Glass Mouse Pad vs Cloth: Which Should you Choose?

Mouse pads are easily the most overlooked part of a gaming set up. Unless you’re really really into competitive gaming, then you might not even know that mouse pads come in various materials.

We’ve just released our first glass mouse pad, the CORSAIR MM GLASS, so we thought it was a good time to go over the differences between glass and cloth mouse pads, so you know which is right for your setup.

Here is where glass mouse pads like the MM GLASS LARGE dominate. Glass is the fastest, lowest-friction mouse pad material. Glass is far smoother than cloth, so your mouse glides with almost zero resistance which makes it the superior choice for those who need speed above all else.

Cloth mousepads can vary wildly when it comes to speed. It depends on surface material, the method by which it’s weaved, and the final coating. With various combinations of these factors, some cloth pads can get very fast, but they are still no real match for glass. That said, swapping from a cloth mouse pad to a glass mouse pad will require a learning curve as your muscle memory won’t initially translate. If you’ve ever swapped out worn mouse skates for new ones, you’ll be familiar with this feeling of the mouse travelling way easier than you’re used to.

Here again, we see an advantage of the glass mouse pad. It takes orders of magnitude longer for a glass mouse pad to wear down vs a traditional cloth mouse pad. Glass is simply a harder material and as such will resist wear for longer.

Glass is also more resilient when it comes to cleanliness. Where a cloth mousepad might eagerly absorb any spilled liquids (if not treated with anti-spill coating, like the MM350 PRO), a glass mouse pad won’t absorb anything.

You probably don’t need us to tell you this, as you’ll be familiar with the panic that occurs when liquid is spilt on things made of cloth or fabric and the opposite sense of ambivalence that comes when you spill liquid on something hard and non-porous. A cloth mousepad might require blotting and scrubbing, glass just needs a quick swipe with a cloth and then a once over with a clean paper towel or similar to dry it.

Glass mouse pads do not come it sizes as large as cloth mousepads. This is not an inherent disadvantage of glass as a material, but a limitation in shipping. Cloth mousepads can be rolled up so even a desk-sized behemoth ships in a compact tube without issue. Even if the box gets beaten to hell by a courier, the mousepad inside will be fine

On the other hand, a glass mousepad becomes exponentially harder to ship the larger it gets. It can’t be rolled up and it’s rigid so the bigger it is, the more likely it is to sustain damage. This is why no company offers glass mouse pads the size of desk pads. However, the MM GLASS LARGE for example is 500mm (19.7”) x 400mm (15.7”) which is more than enough space even for the lowest DPI players.

To be clear, as long as the glass mousepad has a matte finish like the MM GLASS LARGE, then you will not face any disfunction, regardless of your choice of mouse. But you should not use glass mouse skates with a glass mouse pad. The skates and mousepad will scratch each other. If you choose a glass mousepad, then you should stick with PTFE skates..

If you attend LAN parties on the regular, then you should be aware that a glass mouse pad will be more awkward to transport safely. A cloth pad can be rolled up and thrown into a backpack with reckless abandon, but a glass mousepad will require more care. A good idea here is to keep the box that your glass mouse pad came in and use that if you’re travelling to prevent damage.

If you want speed above all else, then there is no substitute for glass. If you like a full-coverage desk pad or something more portable, then cloth might be a better choice. Ultimately, it depends on what type of games you play, and your specific preferences. If you’ve never tried a glass mouse pad, then the MM GLASS LARGE is a great opportunity to make the leap. If you’re firmly on the side of cloth, then we have plenty of options there, too.