The 12 best foam rollers: For running, gym, cycling and recovery

You've gotta roll with it, you've gotta take your time
The 12 best foam rollers

Walk into any gym and you'll find a group of people sitting on the mats slowly rocking themselves back and forth. Yes, in some cases that may be due to the mental anguish of a particularly hard CrossFit class, but more often than not it's because they're foam rolling.

The explosion in foam roller popularity has come about largely due to the fact that it's an inexpensive way to get similar benefits that you'd get from an expensive sports massage. As long as you're doing it right, that is.

The simple process of rolling can help relieve knots in the fascia that covers and connect tissues throughout the human body. Through myofascial release – whether that's by using a foam roller or getting a massage – you can help loosen and relieve those knots, allowing blood to flow freely again.

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Why is that important for fitness?

One of the main causes of those knots is overuse and exercise, which, if left alone can get increasingly worse. By releasing them as a part of your training you can aid recovery and ensure your body is operating efficiently. The other benefit of using a foam roller for many people is that it’s a great way to warm up the body before a workout, allowing you to focus on the specific muscles you're about to train.

Considering you can get yourself one for less than the price of a burger and chips, it’s an investment that’s well worth looking into.

Selection of foam rollers on a mat

How we tested

Alas, the choice of foam rollers on the market is growing quickly, with technical innovations ranging from vibrating and heated foam rollers to a selection of shapes that frankly look like they’re designed for a toddler to play with. Here we test out the various products available to see which you should be spending your money on.

When testing foam rollers we looked specifically at product-specific factors, instead of any medical or physiological effects they might have (we’re not physiotherapists). Things like the quality of the build, hardness, how they feel, interesting features, value for money and if they actually do what they say they’re meant to.

Best all-round foam rollers

Lululemon Double Roller

Lululemon Double Roller

As we were working on this selection of foam rollers, it was Lululemon’s double roller that came as the biggest surprise to us. Firstly because we didn’t even know that Lululemon had a foam roller until researching the available options, and secondly because it’s by far one of the most interesting and creative foam roller designs we’ve ever seen.

The name, logically, comes from the fact that the roller can be split into two separate units. The outer roller is a soft, ridged option that’s designed to be used on the arms and legs, whilst the second is a much more severe-looking roller with a harder surface and much deeper grooves. Visually, as you’d probably expect from Lululemon, it’s a beautiful looking product. The outer has a marble finish whilst the inner has a darker, granite look. Even if you don’t even plan on doing any foam rolling, put it on a mantlepiece and let it tie the room together.

How does it feel?

When using the soft outer roller the sensation is fairly soft. If this was the only option then we might have been dismayed. The inner roller, however, is designed in such a way that the enormous grooves really delve deep into the muscles. Again, if this was the only option it may be an issue.

The fact that you get two ends of the spectrum makes this a really impressive piece of kit. Perfect for beginners as well as those wanting something significantly tougher. The two options also mean you can add a different level of pressure to areas where you might be particularly sensitive, without having to buy two rollers.


Roll Recovery R4 Tissue Roller

Roll Recovery has made a name for itself in recent years developing a range of well thought out products that focus on the detail of myofascial release. The R4 Tissue Roller is a testament to that process, taking feedback from athletes and physiotherapists to ensure it meets the needs of its users.

Made from a high-density EVA foam, it's one of the most hard-wearing foam rollers we've tested. As soon as you take it out of the box you can tell it's built to last, as well as take a lot of weight.

The most noticeable feature of the unique design is the deep groove that runs around the center of the roller, surrounded by two raised sections. The main purpose of this feature is to ensure that the spine is relaxed while rolling the back, as well as provide a way to alleviate IT band tightness by targeting the surrounding muscles.

In addition, the slight hourglass shape to each side of the roller aims to apply more pressure to the outer back muscles.

How does it feel?

The R4 Tissue Roller feels like it should be a hard experience when you first get your hands on it, but the EVA foam is deceptively soft once you start using it. It's a long way from some of the softest options on this list, but we found the experience was a nice middle ground and could be used by anyone from beginners to more advanced rollers.

