Love combat sports? Want to reap the benefits of hitting a punching bag:
- Strengthen and tone your muscles
- Lose weight
- Relieve stress
- Have fun
- Improve your coordination, speed, cardiovascular, and muscle endurance.
All of these are possible in your home gym corner without spending a fortune.
Our selection of the best punching bags won’t leave you unhappy with an empty wallet, but help you get in shape quickly and effectively. Check them out.
Our Top Punching Bag Recommendations (March 2023)
1 - Outslayer Filled Punching Bag (Editor's Choice)
This hanging Outslayer heavy bag “beast” is ideal for big, heavy hitters at all skill levels who aim at boosting their strength.
The sturdy support straps enable you to adjust its height and customize it to practice all sorts of boxing, MMA, fitness, and martial arts punches, knee strikes, high and low kicks.
Dense, evenly distributed filling keeps the bag in shape, ensuring its long-lasting functionality even during heavy everyday punching. No lumps, settling, hollow, or hard spots.
Unlike other traditional sand-filled heavy bags, it’s firm enough yet extremely comfortable to use for longer sessions.
The manufacturer says it feels like punching a fit, muscular opponent.
- Weight: 100lbs
- Height: 55in + 6in straps
- Filling: fabricAccessories: protective heavy-duty vinyl cover, optional bottom D-ring to prevent swaying
- Top-notch heavy bag material
- Super durable
- Pre-filled
- 10-year warranty
- Higher price matching its outstanding quality
2 - Aqua Punching Bag
This teardrop-shaped heavy bag is fantastic for beginner and pro fight and fitness training as it lends itself to practicing uppercuts, crosses, jabs, or hooks.
It’s smaller than traditional heavy bags, which may limit its use, making it unsuitable for high/low kickboxing combos.
However, this bag’s equally durable and reliable, letting you enhance your agility, power, and precision for a long time.
Available in different colors, it ships unfilled, which lowers the shipping cost.
Plus, it’s easy to move around and quick to fill, while water filling makes it easier on your wrists and hands.
- Weight: 120lbs
- Height: 18in
- Filling: water
- Accessories: none
- Weatherproof and water-resistant so suitable for outdoor use
- This high quality heavy bag feels closest to striking a real human
- 2-year warranty
- Comes without a hanging kit
3 - Everlast 70-Pound MMA Heavy-Bag Kit
The Everlast heavy bag kit is a perfect addition to any beginners’ home gym because it’s affordable and contains everything you need to get started.
It’s ideal for occasional practicing martial arts kicking techniques, and it’s long enough for footwork. BUT it’s not designed to withstand harsh everyday punching from big boxers.
This tough poly canvas hanging heavy bag comes pre-filled and ready-to-use. Its composite filling is dense enough to prevent settling or lumping and provides amazing shock absorbency.
Double stitching, heavy-duty nylon straps, and adjustable chain make this heavy bag more durable and secure.
- Weight: 70lbs
- Height: 4ft6in - 4ft11in
- Filling: natural and synthetic fibers, sifted sand
- Accessories: boxing gloves, hand wraps, bungee cord for added resistance
- Adjustable height
- Reputable brand
- Good value for money
- Not for advanced athletes
4 - Combat Sports Muay Thai Punching Heavy Bag
This is one of the best all-around banana heavy bags to brush up on your Muay Thai, MMA, and other combat skills in your home. It’s the right length to practice low kicks, knee, elbow, and any other strikes to build muscle strength, tone, and condition your body.
Unlike a canvas bag, this leather heavy bag allows you to hit hard without gloves leaving your knuckles intact.
It comes filled with perfectly balanced, evenly distributed stuffing so it can absorb heavy hits without too much swinging. Plus, it has a zipper so you can add or remove the stuffing.
- Weight: 100lbs
- Height: 72in
- Filling: fabric
- Accessories: hanging hardware
- Sturdy, durable synthetic leather construction
- Excellent for experienced fighters
- Competitive pricing
- The filling might settle over time
5 - Century Original Wavemaster Free Standing Heavy Bag
Century is another renowned brand offering a highly-rated, compact free standing heavy bag fantastic for various lighter and faster cardio punching and kicking home workouts.
It’s among the best punching bags for beginners, but it may topple if punched too hard and high.
