Best Boxing Gloves: Ultimate Guide

If you’re training in any striking martial arts, getting the proper protection for your hands will be essential.

A good boxing glove has appropriate protection for the small bones and ligaments of the hand, as well as adequate support around the wrists.

You also want to think about the purpose of your gloves. While they can technically all be used for multiple uses, not all boxing gloves are created equal.

Suppose you’re a beginner or planning to use your gloves primarily on a heavy bag. In that case, you should consider prioritizing different features, like heavy padding on the knuckles for heavy bag work or a lot of wrist protection for beginners.

In this article, I’m pulling together all my separate reviews to give you the best boxing gloves to consider this year!

MMA Hive Top Picks

First up, I’ve collected together my top picks of training boxing gloves for different needs. You can use this to shortcut your way to the right choice or jump to learn more about them.

• Best Overall:
  • Hayabusa T3 – (Jump To Review)
• Best Budget:
  • Everlast Elite Pro Style – (Jump To Review)
• Best for Beginners:
  • Hayabusa H5 – (Jump To Review)
• Best for Women:
  • Cleto Reyes Training – (Jump To Review)
• Best for Heavy Bag:
  • Cleto Reyes Super Bag – (Jump To Review)
• Best for Big Hands:
  • Ring to Cage Deluxe – (Jump To Review)

Best Boxing Gloves On The Market

I’ve gathered up all the existing reviews we’ve done here on MMA Hive and picked out all the best boxing training gloves on the market to make it nice and easy for you to choose.

Best Overall: Hayabusa T3

The one glove that appeared most often and consistently ranked highly in our boxing glove reviews is the Hayabusa T3 Boxing Gloves.

They’ve appeared high up in the list of best options for heavy bags, big hands, and women. The Hayabusa brand has been hitting it out of the park with its glove design.

I’ve already reviewed the Marvel Deadpool version of these gloves, which are excellent.

The efforts to improve the glove technology for increased stability around the wrists and protection for hands are noticeable and very much appreciated by Boxing or fight students across the globe.

That’s why I’ve picked it as the best overall option. They’re not the cheapest gloves out there, but they are outstanding value for what you can expect to pay for high-quality leather gloves. And in particular, they use Vylar engineered leather (whatever that means).

The Hayabusa T3 has two interlocking wrist straps, which apply comfortable but precise stability around your wrist and hand. This is a critical feature for reducing injuries.

And the 5-foam padding layers create a near-unrivaled level of protection around the punching surface area of the knuckles, which is again more great protectiveness.

These gloves also look good with a futuristic segmented design and have color options suitable for any personality. Use them on the bags, on the pads, and even in sparring. It’s all going to work out nicely.

They are even a good choice as Muay Thai gloves and sparring boxing gloves.

Best Budget: Everlast Elite Pro Style Gloves

Everlast is a reputable brand around the sporting world, offering a variety of Boxing and fight-worthy products. What’s usually best about them is their affordability.

The Everlast Elite Pro Style boxing gloves often appear in reviews I’ve done, as it’s difficult to argue with just how cheap they are for the quality you’re getting!

These gloves feature a mesh palm that gives plenty of ventilation and is made from a synthetic Polyurethane material, which helps keep the cost down and still provides good durability.

These could be a decent option for anyone if you want a cheap pair or extra pair for specific uses. Remember that you’re not getting the ultimate protection or versatility like you would with more premium and real leather boxing gloves.

Best For Beginners: Hayabusa H5 Gloves

I’ve already independently reviewed a selection of the best boxing gloves for beginners, where you can find several options. Still, the Hayabusa H5 definitely came out on top.

What’s particularly decent about the H5s is that they offer many of the same features as the Hayabusa T3s (which I think are the best overall) but at a much more reasonable price range.

You’ll get the same double loop closure on the wrists and carefully crafted sectional padding across the hand but only lacking a fully ergonomically curved design for the hand you expect in the T3s.

The Hayabusa H5s are less structurally unique, and the padding isn’t molded similarly. The glove looks flat, and that’s because of the padding inside. They’ve saved time and money in the glove construction and passed those savings on to you.

So if the T3 is a stretch too far, then the Hayabusa H5 is an excellent option for a beginner who will need as much hand and wrist support as possible.

Best For Women: Cleto Reyes Training Gloves

I picked out the Cleto Reyes as top of the best boxing gloves for women because they are on a professional level of quality and protection. But they ARE premium and will cost a pretty penny.

