The best pickleball paddles for drives and serves
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One of the first things our paddle reviewers ask themselves when they’re trying a new paddle is, “What is this paddle good at?”
In general, most new releases these days will be good at something — sometimes multiple things.
But with so many different options and materials being used — polypropelyne, EVA foam, EPP foam, MPP foam, etc. — there’s a wide range of performance and feel characteristics. Some are very powerful, some feel stiff, some feel plush, some grab the ball better than others, and so on.
We believe we’ve reached a point in pickleball equipment where fitting your paddle to your play style is more important (and easier) than ever. Are you a player who relies on power or focuses on the soft game? What are your best shots and your worst shots? Do you want a paddle that makes your good shots even better, or a paddle that can cover up some of your weaknesses?
These are all questions that players should be asking themselves before they buy their next paddle.
In this article, we’re focusing on paddles that excel on drives and serves — specifically when it comes to power and spin. So if you’re somebody who might classify yourself as a “Banger” or have Banger tendencies, this list is for you.
We’ve separated these paddles into three tiers:
Best in class: If the assignment is to execute drives and serves at the highest level possible, this is the paddle we’d reach for right now.
Elite: All of these paddles are exceptional on drives and serves. Maybe you’re looking for a certain brand or price point. We bet there’s something in here that fits your needs.
Very good: While these paddles didn’t make the elite tier, they are still very, very good on drives and serves. We’re talking Top 15-ish out of hundreds and hundreds of paddles that we’ve tested.
So if drives and serves are something you want to put an emphasis on in your game, you can’t go wrong with any of the options below.
Last updated: August 2026
BEST IN CLASS
RPM Q2
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ELITE
Luzz Inferno2 M1
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RPM Friction Pro V2
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Proton Project Coyote
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Friday Aura Pro
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Enhance MPP Turbo
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FLiK F1
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VERY GOOD
Selkirk Labs Project Boomstik
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Six Zero Black Opal
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Honolulu J6CR
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11SIX24 Power 2 Series
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Paddletek Honeyfoam TKO-X
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Bread & Butter Loco
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OUR “BEST OF” LISTS
Best overall
– Our Top 13 paddles on the market + in-depth reviews for each oneBest by category
– Best power paddles
– Best control paddles
– Best all-court paddles
– Best full-foam paddlesBest by shot type
– Best paddles for dinks and drops
– Best paddles for drives and serves
– Best paddles for pop
– Best paddles for resets
– Best paddles for spinBest by price
– Best paddles under $200
– Best paddles under $150Best by skill level
– Best paddles for beginners
– Best paddles for intermediate players
– Best paddles for advanced playersGear
– Best pickleball bags
– Best pickleball shoes
– Best shoes for men
– Best shoes for women
– Best pickleball accessories
– Best pickleball training aids
– Best nets for every setting/price point
Our testing process
Team Kitchen is our team of expert paddle reviewers, all 5.0+ players. They test every paddle with other high-level players in their area, on every kind of shot, in drills and real games, to see how it performs in real-world play.
Every paddle is also measured on the same scale: power, spin, swing weight and twist weight, so any two paddles compare fairly.
We use the Life Time LT Pro 48 pickleball for our testing.
