Mats 

Speedcubing mats

A speedcubing mat is the pad where you place your cube before inspection, put it down after the solve and set your timer. It protects both the cube and your desk when you put the cube down quickly, and it gives you a fixed spot for practice. Everything sits in the same place every time, which matters when you do many solves in a row. In this category you will find mats from Speed Stacks, MoYu, QiYi, GAN, MoFangGe, YJ and HelloCube, as well as the Strefa Kostek mat. There are small pads just for the cube and large mats with room for a timer and an algorithm cheat sheet.

A mat that fits your timer

If you practice with a timer, first check which model the mat is designed for. The Speed Stacks Gen5 mat is designed for the G5 timer and does not fit older timers. So choose the Gen4 mat for a Gen4 timer and the Gen5 mat for a G5. Speed Stacks timers are used at WCA competitions, which is why many cubers practice at home on the same equipment. If you are building your setup from scratch, the Speed Stacks Pro Gen 5 set includes a G5 timer, a G5 mat and a bag. The timer measures time to 0.001 s, works in 2-pad or 4-pad mode and has a data port for connecting an external display.

The GAN Halo Timer Mat is built differently. It has a vertical layout and two openings that hold the GAN Halo Smart Timer in place. This way the timer does not slide when you slap the pads.

Mat size and print

Choose the size based on the space on your desk and whether the timer will sit on the mat:

• small mats (e.g. MoFangGe Small, MoYu Cyberpunk Mat Small) take up little space and are enough if you only need a pad for your cube,
• medium mats, such as the QiYi Training Mat (approx. 49 x 30 cm) or the GAN 30 x 30 cm, fit a cube and a small timer,
• large mats, e.g. the MoYu CFOP Mat Large (approx. 30 x 86 cm) and HelloCube Full-of-Cubes (35 x 70 cm), give you room for a timer, a cube and several puzzles at once.

The print is not just about looks. MoYu CFOP mats have CFOP algorithms printed on them. The Large version includes all three groups: F2L, OLL and PLL. If you are learning this method, the case you need is right in front of you, so you don't have to look it up on your phone. If you prefer a mat without a cheat sheet, you will find QiYi designs (Player One, Infinite Mind with mathematical motifs, Hand Graffiti), the MoYu Cyberpunk series in three sizes, Speed Stacks Gen5 mats with various graphics and a world map mat.

Some Speed Stacks mats, e.g. Gen5 Speedstacking, are also useful for sport stacking. Cups and other accessories for this sport can be found in the Speedstacking category.