The Best Foam Rollers 2024

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The Best Foam Rollers

Foam rolling: These days, it seems like everybody’s doing it. A growing body of research as well as bodywork pros—physical therapists, massage therapists, and personal trainers alike—extol the soft-tissue benefits of self-massage for improvements in muscular flexibility and reduction in stiffness (and even pain).Gyms and physical-therapy centers are strewn with them, but which rollers are best for at-home use? To find out, we whittled down hundreds of options to a top-selling selection of the most popular roller types, and enlisted a cadre of experts and their muscles for more than 45 hours of kneading and compressing. We discovered that the ubiquitous firm-density foam rollers made of expanded polypropylene (EPP) aren’t much different from one another, at least in terms of the therapeutic benefits they can deliver. But the AmazonBasics High-Density Round Foam Roller stood out from the EPP pack as the best basic roller, proving you don’t have to spend a lot to get relief.

Everything we recommend

Our pick

 

 

This roller provides the firm density experts recommend—with a slight surface texture to prevent slipping—at an affordable price.

Runner-up

 

 

Regularly more expensive than our pick, this foam roller is otherwise highly similar to it.

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Also great

 

 

For rolling newbies (or those looking for a softer touch), this medium-density roller has a bit more give than a firm EPP roller but still maintains its shape under pressure.

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Also great

 

 

More expensive than our other picks and available only in a 13-inch length, this roller nevertheless delivers thanks to a diamond-shaped pattern of ridges that allows you to address knots in specific muscle groups (calves, glutes, and so on) with precision.

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Also great

 

 

A rolling massage stick with a plastic core encased in finely textured, dense foam. It’s lightweight yet can really dig into tight spots.

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What to look for


  • Sturdy material

    Most firm-density foam rollers are made of EPP, which should provide sufficient firmness for most self-massage applications.

  • Size and shape

    A standard, 36-inch long roller (with a 6-inch diameter) is useful for most body parts. But smaller or larger models may better suit your needs.

To home in on the best foam rollers during our initial testing for this guide, we enlisted two experts: massage therapist Polina Savelieva, owner of Active Outlook Massage in Astoria, New York, at the time of our testing, who’s also a certified personal trainer and USA Triathlon coach; and physical therapist Matthew Rector, director of business development at H&D Physical Therapy in New York City at the time of our interview, who also holds a certificate in applied functional science from the Gray Institute. We also interviewed Michael Fredericson, MD, professor of orthopedic surgery at the Stanford University Medical Center and the co-author of Foam Roller Techniques for Massage, Stretches and Improved Flexibility; Lindsay Lopez, owner of Form Pilates in New York City at the time of our interview, for her take on rollers in exercise; Jon Graff, marketing director at exercise-equipment manufacturer SPRI at the time of our interview, to learn more about the materials and manufacturing of foam rollers; and Thomas Best, a professor of orthopedics at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, for his thoughts on foam rollers that vibrate. Later, we reached out to OPTP (maker of our runner-up pick) and interviewed marketing coordinator Stephanie LaHaye to learn more about the life span of foam rollers.

Supervising editor Ingrid Skjong is a certified personal trainer (NASM CPT) and an enthusiastic runner who has included foam rolling in her regular routine for more than seven years. She has also taught foam-rolling techniques to personal training clients and willing family and friends.

Writer Amy Roberts is a certified personal trainer (NASM CPT) and a running coach twice over (USATF Level 1 and RRCA). She has foam rolled consistently for years, using many different types and textures in her pursuit of the best self-myofascial release.

Foam rolling is for pretty much anyone. (Some conditions contraindicate the practice, however; when in doubt, check with a professional.)

It is a technique of self-myofascial release (SMR), or self-massage, to help lengthen the fascia that covers the muscles, which, when restricted, can cause muscle tightness and adhesions (knots). A foam roller is a massage tool. By targeting muscle groups and using both gravity (placing the muscle atop the roller) and friction (the rolling action), you can effectively break up and ease out tight tissue.

Foam rolling is good for anyone who sits a lot (the fascia can tighten in response to being held sedentary for too long), anyone who moves a lot (the fascia can tighten when at rest after being used a lot), and anyone who likes to work out (the fascia can tighten in response to being overworked, and may also tighten in other places to compensate for muscles that are overworked).

