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Head-to-head · Best Extra-Thick Yoga Mats

BalanceFrom GoCloud All-Purpose 1-inch Mat vs Gaiam Essentials Fitness Mat & Sling (10mm)

Which is the better buy? Side-by-side on rating, price, strengths, and watch-outs — with the published ratings we averaged to get there.

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The short answer

Gaiam Essentials Fitness Mat & Sling (10mm) comes out ahead by a clear margin (5.0 vs 4.0). Gaiam Essentials Fitness Mat & Sling (10mm) is best for: Budget buyers who want a cushioned mat for gentle yoga, stretching and light floor or weight work at home. Read the strengths below before deciding.

BalanceFrom GoCloud All-Purpose 1-inch Mat
Ranked #4 in Best Extra-Thick Yoga Mats
BalanceFrom GoCloud All-Purpose 1-inch Mat
1 sourceall derived$30.99as of Oct 14

The BalanceFrom GoCloud packs a full inch of high-density foam into a budget mat. OutdoorGearLab gave it its Best Cushioned Mat award and called it the most comfortable and cushioned mat it tested, recommending it for stretching and floor exercises. The trade-offs it found: the surface gets slippery when wet, the soft foam is unstable for standing balance poses, and durability is a concern.

Strengths
  • — Best Cushioned Mat award from OutdoorGearLab, which found it the most comfortable mat it tested
  • — High-density foam resisted squishing and sinking more than other brands in OutdoorGearLab's use
  • — Waterproof closed-cell foam wipes clean or washes with soap and water
Watch-outs
  • — Hands and feet tended to slip when the surface was wet, per OutdoorGearLab
  • — Too soft to give a stable surface for standing balance poses
$30.99 · Check Price on AmazonFull review →
Gaiam Essentials Fitness Mat & Sling (10mm)
Higher ratedRanked #1 in Best Extra-Thick Yoga Mats
Gaiam Essentials Fitness Mat & Sling (10mm)
1 source$24.98as of Oct 16

The Gaiam Essentials is a 10mm NBR foam mat with a carrying sling at a budget price. Best Products editor Cat Bowen, a daily runner with sore joints, bought one and found kneeling and seated poses comfortable on hardwood for the first time, and that it was thick enough to soften the noise of dropped weights. Her one complaint was the length.

Strengths
  • — Made kneeling and seated poses comfortable on hardwood floors for Best Products' tester
  • — Thick enough to absorb the sound of dropped weights, per Best Products
  • — Only a mild new-mat smell out of the box, per Best Products
Watch-outs
  • — Best Products' tester, who is the same length as the mat, said it could definitely be longer
  • — At 10mm it is the thinnest mat on this page, with less padding than the half-inch and 1-inch options
$24.98 · Buy at gaiam.comFull review →

Derived means the reviewer published no score, so one was inferred from their written verdict. Everything else is a number the publisher printed. How we rank.

How they stack up

BalanceFrom GoCloud All-Purpose 1-inch Mat

At 1 inch (25mm), the GoCloud is roughly twice as thick as the half-inch Amazon Basics (12.7mm) and ProsourceFit Extra Thick (13mm) mats and much thicker than the 10mm Gaiam Essentials, so it offers the most padding on this page. The thinner mats give a firmer base for standing poses.

Gaiam Essentials Fitness Mat & Sling (10mm)

At 10mm it is the thinnest mat on this page: a little thinner than the half-inch Amazon Basics (12.7mm) and ProsourceFit Extra Thick (13mm), and far thinner than the 1-inch BalanceFrom GoCloud. At 72 inches it is shorter than the 74-inch Amazon Basics.

Specs side-by-side

SpecBalanceFrom GoCloud All-Purpose 1-inch MatGaiam Essentials Fitness Mat & Sling (10mm)
Thickness1 inch (25mm)2/5 inch (10mm)
MaterialHigh-density anti-tear EVA/NBR foamNBR (nitrile butadiene rubber) foam
Dimensions71 x 24 in72 x 24 in
Weight2.2 lb—
SurfaceDouble-sided non-slip texture—
IncludesCarrying strapCarrying sling
CareWipe clean, moisture-proof—
← See the full ranking of best extra-thick yoga mats