We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article.

Squat and stretch in comfort with these cushioned mats

The best yoga mats can make the world of difference when you’re trying to get in shape at home — something many of us will be all too familiar with following lockdown fitness efforts.

They provide a grippy, cushioned surface to keep your limbs planted and your spine protected, whether you’re attempting Vinyasa flow or being put through your paces by the Body Coach.

To help you hit your 2022 fitness goals, we’ve tested the best yoga mats on the market to find the top products for elevating your home workouts.

Read on to find out which yoga mats are our favourites…

Finding the right yoga mat for you isn’t as simple as it seems. It all depends what you want to use it for — yoga, HIIT sessions, or a hybrid of both.

You’ll also want to take into account personal preference and think about where you plan to use it, whether that’s at home, at a studio or for al fresco sessions at the park.

With that said, these features are handy to have:

Grip: You should be able to dive into a downward dog without worrying that your hands or feet are going to slip.

Cushioning: You’ll want a yoga mat that can keep your spine and limbs comfortable while moving from pose to pose at your yoga spot of choice. If the floor is hard and unforgiving, it’s likely you’ll need a slightly thicker mat.

Portability: If you’re always on the move and prone to outdoor or gym sessions, look for a mat that is lightweight and easy to roll up. The most portable mats tend to be thinner, sacrificing some cushioning, but if you’re using them at a grassy park or on top of a studio mat then this can negate the problem.

Durability: Some mats will be made with one thing in mind: yoga. As a result, they offer brilliant grip and a comfy amount of cushioning, ideal for bare-footed flows. But, shoes and dumbbells may damage them. Other mats, however, are crafted to be multi-purpose, able to offer a stable yoga platform while also withstanding sweaty combos of burpees and jump squats.

Our fitness expert has tested a host of the top yoga mats to help you find your perfect fit.

Each mat was used for yoga and yoga nidra (a form of deep rest), as well as HIIT sessions and a weights workout to see if they would be damaged by shoes and dropped dumbbells.

They were scored on their design, ease of use and performance, with the highest marks awarded to mats that offered great grip, cushioning and portability (with style points also up for grabs).

Find the best yoga mat for you and your workouts...

This mat’s soft natural latex is second-to-none when it comes to grip, with our expert saying they could plant their hands with complete confidence — even in more precarious poses.

The block colour design looks stylish in the studio, and it stands out from the crowd when it comes to performance. The Super Grip Yoga Mat rolls out easily, lies flat almost instantly and is durable enough to withstand weights and HIIT sessions.

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 183 x 62 x 0.4 Weight: 2kg Material: Natural latex Thickness: 4mm Colours available: Slate, marina green, nerine pink

If your home fitness routine involves a healthy cocktail of yoga, HIIT, weights sessions and more, this is the mat for you. It’s thicker than most, offering plenty of cushioning so you can do planks and push-ups in comfort (aching arms and abs aside).

The plush, grippy surface feels lovely on bare feet, making it equally adept as a yoga or Pilates partner, and adjustable straps allow you to secure it into a tight cylinder.

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 183 x 61 x 1 Weight: 1.25kg Material: NBR Thickness: 10mm Colours available: Black and red colourway

Yoga’s mood-boosting benefits are well-documented, and it’s hard not to smile when you see this stand-out mat’s gorgeous design. Fortunately, its performance had our expert grinning from ear to ear too.

It’s incredibly thin and folds up easily, earning it maximum portability points. But, while this characteristic often comes at the expense of comfort, the fine towelling on the outer of this Yogi Bare product means it’s surprisingly cushioned for a travel mat.

(Expert top tip: give it a spritz with water before using to maximise grip).

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 183 x 61 x 0.2 Weight: 1.5kg Material: Natural rubber and microfibre toweling Thickness: 2mm (thin) Colours available: Nevada, Harvey and Mills Blue, Tropical

It can be hard to keep track of your limbs during complicated yoga flows. Luckily, the lovely lot at Lululemon have included textured rings on their Take Form Mat to remedy this. Without having to look down, you can feel where your hands and feet are on the mat, helping you perfect the form for each pose.

The rubbery texture makes the mat a tad tricky to roll up and it’s not suitable for shoes or weights, but the surface still felt durable and offered great grip. So, we would recommend this one for at-home yoga aficionados.

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 180 x 66 x 0.5 Weight: 2.24kg Material: Natural rubber Thickness: 5mm Colours available: Black, spiced chai and silk rose, green fern, blue borealis, black and white

If you’re after an impeccable all-rounder, look no further. At 4mm thick, the Yogi Bare Paws provides enough cushioning for restorative practices like Savasana (also known as ‘corpse pose’) while still being thin enough to feel the ground beneath your feet and stay balanced. A larger model is also available, ideal for taller testers.

The non-toxic natural rubber absorbs sweat during dynamic sessions and, similarly to the Lululemon mat above, its attractive Aztec design serves the secondary purpose of helping users align their body mid-flow.

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 180 x 66 x 0.4 Weight: 2.5kg Material: Natural rubber and polyurethane Thickness: 4mm (medium) Colours available: Black, green, grey, ocean blue, red

You’ll stand out in the studio with this eye-catching mat from Kati Kaia, which is available in five eye-catching colours. It also set itself apart from the competition by being the only mat we tested to feature a ‘synthetic vegan suede’ layer, which provided a soft and smooth surface for soothing stretching sessions.

The rest of the mat is made from natural tree rubber, with the underside sticking to the floor brilliantly when unfurled so we didn’t have to worry about the mat moving under our feet.

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 183 x 66 x 0.45 Weight: 3.4kg Material: Natural tree rubber and vegan suede Thickness: 4.5mm (medium) Colours available: Purple, turquoise, yellow, black, blue

Water can be a slippery customer, anyone who’s ever driven in the rain knows that. But this mat’s (already impressive) grip is designed to get even stronger when wet, making it a great option for sweatier escapades like hot yoga.

It’s on the heavier side so isn’t the most portable, but this does mean that it quickly lies flat and won’t budge when laid on the floor. On top of this, it has a luxe look and feels robust, earning rave reviews from our expert.

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 183 x 68 x 0.5 Weight: 2.5kg Material: Biodegradable 100% tree rubber, polyurethane Thickness: 5mm (medium) Colours available: Mint, midnight blue, charcoal, black

If you’re a first-time buyer, this versatile (and affordable) yoga mat will see you right. It’s super lightweight and simple to use; just unfurl and off you go. Free carry straps also make it easy to roll up, secure and sling over your shoulder.

Our expert found it was comfortable for higher impact activities like HIIT sessions too, taking sweaty sets of burpees in its stride while providing a good amount of cushioning. However, while our hands and feet enjoyed plenty of grip, the underside of the mat had a tendency to slide around slightly on the floor.

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 173 x 61 x 0.7 or 1 Weight: 0.92kg Material: Nitrile Butadiene Rubber Thickness: 7mm or 10mm (thick) Colours available: Blue, green, grey, orange, red

There’s no need to spend over the odds for a top yoga mat. Take this Sundried mat, for example, which can be snapped up for under £20.

Our expert liked the design and granular texture of the jute upper, saying they could really feel it under the hands during meditative practices. It’s durable too, easily handling weights sessions without any signs of damage or indentation, though it’s not as grippy as the usual rubber uppers.

Still, it’s a quality mat, and a steal at this price (particularly considering it comes with a useful carry strap).

Key specifications Dimensions (cm): 180 x 61 x 0.6 Weight: N/A Material: Jute Thickness: 6mm Colours available: Blue and sand