Best Ab Roller 2023 | 9 Top Rolling Exercise Wheels

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At first glance, ab rollers don’t fit the bill of a challenging piece of gym equipment. However, these wheels are a brutal-yet-fun way to get rock-hard abs and a strengthened core without spending thousands of dollars. It’s an excellent product for core sessions, calisthenics, and fullbody workouts.

Not only are they inexpensive, but they also take up little-to-no space. Like jump ropes, resistance bands, dumbbells, and the like, an ab roller is an excellent option if you have a small home gym or are on a budget.

Before rolling your way to six-pack abs, you’ll need to get a top-of-the-range rolling ab wheel. To save you the time of searching high and low on the internet, we’ve rounded up the nine best ab rollers on the market.

What Is an Ab Roller?

If you’ve just been recommended an ab roller by your trustee gym buddy but aren’t too sure what it is, don’t worry. Before you choose one of the ab rollers below, this guide will offer you a thorough explanation of this equipment and what it can be used for.

Simply put, an ab roller is a small device consisting of a wheel and handles on each side. Home gym enthusiasts love it because it takes up little storage space and can be used within a relatively small area.

You can roll the wheel forward, backward, or sideways while applying pressure on it. Most people introduce this device as an alternative to trunk curls, crunches, and situps — although a study found that the different exercises delivered similar results.

While the name suggests otherwise, the ab roller is good for more than just abdominal exercises. It works on a range of upper body muscles and can also engage your lower body. This includes the major core muscles (more on these later) and the minor core muscles like lats, glutes, and traps.

Despite its simple appearance, the rolling exercise wheel can offer exercises ranging from beginner to complex. Mastering this home gym equipment can take time, but the results make them worth your while.

9 Best Ab Rollers for Home Gyms

Finding the perfect ab roller for your home gym isn’t as easy as it may look. There are many factors to consider before purchasing this challenging piece of equipment.

You’ll have to consider your own experience with either ab rollers or other stability training. If you’re a beginner, you don’t want to purchase a single-wheel roller as you may wobble a little too much.

Another consideration you have to think about is the surface you’ll be exercising on, although a rubber-lined roller wheel suits nearly all surfaces. You also can’t overlook grip, build quality, and weight capacity, as these are pertinent to comfort and safety.

Luckily, we’ve done all the work for you and rounded up the nine best ab rollers after testing 20+ wheels. The list includes an extensive range of rolling exercise wheels perfect for different types of users and at different price points.

Starting off the list is the Perfect Fitness Ab Carver Pro, which is the best abdominal roller exerciser that we tested. The wheel’s carbon steel spring provided more resistance than some of the other wheels we tested while also offering assistance when rolling back in – which beginners will appreciate. Unfortunately, it’s pretty bulky and large, so transporting this bad boy in a gym bag isn’t as easy as other rollers.

While more expensive than all but one wheel on our list, the build quality justifies the prices. For example, the ultra-wide wheel allows sideways rolling, which leads to greater exercise versatility.

• Ergonomic hand grips
• Compact
• Ultra-wide wheel
• Expensive
• Internal carbon-steel spring
• Comes with knee pads and a workout program

We found the Ab Carver Pro to provide the best stability and balance during our testing of various ab rollers. This is due to its wide wheel and rubberized treads, which ensures you won’t wobble on most surfaces. The grips also offer an ergonomic, non-slip grip with padding. The comfortable grip allows you to place your sole focus on exercising and not pain.

The weight capacity stands at 300 pounds, meaning it can withstand a lot of pressure. Everyone, especially beginners, will appreciate the free knee pad and 21-day workout program.

Rogue is a household name in the home gym space, so we expected a lot from their ab roller – and it certainly delivered. Compared to other devices we tested, we found this roller for abs to have the best durability, which explains its hefty price. The bearings provided precise, smooth rotations, and the steel shaft ensured a long lifespan.

The Rogue ab wheel comes with a rubberized tread for incredible grip on most surfaces. Additionally, it comes with slightly rounded edges and a wide wheel to allow for sideway rolls that target obliques — an advantage we found to be noteworthy.

• Nickel-plated steel shaft
• Wide wheel
• Expensive
• Durable

The ab roller’s rounded edges provided a great challenge that forces you to improve their stability as you try to keep it straight. Like the wheel, the handles are rubberized and offer comfort during sessions.

While not listed, we could feel that the weight capacity was pretty high as it felt sturdy enough to hold us up even with a weighted vest. We attribute this sturdiness to the metal axle, a welcome differentiator from other ab rollers that use plastic axles.

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The SKLZ Core Wheels offer an alternative to traditional ab rollers, coming as a pair featuring two individual wheels and a single handle. This allows for even greater versatility as you can move them separately and introduce a new dynamic to your workout.

