REASONS TO BUY
Plush comfort
Good for beginners
Decent grip
Lightweight
No-hassle cleaning
Budget friendly
REASONS TO AVOID
Durability concerns
Squishy for balance postures
Mediocre wet grip
Hugger Mugger Earth Elements Review
A budget-friendly yoga mat for those who prefer a softer cushion, textured dry grip, and lightweight portability
The ultralight and squishy soft Earth Elements mat doesn't strain your shoulders to carry and is easy to clean after yoga at the beach.
Credit: Kate Pitts
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Our Verdict
The Hugger Mugger Earth Elements is our favorite mat for beginners because its budget-friendly price gives you a soft cushion, sticky dry grip, and lightweight portability. This mat has one of the plushest and softest cushions we tested and shines in restorative yoga and supine asanas. However, it can be squishy for balancing and inversions and is not the best fit for those who want a firmer surface for challenging moves. The textured surface offers a sticky grip ideal for learning to engage your hands and feet but only a so-so wet grip for hot yoga. Still, we are amazed at how comfortable this mat is for being lightweight (just over two pounds), making it travel-friendly if you carry your mat to class or love yoga outside.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
Hugger Mugger Earth Elements | |||||
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| Awards |  No-Brainer Bargain | Bargain Beater for Outdoor Play | |||
| Price | $63 List $62.95 at Amazon | $67 List $37.99 at Amazon | $35 List $29.73 at Amazon | $40 List $26.86 at Amazon | $25 List $18.79 at Amazon |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | A bargain for an ultralight yoga mat that is a good fit for those who love plush padding, sticky dry-grip, and portability | At half the weight of most rubber mats, this grippy, portable mat is perfect for any yogi seeking high-quality cushioning at a bargain price | This affordable option offers decent cushioning, dry grip, and visually pleasing patterns. However, it may not be the best choice for serious practice due to its overall performance | If you want a beginner mat, this comes in stunning patterns and offers decent dry grip, but it doesn't have enough cushion or stability to be our go-to practice mat | This lightweight and foldable mat tucks into a tote or backpack for yoga at the park, beach, or while on a hike |
| Rating Categories | Hugger Mugger Earth... | Iuga Eco Friendly N... | Gaiam Premium 6mm | Gaiam Premium Rever... | Primasole Foldable |
| Comfort and Support (35%) | |||||
| Grip (30%) | |||||
| Materials (20%) | |||||
| Ease of Use (15%) | |||||
| Specs | Hugger Mugger Earth... | Iuga Eco Friendly N... | Gaiam Premium 6mm | Gaiam Premium Rever... | Primasole Foldable |
| Materials | TPE | Polyurethane, Rubber | Latex-free PVC | Polyethylene terephthalate | Polyvinyl chloride |
| Measured Weight | 2.2 lbs | 2.1 lbs | 3.3 lbs | 3.2 lbs | 1.9 lbs |
| Thickness | 5 mm | 5 mm | 6 mm | 5 mm | 4 mm |
| Length | 72" | 72" | 68" | 68" | 68" |
| Width | 24" | 26" | 24" | 24" | 24" |
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Our Analysis and Test Results
The Hugger Mugger Earth Elements is a 5mm yoga mat that offers extra-soft cushion in a lightweight 2.25-pound package. The closed-cell construction of this mat does not absorb moisture and is easy to wipe down. Hugger Mugger also designed this mat to be biodegradable after its lifespan and uses recyclable TPE as the material. The mat's surface is embossed with a textured pattern to offer dry grip traction.
Performance Comparison
If you are looking for an ultra-light and well cushioned mat at an affordable price, the Earth Elements is a great choice for yogi nomads or those just beginning their yoga journey.
Credit: Kate Pitts
Comfort and Support
If you want a soft surface with plush padding, the Earth Elements provides a surprisingly thick cushion for an ultralight mat. We enjoy its soft texture for slow flows, yoga nidra, and long-held yin asanas.
The Earth Elements has one of the softest cushions in our lineup, which, considering the very fair price, makes it a solid mat for beginners just starting a yoga practice. We fell in love with this mat in restorative classes. The softer cushion relaxes gently around your limbs when you sink into restorative poses. This is also a good cushion level for your practice if you prefer a gentle pillow around your knees.
Softening into Savasana feels delicious on the cozy Earth Elements.
Credit: Kate Pitts
The foamy cushion does make balancing a little more challenging. Sometimes, the give in the material also stretched the mat outwards between our feet; for example, in Virabhadrasana I (Warrior 1), the pressure of our feet extended the mat slightly outward. The Earth Elements is adequate for balancing on one leg or your forearms, but you may find it a tad squishy under the weight of your feet. On the flip side, it is stable on different surfaces, making it a comfortable option for indoor or outdoor practices.
