A hot Saturday, the pool glowing turquoise, music on, and someone stretched out on a float with a cold drink while the kids cannonball around them. The right float makes that afternoon. This pool floating mat guide walks you through the materials, sizes and styles, so you can pick something that fits your pool and the way your family likes to use it.
One honest note up front: the big foam “lily pad” mats you see behind boats are built for lakes and are often longer than a backyard pool. For most pools, a good lounger or a small foam mat is the better buy. We’ll show you both.
Pool floating mat materials, from foam to fabric
What a float is made of decides how it feels, how long it lasts and how much fuss it is to set up. There are three main families.
Closed-cell foam
Foam mats are made of layers of closed-cell polyethylene foam (often called XPE) with sealed air bubbles inside, so they float without any air pump. Nothing to pop, nothing to inflate: you just unroll them. They’re soft and a bit bouncy underfoot, and the better ones add a tear-resistant inner layer and a UV-protected top.
Inflatable vinyl (PVC)
Most pool loungers are inflatable PVC. They’re light, cheap, pack down small and come in every shape. The trade-off is that bare vinyl is easier to puncture and gets sticky and hot in strong sun, so thickness and seam quality matter.
Fabric-covered and mesh floats
Some floats wrap a PVC bladder in a nylon cover, which shrugs off sun and rough pool edges far better than bare vinyl and feels nicer on your skin. Many loungers also use a mesh seat that lets you sit just in the water and stay cool.
Sizes: measure your pool first
Floats look smaller in the store than they do in the water. Before you buy, measure your pool and leave room for people to swim around the float.
- Single loungers fit almost any pool. The Airhead Siesta Lounge is 68 x 40 in inflated; the SwimWays Spring Float Recliner is 56 x 38 in.
- Small foam mats need a bigger pool. A 9 x 6 ft mat such as the Rubber Dockie holds 3 to 4 adults, so it suits a large rectangular pool, not a small plunge pool.
- Lake-size mats of 12 to 18 ft are made for open water. In most backyard pools they’d cover the whole surface, so save those for the lake.
Think about storage too. A foam mat rolls into a log (the 9 ft Rubber Dockie rolls to about 21 x 21 x 72 in), while inflatables fold into a box or bag once deflated.
Styles: lounge, shade or play
- Loungers with a backrest are for reading, napping and a drink in the cup holder.
- Recliners with a canopy bring their own shade for the hottest part of the day.
- Flat foam mats are for play: several kids at once, sitting, crawling and sliding off into the water.
- Fun shapes and party floats look great in photos, but check the material and seams, since novelty floats are often the thinnest vinyl.
For a pool party, a mix works best: a couple of loungers for the adults and one flat mat the kids can pile onto.
How to choose the right pool float
- Decide who it’s for. One adult relaxing needs a lounger; a pack of kids needs a flat mat they can share.
- Check the fit. Compare the float’s size with your pool and leave swimming room on every side.
- Look at the weight limit. Go by the maker’s number and, if listings disagree, trust the lowest one.
- Pick a tougher material. A fabric cover or thick vinyl lasts longer than thin novelty plastic, and foam can’t pop at all.
- Think about shade and storage. A canopy helps on long, sunny afternoons, and a float that folds or rolls small is easier to keep in the garage.
Pool floats and mats we like
We researched and compared these three for pool use. Two are loungers rather than flat mats, because that’s what most pools have room for. The third is a small foam mat for bigger pools.
SwimWays Spring Float Recliner with Canopy
- 56 x 38 in
- 250 lb
- Removable sun canopy
Airhead Siesta Lounge. A heavy-gauge PVC bladder inside a heavy-duty nylon cover, with an inflatable backrest and headrest, mesh seating, cup holders and a footrest that folds out when you want your legs up. It’s sold as a lake float, which is exactly why it holds up so well in a pool.
Check the Airhead Siesta Lounge price on Amazon
SwimWays Spring Float Recliner with Canopy. A cooling mesh seat, headrest, backrest and ottoman, plus a removable canopy for shade. A spring around the edge keeps it stable and lets it fold flat, it inflates without a pump through jet valves, and it’s rated for adults up to 250 lb.
Check the SwimWays Spring Float Recliner price on Amazon
Rubber Dockie 9 x 6 ft. A true foam mat: 1 3/8 in of two-ply closed-cell foam with a tear-stop core, about 15 lb, holding roughly 3 to 4 adults or 750 lb. It’s a lake mat at heart, so it only makes sense in a large pool, where it becomes the kids’ favorite island.
Check the Rubber Dockie 9 ft price on Amazon
Taking the fun to the lake? Our best floating water mats guide compares the bigger lily pads, and the best lake floats guide covers loungers built for open water. Browse all our floating mat guides.
Safety and care in the pool
A float is a toy, not a life jacket. A few simple habits keep pool days easy and help your mat last for many summers.
- Always have an adult watching children in the pool; kids and weak swimmers wear life jackets.
- No diving off floats into shallow water, and keep the area around the float clear when kids jump off.
- Stay within the maker’s weight limit and spread people out on a mat.
- Rinse floats with fresh water after use, since pool chemicals and salt are hard on vinyl and foam over time.
- Dry them before storing, keep them out of direct sun when no one is using them, and roll foam mats rather than folding them.
- Keep inflatables away from rough pool edges, sharp jewelry and grills.
For cleaning, patching and winter storage step by step, see how to care for and maintain your floating pool mats.
Pool floating mat questions
Can I use a lake floating mat in my pool?
Yes, if it fits. Foam lily pads work fine in a pool, but even a 9 x 6 ft mat needs a large pool, and the 18 ft versions are too long for most backyards.
Do pool floating mats need to be inflated?
Foam mats don’t: you unroll them and they float. Inflatable loungers do, although some, like the SwimWays Spring Float Recliner, have jet valves that make blowing them up easy without a pump.
Are pool floating mats safe for kids?
They’re great fun for kids, but no float replaces supervision. Keep an adult watching, put young children and weak swimmers in life jackets, and don’t let anyone dive off a float into the shallow end.
Can I use a floating mat in a saltwater pool?
Yes. Just rinse it with fresh water afterwards and let it dry, the same as you would after a chlorine pool, so salt and chemicals don’t build up on the surface.
How should I store a pool float over winter?
Clean it, let it dry completely, then store it indoors away from heat and sun. Deflate and loosely fold inflatables; roll foam mats and hold them with straps instead of folding them.