Best Golf Hitting Mats for Home: How to Choose One That Won't Hurt Your Wrists

If you only upgrade one thing in your home setup, make it the hitting mat. You touch it on every swing. A cheap mat lets the club bounce into the ball, so fat shots look fine, and the hard surface underneath sends that shock straight into your wrists and elbows.

What to look for

• Shock-absorbing foam underneath. This protects your joints and lets the club move down and through like real turf.
• A surface that tells the truth. Good turf grabs the club a little when you hit behind the ball, so you feel the mistake.
• Real tees or a tee insert. Rubber tees snap and sit at the wrong height. Mats that hold a real wooden tee feel much closer to the course.
• Enough size. About 5 x 5 ft gives you room to stand on the mat instead of a hard floor, and works for righties and lefties.

Our picks

Best overall for a simulator bay: 5 x 5 Super Tee Mat

The Super Tee mat holds real wooden tees anywhere on the surface and sits on shock-absorbent foam. It's the closest feel to hitting off grass that we carry. About $400.

Best match for a GolfBays enclosure: GolfBays Insert Tee Mat

The GolfBays Insert Tee mat is sized to fit GolfBays enclosures and has a tee insert so you can tee it up for driver practice. About $379.

Best value: GolfBays Standard or Academy Mat

The Standard and Academy mats are a step up from big-box store mats without paying for premium turf. Around $330-$350.

Common mistakes

• Putting the mat directly on concrete with no padding. Your joints will feel it after a week.
• Buying a mat smaller than your stance. You end up standing on the floor at a different height than the ball.
• Skipping the mat to afford a launch monitor. A bad mat makes your numbers less accurate anyway.

Need help choosing?

Tell us your enclosure and how often you'll practice using the chat button or text (714) 343-7110, and we'll point you to the right mat. Building a full setup? See our golf simulator under $5,000 guide.