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Pose & Pause

Yoga Mats Guide

Why Is My Yoga Mat Slippery?

Almost always the mat, almost never you. Six causes in order of likelihood, and the fix for each.

By Janet H.Updated How we pick
A towel and water bottle resting on an exercise mat
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The short answer

If the mat is new, it is almost certainly manufacturing residue and it will wear off. If the mat is old, it is almost certainly worn out. Everything in between is sweat, cleaning products, or the wrong material for your practice. Very little of it is your technique.

Six causes, most likely first

1. The mat is new

Closed-cell mats leave the factory with a surface film, and dense premium mats have more of it than cheap ones. This is the single most common cause and the one that catches people out most, because a mat that cost real money is expected to work on day one.

Fix: wash it with a damp cloth and mild soap, then use it. One to three weeks of regular practice does the rest. Some owners use a coarse salt scrub to accelerate it. Do not conclude the mat is faulty before that.

2. Your hands are sweating

A film of moisture kills friction on most mat surfaces. It is not a defect and it is not a strength problem.

Fix: a skidless towel, or a surface that likes moisture — cork, or a grip-top mat. Full options in mats for sweaty hands.

3. You cleaned it with the wrong thing

Oil-based soaps, fabric conditioners and some household sprays leave a film that is slicker than the mat was to begin with. Frustratingly, the problem gets worse each time you clean it.

Fix: strip it with warm water and a tiny amount of plain dish soap, rinse with a clean damp cloth twice, dry fully. Then use a proper mat cleaner — the cleaning guide has the method.

4. It is the wrong material for your practice

TPE and closed-cell PVC both grip poorly when damp. In a heated room they are simply the wrong tool, and no amount of breaking in changes that.

Fix: a towel over the top, or a different material — the materials guide covers which grips when.

5. The mat is worn out

Surface texture is what grips, and texture wears smooth. A mat with shiny patches where your hands and feet go has reached the end of its useful life, and no cleaning brings the texture back.

Fix: replace it. If it wore out fast, buy denser next time.

6. It is moving on the floor rather than under your hands

Worth separating, because the fix is different. If the whole mat travels, the problem is between the mat and the floor — commonly carpet, or a very smooth polished floor with a light mat.

Fix: a heavier, denser mat, or a textured underside. On carpet specifically, see mats for carpet.

The picks

What to buy if nothing works

The towel first, because it is cheapest. The two grippy surfaces after that, if the mat itself is the problem.
  • Stock photo: rolled white towels stacked in a woven basketStock photo

    Rescuing a slippery mat

    Manduka Yogitoes Skidless Mat Towel

    The fix for a slippery mat you otherwise like. Silicone nubs hold it to the mat, and the top grips harder the wetter it gets.

    Check price on Amazon

    #ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Manduka Yogitoes Skidless Mat Towel

  • Stock photo: a yoga mat being rolled up on a wooden floorStock photo

    The grippiest dry surface

    JadeYoga Harmony Mat

    Open-cell natural rubber with the stickiest dry grip here. It drinks sweat rather than shedding it, so it needs proper airing and eventually wears out.

    Check price on Amazon

    #ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to JadeYoga Harmony Mat

  • Stock photo: close-up of a natural cork surface and its grainStock photo

    Cork that grips when damp

    Yoloha Original Cork Yoga Mat

    Cork over a rubber base: the grip gets better as your hands get damp, which is the opposite of every PVC mat. Heavy, and it needs a few sessions to stop wanting to re-roll itself.

    Check price on Amazon

    #ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Yoloha Original Cork Yoga Mat

The technique half

Two adjustments fix a surprising amount of sliding without buying anything, and they are worth trying before you spend.

Spread your fingers wide and press through the knuckles. Weight concentrated on the heel of the hand slides forward; weight distributed across a wide hand grips. This is the single most useful cue for a beginner sliding in downward dog.

Press back rather than down. In downward dog and plank, actively push the floor away and slightly backwards. It changes the direction of force and removes most of the forward slide.

If both of those and a clean mat still leave you sliding, it is the equipment, and the picks above are the answer.

How to break a mat in, properly

Cause one on the list above — a brand-new closed-cell mat — is the most common of all, and it has a real method rather than just waiting.

  1. Wash it first. Warm water, a drop of plain dish soap, a soft cloth, then a second pass with a clean damp cloth to lift the soap off. Dry flat and completely. On many mats this alone is most of the fix.
  2. Use it. Regular practice physically abrades the surface. Two weeks of three sessions a week makes a noticeable difference, and there is no shortcut that beats it.
  3. Try a coarse salt scrub if you are impatient. Sprinkle coarse sea salt over the mat, scrub it in with a damp stiff brush or cloth, leave it overnight, then brush off and wipe down. Several mat makers suggest this for their own closed-cell mats. Do not do it to an open-cell rubber mat.
  4. Give it sunlight, briefly. An hour of indirect daylight helps. Not a day in full sun, which degrades the surface you are trying to save.

What not to do: sandpaper, a wire brush, or anything abrasive enough to leave visible marks. You are trying to remove a film, not the top layer of the mat, and there is no way back from taking off too much.

If three weeks of this changes nothing, the mat is simply the wrong material for how much you sweat, and the sweaty-hands list is the right page.

How we picked

Chosen on published criteria, and we say so

Most gear sites open by telling you how many hours they spent with the products. We have not used most of these, and we would rather say so than imply otherwise. Every pick here is chosen against criteria we publish — grip, cushioning, size options, what buyers report after a year of use, and whether the thing is still actually sold — and every manufacturer figure on the page is labeled as the maker's claim.

Nobody pays for a place on this page, no product was supplied free in exchange for coverage, and a specification the maker does not publish is never guessed at. See the full criteria and weighting.

FAQ

Questions people ask

Why is my new yoga mat slippery?

Surface residue from manufacturing. It wears off over one to three weeks of use, and washing the mat speeds it up.

How do I fix a slippery yoga mat?

Wash it properly, break it in, and if you sweat, add a skidless towel. If the surface has worn shiny, the mat needs replacing.

Does a salt scrub work on a new mat?

It is a common method for breaking in closed-cell mats and several makers suggest it. Use coarse salt, a damp cloth, and gentle pressure.

Should I buy a new mat or a towel?

Try the towel first. It costs far less and solves the same problem unless your mat has worn smooth.

Related

Keep reading

Update log

What changed

  • First published.

Receipts

Sources

  1. 1.Manduka — product information
  2. 2.Manduka — Yogitoes mat towels
  3. 3.OutdoorGearLab — The Best Yoga Mats
  4. 4.JadeYoga — product information
  5. 5.Reviewed — The Best Yoga Mats

We have not used every product on this page, and we do not pretend otherwise. Thicknesses, materials, sizes and warranty terms are the manufacturer's published figures, shown as their claims. Anything about materials, skin or injury is linked to a source. Prices are set by Amazon and change constantly, so we never print one. Read the full method.