Lululemon The Mat vs Gaiam Classic Print: Which One Should You Buy?

Lululemon’s The Mat is polyurethane bonded to a natural rubber base, 5 mm thick and 26 inches wide. OutdoorGearLab scored it 81 out of 100 in a 19 mat test, gave it a perfect 10 for comfort and support, and named it the best mat for mixed fitness routines.

The Gaiam Classic Print is 4 mm of printed sticky PVC that weighs 2.1 pounds and has been the default first yoga mat for about twenty years. It was not in that test, and at $24.98 it is not really trying to be in that conversation.

What follows is where the money actually goes, and the two places the cheap mat genuinely wins.

The Mat is 26″ wide against the Gaiam’s 24″. Standard mats have been 24 inches for so long that most people assume that is the correct number, and then they practice on a 26 inch mat and find their hands are no longer hanging over the edge in a wide down dog or a low lunge.

It is also 71 inches long against 68, so the total surface is meaningfully larger. If you are broad-shouldered or tall, this is probably the single most useful thing on this page.

The Mat took the top comfort and support score in GearLab’s test, 10 out of 10, which it shares only with the Manduka PRO. The reason is density rather than depth: 5 mm of rubber with a soft top layer feels cushioned under a knee while staying stable under a standing foot, which soft foam cannot do.

The Gaiam is a millimeter thinner and made of much lighter foam. New out of the wrapper it feels reasonable. After a year the spots where your hands and heels land are visibly thinner, and on tile or concrete you feel it.

The Mat’s polyurethane top absorbs moisture rather than letting it bead, and it is genuinely good with dry and lightly damp hands. GearLab’s testers liked the surface for flows and listed absorbs sweat among its pros.

They also rated its wet grip 4.5 out of 10, below several cheaper mats in the same lineup, and put may lose grip with use in its cons. That is worth knowing before you buy it for a hot class on the strength of studio-floor reputation. The Gaiam is worse, and clearly so: sticky PVC turns slick the moment a film of sweat sits on it.

For a normal unheated class, both grip well enough. For a heated one, The Mat with a towel, or a mat actually built for sweat.

GearLab listed stains easily and needs deep cleans among The Mat’s cons, and that is the price of an absorbent top layer. Sweat and body oils go into the surface, and after a year of hard practice the mat looks used. Wipe it after sweaty sessions, let it dry fully before rolling it, and keep it out of direct sun.

The Gaiam’s sealed PVC does not care about any of this. Wipe it, roll it, leave it in a car, forget about it. That is a real advantage and it is one of only two the cheap mat has.

The Mat is built on a natural rubber base, and GearLab lists latex content explicitly among its cons. If you have a genuine latex allergy it is not an option, no matter how good the surface is.

The Gaiam Classic Print is latex-free PVC. If that is your situation, this comparison is already settled, and the useful follow-up question is which PVC mat to buy rather than whether to spend more. The Manduka PROlite is the obvious upgrade path that stays rubber-free.

5.2 pounds against 2.1. GearLab measured The Mat at 5.9, which put it mid-pack, and the Gaiam is one of the lightest full-size mats you can buy.

Neither is a travel mat. If you fly with a mat, both are the wrong answer and something that folds is the right one. For a walk to a studio, The Mat is manageable and the Gaiam is barely noticeable.

The Mat sells through shop.lululemon.com and Lululemon stores. It is not sold on Amazon, and listings claiming otherwise are worth avoiding. Coverage is Lululemon’s Quality Promise, which carries no set term and is handled case by case, so keep the receipt.

The Gaiam is on Amazon and gaiam.com, frequently discounted below its $24.98 list price, and covered by a lifetime guarantee that in practice does not cover the way the mat actually wears out.

Buy the Gaiam Classic Print if you are starting out, practicing gently, carrying the mat daily, allergic to latex, or simply not ready to spend $118 on something you use twice a month. It is a fine mat for what it is and it will tell you whether you want a better one.

Buy The Mat if you practice regularly, want the extra width, and will look after an absorbent surface. It is the more comfortable and more capable mat by a wide margin, and the two things to go in knowing are that it stains and that its wet grip is good rather than exceptional. If sweat is your main problem, look at mats built specifically for it instead.