Gaming Mouse Pad – The Buying Guide

Most players give little thought to the mouse pad when putting together their setup, sticking to criteria like size, design and price. Yet it's the mouse pad that lets your gaming mouse express its full potential, so it has a direct impact on your skill and your performance. Having a good mouse is great, but being able to control it perfectly is even better!

The range of gaming mouse pads is almost unlimited, and every peripheral brand offers its own. There are actually quite few characteristics to take into account, but you do need to know them to make the right choice. This buying guide is here to help you find your ideal gaming mouse pad!

How much should you spend on a gaming mouse pad?

The mouse pad is certainly one of the least expensive pieces of your setup. So even on a modest budget you can get a real pro-level mouse pad, without any compromises!

To give you an idea, an entry-level pad costs around €10 and the most expensive ones cost €180 at most. For the same features, the size of the pad has a fairly strong impact on the price. Some options like RGB noticeably increase the price without actually improving performance. On the other hand, what can drive the price up very quickly is the material of your mouse pad! Since the remaining prices are, for the most part, fairly low, we recommend choosing a branded pad — it's the guarantee of a minimum level of quality, durability and comfort.

What are the best gaming mouse pad brands?

Almost all the major gaming peripheral brands — Artisan, SteelSeries, X-Raypad or EspTiger — offer a full range of gaming mouse pads. Some players, in order to have a consistent setup, will choose a pad from the same brand as their mouse and/or keyboard. The brand can also impose itself naturally: indeed, some pads have quite unique specifications — very large sizes, colours/patterns, reversible dual surface, inductive charging function… which can considerably reduce the number of possible brands.

How to choose a gaming mouse pad?

Now that we know the prices of mouse pads and the best brands, let's look at the criteria to take into account when choosing a gaming mouse pad. How does it affect performance and comfort? What is useful, and for which type of player?

The non-slip base

For obvious grip reasons, the base of the pad must be non-slip (this is normally the case for all pads listed on maxesport.gg). A textured rubber base does the job just fine and lets the pad grip the desk, stopping it from sliding — which would be rather unfortunate right when you're about to land a headshot!

The top layer

The surface coating is surely the most important criterion for a player chasing performance. There are two main types of surfaces, favouring either speed (speed) or control (control):

• Smooth: promotes glide for more speed (better suited to fast TPS/FPS games)
• Rough/Textured: grips the mouse and offers more precision and control (better suited to slow FPS and MOBA games)

To make your choice, you need to consider your play style as well as your mouse sensitivity, and finally whether you value speed or precision more.

If you're a multi-gaming player and you need both of these surfaces for your different games, you can either buy two different pads or opt for a reversible mouse pad that has both surface types, like the X-Raypad Aqua Control Plus V2 or the Ghostglides Meka.

Stitched edges and wrist rests

In our opinion, stitched edges are always a good investment because they considerably increase the lifespan of your mouse pad. Without them, the pad will inevitably end up getting damaged — the most common symptom being that the surface coating peels off or develops micro-creases that will quickly make it unusable.

A wrist rest may be included; it keeps the wrist straight and prevents over-extension of the wrist, it also avoids pain and helps you achieve a perfect position and better comfort.

Soft or hard structure?

The structure of the pad is a criterion to take into account; there are two main types of structures: soft or hard. There aren't big differences in the feel they offer. A hard pad will let you overcome small irregularities in the surface it's placed on, while a fairly thick soft mouse pad (4–6mm) could also be enough.

A soft pad is also useful if you're a player on the move, as you can roll it up and transport it more easily. There's also a middle ground: semi-hard mouse pads.

Glass mouse pads?

Recently, some brands have started developing a new generation of mouse pads that are more resistant, more efficient and more durable: glass pads. These pads will admittedly cost you far more than classic mouse pads (expect between €100 and €180 for the most expensive ones), but you'll have an extremely high-performance new range in your hands. Brands like TJ Exclusives or Skypad are two specialists in this category that you can find on Maxesport.gg!

The right gaming mouse pad size?

Many formats exist for your mouse pad: S/M/L/XL/XXL or even extended. The Glorious Mousepad 3XL Extended currently holds the record for the largest gaming mouse pad on the market. Your choice of pad size should be based first on the size of the desk it will sit on — logically, it can't be bigger than the desk. Next, you need to look at your mouse sensitivity, which defines the range of your movements during your gaming sessions. The lower your sensitivity, the bigger the pad needs to be. Generally speaking, more is better, and the larger the pad, the less chance you have of running off it, so bigger is always better.

If you have to transport your pad to a LAN for example, often without knowing the surface you'll have, it's best to have a separate pad just for that. It will be smaller and therefore both easy to carry and set up, as well as thicker in case the surface underneath has rough spots (if you find yourself between two desks, for example).

If you ever need to change your desk at the same time, some brands have created the perfect combination with gaming desks whose surface is entirely covered with a custom mouse pad — this is the case with REKT gaming desks, for example.

What thickness for my mouse pad?

The thickness of your pad is an important criterion. Its thickness can range from 0.2mm (with the Razer Sphex V2) to 9mm (with the SteelSeries QcK Prism). The thicker your pad, the less you feel the rough spots of the surface it rests on. Conversely, the thinner it is, the fewer problems you have if you ever go beyond the edges of the pad.

We therefore recommend a fairly thin pad if you're leaning towards a small-sized pad. Note that a thicker pad also provides extra comfort for the wrist.

The look of my mouse pad

When it comes to the design of your mouse pad, it's up to you to choose; the main thing is that it suits your taste. Some prefer it understated, others very flashy it's up to you to see what the brands offer based on your preferences. It's really the only criterion that doesn't influence your performance.

Worth knowing: some RGB mouse pads don't just bring nice lighting effects, they also give you a few extra in-game features, such as the ability to track your health bar based on the colour of the LEDs — green, you're in full health; red, you need to take cover or grab a medkit!

Washing your mouse pad by hand

• Use cold or lukewarm water, a neutral soap and a clean cloth
• Mix the water and soap and soak the cloth in it
• Gently rub the surface of the pad with the cloth in circles
• You can work a little harder on stains without pressing too hard
• Rinse the pad with clean water, making sure no soap remains
• Pat the pad to remove excess water
• Lay the pad out in the open air and let it dry for about 48 hours
• For glass pads, standard glass-cleaning products will do the job

Washing your mouse pad in the machine

• The majority of mouse pads are machine-washable
• Put the mouse pad in the washing machine
• Add a little non-aggressive detergent
• Use a short cycle on "delicate" mode and on COLD with a low-speed spin
• Let the pad dry in the open air
• Never use a tumble dryer — the heat has a high chance of peeling off the pad's surface

If you'd like to know how to clean your gaming peripherals, we've also made a tutorial.