Our five picks for best foam roller, set out next to each other.
Our picks, in their varying sizes and shapes (from top to bottom): the softer Gaiam Restore Total Body Foam Roller (36″); our top pick, the AmazonBasics High-Density Round Foam Roller (36″); the pro-level OPTP Black Axis Firm Foam Roller (36″); the smaller, textured TriggerPoint Rush Roller (13″); and the rolling-pin-likeTiger Tail Original (18″), which is great for travel.Photo: Michael Murtaugh

The experts we consulted for this review agree that a smooth-surfaced, 6-inch-diameter, 36-inch-long roller is the best general tool for SMR: It’s the most versatile for larger and smaller muscle groups alike, and you can also use it as a prop in your workouts. Short rollers will do the trick for some areas of the body (we recommend this one). But only long rollers allow you to, for instance, lie comfortably along their length to gently roll your back muscles, or stretch the front of your body. And in most cases, you want the firmest material you can tolerate to go as deep as you can—some trainers we know use actual PVC pipe and skip the foam entirely.

A bumpy, ridged, or otherwise textured roller can be good for targeting specific knots (known as trigger points) or for someone who prefers even deeper work. And a handheld option that fits in a gym bag is great for its portability, for hitting smaller muscles (such as your neck or ankles), and for partner work, if you’re lucky enough to have someone who’ll use the roller on you. But because you physically can’t produce as much pressure from pushing with your arms as you can from lying on top of a roller (ah, gravity!), the handheld roller is better used as a supplemental tool rather than your primary one. Likewise, other implements, such as firm rubber balls or smaller rollers, are also available and are great for very specific purposes—but because of their specificity, we didn’t look at those for this guide.

Altogether, we’ve tested 21 different foam rollers.

The physical therapist, the massage therapist, and Amy then spent at least an hour with each roller we tested, using it on themselves and discussing its merits and demerits with colleagues. We considered each roller for:

  • size, including diameter, length, and weight/heft
  • density
  • surface texture
  • perceived durability
  • ease of use/rolling ability
The AmazonBasics High-Density Round Foam Roller 36″, our pick for best foam roller.
Photo: Michael Murtaugh
Compared with our top pick, the vibrating foam rollers we tested are all shorter, more expensive, and more … animated.Video: Michael Hession

Vibrating foam rollers (equipped with battery-powered motors) take things up a notch—at souped-up prices. But so far, we’ve found that for most people, they don’t live up to all the buzz.

The effects of adding vibration to SMR remain largely unstudied. Subjective assessments have suggested that vibration can aid recovery and/or mitigate foam-rolling-related discomfort, Thomas Best, MD, PhD, professor of orthopedics at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, told us in a phone interview. “I can’t tell you that it’s going to help, but people have tried it, and they like it,” he said. Best added that if people enjoy the vibrating sensation, they may be more inclined to foam roll for longer and more often, potentially boosting the therapeutic effects of the self-massage.

Massage therapist Polina Savelieva and Amy reviewed four top-rated, best-selling models: the Hyperice Vyper 2.0 (currently unavailable), the NextRoller (currently unavailable), the VulkRoll Vibrating Foam Roller, and the Product Stop Vibrating Foam Muscle Roller (currently unavailable). In 2021, we also tried the Therabody Wave Roller. We used each one as a foam roller first (no vibration), then rolled with each on its lowest and highest power settings, evaluating the sensation and intensity.

The vibrating foam rollers we tested cost at least double the price of our top pick and are all fairly loud. If you plan to use a vibrating foam roller at home, you may have to time your rolling so as to avoid disturbing others. In addition, all of the powered models we tried are significantly shorter than our non-vibrating roller picks (12 to 18 inches in length, compared with our top pick’s 36 inches), which could make them too short to use on some larger muscle groups.

With those caveats in mind, Amy preferred the longer, more expensive, and slightly louder VulkRoll Vibrating Foam Roller.

Ultimately, though, we think most people would be better served by spending less than a third of the cost of either model on our top pick.

Here are just a few of the ways you can use a foam roller to work on sore hamstrings after a long hike, or to release tension after a long day of sitting at the office.Photo: Michael Hession

Now that you have this thing at home, what the heck do you do with it? “It’s not a self-explanatory tool, and there are so many varied uses,” said Stephanie LaHaye, marketing coordinator at OPTP. If you understand a few key concepts, SMR isn’t complicated. There are two main techniques you can use: 1) rolling back and forth, which creates friction and a rolling-pin-like ironing-out of the fascia, and 2) holding still on a tight spot, for trigger-point targeting to “melt” away knots. The other basic concept to understand: When you hold yourself atop the roller, the more gravity you can create on a muscle, the more intense the work. This generally means looking at your body’s points of contact with the floor—the closer your hands or feet are to the roller, the more you can hold yourself up, and the less intense the pressure of the muscle on the roller. The fewer and further apart the points of contact, the greater the pressure on the muscle you’re rolling.

