Best gaming mouse pads 2024
Thick or thin, big or small, speed or control?
Mouse pads are of critical importance in fast-paced gaming genres that prioritise accurate tracking, quick flicks and reliable clicks. Of course, you'll also want something comfortable to use all day and durable enough to last for many years too. We've been testing new mouse pads for the last six years, and we've come up with a list of recommendations that just might help.
If you want our top pick, that would be the Corsair MM350, but we've got a full list of mouse pads with various sizes, price points and feature sets. Here's the full list!
Best gaming mouse pads
- Best cheap gaming mouse pad: SteelSeries QcK Medium
- Best mouse pad for gaming: Corsair MM350 Champion Series
- Best mouse pad for control: Zowie G-SR
- Best hard / RGB mouse pad: Razer Firefly V2 Pro
- Best desk pad for control: Fnatic Dash XD
- Best desk pad for speed: Glorious Extended
- Best glass fiber hybrid pad: KingJade Liu Li V2
- Best cute mouse pad: Esptiger Tang Dao Chi Yu
- Glossary of terms
- Frequently asked questions
Best cheap gaming mouse pad: SteelSeries QcK Medium
You don't have to spend a lot to get a good mouse pad. SteelSeries' QcK Medium is our favourite cheap option, offering a good gaming surface at a reasonable size - (32x21cm, 13x11") - for less than a tenner. Note that you are giving up some niceties here, like a thicker design and a more durable stitched edge, but these are understandable omissions given the price. Regardless, you're left with a highly usable cloth pad that's easy to take to LANs and will fit even in cramped conditions.
Best mouse pad for gaming: Corsair MM350 Champion Series
Thicker mouse pads provide added comfort and help guarantee a flat surface even on a bumpy desk, so the 5mm-thick Corsair MM350 Champion Series is a natural choice here. We tested the X-Large 45x40cm (18x16") size, which provides more than enough space for 180-degree flicks in CS:GO at 400 DPI. The stitched edge is flat and soft, protecting the mouse pad without affecting comfort as some poorer mouse pads do. All in all, this is a strong option for anyone looking for a good balance between speed and control in games of all genres.
If you prefer mouse pads with a design, we recommend this blue camouflage "Hailstorm" pad from Sades. It's the same size as the Corsair MM350 Champion Series, at 45x40cm, and offers the same flat stitched edges and a good surface that mixes speed and control.
Best mouse pad for control: Zowie G-SR
The most popular mousepad among CS2 professional players is this one, the Zowie G-SR. The large 47x39cm (18x15") size provides enough space for gaming at any sensitivity level, while the slightly rough surface is ideal for maximising control, allowing you to stop your mouse on a dime once you see an enemy's head poke out of cover. That means you'll need to push your mouse a little harder to glide, but in games where accuracy is everything, this mousepad is certainly worth it. Unfortunately, this mouse pad has become hard to find as of late, so we're looking to replace this recommendation in the near future.
Best hard / RGB desk pad: Razer Firefly V2 Pro
The Razer Firefly V2 Pro is a rarity: an RGB mouse pad that actually lives up to the name. Rather than just lighting up the border of the mousepad with LEDs, RGB is diffused across the full surface of this frosted plastic surface. This hard mousepad gets surprisingly bright too, so it looks good during the day and incredible at night. It's also a genuinely great mousepad to use, offering excellent performance even in high-stress FPS scenarios. Highly recommended for anyone that uses Razer peripherals or RGB fanatics.
Best desk pad for control: Fnatic Dash XD
The best full-size desk pad for control we've tested is the Fnatic Dash XD. At 95x50cm, it fits on even narrow desks while also providing enough space to rest your forearm on its surface. The stitched edges of the mouse pad are the best we've ever tested and are almost impossible to feel, unlike lesser mouse pads that are often raised or even scratchy at their peripheries. The surface on the Dash is textured to provide a good mixture between aim and precision, making it a good choice for ultra-light mice set to low sensitivities - a setup preferred by CSGO professionals. The branding here is minimal, with a small but reflective Fnatic logo in one corner adding a touch of quality.
Best desk pad for speed: Glorious Extended
Glorious are well known for their cheap but well-made gaming mouse pads, with the Extended offering more than enough space for your keyboard, mouse and other peripherals at 28x91cm (11x36"). If you need a larger size, you can pick up the taller XXL Extended at 46x91cm (18x36") or the ridiculous 3XL Extended which is 61x122cm (24x48"). No matter which size you choose, you get stitched edges for long-term use and a durable, machine-washable design. Glorious get bonus points for offering a "stealth" option, which omits the logo, and a white colourway.
