The best padel rackets in the UK for every player, from beginner to pro

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There are ludicrously fast-growing sports – and then there’s padel. According to the Lawn Tennis Association, only 15,000 British players picked up a padel racket in 2019 … but by the end of 2024, that figure was more than 400,000. Of those, about 399,000 are probably mispronouncing it: think pah-dell rather than paddle. But get used to strange looks if you insist on saying it like that.

People love padel because it’s so easy to play. If you can hit a ball with a racket, you can play – and there’s something joyous about whacking any ball over any net. You don’t need to be incredibly fit either: while better players will be constantly on the move, casual players can get away with something akin to walking pace.

Padel isn’t as technical a game as tennis, but there are plenty of tactics and techniques to pick up. Good players don’t just whack the ball as hard as they can: in most cases, the ball will bounce back towards the middle of the court, perfect for a clever player to angle away. Padel is a game of subtlety and control.

Group shot of the padel rackets featured in the test.

All of this means that padel’s appeal is spreading across every age group, and with that comes difficulty finding courts to play at and, if they are available, at wallet-singeing rental prices. Local to me in Buckinghamshire, I hired a court for £28 an hour for these tests, which is considered low for peak rate in the UK. In some places, especially London, peak rates shoot up to £50 an hour. However, padel is a game for four players, so you can at least split the cost. The good news is that the number of UK courts is growing, as tennis clubs and even local authorities seize on it as a great way to make money.

Hopefully, by this point, you’re interested in playing. To do that, you’ll need a racket. The majority of venues provide a basic racket for first-time players, though it makes sense to invest in something that’s right for you – and that’s exactly why I wrote this buying guide.

At a glance

Best padel racket overall:
Babolat Counter Origin

£67.98 at Express Padel

Best padel racket for beginners:
Decathlon Kuikma PR Rental

£49.99 at Decathlon

Best for ‘control’ players:
Babolat Counter Veron 2025

£156.37 at Amazon

Best for ‘power’ players:
Wilson Bela V3 Padel (2025)

£171.57 at Amazon

Best padel racket for kids:
Babolat Alioth JR

£74.99 at Sweatband

Why you should trust me

I have been reviewing products for more than 25 years, including for the Sunday Times, Which?, and technology magazine PC Pro (which I also edit. To say I love racket sports is an understatement: I am chair of my local tennis club and have played in matches. As with the rest of the UK, I’m a relative newcomer to padel, so I worked with a padel coach and four other players to put almost 20 rackets to the test – only the best made it into this guide.

How I tested

UK Padel coach Andy Keeley poised for an attempt at a smash.

Here’s the formula: drive to a nearby padel court, haul a huge cardboard box of rackets out of my boot, struggle with them to the side of the court. Almost without exception, the eyes of every player I encountered lit up with desire. Some would say envy.

“That’s a lot of rackets, are you keeping them?” came the inevitable question, followed by my equally inevitable reply that they were all on loan from the respective companies and would be heading back to them as soon as I’d finished my tests.

The other constant was my main fellow tester and player, Kevin, who also falls into the “beginner” category, but who is irritatingly good at racket sports and was immediately given the top possible rating by the UK Padel coaches. I was also lucky enough to work with UK Padel coach Andy Keeley, who also looked enviously at the boxful of rackets when we first met. “Bad timing for me,” he said, “I’ve just spent £200 on a new racket.”

I tested 19 rackets from six manufacturers: Babolat, Bullpadel, Decathlon, Dunlop, Head, and Wilson. All the comments are based not only on my own experience, but also on those of Andy, Kevin, Kevin’s 15-year-old daughter, Eveline, and two other players, Hannah and Ina.

The best padel rackets in 2026

Padel racket Group Shot. The rackets are piled into a cardboard box lying on the green padel court.

Decathlon Kuikma PR Rental padel racket.

Babolat Counter Veron 2025 padel racket.

The best of the rest

Decathlon Kuikma Power Metal padel racket.

Decathlon Kuikma Metal padel racket. The Guardian

What you need to know

What head shape is best for your level?

There are three main types of head shape. Beginners will get the most immediate joy from a rounded style, which is the most forgiving, but your second racket is likely to be a teardrop shape. This puts more of the weight towards the top of the racket and means you can hit balls with more explosive power – but only if you hit them with the right part of the racket.

Absolute power players – and ones who can hit with a lot of accuracy – will lean towards the diamond-shaped rackets. The sweet spot is smaller still, towards the head of the racket, but that means you can get enough power on smashes to hopefully speed past opponents after the ball hits the back wall.

Do expensive padel rackets make a difference?

Yes, to a point. But don’t get sucked in by the hype. Speaking to Andy, a pro coach who had just spent almost £200 on his new racket, there is no need for beginners or intermediate players to spend as much as he did. You can find a great racket for less than £150, and don’t forget that almost all padel courts include rackets that you can try for free.

For most people, we suggest spending between £50 and £100 on your first racket. Work out exactly what sort of player you are – aggressive, counterattacking, spinny – before spending more on a racket that isn’t right for your game.

What other kit do I need?

Most courts provide padel balls, which are different from tennis balls: they’re slightly smaller and have a lower pressure, meaning they’re softer to hit and slower. But after a while, I’m pretty sure you’ll want to invest in your own.

You’ll also need a decent pair of trainers. Naturally, a whole industry of padel trainers has appeared, but the key thing is to have a decent grip – in the UK, the surface is almost universally artificial turf, and you may graze your skin if you fall over. I’ve also seen someone sprain their ankle while playing on an outdoor court, so be careful out there.

Unlike a tennis racket, you don’t need a racket cover to keep strings safe.

Is padel the same as pickleball?

No, padel is a very different game from pickleball, and they need different equipment. And courts. In particular, padel courts have walls for the ball to bounce against, much like squash, while pickleball is like a shorter version of tennis, except the ball has holes in it to slow it down.

How does scoring work?

Scoring in padel works exactly like doubles tennis. So, each player takes their turn to serve in a game. And then, assuming the serving team wins each point, it goes 15-love, 30-love, 40-love, game. To win a game, you must win by two clear points – so, again, like tennis, that means games go to deuce, after which the team must win two points in a row (for their advantage, then their game).

You also score sets and tie-breaks just like in tennis.

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Tim Danton is a journalist and author who has written two books about the history of computing. His first sporting love is tennis, whether that’s watching it, playing it, or being on the committee of his local tennis club (where he serves as chair). As with many tennis players, he enjoys padel for its sociability and its different skill set

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