Practice makes perfect, and a pickleball machine sure makes training more accessible and fun. There are many options and competitive features, but use our guide below to learn what to look for.
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Our Top Pick
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Lightweight
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Right/Left Spin
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Holds 150 Balls
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4.6
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4.4
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4.2
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4.2
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Our Top 4 Pickleball Machine Picks
The Pickleball Tutor Plus Ultra from Sports Tutor marks the latest enhancement to the already comprehensive Tutor Plus pickleball machine lineup. The Ultra model offers an extensive range of features to challenge and refine your skills, ensuring an engaging and productive training experience.
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After testing multiple machines in varying training settings, we were delighted with the performance of the Pickleball Tutor Plus Ultra. Although the price tag and size may scare you away, the features and performance compensate for these shortcomings.
The Pickleball Tutor Plus Ultra revolutionizes training with its advanced digital features, including 6 preloaded drills, three distinct remote control options, and enhanced functionalities like random and 2-line oscillation, along with electronic elevation—a step up from the standard model’s capabilities.
This powerhouse can store up to 110 pickleballs, launching them at speeds reaching 65 mph. Mobility is a breeze with its sturdy 3″ wheels, and you have the flexibility to choose between battery or A/C electric power.
At only 35kg, the Lobster Pickleball Machine is one of the lightest pickleball machines on the market. With adjustable ball speeds of up to 60mph and a random oscillation feature, it's a fantastic offering for those looking to transport their machine.
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Weighing in at 35 lbs, this machine is easy to transport across courts thanks to its 8-inch wheels and inverted hopper design, capable of holding 135 indoor or outdoor pickleballs. It’s engineered to improve your footwork and reaction times with adjustable top and backspin, offering a variety of shots from standard drives to challenging lobs and dinks.
With a battery life lasting up to 4 hours and adjustable ball feed rates ranging from 2 to 12 seconds, the Lobster ensures your practice sessions can be as intense or relaxed as you prefer. Now equipped with a trickle charger, battery overcharging is no longer a concern.
Compact yet powerful, the Pickleball Tutor Spin revolutionizes training with both right and left spin capabilities. It holds up to 125 pickleballs and offers customizable shots—high lobs, short dinks, or fast fires at speeds up to 60 mph.
Use code PBUNION for 10% off at checkout!
The Pickleball Tutor Spin holds 125 pickleballs and is a powerhouse in pickleball training! This compact marvel brings groundbreaking advancements to the game, offering both right and left spin capabilities to challenge you with the toughest serves around.
Weighing in at only 30 pounds and equipped with a tow bar and caster wheels, the Tutor Spin is effortlessly portable. Tailor your practice with customizable shot options, including high lobs, short dinks, or fast, straight shots reaching speeds of up to 60 mph.
Choose between battery-powered or AC-operated models to suit your needs. The battery model offers 2-3 hours of playtime on a full charge.
The ERNE machine comes with a remote for court-wide control, and 25 drills plus 28 positions easily adjusted via smartphone. Its unique design delivers stealthy, unpredictable shots. While it can hold over 150 balls, it remains travel-friendly.
ERNE holds an impressive 150 pickleballs and is tailored for players with a wide range of customizable drills for speed, spin, elevation, and direction, easily controlled via our smartphone app for both iPhone and Android users.
ERNE stands out with its dual power option—battery or AC, offering up to 3 hours of continuous play with a long-life battery, and comes with a handy remote for easy operation from anywhere on the court. Featuring 25 preset drills and 28 court positions, adjusting your training is just a touch away.
What is a pickleball machine?
Pickleball machines are designed to help pickleball players practice on their own. They fire pickleballs across the court for you to hit back, allowing you to hone your skills and practice groundstrokes, forehands, backhands, dinks, and volleys without a coach or playing partner to feed you balls. Having a machine can revolutionize your pickleball practice.
Pickleball machines vary in price, capability, and design. Basic pickleball machines might only be able to shoot balls to one point on the court, while more high-tech machines use oscillation, remote control, and spin to give you the complete practice experience.
Despite this, they all have the same design: a ball hopper where pickleball balls can be loaded and a firing mechanism to toss them across the court to be hit back.
All sorts of players can benefit from a pickleball machine:
- Seasoned professionals looking to stay sharp during the off-season
- Absolute beginners who want to improve their muscle memory
- Pickleball coaches hoping to save their shoulders
As relatively expensive gear, pickleball machines are typically best suited for intermediate and advanced players. It is also worth noting that it requires a space, so it is only worth picking up if you have easy access to a pickleball court or decent-sized practice space.
What to look for when buying a pickleball machine
If you are interested in purchasing your very own pickleball machine, there are several things to look out for and consider when you are selecting your model:
1. Capacity for holding balls
good pickleball machine should hold between 100 to 150 balls to ensure a productive practice session without the need for frequent reloading.
There’s nothing worse than getting halfway through a great practice session and running out of balls. It breaks your flow and takes a lot of time and effort to collect the pickleballs and return them to the ball hopper.
2. Control Features
Check out the control options your pickleball machine has before you purchase. Does it have the oscillation feature, allowing it to fire balls to different parts of the court? Does it have a remote control, allowing it to be controlled without running around to the other side of the court?
3. Shot Options
Pickleball has a variety of shots to contend with in a match, and you want to be sure your machine can replicate them. You might want a machine that can hit lob shots and dink shots against you, provide volleys, or put spin (topspin, sidespin, and other spin shots) on the ball.
4. Ball Speed
As well as shot options, a good pickleball machine can provide an extensive range of ball speeds for you to play against. Many machines can send the pickleball ball at speeds of as low as 10mph or as quick as 70mph.
5. Warranty
A good warranty for a pickleball machine should ideally cover a period of 2 years.
As with any decent-sized purchase, it’s important to protect yourself. Make sure to check the warranty on whatever pickleball machine you want to purchase. Most of these machines are relatively heavy-duty and shouldn’t break, but you want to be covered just in case they do.
6. Ease of Transport
Unless you have a pickleball court in your backyard (in which case, lucky you!), you will be transporting your pickleball machine to and from your pickleball training sessions. If this is the case, it’s essential to consider how easy the machine is to transport based on the unit size, weight, and whether or not it has wheels.
7. Charging
It’s also important to consider how your pickleball machine will be powered. Some pickleball ball machines are battery-powered, with a set battery pack. Others might have a battery charger. Make sure you consider how the charging mechanism of your machine fits into your practice routine.
