PVC, TPE, Rubber Tree Sap… Which is the best yoga mat for your student?

Yoga students rely on their yoga teachers to know about yoga mats kind of like the way tennis players rely on their teachers to know about tennis rackets.

Yoga mats are made of several different types of raw materials and each has a trade-off. Which is the best yoga mat for your student?

The chart below shows the different ‘major’ types of yoga mats and which problems each solves for an individual yogi based on our own testing.

Yoga Mat Buying Guide

Download here: Yoga Mat Buying Guide

The best yoga mat for your student depends on what problems your student is trying to solve…

CONCLUSIONS

PVC YOGA MATS are great for students who are:
a) Beginners: Is your student new to yoga and not sure if they want to make an investment?
b) Value-Conscious: Is your student looking for a mat that will last a lifetime?
c) Commuters: Does your yogi need a lightweight mat for commuting?

RUBBER TREE SAP YOGA MATS are great for students that are:
a) Committed Yogis: Is your student committed to yoga and now ready to invest in a ‘good’ mat?
b) Eco-friendly: Does your student want to buy an eco-friendly alternative?

TPE YOGA MATS are great for students that are…
I personally do not recommend TPE mats for any student. I tested TPE mats and my main issue with them is (at least in my biased opinion) they do not seem to solve any problems that PVC mats don’t already solve but at the same time they are not very durable compared to PVC mats. And on top of all this they cost more.

In addition to the ‘major’ types there are many ‘minor’ types of yoga mats: polyurethane, jute, memory foam, etc. Some have issues with durability, others with slipperiness.

An obvious question is “Tomuno makes natural rubber mats… why should we trust what they say about other types of mats?” My name is Rob. I am the owner of Tomuno. When we started Tomuno we did not set out to sell rubber yoga mats. We actually did the reverse. We tested every yoga mat raw material available, asked yoga teachers, did our research trying to find the best yoga mat for one particular market which happens to be the biggest market… ‘experienced yogis who do unheated yoga.’ We chose natural rubber to fit this need. But we recognize other raw materials are best for other types of yogis. And we might create yoga mat lines using other raw materials in the future to meet these needs?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this buying guide?