The central groove does take some time to get used to and can feel uncomfortable to begin with. After a few goes it does become easier and you've worked out the speed and distance that works – although this will largely depend on the myofascial intricacies of your body.

Our favourite aspect of the R4 Tissue Roller is its versatility. We found that the wider sections at either end were perfect for the more sensitive areas, but when we really needed to get stuck in – which for us was the calf and hamstrings – the two raised sections that sit on either side of the groove offer a significantly more targeted option.


Best vibrating foam roller

Hyperice Vyper 2.0 Foam Roller

Hyperice Vyper 2.0 Foam Roller

The idea of adding vibration to exercise is hardly a new innovation. Back as far as the mid 19th century, machines were designed for the sole purpose of vibrating people to lose fat. It’s a concept that’s seen an occasional resurgence, with one of the most recent being the widespread inclusion of vibrating plates in gyms around the world. It’s always been an area of scepticism in the industry when it comes to training benefits, but does it have benefits for massage?

The Vyper 2.0 is the latest iteration of the brand's vibrating foam roller. At first glance, it’s largely what you’d expect from a foam roller in terms of size and shape. The material used on the exterior is eco-friendly poly-propylene which makes for one of the hardest rollers on the list. The finish is a mix of slight grooves and smaller, smoother sections with a sort of bobbly matt finish. It also comes in a range of five color options.

According to the manufacturer specifications, the Vyper 2.0 is the most powerful vibrating roller on the market, and to be completely honest, it does indeed vibrate an awful lot. Powered via a rechargeable lithium battery (two hours of use per charge), it works on three frequency levels: 45, 68 and 92 HZ.

Those numbers don’t mean a great deal to us, but when you press the button to hit the top setting we were surprised at how much it vibrated. If you turn it on without holding it to the ground with your body it bounces around the floor until you can finally grab it.

How does it feel?

Without the vibration turned on, the effect of the relatively smooth outer shell is minimal. It’s essentially just a hard foam roller. As soon as you flick it to vibrate things change quite dramatically. In terms of shape and design, the Vyper 2.0 is a long way from being the deepest sensation we've felt, but with the vibration setting on you definitely get a feeling that muscles are being pummelled. Overall the feeling is more one of relaxation than the pain felt by many others out there.


Best travel foam roller

Brazyn Morph Collapsible Foam Roller

Brazyn Morph Collapsible Foam Roller

The concept behind Brazyn’s Morph roller is very simple. Based on the principle that foam rollers are too large to transport when you’re traveling, especially if you’re only carrying hand luggage, it's created a product that’s collapsible. During use it’s designed to replicate the size and shape of an average-sized roller, once collapsed it becomes flattened into a shape that can easily slip into a bag.

According to Brazyn, the industry-standard size for a foam roller is 5.5 inches in diameter and 14.5 inches long, the exact size of the Morph. Inside that cylinder sit two sheets of thick circular metal that hold the shape and structural strength of the roller when it’s in use.

By pushing the plates inside the cylinder they flip down and allow the whole thing to collapse. These two plates have strings connected between them with plastic loops. Pull them both at the same time and the flat roller opens up again. It’s a nice easy system to use that feels remarkably sturdy once set up. Apparently, it’s been tested at over 350Ibs. Which is reassuring.

For us, the term flat is a bit of an overstatement. It’s definitely a lot smaller and easier to slip into a backpack, however, it still takes up a bit more space than we were expecting. A comparison in thickness would be a fairly chunky book.

How does it feel?

The build is surprisingly sturdy once you’ve pulled the mechanism out, something we weren't expecting, the process of opening it and closing it is also extremely easy. The exterior of the roller is by far the softest on the list, so if you're looking for a really deep tissue sensation it's unlikely the Brazyn will do the job. For beginners, or people looking for a very clever piece of kit that offers a nice easy roll, it's worth investigating.


Tiger Tail Long One

Tiger Tail Long One Foam Roller

Yes, we know the Tiger Tail Long One isn’t a foam roller per se, but we’ve added it to this list for the simple fact that 1) we love it and 2) it offers a great alternative to a foam roller in a number of scenarios. So, if you’re looking for a roller that you can use on the move or whilst sitting at your desk at work, it beats everything else on the list by a mile.

