The 10 Best Croquet Sets
Special Honors
Bespoke Croquet Sets Although this New Zealand company do provide "garden" croquet sets at a fairly moderate price point, it's their Hurlingham, Croquet Association, and Signature models that really set them apart from other manufacturers, though they don't come cheap of course. The oakwood storage cases and gold leaf print are particularly nice touches. woodmallets.com
Editor's Notes
December 14, 2020:
Still maintaining their place near the top, though coming in at a much higher price point than most other models, are the North Meadow Oakley Woods Extreme with its "indestructible" polyethylene heads and ash shafts, and the AmishToyBox 8-Player - a handcrafted option made from maple hardwood with brass ring supports on the heads. These options also include regulation-sized and weighted balls, a feature that's often overlooked in lower-priced items.
We kept the Crown Sporting Goods Premium for its beautiful faux-antique finish and the fact that it's one of the only options available offering solid wooden balls, if you're nostalgic about that sort of thing. Also for fans of all things old-timey is the Franklin Sports Vintage, a new addition that we added in place of the Scottsdale by North Meadow, which simply had too many reports of balls and mallets breaking for a model priced that high.
For those shopping within a mid-range budget for six players, we kept the Franklin Sports Complete, a natural wood finish option with metal supports where the shafts meet the heads, and with regulation-sized balls. We also added the Hathaway Deluxe, which is similarly priced to the Franklin, although the former sports a sleek, glossy black finish with a funky ombre fade on the shafts to show each player what color they are.
In the budget range we kept the GoSports Deluxe and added the Juegoal Six Player. Although not the the most durable models in terms of quality construction, they should survive infrequent play from families that know how to respect their equipment and keep it safe from the elements. If you require a little more piece of mind when it comes to longevity however, it's worth shelling out a bit extra for a model like the DealKits Outdoor Lawn, which has definitely been designed to be more hardwearing than its budget-friendly counterparts.
February 19, 2019:
We chose options at a variety of price points, from basic sets that just include the necessities to more comprehensive sets that come with additional accessories. The GoSports Deluxe and Harvil 6-Player are inexpensive and great for casual games, but they aren't as durable as higher-end options and are best suited for infrequent use. For more serious players, the AmishToyBox 8-Player, Uber Games 9 Wicket, and Framco Hardwood are very high-quality sets that are built to last for years, so they're worth paying for if you plan to use them on a regular basis. Finally, the North Meadow Oakley Woods Extreme is, as the name suggests, designed for extreme croquet and is built with materials that can handle a lot of force.