9 best massage guns to relieve sore muscles from aches and pains

If you really want a massage gun that means business (and are prepared to pay for it), this is the gadget for you. It has everything you’ll ever need from a massage gun, including a powerful motor that pulses at up to 3,000 PPM (percussions per minute), a tilted handle to help reach every area, and attachments that move smoothly over skin without ever catching.

Though it doesn’t have Bluetooth capability, what really sets this gun apart is its heating and cooling massage heads. The heated one reaches 47C in less than two minutes and feels heavenly on sore muscles, immediately making the massage more effective. The cooling head needs freezing for four hours before use but is perfect to cool down after a workout or to soothe minor injuries. As if that’s not enough, this was also the only gun we tested with an anti-cellulite head, designed to specifically target dreaded orange-peel skin, and this extra use helps make the gun’s price tag a little easier to swallow.

However, it is a little heavier than some other guns, so, if that’s likely to be an issue for you, it may be best to choose another. But we’re smitten (and a whole lot less tense).

Bob Schrupp and Brad Heineck are already the world’s best-known physical therapists, with more than four million subscribers on YouTube following their tips for a pain-free life. Unsurprisingly, their massage gun is also a fantastic way to target daily niggles without spending a fortune, and it has everything to help a casual user keep stiffness away.

One of the smallest and lightest guns we tested, it’s the same size as a bottle of water making it perfect to add to your gym bag or take on holiday. It even charges with a USB-C cable and a regular phone adaptor so you won’t need to bring yet another plug. It has all the speeds and attachments most people will need, although at 7mm amplitude, it doesn’t massage quite as deeply as some of the most expensive models. Still, for most people, there’s really no need to spend any more.

If you’re a committed athlete or have an ongoing physical problem that has compromised your flexibility, this gun is one of the best on the market – with a price to match. Therabody is an expert in producing game-changing massage guns, known especially for the ergonomic triangular handle that made this gun extremely easy to use, even on our back.

It’s claimed this model is scientifically calibrated to reach 60 per cent deeper into muscles than average massage guns, for better results. Certainly, it worked wonders on our pulled hamstring and we felt the difference after just one use. We especially liked using the wedge attachment to quickly ease tension that had built up from hours at a computer. The accompanying app is excellent too, and offers personalised routines according to your needs – it can even control the gun’s speed via Bluetooth, so you can really relax. Though it’s not the quietest machine we tested, we felt the results were more than worth it.

Proof that you don’t need to spend a fortune to get a range of attachments, this fantastically priced gadget from Beurer has almost everything the priciest models do, apart from Bluetooth.

It has an impressive five intensity levels, so you can really find the perfect level for different areas and we particularly liked the attachment designed for the lower back or Achilles tendon. At 3,000 PPM, we found the highest level a little too heavy-going for us but it’s good to have it there as an option. It’s also straightforward to use and no problem to handle, being just 620g, while the battery life was one of the best we tested, lasting a whole five hours. Our only real complaint is that we would have preferred the attachments to be made of rubber rather than plastic, to help them glide a little more smoothly.

This sleek modern massager looks like it could cost double the price. It’s small and fairly light at 680g, so could easily be slipped into your gym bag if you want to massage muscles mid-exercise or the moment you finish. It’s also one of the quietest guns we tested, so you won’t get funny looks in the changing room. We used it while watching TV and didn’t even need to turn up the volume.

There’s no Bluetooth connectivity but most people won’t miss that, especially as there is an accompanying app to offer guidance and track your massage sessions manually. It’s also very easy to manoeuvre and the speed button is perfectly placed at the back of the gun, with an LED light to clearly indicate battery level. We would’ve loved an extra head and a travel case but, for most people, this massage gun has everything you’ll ever need for on-the-go massages.

Though this was one of the least expensive massage guns we tested, it got a huge thumbs-up from us for being the easiest to use on our back. It was the only one that comes with an extendable handle, which can be added to reach every single muscle without straining. We loved running it over our back and neck after a long day hunched over the laptop and definitely felt less tense afterwards, which seemed to help us sleep better too.

It doesn’t have some of the frills the other guns have, so don’t expect an app, Bluetooth connectivity or even a case, and it doesn’t feel quite as powerful as the priciest guns. However, if your back is your problem area and you’re looking for an inexpensive and convenient solution, this is a great buy.

Known for their hairdressing and wellness products, Wahl invented the first hand-held vibrating massager for medical applications in 1911 and holds an impressive 26 massager patents, with the first dating back to 1915. It’s no surprise, then, that this is a solid buy for anyone who wants quick on-the-go relief without spending a fortune.

At just 15.5cm tall, it’s also a great choice if you want to bring the device with you when travelling. It takes up very little room, comes with a case to store all the attachments and has a decent battery life of 200 minutes, so you won’t even need to worry about charging it. When you do, it uses a regular USB cable to make it easier. It doesn’t seem quite as powerful as some of the other guns we tried, so we nearly always used it on the highest setting, but it’s great for a quick blast after the gym to prevent muscles getting tight.

An impressive-looking bit of kit that comes in a moulded case, this is a professional-standard massage gun at less than half the cost of the other market leaders. Though it’s not the lightest device we tested, we found it easy to hold the tilted matte handle without it slipping, even when we were using it on our back, and it’s not too noisy either. The battery running time is nothing short of outstanding too, lasting for up to six hours when fully charged, which is perfect if – like us – you forget to charge it after use.

There are five adjustable settings, making it easy to really tailor a massage to your needs, particularly if you don’t want too much vibration on tender areas. The top setting is also extremely powerful at 3,200 strokes a minute, reaching 16mm into the muscles, so it’s definitely not for the faint-hearted. There’s no app or Bluetooth connectivity, which keeps the price down, but we did find the included paper guide useful to help us know where to massage and for how long.

We were gobsmacked by this teeny massage gun. Despite costing less than £120, it was the only massage gun we tested, apart from the expensive overall winner, to include a heated head. This massager reaches 45C in seconds and we found it incredibly effective at soothing our muscles after a workout and just helping us to relax after a day at our desk.

Its size is a big plus for anyone who doesn’t want a larger gun taking up space, too. Shorter than a smartphone and the lightest gun we tested, it comes with a dinky travel case to store all five attachments. It still delivers a decent massage too, though the smaller heads mean it doesn’t cover a large area as quickly as a full-size gun would.