- Weight: 250lbs
- Height: 47-68in
- Filling: foam, base - sand/water
- Accessories: none
- Durable vinyl cover with high-density foam filling
- Adjustable height
- Easy to move and set up
- Difficult to use for taller people
6 - Xsport Pro Freestanding Heavy Bag
According to the manufacturer, this unique boxing bag is designed as an ultra-quiet daily strength builder and stress buster for 4-6ft tall adults and teens, beginners or pros, providing great kickboxing and cardio practice for the whole family.
It can withstand long-term high-intensive kicks and punches thanks to its sturdy stitching and tear-resistant striking surface constructed with a stainless steel tube stand.
Plus, it’s encased with layers of PU leather, high-density EPE foam, and eco-friendly fabric buffer.
The multi-layer construction ensures maximum comfort minimizing the chances of bruising your wrists and breaking your hands.
- Weight: 182lbs
- Height: 69in
- Filling: fabric, foam, base - sand/water
- Accessories: assembly hardware
- Robust, high quality construction with dual PVC shock absorbers
- Easily filled, wide, removable base with 12 strong suction cups for better stability
- Superior durability, elasticity, and comfort
- Base and bag too large, so shipped separately
7 - Nevatear Training Bag
This decent basic heavy bag from a trustworthy brand Everlast can provide a fun, effective combo of strength and cardio home workout.
It’s neither super soft nor rock hard and may take lots of strikes to help you enhance your speed, stamina, strength, and explosiveness.
You’ll also like it if you prefer the straps over chains for less noise when hitting the bag.
- Weight: 100lbs
- Height: 46in
- Filling: fabric
- Accessories: hanging hardware
- Firm and high quality despite being inexpensive
- Comes pre-filled
- Easy to set up
- The straps, plastic zipper, and chain link quality could be better
8 - Dripex Freestanding Heavy Bag
This free standing PU leather heavy bag construction is the same as the Xsport Pro model reviewed above.
It would also fit teenagers and adult men and women no taller than 73 inches for working out their upper and lower body.
The 12 suction cups make the base stable, and it sticks well to the floor even without adding sand or water.
What’s more, the dual TPU absorbers and four removable springs ensure full noise and shock absorption, so it shouldn’t bother your neighbors even if you live in an apartment with hardwood floors.
- Weight: 182lbs
- Height: 69in
- Filling: fabric, foam, base - sand/water
- Accessories: assembly hardware
- Sturdy and stable multi-layer construction
- Easily portable
- Reasonably priced
- Bag and base shipped separately because they’re too large for one parcel
9 - FITVEN Heavy Bag
The manufacturer claims that males and females of all generations can benefit from using this heavy bag for their MMA, kickboxing, and Muay Thai training.
Evenly pre-filled for improved resilient absorbency, with a thickened soft frosted striking surface made from premium synthetic leather, this bag’s designed to be gentle on your fists.
Triple stitching plus three rivets on each side make this boxing bag more resistant to endure whole families’ daily punching or kicking for years.
Although the weight might be lower, the large zip lets you replace the original stuffing to increase it.
- Weight: 50lbs
- Height: 43.3in
- Filling: shredded rags
- Accessories: hanging hardware
- Heavy-duty construction
- Easy to set up
- Indoor and outdoor use (waterproof)
- Hanging hardware could be sturdier
10 - Portzon Heavy Bag
Portzon’s heavy bag with add-ons makes a decent inexpensive starter set for basic MMA and kickboxing workouts in your home gym, living room, bedroom, balcony, basement, garage, or office.
It may also be a great addition to your HIIT or cardio workout routine.
However, it’s not the right choice for those who want serious, professional equipment.
Users say it’s firm enough but easy on the hands thanks to the soft cushioning layers of foam, cotton, and high-density PU leather.
- Weight: 45lbs
- Height: 47in
- Filling: foam
- Accessories: boxing gloves, hand wraps, hanging hardware
- Solid, tightly sealed, tear-resistant construction
- The reinforced chain allows 360° rotation, more flexibility, and stability
- Easy to install, transport, and store
- Too lightweight, the boxing gloves are too mushy not for big hands
What Should I Look For When Buying a Punching / Heavy Bag?
