Boxing & Muay Thai Gloves

Gloves for bag work, pad rounds and sparring — starting with the only question that matters: what weight?

6 products

Choosing glove weight

Glove weight is measured in ounces and describes padding, not the weight of your hand. More ounces means more padding, which means more protection for the person being hit and for your own hands, and less speed. Almost every mistake people make buying their first pair comes from treating it as a strength or ability rating rather than a padding spec.

For bag and pad work, 10 oz to 12 oz suits most adults. It gives enough padding to protect the knuckles through a long session without deadening the feel of the strike. Lighter gloves, 6 oz to 8 oz, are competition and speed-work weights — they let you feel exactly where a punch lands, which is useful for technique, but they leave your hands underprotected on a heavy bag over time.

For sparring, go heavier: 16 oz is the standard in most gyms for adults, and many will not let you spar in anything lighter regardless of your size. The extra padding is there to protect your partner's head, not to slow you down. Treating sparring gloves as a separate pair from your bag gloves is normal and sensible — bag gloves compress over time and lose exactly the protection sparring depends on.

Two practical notes. Wear hand wraps under gloves, always: wraps support the wrist and hold the small bones of the hand together, and gloves alone do neither. And air your gloves out after every session — leaving them sealed in a kit bag is what makes gloves smell, and it breaks down the lining far faster than the punching does.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between bag gloves and training gloves?
Bag gloves are built for impact on a bag and are usually lighter and firmer. Training gloves — what most people mean by "boxing gloves" — are padded to protect a partner as well as your hands, which is why sparring needs 14 or 16 oz. If you only own one pair, buy the training glove; it does bag work, mitts and light sparring.
What size boxing gloves should a beginner buy?
12 oz covers most adult beginners for bag and pad work. If your gym requires you to spar in the same pair, buy 16 oz instead — that is the standard sparring weight and most gyms will not accept lighter.
What is the difference between 10 oz and 16 oz gloves?
Padding. 16 oz has considerably more, which protects the person being hit — that is why it is the sparring standard. 10 oz gives a sharper feel for the strike and suits bag and pad work.
Do I need hand wraps under boxing gloves?
Yes. Gloves protect your knuckles; wraps support your wrist and hold the metacarpals together. Punching in gloves without wraps is how people end up with boxer's fracture and long-term wrist problems.
Can I use boxing gloves for Muay Thai?
Yes for bag and pad work. Muay Thai gloves are cut a little more open at the hand to make clinching and catching kicks easier, so if you clinch a lot it is worth having a pair cut for it — but a standard training glove will not hold you back early on.