Best glass fiber hybrid pad: KingJade Liu Li V2
Glass mousepads with extremely low friction are becoming increasingly popular amongst mousing enthusiasts, but their deleterious effect on mouse skates and high asking prices make them hard to recommend to more mainstream gamers. A nice alternative is a hybrid glass / fabric pad, such as this option from KingJade that combines poron - well known in mechanical keyboards for its sound-dampening properties - and a coating made from ground-up glass beads, providing a feel somewhere in between a soft and hard pad with minimal friction but a decent degree of stopping power.
The materials used here have an interesting effect, with a surface that easily deforms to your touch but bounces back to being flat. The edges are recessed, ensuring that your arm isn't rubbing against them during gameplay, and the 4mm thickness feels suitably comfortable for slower-paced gaming and office work. This isn't the cheapest mouse pad on the market by any means, but it's worth considering versus a full glass pad for faster-paced games.
Best cute mouse pad: Esptiger Tang Dao Chi Yu
Yes, this is a category I just made up to include this particular mouse pad. The cute cat, clouds, koi and pinky-purple hues won't be to everyone's tastes, I'm sure, but this Esptiger pad is legitimately great in other ways too. It offers a 4mm thick cloth surface with a soft stitched edge, preventing against premature fraying and making for a comfortable place to rest your arm. The 480x400mm size is ideal for even extremely low DPI players, and the balanced roughness is a good compromise between speed and control. Even the base looks good, with a purple backing and grippy dots to anchor it to your desk. If cats aren't your thing, scantily-clad anime girls are also available in multiple colours.
Glossary of terms
Material: Different mouse pad materials will affect the feel, longevity and portability of the pad. Softer materials like cloth can be rolled up, saving space, and offer a comfortable place to rest your arms. Meanwhile, harder materials like metal or plastic can't be rolled up, but provide a flatter surface that can be more resistant to wear.
Thickness: The depth of a mouse pad affects how it feels to use and often how comfortable it is as well. While materials like plastic or metal can be quite thin, cloth and other soft materials can vary in thickness from 2mm to 5mm or more. Thicker pads will generally be flatter and more comfortable, but thinner options can fit under a keyboard more easily.
Size: Mouse pads are often available in multiple sizes, from compact models barely bigger than a mouse to desk pads that can be a metre wide or more. As a general rule of thumb, the lower your mouse's DPI setting, the bigger the pad you'll need. For DPIs under 1000, we recommend a large or extra-large pad.
RGB: Some mouse pads have lighting built into the perimeter of the pad to improve their appearance. This lighting can be a single colour, but more commonly multiple colour options and effects are available. More premium pads have software-controlled RGB, potentially with multiple lighting zones, which can be synced with other RGB-encrusted PC components or peripherals for a synchronised look.
Wireless charging: A small proportion of mouse pads include built-in wireless charging, which can be used to recharge wireless mice from the same brand or Qi-enabled mobile devices like smartphones or headsets. This is convenient, but these mouse pads tend to be premium options due to their added complexity.
Frequently asked questions
Why do I need a gaming mouse pad?
The best gaming mouse pads have carefully calibrated surfaces, allowing you to choose between slicker options optimised for speed or rougher surfaces that provide better control. Using a good gaming mouse pad also ensures your mouse feet won't wear down quickly or unevenly, lengthening your mouse's useful lifespan. Gaming mouse pads are also offered in large sizes, providing more mousing space - ideal for mice used at low DPI settings. Other features, like perfectly flat edges, RGB lighting and even wireless charging are also available.
How do I choose the right gaming mouse pad?
Start with materials. Plastic or metal hard pads are great for use on uneven surfaces, like badly worn desks, while cloth pads are more comfortable and machine-washable. From here, consider whether your play style emphasises speed (fast games with constant mouse movement like Fortnite) or control (tactical games like CSGO). Size comes next - generally, you'll want as big as possible, although high DPI mice allow for smaller pads. Finally, consider the features like wireless charging for a Logitech Lightspeed mouse and RGB for that gamer look.
How much should I budget for a good mouse pad?
Entry-level mouse pads are available from around £10/$10 or less, and it's often possible to get them for free with purchases of other products or from a friend. A professional-grade mouse pad can be had for £20/$20, while fancier models made from more exotic materials, offering extra thickness or other features can cost anywhere up to £50/$50. Unless you have very particular requirements, we don't recommend spending more than £25/$25 on a mouse pad unless you're going for top-end components and peripherals throughout.
What do the pros use?
Esports pros in games like Counter-Strike, Fortnite and League of Legends tend to use relatively large mouse pads, thanks to their preference for lower DPI settings than the average gamer. For shooters, weapon choice also affects mouse pad size, with snipers generally using higher DPI settings (and therefore smaller pads) than riflers. Mouse pads from Zowie are the most popular choice for CS2 players, specifically the Zowie G-SR and G-SR-SE, with examples from SteelSeries (QcK Heavy, QcK+) and Logitech (G640) also proving to be common picks.
Got a question we didn't cover?
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