When buying a punching or heavy bag, you should look for its purpose, materials, filling types, and weight. You should also consider its size, shape, bag type, durability, accessories, and price.
Let's discuss each component below.
1. Intended Use
Heavy bags come in multiple sizes, shapes, weights, with different filling, pricing, and for a range of purposes such as boxing, kickboxing, MMA, Muay Thay, or other combat sports.
Boxers striving to enhance agility and master variations of uppercuts, jabs, and other punches will NOT equally benefit from the same heavy bags as martial artists who want to practice a range of kicks at different heights.
That’s why the purpose is so critical.
2. Materials
Punching bags with a genuine leather shell would last much longer and cost more than other material options like synthetic leather, vinyl, rubbery plastic, or canvas.
Your choice will be based on your needs and budget, but if you plan to train intensively and frequently, I’d go for a leather bag as canvas is hard to clean and tends to tear quickly.
3. Filling Types
Not all punching bags come pre-filled, but when they do, their core’s usually filled with water or sand, foam, and other natural or synthetic shredded fibers.
The heavy bag core filling has to be firm, neither too soft nor too hard, and stabilized not to change the bag shape (sink leaving the top empty and useless).
Water-filled bags seem easiest on your hands and feel closest to hitting a real sparring partner.
Although you might save some money if you fill the bag yourself, I’d rather leave it to experts and get a properly filled bag. Most of the best heavy bags in this list are filled with water or sand.
Related: What To Fill a Punching Bag With?
4. Weight
Different weights of pre-filled punching bags are designed for different training levels and styles.
Heavier bags provide more resistance and are better for improving your punching and kicking strength and muscle building.
Lighter bags are great for weaving, ducking, or footwork practice because they usually swing more and may mimic your opponent’s movements eliciting your parries.
5. Size
The larger/longer the bag, the heavier and more suitable for intense strength training and low kicks as it typically hangs lower above the ground. But, it’ll occupy more space.
Smaller/shorter bags are more compact, lighter, easier to store or transport, and better for speed training, including normal to high kicks and punches.
6. Shape
Different punching bag shapes suit specific workout types.
Long cylinder bags are convenient for practicing high and low kicks and knee strikes, whereas angled or ball-shaped bags are more suitable for mastering fast-paced punches like crosses or uppercuts.
7. Bag Type
Two common heavy bag types are:
- Hanging heavy bags - require more space and secure setup (e.g. drilling your ceiling), but can withstand more intense workouts
- Free standing heavy bags - occupy less space, easier to move, but less stable, so need a heavy bag stand.
8. Durability
Once your bag splits, it becomes useless and severely affects your workouts because it’ll never be able to absorb the initial pressure from harsh punching and kicking. Besides, repairing it may be expensive.
To avoid this, choose the best punching bags from top-notch outer shell materials with heavy-duty stitching and high quality filling.
9. Accessories
Some brands include add-ons like boxing gloves, wrist/hand wraps, setup hardware at no/little extra cost with their punch bags.
Those accessories may not be top-quality but might save beginners from headaches.
10. Pricing
A good heavy bag may cost between $70 and $300+, depending on the brand, material quality, and other mentioned factors.
You get what you pay for. Lower price equals less value and shorter lifespan of your home sports equipment.
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FAQs
Can You Lose Weight by Hitting a Heavy Bag?
Do I Need Gloves for a Punching / Heavy Bag?
Yes, you need gloves for a punching or heavy bag to protect your forearms, wrists, and knuckles.
How Much Room Do You Need Around a Punching Bag?
How much room you need around a punching bag will depend on your workout type, but an 8x8 feet of clear space should be enough.
Which Punching Bag Should I Buy?
You should buy a punching bag that enables you to hone your desired skills, fits your home gym space, your weight, fitness level, and budget.
I think the best investment may be the Outslayer Punching Bag because of its:
- great size, shape, and weight supporting incredibly versatile use
- perfect fill density, which makes it firm yet comfy, and
- premium materials made to last for decades.
Which heavy bag from this review you believe may work best for you?
Our #1 Recommendation
Outslayer Filled Punching Bag
- Top-notch heavy bag material
- Super durable
- Pre-filled
- 10-year warranty
- Higher price matching its outstanding quality
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