The best pickleball paddles will improve your game whether you’re a beast on the court or simply playing for fun. Despite the pickleball paddles’ seeming simplicity, there are characteristics and factors to take into account while looking for the perfect pickleball paddle.
Let’s examine three of the top pickleball paddles available right now and the characteristics you should look for to improve your stroke.
The Best Pickleball Paddle Features to Look for
Fiber Core
In pickleball paddles, polypropylene, or “poly core,” is the most widely used inner material. Poly core paddles are highly sought-after as they offer a noticeable impact on your serve and return, making them appropriate for players of all abilities. Using a pickleball paddle with an inside made of polypropylene yields the following benefits:
- Popular: Paddles with poly cores are the most widely used and easily obtainable paddles available; most pickleball players use these. Once you have mastered the use of a poly core paddle, you will be able to switch to other poly core paddles that you could come across in a tournament or on your local court.
- Enhanced Sensation: Your serve and volley can be much improved by being able to accurately “feel” the ball strike the paddle. Poly core pickleball paddles offer a better feel of contact, so you can feel one with the paddle and outscore your opponent in points.
- Durability: The interior of these pickleball paddles is made of extremely sturdy and durable polypropylene plastic. You can be sure that the basic structure won’t be compromised by even the strongest serve or return when you use a paddle made of this material!
- Forceful: Poly core paddles are effective on the court because of their structural design and chemical makeup, which translates serves and returns into more powerful blows that help you outscore opponents and score more points.
- Flexible: The way a pickleball paddle interacts with the ball differs depending on whether it has a flexible or rigid poly core. Because of its exceptional flexibility, a polypropylene core will let you produce more power during serves and returns.
- The poly core pickleball paddles are made with a honeycomb lattice structure. It is the key to the extraordinary strength, resilience, and adaptability of this material. A more regulated and smoother impact is achieved by “spreading out” the force of each hit through the inside honeycomb-shaped cells of the paddle.
- Silent: Compared to other core materials, poly core pickleball paddles are preferred for their quieter nature. This lets you focus less on the constant pop-pop sounds and more on your game and technique.
Texture and Grain of Surface
The best pickleball paddles all have improved surface grit and roughness because these qualities boost traction and power. You can serve or return the ball with more force and in the correct direction if your paddle can “cling” to the ball for a little bit longer after each strike. If you want the best pickleball paddles, go for ones with surface texture and grain certified by USA Pickleball. The ball will rotate a little bit more without losing direction control.
External Layer of Fiberglass
When looking for the best pickleball paddles, there are other factors to take into account besides the surface texture and grain. Select a paddle with a fiberglass or composite material surface.
A paddle made of fiberglass surface layers is reasonably priced, robust, and of good quality. The “pop” of a fiberglass paddle is the most powerful and satisfying blow there is!
Paddle has a 16 mm thickness.
Although pickleball paddles are available in a range of thicknesses, the conventional 16mm is the best option for most players. Paddles with a thickness of 16 mm are well balanced to allow for strong play that is yet agile and has outstanding placement and reach control. Without a doubt, you should stay away from paddles that are thicker or thinner than 16 millimeters.
Extended Canoe Shape
Pickleball paddles that are somewhat longer than the typical measurement (16″x8″)—more like 16.5″ inches long and 7.5″ inches wide—are what you should look for.
Although they are a little bit narrower than regular pickleball paddles, elongated paddles follow pickleball rules and can produce a little bit more spin, reach, and power with each stroke. The longer reach is a great justification for looking for a longer paddle.
Center-Weight
Medium-weight pickleball paddles produce the ideal balance between power and speed. When it comes to pickleball paddles, the best of both worlds are out there.
For the best mid-weight pickleball paddles that blend power and speed, 7.8 to 8.2 ounce paddles are the sweet spot.
Paddles that weigh less than 7.3 ounces produce movement with minimal force, whereas paddles that weigh more than 8.3 ounces provide higher force than speed.
The Best Three Pickleball Paddles to Boost Your Skills
Take a look at the options below to simplify your search for the best pickleball paddles. The aforementioned game-improving elements are included in our selection of the best pickleball paddles.
- Poly core Texture and Grain on the Surface
- 16 mm thick fiberglass surface layer
- Longer paddle shape
- Middleweight in weight
Customized Evo-Lite Pickleball Racquet
One of the best pickleball out there is the Salted City Sports custom Evo-Lite, which has a polypropylene core, extra surface texture on the fiberglass layer, 16mm thickness, an expanded 16.5″ long paddle head, and the perfect weight for balanced power and speed. Add your own text, image, logo, graphic, edge guard, and grip colors to personalize your paddle.
The Nostalgic Evo-Lite Pickleball Paddle From SCS
The omnipresent to-go boxes from the 1990s will always be a part of our past, and they can now be found on paddles. Experience a sense of nostalgia with the recognizable violet and blue-green zig zags on a paddle that has all the best attributes: Mid-weight, with a poly core, a 16.5″ paddle head, and more grain on the fiberglass surface layer.
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SCS Drippy Evo-Lite Pickleball Paddle
Friends, keep trickling! When you deliver drop shots left and right, this 7.8–8.2-ounce gripping, elongated paddle with balanced power and speed provided by a durable poly core will have you pouring on the court. Your opponents will be impressed by the mesmerizing drip pattern with blue shadows, but it will be your powerful strikes that steal the stage.
Like these pickleball flippers? To learn more about selecting the best pickleball paddles for your needs and playing style, click here.