Best Pickleball Paddles for Beginners

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In anticipation of writing this article, I purchased 20-50 beginner pickleball paddles to test and provide you feedback.

Now, I am a pickleball paddle fanatic, and I was a beginner not too long ago, so I thought it would be helpful to share the best pickleball paddles for beginners with you.

Due to the fact that there are thousands of paddles out there from which to choose. Do you choose a 14mm or 16mm pickleball paddle? Do you spend $5 or $200 on a paddle? How does the Onix z5 paddle compare to the Friday pickleball paddle?

In my opinion, your first and most important question to yourself is: Do I think I will like pickleball or do I have no idea?

1. If you have no idea whether you like the game, I would probably opt for a very inexpensive beginner pickleball paddle to minimize your investment.
2. If you think you are going to enjoy the game, then it may make sense to go with a pickleball paddle that is higher quality for the beginner.

Let’s look at the list.

6 Top Pickleball Paddles for Beginners

1. Best Overall Value: PBVMURTG Pickleball Paddle review
2. Best Overall Regardless of Price ($10 off with code: bepickleballer): Vatic Pro Prism Flash 16mm
3. Best Runner-Up: Anything Sports Carbon Fiber Paddle
4. Best <$10: Litakon Premium Fiberglass Pickleball Paddle
5. Best $50 – Franklin Sports Pickleball Paddle
6. Best Beginner Set: Selkirk Pickleball Paddle Set (One of my favorites is the Costco set, which is slightly different from this set)

Let’s go through my deep dive for each beginner pickleball paddle. Also, these are my ratings for the paddle(s).

Where To Purchase Beginner Paddles

The two best places that I’ve found to purchase beginner paddles are JustPaddles, Amazon, or directly on the company’s website.

JustPaddles is my overall favorite as they provide a 10% coupon code that can even be used for used and blemished paddles. If you are looking for a very cheap paddle, I found that Amazon generally has the best selection of cheap paddles in addition to expensive paddles.

Now, let’s look at my favorite beginner paddles that helped take me to the next level.

1. Best Overall Value

The PBVMURTG paddle has been the most interesting beginner paddle experience.

Why do I say that?

You may not believe this, but I played with a $200 paddle today against my friend this morning who is probably in the 4.0-4.5 DUPR range. He beat me 3 games in a row, but then I switched to this PBVMURTG pickleball paddle in game 4, and won the game 11-3. I could not believe it.

I loved this paddle so much I wrote an entire review on the paddle. It’s an amazing paddle that has incredible value.

The unboxing experience was a pleasant surprise, with the paddle arriving in a sturdy box, along with a cover, carbon fiber cleaner, and grip tape—extras you’d rarely find at this price point. When it comes to performance, the paddle felt solid, offering decent control, spin, and power, thanks to its carbon fiber face and 16mm thickness.

While it has a smaller sweet spot and feels a bit stiff compared to more expensive paddles, it still holds its own, especially when compared to my old Anything Sports paddle.

For under $35, this PBVMURTG paddle is IMPOSSIBLE to beat!

Please note that the link below helps support this website and allows me to write unbiased reviews as I get approximately $1.31 if you purchase this paddle through the link.That said, please do not feel like you have to use it!

Here are some my favorite PBVMURTG pickleball paddle pictures.

2. Best Overall Regardless of Price: Vatic Pro Prism Flash 16mm

I rate my favorite beginner pickleball paddles based on 4 key components to beginner pickleball paddles including: 1) value 2) paddle size 3) paddle weight and 4) paddle ability.

This is my favorite beginner pickleball paddle that has been beating out my Joola Ben Johns Hyperion and my SixZero Double Black Diamond. I have started winning more games against friends I had never beaten.

The paddle has a great carbon fiber face, providing power and control in my play. Carbon Fiber paddles can last 3+ years, significantly longer than wood and fiberglass paddles.

This paddle is just under $100, and you can use the Vatic Pro discount code: BePickleBaller for an additional $10 off the final price. I also appreciate that the paddle comes with a nice cover.

If you consider the Vatic Pro Prism paddle, you decide between a 14mm vs 16mm paddle. That defines the thickness of the paddle, and if you are an intermediate or advanced player, you may opt for 14mm while a beginner may opt for a 16mm thickness.

When I first purchased this paddle, I purchased the 16mm thickness, but I just ordered the 14mm thickness today, so I plan to write an article covering that.

3. Best Runner Up

I love the carbon fiber 16mm as a beginner pickleball paddle. I have the 14mm, but I would do a 16mm if you are a beginner.

At the time of this writing, the Anything Sports Carbon Fiber paddle is under $30 on Amazon. On Amazon, this paddle gets a solid 4.4, but I was curious why it would get anything less than a 5.0.

This is a carbon fiber paddle in the $30 – $40 range!

