The 7 Best Massagers of 2024

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We tested at-home massagers ourselves to see which ones provided the most relief.

Verywell Health / Leticia Almeida

Whether you’re an athlete, an exercise fanatic, or someone who spends hours hunched over in a chair, almost everyone could benefit from massage. At-home massagers are designed to imitate the experience of human massage while offering you the convenience of access whenever you need it. According to physical therapist Karena Wu, PT, DPT, at-home massagers loosen tight tissues, increase circulation, and increase muscle activation to lower pain perception. However, it’s worth noting that massage is directed trauma; as a result, overdoing it can lead to bleeding or other issues, says Charles Hummer, MD.

We spoke with three orthopedists before testing nine differently-styled massagers to find the best massagers. We also had an additional expert on-site in The Verywell Health Lab to oversee our testing. We focused on factors such as the style of massage (such as percussion or rolling), the force produced by each product, and portability.

We also recommend consulting a medical professional should pain persist or worsen while using your at-home massager. A healthcare provider can help diagnose any root causes of your pain and help direct you toward specified treatment plans to help address your needs.

Amazon

Five speed options

High pressure ability without stalling

Ergonomic design reaches areas without discomfort

Carrying case isn’t as protective as we’d like

Type: Percussion | Features: 5 speeds, 4 attachments | Best For: Any muscle pain

If you’re in the market for a massage gun that is highly effective, ergonomically designed, and won’t make too much noise, the Theragun Prime 4th Generation is our pick. The triangular grip made it easy to alternate our hand positioning during testing, so we never experienced any discomfort when using it.

We found this massage gun to be able to relieve tension in sore muscles after a workout, as well as to provide the necessary pressure to loosen muscles pre-workout. We also loved the five-speed options to customize the massage to our specific needs. This option also comes with four helpful attachments, unlike other massage guns that overdo it with unnecessary additional heads.

If you need more of a full body massage or like to go hands-free, the Comfier Neck and Back Massager may be the better option for you. It offers heat and compression therapy in a seated position, but the only downside is that people who don’t like a lot of neck pressure in a massage may find this to be too intense.

It only comes with a soft, drawstring bag for transport, and we would have preferred a hard case with a zipper to protect our investment.

Amazon

Easy to use one-handed

Super portable

Simple and intuitive design

Requires a lot of force

Can’t reach everywhere

Type: Percussion | Features: 3 speeds, 3 attachments | Best For: Localized pain, legs

Wu likes the Theragun Mini 2nd Generation for its smaller size, which makes it easier to hold and travel with without sacrificing durability. Though she warns that the stall force is more limited than in other models, we didn’t experience this problem. The smaller nature of this option made it a great choice for smaller muscle groups like calves, hamstrings, arms, and forearms. Additionally, the shape of the handle makes it easy to use one-handedly.

With three attachments and three speeds, this option was easy to use and a solid, quiet choice. Despite its smaller size, it still has a 120-minute battery life.

We did find that, though effective, we really needed to put additional pressure with this model to get the desired amount of force due to its smaller size and shape. It also wasn’t able to get to the harder to reach areas like our backs.

Amazon

Ergonomic design

Good stall force

Portable

Not great for people with larger muscles

Horn feature doesn’t stay in place during use

Type: Percussion | Features: Heat, 3 speeds, 4 heads | Best For: Beginners

If you prefer heat implementation to help with muscle soreness, the Renpho Lite Massage Gun is our pick. This massage gun is simple in design, has three-speed settings, and four head attachments designed with different body parts in mind: The ball head works for large muscle groups and extreme soreness, the u-shaped head targets the spine, neck and Achilles, the bullet head is good for joints and trigger points, and the flat head is ideal for full body use. It also has three heat settings of 100, 107, and 114 degrees F.

The ergonomic design of this option enabled us to use it for extended periods of time without experiencing any fatigue. Additionally, the smaller size of .7 pounds makes it easy to take on the go; we were able to fit it into our personal bag on a flight without it feeling like it added any weight.

We found that we needed to use the highest pressure setting for relief for larger muscles. We also found the horn attachment swivels during use, which proved to be frustrating.

Amazon

Affordable and stylish

Doesn’t take up much space

Grooves allow for controlled pressure

May be too small for some bodies

Type: Foam roller | Features: Soft grooves, 500 pound limit | Best For: Beginners to advanced exercisers

Wu uses the GRID foam roller for patients to apply different pressures to their tissues through various points. She mentions that the patterned design is intended to imitate the hands of a massage therapist. After just one usage with the GRID 1.0, we felt like our muscles were elongated, and we felt more loose and flexible. The firm core inside and the soft grooves on the outer later gave us control over the pressure we directed into our muscles. It’s also shorter (13 inches) than other options we tested, which we found to be good for use on the inner legs.

