PuttOut vs Perfect Practice: I Putted Both, $59-$150

Three Reddit threads ask the same question: PuttOut or Perfect Practice? The answers are scattered, opinionated, and contradictory. One guy loves his PuttOut because it cost $59 and fits in his closet. Another swears by Perfect Practice because the ball comes back to him and he never bends over. Neither thread resolves anything because both mats are good at what they do. They just do different things.

I have putted on both at home. The PuttOut Medium Putting Mat is a $59 strip of turf that rolls up and lives in a closet. The Perfect Practice Putting Mat is a $110 to $150 mat with an auto ball return that keeps you putting instead of walking. The decision between them is not about quality. It is about what kind of practice you actually do.

The Contenders

1. PuttOut Medium Putting Mat ($59): 7.9ft x 1.6ft roll-up mat with distance markings to 6 feet, alignment lines, pace targets
2. Perfect Practice Putting Mat ($110-$150): 8ft Compact or 9.5ft Standard mat with magnetic auto ball return, two hole sizes, Dustin Johnson-endorsed

What Each One Is Built For

PuttOut is the budget entry into home putting practice. The Medium mat is 7.9 feet long and 1.6 feet wide, with printed distance markings up to 6 feet, alignment lines, and pace targets. It pairs with the PuttOut Pressure Putt Trainer, the $30 micro-target that returns your ball on perfect pace. You unroll it, you putt, you roll it back up. No electronics, no moving parts, no assembly. The surface runs about a 9 on the stimp, fast enough to punish a poor strike but not so fast that everything slides past.

Perfect Practice solves a different problem entirely: repetition without friction. It uses a magnetic ball-return track that sends a made putt straight back to your feet. It includes two hole sizes, a regulation cup and a smaller training cup, so you can start on the larger target and tighten up. There is no app, no drills, no coaching philosophy. Dustin Johnson endorses it, which tells you the target audience: golfers who want more reps in less time and do not need a training system to get there.

If you want a mat that is cheap and portable, buy PuttOut. If you want a mat that removes the walking-and-bending so you actually practice more, buy Perfect Practice.

Price Reality Check

PuttOut is $59. Perfect Practice is $110 for the Compact 8-footer and $150 for the Standard 9.5-footer. That is a $50 to $90 gap, and it buys you the auto ball return and the longer practice range. For some golfers that is a bargain. For others it is $90 spent on a feature they do not need.

The PuttOut Pressure Putt Trainer at $30 pairs with the mat for pace practice, bringing the total PuttOut setup to about $90. That is still cheaper than the Perfect Practice Compact and gives you pace feedback the Perfect Practice mat lacks. The PuttOut AirBreak review covers the higher-end PuttOut line if you want breaking putts at home.

The Ball Return Question

The auto ball return is the single feature that justifies Perfect Practice’s price. If you putt 50 balls in a session, that is 50 times you do not bend over. For a golfer with a bad back or limited time, that is the difference between practicing daily and practicing twice a month.

PuttOut has no ball return. You walk to the end of the mat, pick up your ball, walk back. For a 7.9-foot mat that is not a long walk, but it adds up. The tradeoff is simplicity. No track to wear out, no magnets to fail, no electronics to break.

Perfect Practice’s biggest reported weakness is mechanical. Multiple Amazon reviewers report the magnetic ball-return track wearing out after 6 to 12 months of heavy use. It is not universal, but it is common enough that if you putt every single day, budget for eventual wear. PuttOut has nothing to wear out.

Roll Quality and Feel

PuttOut’s nylon surface runs about a 9 on the stimp. It is smooth and consistent, but some users on the MyGolfSpy forum report the mat develops a groove or crease from repeated use in the same spot. Rolling it flat and rotating the practice spot helps.

Perfect Practice runs about a 9 to 10 on the stimp, slightly faster than PuttOut. The Crystal Velvet surface on newer models is softer and more forgiving on pace, but it does not feel like a real green. It feels like a putting mat. That is fine for what it is.

Neither mat simulates a real green. If you want realistic turf feel, you need to spend $200-plus on a Big Moss Competitor. These two mats are reps-and-rhythm tools, not green-simulation tools.

Who Should Buy PuttOut

Buy PuttOut if you want the cheapest functional putting mat and you do not mind walking to retrieve your ball. At $59 it is the lowest entry point in the category, and paired with the $30 Pressure Putt Trainer it gives you pace feedback that Perfect Practice cannot match. It is also the more portable option. It rolls up, fits in a closet, and travels in a suitcase. Perfect Practice does neither.

Who Should Buy Perfect Practice

Buy Perfect Practice if you want the simplest path to more reps. The auto return means you spend your practice time putting instead of collecting balls, which matters if you have limited time, a bad back, or a tendency to lose focus when practice feels like a chore. The two hole sizes also give you a progression the PuttOut mat lacks. Start on the larger cup, tighten to the regulation cup, and you have a built-in difficulty ramp.

The Verdict

If I had $60 and a closet, I would buy the PuttOut and the Pressure Putt Trainer. That is $90 total and it teaches you pace, the single biggest lever for lowering your putts per round. If I had a bad back and $150, I would buy the Perfect Practice Standard, because the auto return means I would actually use it every day, and a mat you use daily beats a mat you use twice a month no matter what features either one has.

The honest deciding factor is not the feature list. It is which mat you will unroll every morning. The Wellputt vs Perfect Practice comparison covers a third option if you want app-guided drills instead of either of these.

Where to Buy

• PuttOut Medium Putting Mat $59 at Amazon
• PuttOut Pressure Putt Trainer $29.99 at Amazon
• Perfect Practice Putting Mat $110-$150 at Amazon

Prices verified July 2026. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.