Picks
The Best Dart Boards for Home
Six boards across both board types, with the throw distance each one actually uses.
How these picks were made: from published manufacturer specifications, governing-body standards and the room arithmetic - not from first-hand use. We have not played on these tables. Read the method.
Dart boards split cleanly into two products, and the split happens before any ranking. Choose the type first; the board follows easily after that.
Sisal or electronic
| Sisal (bristle) | Electronic | |
|---|---|---|
| Darts | Steel tip | Soft tip |
| Scoring | You, or a phone app | Automatic |
| Throw distance | 7 ft 9.25 in | Commonly 8 ft - check the manual |
| Wall damage | Real - needs a surround or cabinet | Minimal |
| Noise | A solid thud | Plastic clatter plus electronic sounds |
| Bounce-outs | Fewer on a thin-wire board | Registered as a miss |
| Feel | What professionals play on | Different; segments are plastic |
| Lifespan | Years; self-heals | Until the electronics fail |
Quick picks
| # | Product | Best for | Board type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Winmau Blade 6 Triple Core Dartboard | League and serious play | Sisal, steel tip | |
| 2 |  Unicorn Eclipse Pro 2 Dartboard | The alternative to the Blade | Sisal, staple-free bull | |
| 3 | Viper Shot King Sisal Dartboard | A first sisal board | Self-healing sisal | |
| 4 | Winmau Blade 5 Bristle Dartboard | A serious board at a lower price | Sisal, previous generation | |
| 5 |  Arachnid Cricket Pro Electronic Dartboard | Automatic scoring | Electronic, soft tip | |
| 6 | Gran Board 3s Bluetooth Electronic Dartboard | Playing online | Bluetooth electronic |
The picks in full
#1 · League and serious play
Winmau Blade 6 Triple Core Dartboard
The league standard. Dense sisal and very thin wire, so bounce-outs drop and the segments stay tight after a season of use.
The league standard. Dense sisal with very thin wire, so darts that would bounce off a cheaper board stick instead. If you are going to play a lot, this is the board you end up at eventually - buying it first saves a step.
- What works
- Thin wire genuinely reduces bounce-outs
- Dense sisal closes up and lasts seasons rather than months
- The board most leagues play on
- What does not
- Expensive for a casual player
- Steel tips mean wall protection is mandatory
Skip it if: nobody has thrown a dart since a pub in 2009. Buy the Shot King, play for a year, then upgrade if you still care.
#2 · The alternative to the Blade
Unicorn Eclipse Pro 2 Dartboard
Unicorn's PDC-endorsed board: ultra-slim wire and a staple-free bullseye. The direct alternative to the Blade 6.
Unicorn's PDC-endorsed board, with ultra-slim wire and a staple-free bullseye. The direct competitor to the Blade 6 - choose on which segment feel you prefer, because both are genuinely good.
- What works
- Staple-free bull removes the most common bounce-out point
- Very slim wire
- PDC endorsed
- What does not
- Same price bracket as the Blade 6
- Steel tip, so same wall caveat
#3 · A first sisal board
Viper Shot King Sisal Dartboard
A self-healing sisal board at a fraction of the league-board price. The right first board for a garage.
Self-healing sisal at a fraction of the league-board price. This is the right first board for a garage: good enough that you learn properly, cheap enough that you are not precious about it.
- What works
- Real sisal, not paper-wound
- A fraction of the price of a league board
- Fine for several years of casual play
- What does not
- Thicker wire means more bounce-outs than a Blade
- Wears faster under heavy use
#4 · A serious board at a lower price
Winmau Blade 5 Bristle Dartboard
The previous-generation Blade, still widely sold and still a serious board. A sensible buy when the Blade 6 is out of stock.
The previous-generation Blade, still widely sold and still a serious board. A sensible buy when the Blade 6 is out of stock or the price gap is large.
- What works
- League-grade construction at a step-down price
- Widely available
- What does not
- Thicker wire than the Blade 6
- Being superseded, so stock varies
#5 · Automatic scoring
Arachnid Cricket Pro Electronic Dartboard
Soft-tip electronic scoring with a long game list and an LED display. Scoring is the feature; the throw is quieter than steel tip.
Soft-tip electronic scoring with a long game list and an LED display. Automatic scoring matters more than people expect - most casual players give up on cricket because keeping score is tedious, and this removes that.
- What works
- Scores automatically, which keeps casual players playing
- Large game list
- Soft tips mean no holes in the wall
- What does not
- Registers some bounce-outs as misses
- Segment feel is nothing like sisal
- Electronics are a failure point
#6 · Playing online
Gran Board 3s Bluetooth Electronic Dartboard
Bluetooth scoring to a phone app with online play. Also the quietest electronic board most people have thrown at.
Bluetooth scoring to a phone app with online play against other boards. Also the quietest electronic board most people have thrown at, which matters in a shared house.
- What works
- Online play is a genuinely different proposition
- Noticeably quieter than other electronic boards
- App scoring is better than an on-board LED
- What does not
- Depends on an app and a phone
- Soft tip only
Set it up correctly or the board is wasted
The numbers are fixed by the World Darts Federation and they are exact: the center of the bullseye at 5 feet 8 inches from the floor, the oche at 7 feet 9.25 inches horizontally from the board face, and a check diagonal of 9 feet 7.375 inches from the bull to the back of the oche.
Measure from the finished floor and to the center of the bull, not the top of the board. Both are common errors and both are permanent once the bracket is in the wall. Full setup instructions here.
Budget for the things around the board
- Wall protection. A surround or a cabinet, unless the wall behind is already something you do not mind damaging. Options here.
- Lighting. A ceiling light behind you puts your shadow on the board. A lit cabinet or a front-mounted light fixes it.
- A throw-line mat. Marks the oche and stops a dropped dart chipping a hard floor.
- Darts. The ones in the box are the cheapest available. A mid-weight set in the mid-20-gram range is a better starting point.
How these were chosen
On published board construction (sisal density, wire gauge, bullseye design), scoring capability, and the throw distance each type uses. Board height and distance figures come from the World Darts Federation rules. We have not thrown at these boards.