While the paddle height and width are not as large as my other paddles, I appreciate that you get to test out a carbon fiber face at a fraction of the price.

The paddle plays nicely, and even the reviews mention that this paddle used to be in the $70 range, so around $30 is a huge improvement.

Two of the most negative reviews mention the grip, which I will give to them. I wouldn’t purchase this paddle for the grip, but I value the face of the paddle over the grip, and it plays so nicely for the low price.

Let’s look at my favorite beginner cheap paddle.

4. Best Very Cheap Pickleball Paddle (Under $10)

The Gyothrig Pickleball Paddle is one of the least expensive pickleball paddles that I could find, which means that you can test out pickleball at a low price. I appreciate that this pickleball paddle maintains a 4.3 rating based on over 80+ reviews and also has a pickleball paddle cover.

I like how this paddle is still similar to paddles in the $10-$25 range but doesn’t seem to be marketed as heavily as other paddles. That said, you may want o check the price.

Did you know I purchased two sets of paddles at different prices, just to find out that I think the paddles were manufactured by the same company?

Fail.

Let’s go over my favorite $50 beginner paddle next.

4. Best $50 Beginner Paddle – Franklin Sports Pickleball Paddle 

Now, this is a 10mm thickness paddle, so it’s a bit thinner than what I would go with as a beginner. That said, the grip size is 5 inches, and this paddle is made of polypropylene, which has the same feel as carbon fiber. which helps grip the ball, providing more control.

The Franklin paddle is also 8 ounces, which I find a fine weight for beginners.

If you like paddle design, I appreciate how this paddle has an image of the sweet spot, making it potentially easier to understand where you need to hit the ball.

6. Best Beginner Set

I purchased this Costco pickleball set from Costco, and I have to say that the quality was much better than I anticipated. It was on the higher end of the price point that I’d want for a beginner paddle, but it’s an awesome set of 2 paddles, perfect for 2 beginners wanting to get started.

I don’t put much value on a free bag as they are generally poor quality, but this bag seemed to be overall better quality.

Generally, pickleball balls in combination sets appear to be poor quality, but these also seem to be decent-quality balls.

Overall, my opinion is that this Selkirk pickleball is the perfect set for beginners.

What I Look For In A Beginner Paddle

Here are the 3 primary components that I look for in a beginner paddle.

Value

When I was a beginner, I wanted to understand whether I liked the game before making the investment. I personally didn’t want to purchase a $200+ paddle, just to have it another thing I have to store at my house.

That said, I want a paddle that is functional to make sure that the paddle isn’t detracting from my potential enjoyment of the game.

As such, I want to find the best paddle at the best value.

Paddle Size

If your paddle size is too small, you may have a difficult time hitting the ball in the sweet spot, which is the area on the face of the paddle where the pickleball ball comes off most consistently.. If you can’t hit the ball well in the sweet spot, you may be more frustrated with the game when you could have enjoyed the game.

So, I am generally looking for both a longer length and a longer width of a pickleball paddle for beginners.

Paddle Weight

Generally speaking, the more weight of the paddle may provide more power, but it may be more difficult to move around the paddle effectively.

As such, for a beginner, I would prefer a pickleball paddle that is slightly lighter or in the medium weight.

Paddle Ability

There are paddles that are inexpensive, have the right size and weight, but just don’t have the right ability. For example, I got this paddle below from purchasing a pickleball net. I generally have low expectations of a paddle if it comes with something else that I am trying to purchase (aka a pickleball net)

The paddle may look nice, but I have seriously questioned it’s ability recently.

Are You Ready For Your Beginner Paddle?

Your pickleball paddle as a beginner is a key element of your success to the game. My position is that finding a paddle that is inexpensive yet functional, and has the right weight and size can help elevate your pickleball game from a beginner into a pickle “baller” (pun intended).

I reviewed so many paddles that didn’t make the list such as the Niupipo pickleball paddle and the Head Radical Elite paddle, but there were only a few paddles that could make this list.

Finally, you may also be looking for the best outdoor pickleball balls and the 3 grips of how to hold a pickleball paddle.

Hopefully, one of these 4 best pickleball paddles for beginners can be of service to you.

My Favorite Pickleball Paddle Articles

1. 14mm vs 16mm Pickleball Paddle
2. Vatic Pro Prism Flash 14mm vs 16mm
3. Pickleball Paddle Set Costco
4. Best Pickleball Paddles For Kids
5. Pickleball Paddle Quiz
6. Head Radical Elite Pickleball Paddle Review
7. Niupipo Pickleball Paddle Review
8. JustPaddles Review
9. Friday Pickleball Paddle Review

Other Favorite Articles

1. Best Pickleball Portable Nets
2. Pickleball Drills for Kids
3. Pickleball Team Names
4. How to Play Pickleball
5. Best Material for Pickleball Paddle
6. My First Pickleball Tournament