We tested the Hugger Mugger on various surfaces, and the cushion is a favorite for restorative yoga or slow flows on tile, hardwood floors, or pebbly ground.
Credit: Kate Pitts
Grip
Hugger Mugger embossed the surface of the Earth Elements with a textured pattern that is soft and easy to grip with dry hands.
If you are learning to put weight in your hands or refining the intelligence of your fingers in arm balances, the texture of the Earth Elements offers dry and sticky friction. It is a closed-cell design, so sweat remains on the mat's surface. You can easily wipe the sweat off with a towel, and the mat's slight squish makes its wet grip surprisingly stable.
The Earth Element's textured top surface offers a sticky dry grip for your hands and feet. The bottom grid tread holds firm most of the time on myriad ground surfaces.
Credit: Wayne Hartlerode
Despite being lightweight, this mat has an excellent grip on different surfaces and was hard to budge even when we shuffled it on slick hardwood floors. The mat lays flat and doesn't wrinkle in the middle when we roll over our toes into Adho Mukha (down dog). It is a good texture for beginners to start learning how to engage grip in their hands and feet because it is smooth enough on the surface for sliding transitions and grippy enough to remain firm in static holds.
We love how the Earth Elements remains flat and doesn't buckle during our flows.
Credit: Kate Pitts
Materials
Claimed by Hugger Mugger to be one of the first sustainable yoga mats, the company made the Earth Elements out of TPE that will last several years of practice and then can be recycled or will (theoretically) biodegrade in a landfill after its service is retired.
During our testing process, the Earth Elements showed little signs of wear, but when researching other user reviews, we found that many folks start experiencing cracks or flaking in their mat after a year or two of heavy use, while others have had it for over five years with no issues. Extreme heat can increase the rate at which the material biodegrades, so avoid leaving your mat in a hot car.
The Earth Elements is resilient for outdoor yoga on pine needles, granite slabs, and sandy shores.
Credit: Wayne Hartlerode
One of the things we appreciate most about this mat is how lightweight, comfortable, and easy to clean it is after taking it outdoors. Just over two pounds, it is easy to strap on a day pack for a hike in a national park. In our outside practices, we found it resilient on pinecone-strewn forest floors, granite slabs, and sandy beaches. One of our editors was stoked to test this yoga mat in her car camping kit because of how comfortable and easy to clean it is.
The Earth Elements offers a lovely balance between plush cushion and textured grip while being lightweight.
Credit: Wayne Hartlerode
Ease of Use
Cleaning dirt and sand off the Earth Elements usually involves a quick shake, brush off, and wipe down. Because it is a closed-cell design, you don't have to fuss with deep cleaning, and the mat doesn't get stinky over time, especially if you air dry it after each wipe down. Hugger Mugger recommends cleaning the Earth Elements with a mat spray or a 1:20 mix of dish soap to water.
Since Hugger Mugger designed this mat to biodegrade, it will be more durable if you do not store it in high solar UV, extreme cold, or heat for an extended time. Yogi nomads should cover it with a tarp or sun shield if leaving it in a car on a road trip.
We love how easily the Earth Elements sloughs off dirt and sand, making it a favorite outside travel mat.
Credit: Kate Pitts
The Earth Elements, at just over two pounds, is one of the highest-performing mats that is also ultralight in our lineup. This mat is a good option if you want something that won't weigh you down when you carry it to class.
At just over two pounds, we don't mind carrying the Earth Elements anywhere that we want to practice.
Credit: Kate Pitts
Should You Buy the Hugger Mugger Earth Elements?
Soft cushion, grippy, affordable, and easy to clean, the Earth Elements is our top choice for beginners. One of our only ultralight mats with cushion, it is a good choice for yogis who travel, hike, or carry their mats long distances. However, the cushion may be too soft if you frequently practice improving your balance or inversions. Overall, it offers a beginner-friendly balance of soft cushion, grip, and portability suitable for most classes and exceptional for traveling or restorative yoga.
The Earth Elements has a textured grip and softer cushion, ideal for slow flows, seated and supine asanas, or restorative yoga.
Credit: Wayne Hartlerode
What Other Yoga Mats Should You Consider?
While the Earth Elements has a squishy cushion, the Iuga Eco Friendly Non Slip is a similar weight and price with substantially more grip and stability. The Earth Elements only offers a mediocre wet grip, so you might consider the Yoloha Unity Cork if you want a mat that is grippy for sweaty hands or the B Yoga B Mat Everyday if you prefer pure non-skid traction.
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Kate Pitts
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