An example: When rolling out your hamstrings (backs of the thighs), you can put both legs on top at once, which is less intense because the pressure is distributed across two legs. You can also slide the roller over so just one leg is on it, and use your other foot on the floor (knee bent) to support some of your weight; this becomes more intense because you’re hitting just one leg. Or, you can do one leg and hold your free foot off the floor entirely (getting more intense), or even cross that free leg on top of the worked-on leg to add more weight and pressure (most intense).

A typical method to ensure you hit all the major muscle groups is to go from the bottom up: Start with your calves, then your hamstrings, then your glutes (sitting on top of the roller with one ankle crossed over the opposite knee to target one cheek at a time), then flip over to get your quads, then do the sides of your hips to get the tensor fasciae latae (TFL), then lie across the roller at your middle back to get your shoulders. It’s generally not recommended to roll across the lower back, which could put undue pressure on the lumbar spine and its intervertebral discs. Instead, rotate the roller so it’s running down the length of your back, and rock from side to side to roll one side at a time, taking care not to roll over the spine itself.

Caring for your foam roller need not be difficult. Jon Graff, marketing director at SPRI at the time of our interview, shared the following advice: Store your large roller upright, somewhere not in direct sunlight (some foams may degrade with prolonged exposure to UV light). Don’t wear clothing with zippers or buttons that may gouge the roller’s surface when you’re rolling. After use, rub the roller with a damp sponge or antibacterial wipes, and clean it with a cloth dipped in soapy water followed by a good rinse every once in a while. (Don’t soak it, though, as some foams may absorb water and take forever to dry.)

It’s hard to gauge exactly how long a foam roller will last. “There are so many variables,” said Stephanie LaHaye, marketing coordinator at OPTP (maker of our runner-up pick), including how and where it’s used, as well as the frequency with which you use it. “Buying a quality foam roller, however, will help increase the life span of the tool.”

Foam rollers are often made of polymers like expanded polypropylene (EPP) and polyethylene foam. “They’re both recyclable,” said Kiersten Muenchinger, associate professor of product design at the University of Oregon, who studies sustainability, “but neither are highly recycled in our recycling systems.”

Recycling is just one part of the story. Durability can play an important role in the decision-making process. Rollers made of softer materials, like the aforementioned polyethylene foam, have the potential to warp over time, particularly when used frequently. Unless you’re sensitive to the pressure of SMR, consider rollers made of sturdier EPP (like our top and runner-up picks), which have the potential to last longer. Rollers made of ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA, a foam often found in the soles of running shoes) or PVC are also hardier and built to sustain higher-volume usage.

Some rollers are made of “natural” materials, such as cork or bamboo, but they’re not necessarily more sustainable than a roller made of synthetics. “‘Natural’ is this weird, undefinable thing that has no regulation to it,” Muenchinger said.

Bottom line? Solidifying what you want from a foam roller before you make your purchase can help ensure a satisfying—and long-lasting—relationship with it. “If you keep something twice as long, you’ve increased its sustainability twofold,” said Muenchinger.

There were no real complaints from our experts about the attractive TriggerPoint Grid 2.0, a longer version of the well-known TriggerPoint Grid. It rolls nicely and provides a firm density and good self-myofascial release, though no one could really feel much of a difference from its ridged, foam-covered plastic over a regular foam roller. And though it’s 26 inches long (the original Grid is 13 inches), that’s still 10 inches shorter than most full-size rollers. It’s also much pricier. But we’ve used one for about six years to good effect, and it’s held up well.

The somewhat spongy appearance of SPRI’s EVA Full Foam Roller might make you think it’s a big softie, but don’t be fooled: The medium-density foam is a bit firmer than the Gaiam Restore’s polyethylene foam, but it has more give than any of the black EPP rollers. In other words, it’s a fine pick if you’re looking for something in the middle and don’t mind spending a bit more.

Smooth rollers

The LuxFit Foam Roller (High Density) (available in 12-, 17½-, and 36-inch lengths) has the same slightly textured surface and density as our top pick. Somehow, though, it felt a bit picked over. As we discovered during testing, many of the firm black EPP rollers don’t differ much in form or function. So if the AmazonBasics roller isn’t available, this one will do the job just fine.

