Picks
The Best Dart Board Surrounds and Backboards
Choose by how you miss: slightly, or spectacularly. They are different products for different problems.
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.
Everyone misses. The question is only how far, and the answer determines which of these two products you need.
Diagnose your own misses first
Throw thirty darts and watch where the misses land, not where the hits do.
- Mostly within 2 inches of the board edge: a surround catches almost all of them. Buy the ring.
- Regularly 4 to 8 inches wide: a surround will not help. Buy a backboard.
- Occasionally across the room: a backboard and acceptance. No product catches a thrown-in-frustration dart.
- Below the board as often as beside it: check your board height. A board hung too high produces low misses, and the fix is the bracket, not a surround.
| Surround | Backboard | Cabinet | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catches near misses | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Catches wide misses | No | Yes | Partly - as far as the doors reach |
| Hides the board | No | No | Yes |
| Needs separate mounting | No | Yes | Yes |
| Can carry lighting | No | No | Yes, on lit models |
| Cost | Lowest | Middle | Highest |
Quick picks
| # | Product | Best for | Board type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Winmau Pro-Line Dartboard Surround | Near misses | Foam ring, fits most boards | |
| 2 | Viper Wall Defender Dartboard Backboard | Wide misses | Full backboard panel | |
| 3 |  Viper Metropolitan Dartboard Cabinet | Both, plus hiding the board | Closing cabinet | |
| 4 | Viper Dart Throw Line Mat | Protecting the floor | Oche mat |
The picks
#1 · Near misses
Winmau Pro-Line Dartboard Surround
A foam ring that catches the darts that miss the board. Cheaper than filling holes, and it fits over most bristle boards.
A foam ring that fits over the board's outer edge and catches the darts that just miss the double ring. That is the majority of misses for anyone who can throw at all.
- What works
- Cheap
- Fits over most standard bristle boards
- No separate wall mounting
- What does not
- Does nothing for a genuinely wide throw
- Foam compresses over years
#2 · Wide misses
Viper Wall Defender Dartboard Backboard
A full backboard rather than a ring. Buy this one if your throws spray wide rather than low.
A full panel behind the board rather than a ring around it. If your throws spray rather than drift, this is the one that actually protects the wall.
- What works
- Covers a much larger area than a ring
- Protects against the throws that actually damage drywall
- What does not
- Needs its own wall mounting
- More visually present in a finished room
#3 · Both, plus hiding the board
Viper Metropolitan Dartboard Cabinet
A solid-wood cabinet that closes over the board. The doors are the wall protection, and they only work as far as they reach.
The doors act as a backboard while open and hide the board when closed. One purchase that covers both failure modes and solves the aesthetic problem.
- What works
- Doors protect and conceal
- Reads as furniture when shut
- What does not
- Costs more than either protection option alone
#4 · Protecting the floor
Viper Dart Throw Line Mat
A mat with the oche marked at the regulation distance. Also the cheapest way to stop a dropped dart chipping a tile floor.
The protection nobody thinks about. A dropped dart on a tile or laminate floor chips it, and the mat also marks the throw line correctly.
- What works
- Marks the oche at the regulation distance
- Stops dropped darts chipping a hard floor
- What does not
- Rolls up at the edges when new
What not to do
- Do not use a cork tile backing. It looks right and it does not hold a dart; they bounce off and chip the tile.
- Do not use a thin foam yoga mat. A steel tip goes straight through into the drywall behind.
- Do not mount a backboard with the board over a stud. Mount the backboard into studs; the board's bracket wants solid backing too, but check you are not trying to throw darts into a stud line.
- Do not skip protection on a painted wall and hope. Steel tips make permanent holes and the pattern spreads wider than you expect.
How these were chosen
On coverage area, mounting requirements, material and compatibility with standard 18-inch bristle boards. Board height and throw distance come from the World Darts Federation rules. We have not installed these products.