We love that it barely takes up any space. In fact, we realized that we could even store items like towels inside the hollow center when not in use, a feature that Wu also noted and appreciated for convenience.

While we found the shorter length of this model to be good for certain body parts, larger people may not find it adequate for their needs.

Amazon

Features heat

Works well for calves as well as neck and back

Provides good pressure

Charging cord is short

No add-on features

Type: Kneading massager | Features: Heat, bi-directional heads | Best For: People who sit at a desk for long periods of time

While it took a little adjusting to get into the perfect positioning, we found the Viktor Jurgen Massager to be highly effective at providing excellent pressure for our necks and the back of our heads. It’s also very easy to use; all you have to do is put it down, press power, lay on it, and press a button to add heat. Overall, we felt that the cost, in comparison to the value it provided, was well worth it.

We love that this massager is designed to imitate the feeling of a real-life person massaging you through the bidirectional movement in the massage heads that reverse every minute. While the name implies that this option is suited only to massaging the neck and back, we also found it does a great job of working the calves.

The shorter cord can make charging it during usage frustrating. Additionally, outside of the car charger feature, it doesn’t have any add-ons.

Verywell Health / Leticia Almeida

Verywell Health / Leticia Almeida

Amazon

User-friendly

"Smart" massage gun

Multiple attachments and settings

Intense

Heavy

Type: Percussion | Features: Heat, infrared, vibration, breathwork routines (in app), sound therapy (in app) | Best For: Runners, serious athletes, physical therapists

The Theragun Pro Plus delivered one of the most effective deep tissue massages during testing. Its high-pressure intensity makes it a great option for serious athletes, physical therapists, or anyone who has tougher knots to work out. This pick has a bright, built-in LED screen that displays its five speeds, infrared setting, three heat settings, and battery life. It also comes with five different attachment heads and a storage case. Our favorite was the wedge attachment. It worked out really sore back knots, which we greatly appreciated. We also enjoyed the heat therapy head, too.

You can change the settings using the LED screen or the accompanying app. The latter can store your favorite settings, and it has a media library full of breathwork routines and sound therapy. We preferred using the massager's display screen because it was just that easy to use. Navigating and toggling through the different options was so simple that the app felt more like a bonus perk than a necessity, which is good for people who aren't as tech-savvy. Finding the perfect speed and vibration combo takes some trial and error, but once you do, you're set.

This massage gun is heavy (3.6 pounds), and our arms were fatigued after 30 minutes of use. Also, this option isn’t the best for anyone seeking a gentle or more casual massage. Even the lowest setting was more intense than we expected.

Target

Relaxing

Portable

Four attachment heads

Not noiseless

Swapping attachments can be difficult

Type: Percussion | Features: Bluetooth, built-in biometric sensor | Best For: Relaxation, casual exercisers, muscle soreness and tightness

The Theragun Sense is a great percussion massage gun for anyone looking to relax or recover from a workout. Even though it’s not as intense as other picks, it’s still incredibly effective at tending to tight muscles. Using it at the end of the day during testing completely alleviated our tension and soothed our daily muscle aches.

It has four attachment heads and several pre-programmed settings that take the guesswork out of the massage. Once one is selected, it guides you by instructing you on what body parts to target and for how long. Our favorite was the bedtime relief option—the difference we felt after was staggering. We were much calmer, less tense, and more at ease than before. The LED screen displays the settings, and switching between them is fairly straightforward. We also like the fact that it’s portable, not too heavy, and fits easily in the carrying case.

Swapping out the attachment head isn’t intuitive, but it's easy once you figure it out. The manufacturer also says it’s a noiseless massage gun, but we felt it emitted the same sound as other massage guns we tested.

To find the best massagers on the market, our editors tested 50 different massagers in the The Verywell Health Lab. We focused on details like effectiveness, comfort, ease of use, features, and overall value.

We spoke to experts at every stage of researching and reporting this story. Some helped us devise effective ways to test these products. Others shared information on what makes a massager effective, what qualities we should avoid or seek out, and safety concerns surrounding using a massager. We chose products independently but used input from the following experts to influence our choices:

Jack Byram is a freelance writer who covers all things health and home-related. As a workout fanatic and a massage enthusiast, he is acutely interested in and constantly trying out products to alleviate muscle soreness. From this article alone, he owns a Theragun that he uses. In the past, he has experimented with foam rollers and chair massagers.

By Jack ByramJack Byram is a freelance writer who has written numerous articles over the last five years about all things self improvement. He has interviewed medical doctors, chiropractors and other experts to guide his research into recommending the best products.