’re looking for a bit of resistance for more controlled gliding.
With productivity mice, however, we found that it works beautifully. The smooth gliding combined with its good amount of friction allows you a more seamless workflow – instead of having to constantly miss a button you’re trying to press onscreen. Its anti-skid natural rubber base also does a great job of keeping it in place. Plus, its edges are stitched to ensure it lasts longer and minimizes fraying.
And, as we said, it comes in different colors or colorful designs – eight, to be exact, only three of which are solid ones. Apart from the black version, it should add a dash of life into your setup, brightening it up no matter how office cubicle-dreary it is.
The only thing that really holds this back is the price. Sadly, it is on the pricey side, which makes it inaccessible to budget users. That’s why where keeping it as our top premium option on the list.
(Image credit: Amazon)
4. Amazon Mouse Pad
The cheapest mouse pad possible
Specifications
Surface: 87.7-inches square
Size: 10.6 x 8.27 x 0.12 inches (270 x 210 x 3mm; W x D x H)
Reasons to buy
+
Extremely cheap
+
Decent quality
Reasons to avoid
–
Feels very thin
–
Don’t expect the earth given the very low price
If you want to spend the absolute minimum on a mouse pad, then a basic offering from Amazon will do. In all honesty, we wouldn’t necessarily advise this as a wise course of action – after all, we spent the intro reminding you not to scrimp on a mat – but Amazon does have some very cheap mouse pads that are serviceable enough.
On a shoestring budget, we’d plump for the Amazon Eono brand mouse mat. This lies flat – there’s no curling up at the edges, as you can get with some cheap cloth mouse pads – and provides a smooth-glide mousing surface, plus it doesn’t shift about when using it. In short, it avoids all the pitfalls that a stupidly cheap mouse mat can often fall into, although the Eono is very thin (and you can feel that, which may not be to everyone’s taste – but there’ll always be compromises at the bargain basement level, and that said, we stopped noticing after a while with this mat).
Note that in the US, there is no Eono brand mat, and we’d steer clear of the equivalent Amazon Basics mouse pad – as reviews are mixed, and there are complaints about it curling up. Instead, hunt out the TNY Mouse Pad with Stitched Edge, which is well-reviewed on Amazon and looks very similar to the Eono.
(Image credit: Corsair)
5. Corsair MM350 Pro
The best extended mouse pad
Specifications
Surface: 574.6-inches square
Size: 36.6 x 15.7 x 0.16 inches (930 x 400 x 4mm; W x D x H)
Reasons to buy
+
Really spacious
+
Affordable XL model
+
Smooth mousing surface, and spill-proof too
Reasons to avoid
–
Needs a lot of desk space
Most mouse pads are a fairly standard not-too-far-off-squarish size, although as we’ve seen in some of the above mats, there are smaller and larger models. There are also really huge and long mouse pads often referred to as ‘extended’ mats or XL ones (or XXL, or throw in a few more X’s for that matter), and these are designed to cover the entire area of the desk in front of you. In other words, you can place your keyboard on the mat as well as mousing next to it.
The advantage of this is mainly to keep your keyboard stable – so it doesn’t have a tendency to shift about, or be nudged forwards, say – while giving you plenty of room for your mousing.
Our top pick in this category is the Corsair MM350 Pro (XL) which offers plenty of width as it’s almost a meter long, providing more than ample space. It has a high-quality cloth surface offering a smooth glide, with a spill-proof coating, and won’t break the bank either – while none of these extended pads are cheap, this is one of the more palatable prices out there.
(Image credit: Corsair)
6. Corsair MM1000 Qi
The best mouse pad with built-in wireless charging
Specifications
Surface: 140.8-inches square
Size: 13.8 x 10.2 x 0.2 inches (350 x 260 x 5mm; W x D x H)
Reasons to buy
+
Roomy mouse pad
+
Can charge non-Qi devices using adapter
+
Impressively well-made
Reasons to avoid
–
Not everyone will like the hard plastic surface
Corsair’s MM1000 comes with Qi charging built-in, so any devices supporting Qi can simply be placed on the mat – in the charging zone, top-right – to juice them up wirelessly. A Qi charging adapter can also be used to charge most other devices (it’s plugged in via USB Micro-B, or Type-C, or a Lightning adapter).
This is a hard mouse pad with a plastic (micro-textured) surface, and it’s solidly built. The MM1000 is also a reasonably large size to make a bit of extra space to help comfortably play host to the hardware being charged up.
If you want a solid mouse pad which is capable of charging your various devices up, this is a good choice for the asking price.
(Image credit: Gigabyte)
7. Gigabyte AMP500
The best hybrid mouse pad
Specifications
Surface: 246.7-inches square
Size: 16.9 x 14.6 x 0.07 inches (430 x 370 x 1.8mm; W x D x H)
Reasons to buy
+
Great compromise between a hard and soft mat
+
Nicely priced given the quality
Reasons to avoid
–
Might be a little large for some
The Gigabyte AMP500 is a hybrid pad, meaning it’s a compromise between a soft (cloth) and hard mat, being made of silicon. As we’ve observed already, not everyone will like the feel of a hard mousing surface – whether plastic or indeed glass – so what Gigabyte has done is produce something that offers the speed and precision of a hard surface, with the comfort of a soft one.
It’s a really nicely balanced compromise, and the further major benefit here is that the asking price for the AMP500 is very reasonable indeed. It’s way cheaper than some of the hard pads out there, making it a great choice for those who want a firmer mousing surface, but without breaking the bank.
Note that this is a large (and thin) pad, meaning that those folks with limited space on their desk might struggle a bit with the size, so be sure to consider that.
(Image credit: SteelSeries)
8. SteelSeries QcK Heavy
The best mouse pad with ergonomics in mind
Specifications
Surface: 133.6-inches square
Size: 12.6 x 10.6 x 0.24 inches (320 x 270 x 6mm; W x D x H)
Reasons to buy
+
Thick pad acts like a cushion for the wrist
+
Same great quality as the standard QcK
+
Affordable
You’ve probably seen mouse pads out there which have built-in raised wrist rests of some kind at the bottom of the pad (usually gel-filled) to give your wrist some added support. We used one of these in the distant past, though, and didn’t find it helped – and over time, in fact, we became somewhat concerned that it might hinder in terms of wrist health, if anything.
So, if you want a mouse mat which is ergonomically sound, we’d recommend the SteelSeries QcK Heavy, one of the siblings of our top-rated overall mouse pad. This combines a micro-woven cloth surface with an extra-thick (non-slip) rubber base, and that additional thickness makes the mouse mat like a cushion for your wrist.
In our view, this is a more helpful solution than a chunky gel wrist pad, but if you do want to get a full wrist rest, our recommendation would be to buy a standalone one, not a built-in solution (Razer makes a good Ergonomic Mouse Rest if this is the route you want to take).
This Heavy variant boasts the same laudable overall quality as the SteelSeries QcK, and comes in (slightly fewer) different sizes – medium, large and XXL – so you can pick and choose the most appropriate amount of mouse pad real-estate for your needs. The spec above is for the medium size, with the large and XXL being 450 x 400mm and 900 x 400mm respectively, though note the latter isn’t as thick at 4mm rather than 6mm. With ergonomics as the primary consideration here, we’d probably steer clear of the XXL due to it having less of a cushioning effect as a result.
Round up of today’s best deals
(opens in new tab)
(opens in new tab)
