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By Mary Henn and Anthony O'Reilly Magnetic Dart Board
Our team of product testers have hit the bulls-eye on the best dart board for your game room, man cave or college dorm.
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If you’re looking for the best dart board as an addition to a basement bar, office or another place you want to foster (mostly) friendly competition, we’ve got you covered. Our expert product testers tried different dart boards to determine which look and play the best. They inspected and mounted each dart board and then played several rounds. They left no room for guessing when deciding which dart board suits your needs. Here are the best dart boards for people of different skill sets, lifestyles and budgets, according to our team of product testers.
The Family Handyman product testing team rated the Winmau dartboard the highest based on setup, appearance, regulation standards, performance and value. Our product testers found the Winmau board foolproof to set up and especially sleek-looking once mounted. It’s no wonder that Winmau is a brand you see in most respectable Irish and British pubs (the ones here in the States and abroad) and has been the board of choice for countless amateur dart matches (it’s also regulation-sized).
The ultra-thin, angled wire ensures darts bounce into the scoring area, and the thin wiring prevents bounce back. Additionally, the high-quality sisal board can “heal” or self-repair the holes created by the darts, especially if the darts are removed right away.
Our only qualm with this dartboard is that it doesn’t come with darts, and the Amazon ones we used weren’t up to snuff. Substantial, quality darts will likely be an additional cost when purchasing this board.
The Unicorn Eclipse Dartboard is comparable to the Winmau Dartboard above but available at a lower price. Our product testers loved the appearance, healing capabilities and price point of the Unicorn dartboard. The board has a vintage feel with a cracked, almost marbled effect. When it comes to self-healing, this board is about as good as you can get. Our testers said they could see the bristle reset into place after removing each dart. The weighty, high-quality board should last for years of play.
Aside from the manual, which our product testers said left much to be desired (there were no written instructions for mounting the board), the Unicorn dart board is an excellent value for someone who takes darts seriously. The knife-edge wiring makes a big difference during gameplay, and the overall quality of the board is very impressive. There’s a reason why Unicorn is *the* brand. However, this is another board that doesn’t come with darts, and our testers wished it came with darts that matched the quality of the board. Again, if you’re going to invest in a high-quality dart board, we recommend investing in high-quality darts, too.
The Franklin Sports Dartboard is perfect for college students, bachelors, or anyone who just wants a fun way to occupy their time but doesn’t care about having a regulation-size dart board that will last for years.
This board comes with six soft-tip darts, making it super convenient to gift and use right away (no need to purchase anything extra). It also has a small screen and a few buttons for programming games and sound effects. You can even play against the board if you want to play solo.
Our product testers found the voice behind the sound effects nasally and a bit annoying. Plus, there’s only one volume option for sound. On the bright side, users liked that the batteries are inserted on the face of the board so that they don’t need to be dismounted to install them.
Best of all, the Franklin board’s affordable price leaves room in your budget for the best pool table or other game room additions.
Electronic dart boards like the Viper 777 offer numerous advantages, such as eliminating sharp tips flying through your game room and allowing you to play multiple games on one board. This board keeps score for you and has a clear sound.
One of our product testers said the Viper 777 was the “snappiest” of the electronic dart boards tested, which means the darts land in a satisfying manner. Additionally, our testers found the darts were easier to remove than some of the other models used.
Regarding the electronic aspect of this board, you’ll likely need to read the manual to understand the shorthand on the scoreboard, but once you do, it’s straightforward. The preset volume is good, and there are three volume settings. Our users didn’t find the voice annoying or overly talkative, as they had experienced with other electronic boards during testing.
Overall, the Viper 777 is a large, affordable electronic dart board that holds its own, aesthetically and quality-wise, to the higher-end models. Thanks to its four screws, inserted through the front of the board, this feels super sturdy. We didn’t feel nervous pulling these soft-tip darts out of it.
If you want a discreet dart board, one with cabinets is the way to go. This one from EastPoint Sports is nice and heavy, and the cabinet is streamlined with the playing board in terms of design, so it doesn’t create an eyesore. The dart board is velvet and cork, which looks much nicer than the other in-cabinet boards our product team tested.
While testing dart boards, our product experts noted that the EastPoint board is the nicest in-unit steel-tip dart board by far. This board can hang with the best of them, including the Unicorn and Winmau. Plus, the eraser and preprinted cricket scoreboard are nice touches.
Our only complaints with the EastPoint board are that the cabinet doors are misaligned, which makes them uneven upon closure, and the wiring is a little thick, which causes some bounce back while playing. However, darts are included, and the heightened quality is obvious in the board itself. You can tell by the manual and mounting kit that it’s a quality item, too.
Suppose you’re looking for a dart board with electronic features, cabinets, and cricket-playing capabilities. In that case, the Fat Cat Mercury Electronic Dartboard will fulfill all your dart-playing needs. The cabinet doors have a faux wooden finish; like other electronic boards, the Fat Cat board also features a solo play option. There are a whopping seven volume levels and the option to mute (which our testers appreciated).
