How to choose a padel racket: a complete beginner's guide

Buying your first proper padel racket is harder than it should be. Most product pages list a wall of numbers and never explain what any of them do to your game. This guide covers the five things that actually matter, in the order they matter, so you can decide in about ten minutes.

1. Shape decides how forgiving the racket is

Padel rackets come in three broad shapes, and the shape controls where the sweet spot sits on the face.

• Round. Sweet spot low and central, near your hand. The most forgiving shape and the easiest to control. If you are starting out, or you still miss the middle of the face fairly often, this is the shape you want.
• Teardrop. Sweet spot slightly higher up the face. You give up a little forgiveness and get a little more power back. Suits an improver who has stopped mis-hitting and wants more from the ball.
• Diamond. Sweet spot high on the face. Hits hard when you find it and feels awful when you do not. A shape for confident attacking players.

Almost everyone buying a first racket should be on a round shape. Our entire control range is round for exactly that reason.

2. Weight matters, but balance matters more

Padel rackets sit roughly between 350g and 375g. Ours are 360g, squarely in the middle. Lighter is quicker into position and kinder on the arm; heavier puts more mass behind the ball but costs you reaction speed and tires you out faster.

What changes the feel more than raw weight is where that weight sits. Weight towards the head gives power and a slower swing. Weight towards the handle gives control and quicker hands at the net. If you are unsure, a middle balance is the safe answer.

3. The face material sets how the ball comes off

Faces are either fibreglass or carbon fibre, and carbon is graded by weave: 3K, 12K, 18K and so on.

Fibreglass is softer and cheaper. It flexes more, which feels comfortable and adds a little free power, but it is vaguer at the moment of contact and wears out sooner.

Carbon is stiffer and more responsive. More feedback, better spin, considerably more durability. Higher weave numbers are stiffer again, which is why they suit stronger players who supply their own power and want the racket to transmit it accurately rather than soften it. Every racket we sell has a carbon face.

4. The core decides comfort

Inside the racket is a block of EVA foam. Soft EVA absorbs more shock, feels friendlier, and is the right choice if you have any history of elbow or wrist trouble. Hard EVA transmits more of the impact, which gives a more precise, punchier feel but asks more of your arm.

Our rackets use an EVA memory-flex core, which sits on the comfortable side of that scale. That is deliberate. Most people buying a first or second racket play two or three times a week and would rather not have a sore arm on Thursday.

5. Grip size and the overgrip

Padel handles are narrow and fairly standard, and most players adjust the fit with an overgrip rather than hunting for a different handle size. One overgrip adds a couple of millimetres. If the handle feels too thin and you catch yourself squeezing, add a second.

A grip that is too small makes you clench, and clenching is one of the most common causes of elbow pain in padel. If in doubt, go slightly thicker.

What you can safely ignore

Ignore pro endorsements. Ignore anything described only as professional. Be sceptical of very cheap rackets sold with no stated core or face material at all: if a listing will not tell you the shape, the weight and what the face is made of, that is usually because the answer is not flattering.

A sensible first purchase

For most people coming off a club hire racket: a round shape, a carbon face, a comfortable EVA core, around 360g, somewhere between forty and sixty pounds. Spend the difference on balls and court time rather than on a stiffer racket you cannot yet use.

Not sure yet?

Answer a few questions about how you play and we will recommend a specific model and explain the reasoning. Try the Racket Finder.

Or go straight to beginner rackets, improver rackets, or a starter bundle with racket, bag, balls and a spare grip.