6 Best Yoga Mats for Home Workouts

We usually neglect the basic things but when it comes to working out, the basic things matter a lot. Avoid the ugly scene of slipping and sliding away while doing some mountain climbers or some burpees by owning a yoga mat. Moreso, keep your elbows and knees away from red marks by planking on hardwood or doing some overhead presses on tiles. Having a yoga mat for home workouts is actually an investment.

How to Select the Best Yoga Mat for Your Home Workouts

There are different selections of yoga mats in the market. You would see variations in thickness, material, texture, and price range. While they were primarily created for yogis, you actually look for the same things for working out. 

Look out for the thickness of your mat

A thick yoga mat offers comfortability. You won’t feel the hardness of the floor when you plank. However, it is quite hard to store as it would definitely take up your closet’s space. Fitness enthusiasts say that a yoga mat that’s too thick may be difficult for some workout like mountain climbers because you lose the connection to the floor.

The material dictates its quality and durability

A rubber mat or PVC mat? Choose a material according to your function. A rubber mat provides natural stickiness perfect for those sweaty hands but if you’re allergic to latex, you may need to go with a PVC yoga mat.

Feel the texture

The texture gives the traction you need. It’s better that you have a grip on your mat so you don’t slip and slide away. The texture also gives you maximum comfort according to your liking.

Yoga mats have a wide price range

Aside from the brands, yoga mats’ prices depend on their use, thickness, durability, and portability. Low-end brands are usually not that thick and are for low-intensity home workouts. The high-end brands ensure durability and are perfect for heavy usage.

6 Best Yoga Mats for Home Workouts

Are you ready to have a comfortable experience in your home workouts? We’ve summarized the 6 best yoga mats here. On our list are yoga mats with different thickness, materials, textures, and price ranges. Note that the following is not arranged in a particular order.

1. Jade Yoga Mat

Image Source: Jade Yoga

The Jade offers the Jade Harmony which is known for its superior traction and stickiness. Working out almost guarantees sweating and the Jade Harmony Yoga Mat offers a non-slip surface that prevents you from slipping and sliding. It is ideal for those who sweat a lot. 

Moreover, instructors and fitness managers like Liz Wexler said that “Jade (yoga) mats are the best, they’re sticky, so your hands and feet don’t slide, and they’re durable, so you can put them in washing machines”.

The Jade Harmony is eco-friendly having made from natural rubber which helps in giving more traction to its users. Moreso, this yoga mat features tiny dots on it making the texture a little rougher than the usual smooth and silky. This feature, however, aids in improving the traction.

This best yoga mat also provides comfortability with a thickness of 3/16” making it perfect for any fitness activity at any level. Lastly, it’s on a sustainable mission as it partnered up with Trees for the Future. In every product sold, they plant a tree.

The Jade Harmony has a 4.6-star rating and costs between $80 to $120 on Amazon.

2. Lululemon Yoga Mat 

Image Source: Lululemon

The Lululemon’s Reversible (Un) Mat is the best yoga mat when it comes to mould and mildew prevention. This yoga mat has an antimicrobial additive to ensure mould and mildew won’t come about. 

The Lululemon’s Reversible Mat features a polyurethane top layer that absorbs moisture to help you get a grip during sweaty practices. Feel secure while sweating on your jumping jacks as your Lulu’s keep you safe from slipping and sliding away. 

It also features a natural rubber base and a textured grip providing superior traction. With its superior grip, you may use it for both low and high-intensity workouts. This yoga mat is reversible – one side is smoother than the other. The smoother side may be used for low-intensity workouts while the grip side is best for high-intensity (or when you’re going to sweat a lot!) workouts. 

Its thickness is 5mm giving you enough cushion for your exercises. Lululemon’s Reversible Mat also has a 3mm thickness for low-sweat exercises. It may not be in the portable category but it’s lightweight enough that you could carry it on the go. The 3mm option weighs only 3.87lbs so it’s the best yoga mat for users who transfer workout places. Plus points to the easy to clean feature!

This yoga mat is available on Lululemon and ranges from $58 to $78 depending on thickness.

