Whether you’re a sports enthusiast or an office worker who sits a lot, many people are familiar with unpleasant neck strains or muscle pain. A massage can help. If there is no masseuse available, massage guns offer their services. They target muscles with pulsating attachments.
Massage guns are used for self-massage, but also for treatment by a partner – for example in places that are difficult to reach alone. Physiotherapists also use the devices. Stiftung Warentest tested eleven massage guns. None of them are good in all aspects. Two of them massage well, but put the user in contact with harmful substances.
Why the massage gun test is worth it for you
Test results
Stiftung Warentest tested eleven massage guns, including cheap discount products, wellness devices and expensive premium guns (prices: 40 to 298 euros). Brands tested include Beurer, Blackroll, Fitgun, Flowrecovery and Therabody. Test results vary from satisfactory to unsatisfactory.
The best massage gun for you
Filter tested devices according to your preferences. You will also find out who is suitable for which massage gun and what factors are important when choosing the device.
Buying advice: which accessories make sense
The guns come with three to seven different massage heads. Most people have a ball, flat head and cone. But some models also offer accessories with a cooling or heating function. We will tell you which essays make sense.
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Test results for 11 massage guns
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How useful are neck and back massage guns?
According to advertising, massage guns are intended to reduce painful tension in the back and neck, accelerate muscle healing, and improve mobility. In fact, some experts consider massage guns to be an effective way to increase mobility. But there are some things to consider.
Muscles relax at less than 30 beats per second. Most of the massage guns in the test hit faster. With their high frequencies, they prepare the muscles for training. They work best for self-massage. Then the person can feel for themselves where the trouble spots are and whether the treatment is beneficial. This is how he recommends in our interview also physiotherapist Eva Strieglwho uses massage guns in his office.
Tip: You can, even before the test is activated all massage guns tested to see.
Use massage guns correctly
The devices must only work on muscles and tissues. Massage guns are not permitted to treat injuries, bones, vessels and nerve cords. If it hurts, stop the treatment!
Each massage gun has a fixed range at which its attachments move up and down. In practical testing, our test subjects found that some pistols were too strong, which could result in bruises. In the test we found soft, medium and powerful massagers. You can find out how many millimeters of travel is ideal in the test report.
This is how Stiftung Warentest tests massage guns
We send the devices to the laboratory and put them through a practical test. We determine the number and frequency of power levels, measure contact force, and see how long the battery lasts. The best devices can provide around 30 10-minute massages per charge, the worst only 7.
Three experts from the field of physiotherapy and sports science with different body types and muscular characteristics familiarized themselves with the instructions, equipment and accessories and tried the equipment ( This is how we tested). They massaged the calf, thigh, buttocks, chest, triceps, back and assessed how well the intensity levels corresponded to the muscle groups.
We also evaluate how easy it is to change accessories, how the devices fit in the hand during self-massage and external massage, their weight and how the most important muscle groups can be reached.
Tip: Ready for sports? We have too Fitness trackers and smartwatches being tested. On our topic page Fitness and outdoor equipment read the latest articles and test results on the topic of fitness.