Our testers initially found the number of buttons intimidating, but they ultimately liked the electronic scoring, which takes the math out of playing (phew!). The included darts are also hefty and of good quality, but the flights started coming off after repeatedly bouncing out of the board. That said, this was an issue our players noted across the board with the soft-tip darts. The players also appreciated the aesthetics of the cabinet.
Are you looking for a new addition to your kids’ playroom to keep them entertained? A magnetic dart board is a safe way to engage kids in a game of darts. The CUKU Magnetic Dartboard is easy to hang and smaller than the regulation size, so it will only take up a little space in a playroom or bedroom.
Our dart board testers noticed that some magnetic darts bounced off while playing. However, the darts that did stick to the board did so securely. The magnets seem as strong as those on the other brand’s darts. Plus, the darts come in four colors—making it perfect for the whole family to play. Despite not being secured at the bottom, this dartboard stayed in place throughout the game.
This is the cheapest of the sisal dart boards by a fair amount—probably in part due to the thicker wiring. It’s a little grimy looking (on purpose), which might not be everyone’s style, but overall, this is a decent value compared to similar dart boards. However, the wires are too thick for our testers’ liking, and the board’s self-healing capabilities were only partially successful.
While this board was easy to hang and had surprisingly thin wiring—almost on par with the Winmau and Unicorn wiring—our product testers didn’t love the overall appearance of the board. They felt the wood finish looked fake. The board is also a little cheap looking with how everything is printed on it. Plus, it’s made of engineered wood, so there are virtually zero self-healing capabilities.
This board is almost identical to the Fat Cat Mercury Dart board but listed at a higher price. Our players also preferred the Fat Cat Mercury board to the Arachnid Cricket Maxx.
At nearly $300, this board is very expensive, almost unjustifiably so. As more of our testers used this board, things started falling apart. The tips of the darts bent quite easily (and though the board came with a ton of replacement tips, they were hard to unscrew and replace), and a few of the darts’ flights got ruined and wouldn’t fit onto the back of the dart. There were also mixed reviews regarding the scoreboard—some people found it confusing.
Overall, this board is comparable to the CUKU Magnetic Dart board above. However, we found the CUKU board to be a better value and of better quality.
There are four main things to consider when looking for the best dart board: type of board, size, wiring and material.
Type of Board: Are you looking for a regulation dart board that’s good for brass or steel tips, or do you just want to practice your hand-eye coordination on a magnetic board?
Size: If you’re looking to compete, look for a dart board that’s 18 inches in diameter with 20 numbered, pie-shaped segments.
Wiring: Look for thinner wiring to reduce bounce back. Premium dart boards will have angled wiring that can direct your dart into the score zone.
Material: If you’re a dart enthusiast, you’ll want a bristle or sisal board that can repair holes made by darts. These boards are more durable than plastic boards.
Our product testing team at Family Handyman spent 40 hours testing dart boards. They researched, sourced, assembled, hung and played with each dart board on this list. Furthermore, they performed eight tests on each board, collecting nearly 375 data points.
Our product testers played a regulation game of darts on each board, tracking closely how each board performed. They inspected the quality of the darts, accuracy of the electronics, efficacy of the magnets, self-healing capabilities of the board and more. We also held an office party during which about 12-15 employees came for a game or two of darts and then provided feedback after the fact. That way, we gathered data from ordinary people who played on the dart boards.
Our team of expert product testers trialed and inspected every dart board on this list. Our office employees also helped us gather average user data on each board to provide practical data for your shopping needs.
We also consulted Anthony O’Reilly, a lifelong dart fan who’s seen his fair share of amateur competitions across the Irish pubs of New York City. He also regularly watches the Professional Darts Corporation, the United Kingdom’s premier competition.
After that, Shopping Editor Mary Henn performed additional research as she compiled our final list of the best dart boards. After preforming her research, she reviewed detailed notes from our product testing team and office employees on how the boards performed in real life.
The best dart board for most professional darters would be the Winmau Dart board. This high-quality board is used in most respectable pubs and has been the board of choice for countless amateur dart matches (it’s also regulation-sized). It’s made of a high-quality bristle, and its ultra-thin 60-degree angled wire ensures darts bounce into the scoring area, while the thin wiring prevents bounce back.
The Unicorn Eclipse Pro Dart Board is the dart board used in the United Kingdom-based Professional Darts Corporation.
First, are you a serious darter or someone who just likes to practice their aim? If you answered the former, look for a high-quality bristle or sisal board that can repair holes, thin wiring and an 18-inch diameter. Less serious darters can settle for plastic boards or even magnetic ones.
We’d recommend the CUKU Magnetic Dart Board for kids, as it’s affordable, lightweight, easy to hang and has no sharp tips.
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