3. Yogi Bare Yoga Mat

Image Source: Yogi Bare

The Yogi Bare Teddy yoga mat is popular for those with busy schedules. It is the best yoga mat option when it comes to the cleaning category because of its machine-washable feature. Yoga mats get cleaned by being carefully wiped by a microfibre towel with soap. This removes dust and sweat alike. But some of us just want everything evenly and thoroughly cleaned — not to mention we’re tired of using the towels. The best way is for it to be tossed in the washing machine and that’s the good thing with the Yogi Bare Teddy. Toss it in and it still keeps its durability and quality function post-washing.

Apart from the machine-washable option, the Yogi Bare Teddy boasts its natural rubber base which gives you the traction you need. It also offers a grippy microfibre top so you don’t slip and slide.

It is thinner than the Jade Harmony and Lulu Reversible at 2mm but provides the cushion you need for simple floor exercises. This makes it handy and portable. It’s lightweight at 3.31lbs and folds into a square so you may travel anywhere with this yoga mat.

This machine-washable yoga mat is available on Yoga Bear and costs between $60 and $70.

The Yogi Bare mat made it to our list of the 6 best home workout equipment. Read about it here.

4. Manduka eKO Yoga Mat 

Image Source: Amazon

The Manduka eKO® Lite is the best yoga mat when it comes to portability. With 2.2.lbs, you could just put it in your bag and you’re good to go. Say goodbye to those gym mats borrowing days. Manduka also boasts its woven scrim material that resists tearing or stretching.

It’s 1.5mm thick which is good enough for simple workouts. We don’t expect you to do a yoga headstand with this, but planks, push-ups, and sit-ups are definitely on the menu. 

Because of its portability, workouts are limited and the cushion is not padded as the other yoga mats listed in this article. However, the grip and traction of this yoga mat were not sacrificed so it’s an ideal companion for your home workouts.

This yoga mat is perfect for those who want to bring their yoga mats everywhere. The Manduka eKO is available on Amazon with a 4.7-star rating.

5. Manduka ProLite Yoga Mat

Image Source: Amazon

The Manduka ProLite offers a 4.7mm thick high-density cushion. The high-density foam keeps your joints padded. It supports and protects your spine, hips, knees, elbows, legs, or any point of contact.

This is the best yoga mat to last a lifetime. Manduka guarantees the ProLite will never peel, flake, or fade. Otherwise, your yoga mat gets replaced. Moreover, Manduka also guarantees that the mat’s grip improves with use over time.

Furthermore, the ProLite has a dot pattern bottom layer that provides a good grip for the mat. This feature prevents you from slipping and sliding from any workout you’re scheduled to do.

The selling point of Manduka’s ProLite yoga mat is its closed-cell surface that prevents sweat from seeping into the mat. The ProLite wicks away moisture, sweat, and dirt. This makes it the best yoga mat for high-intensity training or workouts.

Lastly, Manduka assures us that it was responsibly crafted in an emission-free facility. The materials used were also non-toxic and 100% latex-free.

Definitely a dream-come-true, this not-so-thin yoga mat is also portable as it is easy to fold. 

The Manduka ProLite has a 4.7-star rating on Amazon and costs between $90 and $110.

6. Alo Yoga Mat

Image Source: Alo

The Alo Warrior supports your sweaty workouts. It provides the necessary grip you need in any of your floor exercises. It’s known for its grip as its bottom part was made with ethically sourced, premium, all-natural rubber.

The Alo is 100% formaldehyde-free, non-toxic, and PVC-free. 

It boasts its anti-odor, dry-wicking, and slip-free (wet or dry) qualities. This is the best yoga mat to bring for sweaty workouts. Lastly, it has chic colours to choose from.

Yoga Mats Especially Made For You

We’ve listed the yoga mats according to your needs. The Jade Harmony is the best mat that is still very sticky despite the sweaty hands. Lululemon’s Reversible is best when it comes to preventing mould and mildew. The Yogi Bare Teddy is best for those who have tight schedules and have no time for tedious cleaning. It accepts machine wash. 

The Manduka EkoLite shows off its 2.2lbs weight and is best to bring anywhere. On the other hand, the Manduka ProLite assures lifetime and promises that the mat will not peel or flake. Lastly, the Alo Warrior is best for sweaty workouts.