In addition to your abs and core, you can target your shoulders with this exercise roller wheel. Beware, though, the two individual rollers combined with narrow wheels introduce a level of difficulty that won’t suit beginners.

• Two individual wheels
• Expensive
• Narrow wheels
• Compact

SKLZ did well to compensate for the stability (or lack thereof) of narrow wheels by equipping the device with wheels on each side. The rubberized tread also helps in that regard, as you’ll enjoy smooth rolls on most surfaces. The ergonomic foam handles gave us incredible grip while we rolled back and forth.

We found that the weight capacity of 225 pounds was on the low side compared to other ab rollers. We appreciated its lightweight and portable construction. Another positive with this device is that it comes with a guide showcasing different exercises. This is important because it’s not a traditional roller and requires some instruction.

This EnterSports offering is an ab roller kit with many extras that you can use in tandem with the wheel. The device comes with a knee pad, push-up handlebars, and resistance bands to elevate your exercise game to the next level.

It’s perfect for beginners as the bands can assist with rolling back in, while more experienced users can use them for versatility. Seeing as all these products come bundled for such an affordable price, it’s a worthy purchase for anyone just starting with their home gym.

• Affordable
• Wide wheel
• Compact
• Ergonomic hand grips

The EnterSports Ab Wheel Roller is the definition of value-for-money as it provides good stability and a comfortable grip comparable to more expensive rollers.

However, we tested the roller and found that durability was the biggest case of “you get what you paid for.” The rubberized tread was great, but the plastic makeup wasn’t that impressive compared to other ab rollers we tested. Perhaps the most remarkable feat though is that the plastic frame could easily handle a bodyweight of 300 pounds.

If you’re a frequent traveler or like bringing an ab roller everywhere, then you won’t go wrong with this one. Compared to other devices we tested, this one felt like a feather and could be easily transported.

Have a small bag? No problem; remove the handles and easily re-attach them when you’re ready to use them. This makes it the quintessential purchase if you split time between a commercial and home gym — and all within budget too.

• Wide wheel
• Comes with knee pad support
• Ergonomic hand grips
• Affordable
• Lightweight

The wide wheel provides incredible stability for both kneeling and standing ab wheel rollouts. The rubberized tread and the complimentary knee pads allow for comfortable usage on hard floors.

Pullup & Dip didn’t compromise on comfort as the grips are comfortable and have featured markings that helped guide our rolling. Another impressive feat is the ability to handle a maximum load of 330 pounds, which compares to and even beats some of the more expensive rollers we tested.

When it comes to the ab rollers we sampled, none compared to the VINSGUIR Ab Roller 2-Round Version for the force it could handle. This exercise wheel is made of stainless steel and can take on 400 pounds, a feat no other device here achieves.

It’s quick to assemble and should be ready to use within seconds of unpacking. Despite its bulky look, it was surprisingly lightweight and allowed for easy transportation in a gym bag. For those working out in a home gym, it takes up minimal space.

• Wide wheel
• Affordable
• Incredible weight support
• Lightweight
• Comes with a knee mat

Despite its sturdy and robust build, it’s comfortable thanks to rubber handles built with anti-slip materials. However, we didn’t appreciate that the material sometimes slipped off the metal handles.

Stability won’t be a problem, though, as the wide wheel and TPR rubber-lined tread offer incredible support on most surfaces. Another positive with this core roller is that it comes with a knee mat for added comfort.

This exercise wheel is different from the others in that it has a dual mode and can be used as a single or double-wheel roller. The double-wheel setting is perfect for stability and those starting out, while the single, wider wheel works for intermediate users searching for advanced exercises.

Like the VINSGUIR Ab Roller, this device is made of stainless steel and is easy to assemble. Thanks to its frame, it can easily hold up 330 pounds of bodyweight without wobbling around or showing any signs of being unsafe.

• Double-wheeled
• Ergonomic hand grips
• Lightweight
• Ability to convert to wide wheel
• Easy to assemble

In addition to the wheel width, the rubberized treads play a massive role in improved stability across most surfaces. We found that this also reduced friction and emitted no noise during testing, which would be handy for people who stay with others.

Furthermore, the lightweight construction makes it one of the top commercial and home gym hybrids. In addition to the grips, the complimentary knee mat helps with comfort.

If you’re looking for a budget ab roller, look no further than this Elite Sportz offering. This wheel provides all the great benefits of ab rollers without burning into your pocket.

In addition to working for a home gym, you can also easily bring it to a commercial gym, thanks to its small, portable build.