Unlike your average foam rollers that can only be used on a flat surface, Tiger Tail’s massage sticks are designed to be used from a standing or seated position, which makes them significantly less antisocial when it comes to using it in public, or when you lack the space to sprawl out on the floor. It's especially good for taking with you when you’re planning on a long run/cycle/swim/anything active and you need to warm up or cool down the muscles.

How does it feel?

The Tiger Tail Long One is a great piece of kit to have either instead of a foam roller or to use as well as one. The shape and size mean that you can really get into muscles that aren't always easy when using a normal one on the floor. You can also use it in positions other than lying down, meaning that the effect on the muscles feels significantly different.

Best heated foam roller

Moji Heated Foam Roller

Moji Heated Foam Roller

The benefits of heat are well known when it comes to health and fitness, so it’s not surprising that a foam roller would appear introducing it as a feature. According to Moji, by adding heat therapy into a roller, benefits include reducing muscle stiffness, increasing circulation, raising tissue temperature, and it helps to minimize the pain associated with it. However, much like vibration, the benefits of heat when added to a foam roller are open to debate.

Due to the fact it needs to be small enough to heat up in a microwave, the Moji heated roller is by far one of the more minimal products we’ve seen The unit splits, via a simple click lock system, into two separate parts that can be used/carried independently or, once heated, clicked back together.

The outer rubber on the roller is limited, so it’s a fairly hard roller. There are some protruding rubber blocks that run across the roller, but they’re fairly small. The other thing we noticed, presumably due to the heatable material inside, is that the roller is quite heavy in comparison to the others we’ve tested.

How does it feel?

After being placed in the microwave for the suggested 3 minutes 20, we were surprised by how hot the roller becomes. After rolling out our calves for a couple of minutes the heat coming through the outer covering was extremely high, not unbearable but a lot more than we had expected. When we tried it out on the back muscles it was even more noticeable. It also retained the heat for around 45 minutes, which is far more than we expected.

The material and grooves on the outer casing are at the softer end of the spectrum, but presumably, this is because the heat wouldn't dissipate so well with a more pointy design.


Best foam roller for deep massage

RumbleRoller Original Foam Roller

RumbleRoller Original Foam Roller

There really aren’t many brands out there that have built such an impressive level of trust around their foam roller products as RumbleRoller has. It's a company that does one thing well, and that’s making high-quality foam rolling and massage products that do exactly what you expect them to.

Our favourite product from their range is the original RumbleRoller, a full-on, tough piece of kit that is built to last as well as get deep into the muscles. You can choose between three different length options as well as three levels of hardness, dependent on where and how you plan to use it (longest for when you’re at home/need the best range of movement and hardest from when you’re a seasoned “roller”).

How does it feel?

If you’re looking for a roller that’s going to push deep into those aches and pains, then the RumbleRoller original is a great option. Not as good as the Lululemon for getting deep into the whole muscle, but the design is perfect for tackling really specific areas. It's also one of the sturdiest and toughest options we've tried. It'll last you for years.


Rumble Roller Gator Foam Roller

Rumble Roller Gator Foam Roller

Yes, we’ve included a second option for RumbleRumble, for the simple reason that the Gator is designed so differently than its original counterpart. On one hand, the Gator is a great option for people that are new to myofascial release and want something effective, that isn’t going to have them crying out in pain. On the other, the Gator works on a principle of gripping the skin and adding cross-friction (a slightly different technique from most rollers).

The outer shell of the Gator is made up of small 1cm protrusions that act like little finger grips for your skin, holding it in place as the roller pushes into the muscle. The foam roller itself is actually one of the harder products we’ve seen and once you’ve worked out the slightly modified way to use it, is a very impressively designed piece of kit. In contrast to the original RumbleRoller, the Gator only comes in one option.

How does it feel?

The concept of pulling the roller and then rolling seems to work surprisingly well. As a standalone roller, it’s just a good harder product. But incorporate the technique in the instructions and it works very well causing a muscular sensation we haven't felt in any other roller. Well worth a look if you want to try a new format of roller out.