Textured rollers

The 321Strong Foam Roller (Medium Density Deep Tissue) and the Original Body Roller—both 12½ inches long and 5¼ inches in diameter—turned out to be nearly identical, with the same textured pattern. The Original Body Roller is too light and slipped out from under us several times while rolling. The 321Strong roller had a distinct chemical smell out of its plastic that dissipated only after several weeks. We felt its deeper texture when rolling, but it was tricky to control when it came to targeting areas like the calves precisely.

The dual-textured Gaiam Restore Deep Tissue Foam Roller is made of smooth, dense foam. But it feels cheaply made. We also spotted a few customer reviews on the Gaiam website complaining of internal cracking or seams coming apart.

With its aggressive-looking studs, the RumbleRoller Full-Size Original can look awesome or awful, depending on your deep-tissue needs. Either way, our experts cautioned that this isn’t the roller for people who are new to SMR—and indeed, it’s better for sustained trigger-point work over rolling.

Smooth and dense, with a texture that looks like elongated bubbles, the 26-inch Teeter Massage Foam Roller (Less Firm) isn’t wholly unpleasant, and we liked the longer length (though it’s still 10 inches shorter than many of our favorites). But we found it slippery and bumpy to roll on, and it had two pronounced seams that were fairly sharp.

The assertive looking knobs on the 26-inch Teeter Massage Foam Roller (More Firm) are intense and, for most people, would be too much for rolling. Like the RumbleRoller, this one is more suited for lingering trigger-point release.

The design-forward The Grind by Yuniti (available in four chic colors) has two panels of rugged, thumb-like knobs separated by a pair of smooth, 1½-inch strips. We couldn’t really get the benefits of flat and textured rolling as it promised—it rolled too unevenly—but targeted trigger-point relief was doable. Still, it wasn’t markedly better than many of the other textured rollers we tried.

Handheld foam rollers

The Idson Muscle Roller Stick for Athletes consists of nine dimpled, hard-plastic segments that are noticeably harder than the foam-covered roller of our favorite handheld SMR tool. The dimples provide a bit of added texture, but we didn’t notice a significant difference in intensity or the ability to finesse the amount of pressure applied.

The Pro-Tec Roller Massager is similar to the Tiger Tail, but its foam covering is segmented, with the ability to slide the segments together or keep them apart. Unfortunately, our pros found them largely ineffective in terms of changing the depth of the massage the roller provides—and given that the Pro-Tec is a handheld with the obvious limiting factor of arm strength, it doesn’t bring much new to the table.

Travel foam rollers

The Brazyn Life Morph Collapsible Foam Roller has a smart design: The roller collapses flat so it can be tucked into its mesh bag for travel or storage; loops on either end of the roller are pulled firmly to bring the roller back to its cylindrical shape. The mechanism held up over repeated pulls and deflates. Compared with our favorites, though, the roller felt hard and rolled clunkily. We took it on the road on a few occasions, and it was nice to have something to roll with, but it never won us over.

Like its sibling, the Gaiam Restore Deep Tissue Foam Roller, the collapsible Gaiam Restore Foam Roller (currently unavailable) didn’t feel great. Cleverly designed, it slides apart into two portable, packable sections. But it’s hard and bumpy to roll on, and a corner of the foam began to pull away from the body soon after we tried it.

Vibrating foam rollers

We dismissed the HoMedics Gladiator Vibration Foam Roller without testing because while most vibrating foam rollers are rechargeable, this one runs on four C batteries, which—with frequent use and replacement—would quickly add to its otherwise lower cost.

By far the strongest—and priciest—vibrating foam roller we’ve considered, the 13-inch Hyperice Vyper 2.0 had a supple foam covering with nicely rounded edges. But in our testing, we found it to be too powerful, even on its lower settings. It was also the loudest foam roller we tested. (Hyperice now makes a Vyper 3.0, which we haven’t tested.)

The 12-inch Therabody Wave Roller is sleek and smooth with an upscale feel, all the way down to its cloth storage bag. Its five vibration settings range from soothing and gentle (levels one through three) to serious vibration (levels four and five). Like many of the vibrating rollers we’ve tried, it does emit a loud hum at top speed—particularly when it’s vibrating on the floor (we moved to a yoga mat to help dampen the noise). That said, it feels nice to use for short periods of time.

The VulkRoll Vibrating Foam Roller’s 17-inch length was enough for Amy to roll two legs at once (though the VulkRoll is still shorter and more expensive than our top pick). Unlike the other powered rollers we tested, this one has an undulating setting, which we found soothing for sore muscles, especially along the calves.

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