• Double-wheeled
• Lightweight and compact
• Affordable
• Easy to assemble

Compared to single-wheeled ab rollers, the two wheels provide better stability and are free of wobbling. However, comfort is a step down from competitors as the handles are made of hard plastic.

Likewise, the wheels also feature hard plastic lining instead of the preferred rubber, meaning it’s best suited for carpets and similar floors. On the plus side, you can exert a bodyweight of over 300 pounds without feeling unsafe, which fares better compared to some more expensive devices.

This is our top pick for budget exercise wheels of all the ab rollers we tested. While primarily a double-wheel, you can switch to a single-wheel mode for more challenging and versatile exercises.

Like other lightweight devices, the Bluerise Ab Roller is easy to transport, store, and use in different settings. Through extensive tests, this piece of equipment most impressed us with its robust build, which can rival some of the more expensive options.

• Double-wheeled
• Lightweight
• Easy to assemble
• Non-slip ergonomic handles

The outer wheel material reminded us of a bike tire from its appearance. This goes for more than just the appearance, though, as the rubberized tread also has an excellent grip on hard floors, meaning you won’t struggle for stability.

The handles also come with non-slip grips to ensure you’re safe during the craziest of sessions.

Benefits of Ab Wheels

Ab rollers have been a staple in home gyms for more than a decade, and for good reason. Apart from the ab and core strength developed, there’s more to this deceptively simple-looking piece of equipment.

These are the benefits you can expect from exercises that involve ab rollers:

Improved core strength and ab development

Perhaps the most popular benefit of ab rollers is their ability to help users develop abs and get their core tight. In addition to the abdominal muscles, the wheel also works on multiple core muscles like the transverse and rectus abdominis, obliques, pelvic floor muscles, erector spinae, and more.

Furthermore, ab roller exercises also work the lower back muscles, helping alleviate back pain and improve your posture. You also develop a more muscular upper body as the rolling motion uses chest and shoulder muscles, biceps, and triceps to help develop six-packs.

Surprisingly, this equipment also engages your hip flexors and glutes — meaning some of your lower body will benefit too.

They’re relatively affordable

Whether you’re a budding fitness enthusiast or a seasoned vet, saving money on your home gym will always be great. This allows you to repurpose the money you saved for more home gym equipment.

An ab rolling wheel is one of the best home gym equipment products if you’re looking at affordability. The small devices can deliver incredible results at a fraction of the price you may spend on other types of equipment.

They are small

Another benefit of purchasing an ab roller wheel is how small it is. Their relatively compact size means they don’t take up a ton of space in your home, whether for storage or usage. This is particularly beneficial for people who have a makeshift home gym in their bedrooms or living rooms.

This also means they’re easily portable and can accompany you traveling or going to a commercial gym.

Best Ab Roller Wheel Buying Guide

While everyone knows how ab rollers help strengthen the arms, the core, and develop abs fast, knowing which one to purchase isn’t as straightforward. To make that decision easier for you, we’ve included this buying guide so you can buy the best ab wheel for your workout needs.

Stability

You want an exercise wheel that won’t wobble while you roll, as this may be unsafe. Wide wheels offer the best stability and are perfect for beginners, while narrow wheels provide versatility for a broader range of exercises. Likewise, single wheels are less stable than double-wheel ab rollers.

Furthermore, you should opt for a rubber-lined wheel if you often exercise on tile or hardwood-like surfaces.

Grip

The grip is another crucial factor to consider when purchasing an ab roller. An exercise wheel with padded, ergonomic grips will save you from hand and wrist strain and allow lengthy rolling sessions. The handles should be made with anti-slip material to ensure safety.

If you’d like to straight-out avoid blisters, you can use various gym gloves to protect your palms.

Weight capacity

Weight capacity is relevant first and foremost for safety. Getting an ab roller that can’t support your body can lead to serious injury when it eventually breaks.

If it has a higher weight capacity, you can also add more weight to your workouts through weighted vests, wrist and ankle weights, and more.

Extras

While not a must-have, an abdominal wheel with complimentary extras like knee pads and workout programs is always welcome.

Best Ab Wheel Summary

An ab roller is one of the best pieces of home gym equipment. While they won’t do it alone, they can be great tools for developing a solid core and rock-solid abs. Additionally, they don’t cost an arm and a leg and take up a small space.

The market is saturated with this piece of gym equipment. You won’t be short of options as you’ll find everything from basic single-wheeled rollers and ultra-wide wheels to ab roller kits.

Just be sure to choose the right one for you. Hopefully, this guide has helped you settle on the perfect workout roller wheel for your needs.

So what are you waiting for? Pick one of the ab rollers above and roll your way to a resilient core coupled with solid abs!