Cleto Reyes gloves are one of the boxing glove brands used by professional fighters. No doubt you can expect pro-style boxing fighters to use them regularly during training camps.

These gloves are also incredibly stylish and available in bright colors. Suppose the Cleto Reyes is simply too pricey to consider. In that case, ladies can always consider the Hayabusa T3, which comes in various styles.

Best For Heavy Bag: Cleto Reyes Super Bag Gloves

When deciding on the best boxing gloves for heavy bag training, the Cleto Reyes brand came out on top again.

These Cleto Reyes Super Bag Gloves are ideal for use on the bags.

If you’re planning to do some serious work on the bag, then you need to think about your wrist support, knuckle padding, and durability of the glove because bags will be what wear down the materials on your glove the most.

Hitting the heavy bag is usually where you do your biggest shots, practicing them repeatedly until your limbs give out.

You need a glove that can handle this without needing to be replaced every couple of months, and these quality boxing gloves will give you that.

Best For Big Hands: Ring to Cage Deluxe Sparring Gloves

Similar to consideration for the heavy bag, some fighters are tall in stature, heavier than most, or just have powerful shots. So when picking the best boxing gloves for big hands, it’s essential to keep all these in mind.

I’m sure the Ring to Cage Deluxe Sparring Gloves is ultimately the ideal option for fighters with huge hands or who hit really heavy. They’re one of the few glove options that offer heavier gloves that can size up to 34 oz and even 50 oz!

So if you’re genuinely super heavyweight, the Ring to Cage is the best option. Otherwise, if you are slightly more regular and can drop bombs, then, again, the Hayabusa T3 or Fairtex Mexican Style BGV9 has large glove sizes to suit you.

Also Worth Considering

In the many glove reviews I’ve done for MMA Hive, a few boxing gloves come up in the discussion regularly and are also worth mentioning.

These gloves might not have become a top pick, but they have a lot of quality and might be worth considering. Let’s get into those:

• Venum Elite Boxing Gloves offer excellent quality and hand protection while also being reasonably priced. They come in stylish variations of black, white/gold, black/pink, and various others.
• Hayabusa T3 Kanpeki Boxing Gloves are the standard T3’s slightly more expensive brother. The two versions are almost identical. The Kanpeki gloves offer drum-dyed smooth quality leather with subtle and simple color options. You’ll still get the same stellar wrist support with either choice.
• RDX Boxing Gloves are often considered because they are a very cheap glove option endorsed by Tony Ferguson. They use faux leather, which keeps the costs down but offers decent padding. Most beginners are pleased with these, but I probably wouldn’t trust the support for my wrists on lots of heavy bag use.

Common Questions For Picking Boxing Gloves

Let’s answer a few of the most common questions about picking the right boxing glove.

What is the best brand for boxing gloves?

The best brands for boxing gloves are typically considered to be Cleto Reyes, Grant, and Hayabusa. Hayabusa offer primarily suitable and affordable options for the general public. Whereas Cleto Reyes and Grant gloves are more premium and used by professional boxers.

Should I get 14 oz or 16 oz gloves?

Fighters who weigh between 151-170 lbs should use 14 oz gloves for bag work but consider up to 16 oz for sparring. Fighters between 171-195 lbs should use 16 oz gloves for both bag work and sparring.

Are heavier boxing gloves safer?

Heavier boxing gloves are safer for those that need to wear them. But weight doesn’t equal more damage. A heavier boxing glove should be used by physically heavier fighters to get the proper protection for their own hands and their opponent.

What gloves are best for sparring?

Depending on your weight, you should usually consider moving a size up when picking sparring gloves. The added weight of the glove usually translates to more padding and protection, which you need to ensure your opponent’s safety. Cleto Reyes gloves are great for sparring.

Final Word

In summary, the best boxing gloves to choose for you can depend on what you plan to use them for.

Beginners should consider the Hayabusa H5 style training gloves for their affordability and wrist support. Women should go for the Cleto Reyes for the ultimate experience or the Hayabusa T3 for something more affordable.

If you’re planning to do tons of work on the heavy bag, then you really want to prioritize padding and hand protection, so the Cleto Reyes Super Bag gloves would be ideal.

And if you’re a fighter with big hands, you can’t do much better than the Ring to Cage Deluxe sparring gloves which will give the necessary padding for heavy hitters on the bag or sparring.