Best foam roller for back massage

Manta Foam Roller

Manta Foam Roller

Some of the foam rollers in the list have fairly interesting designs but this one from Manta may well be the weirdest looking of the lot. Appearing more like a fancy Greek vase for your dinner table than a device to help ease muscular issues may cause a level of scepticism - but there's a very good reason it looks the way it does.

The primary focus is the back, with a special spinal groove in the middle to allow the shape to access areas most other foam rollers can't hit as effectively. The outer areas of the roller also have specific grooves and ridges to focus larger muscles like the glutes, the hamstrings and the calves.

How does it feel?

If you're using the Manta with your spine within the middle ridge, the motion is instantly different from a 'flat' roller. Where your spine would normally take the brunt of the movement, that's now taken by the muscles on either side. The result makes it much tougher.

If you aren't suffering from any sort of back issues, then that extra effort may not be worth it. However, we've had a member of the team using it who suffers from ongoing back issues and he's claimed that it's by far his favourite of the bunch for relieving pain.


Asteroid Duoball Foam Roller

Asteroid Duoball Foam Roller

Meglio is very quickly becoming one of the best brands out there if you're looking for a wide range of massage tools without the cost (see budget options below). The enormous selection of foam rollers of all shapes and sizes means that you can pick up a piece of kit that's specifically designed for your particular massage needs.

The Asteroid Duoball is a very good example of that specificity. The two two-ball design allows you to massage areas that can often be tricky with a standard foam roller design. Whether that's to target the muscles on either side of the upper spine or to offer greater pressure into an area like the glutes, preventing the myofascial release from being distributed evenly and with less force.

How does it feel?

The first thing we noticed about the Duoball is that although it's extremely light, it's by far one of the hardest options on this list. If used on more sensitive areas like the back or glutes it delivers a high amount of pressure, so not a great option if you're a beginner.

When we first used the Duoball on the legs and arms like a conventional roller, we thought that the shape didn't lend itself well to a deep massage. However, after experimenting with different angles and positions we soon realised that it really isn't built to be used in the same way. With some careful experimentation, we found that you can deliver a nice level of pressure into areas that aren't easy with a normal foam roller. For the price, it's a great piece of kit for those looking to delve deeper into rolling.

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Best foam roller for value

Meglio Grid Foam Roller

Meglio Grid Foam Roller

The design of the Meglio roller has everything you could need at a seriously impressively low price. Unlike the Amazon Basics roller, it'll do the job whether you're a beginner or if you're looking for something that goes a bit deeper.

That's thanks to Matrix technology, a design that has three different textured areas that focus on different massage methods across the body, from hips, calves, IT band and hamstrings to the back, quads and shoulders. What's more, Meglio also wants to make sure you're using it correctly, so you can find handy e-books and video guides on how to use the foam roller via the website.

How does it feel?

The combination of the fingered sections and the more flattened area across the roller means that's it's well designed for those progressing their usage of rolling. It also allows you to apply a varied level of pressure and depth to different areas of the body, which is especially useful if you're tender in a certain muscle group.

The material is tough, so you're going to feel it, unlike the Amazon Basics option. It won't get in as deep as some of the other rollers on the list, but at that price, it really is amazing value.


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Amazon Basics Foam Roller

Amazon Basics Foam Roller

Not all of us need to spend loads of money on a foam roller, especially if you’re a beginner and your body isn’t used to the joy (intense pain) of myofascial release, then you can get away with something that sits far lower on the pricing scale.

The Amazon Basics foam roller is exactly what it says on the tin, a very basic device for foam rolling. It has no fancy materials, no pointy sticky out bits and definitely no creative mechanical functions that make it interesting to write about. It’s essentially nothing more than a tube of polypropylene that can be used to roll your body parts on. It’s also a job that it does very well, especially if you’re a beginner or have particularly sensitive fascia.

How does it feel?

To be honest, if you’re already used to foam rolling, it’s not going to do a lot for you unless you need something gentle for a specific area. The polypropylene material used to make it is by far the lightest and softest on the list and it takes a fair bit of rolling to start to feel it working its way into the fascia. That said, the really light material actually has a bit more strength than we initially thought. Once you really worked into it you can get a moderate level of pressure.

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