Choosing the Right Darts
The dart itself is the most personal piece of equipment in the game. Choosing the right type, weight, and material transforms your throwing experience. This guide breaks down every category so you can match your darts to your setup, your environment, and your ambitions.
Anatomy of a Dart
Every dart has four components:
- Point (tip) — The sharp end that sticks in the board. Steel or plastic
- Barrel — The main body you grip. This is where weight and material matter most
- Shaft (stem) — Connects barrel to flight. Various lengths and materials
- Flight — The fin-like tail that stabilises the dart in the air. Various shapes and sizes
Steel-Tip Darts
Best for: Bristle boards, pub play, serious home setups, league darts
Steel-tip darts are the standard for traditional dartboards (sisal/bristle boards). The steel point embeds into the compressed sisal fibres, which close up when the dart is removed — allowing thousands of throws before the board wears out.
Barrel Materials
Tungsten (Wolfram Alloy)
The gold standard. Tungsten is extremely dense, allowing barrels to be slim while maintaining weight. This matters because slimmer barrels pack tighter on the board — crucial when you're trying to fit three darts into the treble 20 bed.
- 90% Tungsten — Professional standard. Slimmest possible barrels. Premium price
- 80% Tungsten — Excellent quality, slightly wider. Best value for serious players
- 70% Tungsten — Good quality, affordable. Wider than 80% but still very playable
Tungsten darts typically cost 20 to 80 or more for a set of three, depending on quality and brand.
Nickel-Silver
A mid-range alloy. Heavier and wider than tungsten at the same weight, but significantly cheaper. Good starting darts for developing players.
Typical price: 10-25 per set.
Brass
The entry-level material. Brass darts are cheap, widely available, and perfectly functional for casual play. However, brass is much less dense than tungsten, meaning the barrels must be significantly wider to achieve the same weight.
Typical price: 5-15 per set.
Weight
Steel-tip darts are available from about 12g to 50g, but the vast majority of players use darts between 20g and 26g. Within this range:
- 20-22g — Light. Requires more force, travels faster, more sensitive to release
- 22-24g — The sweet spot for most players. Enough weight for a natural arc
- 24-26g — Heavier. More forgiving of slight release errors, slower flight
- 26g+ — Heavy. Preferred by some power throwers, but can cause faster board wear
Beginners should start around 22-24g and adjust based on feel.
Soft-Tip Darts
Best for: Electronic dartboards, safety-conscious environments, indoor/apartment play
Soft-tip darts have flexible plastic points instead of steel. They're designed for electronic dartboards — plastic boards with tiny holes that register hits via sensors. The board automatically calculates and displays scores.
Advantages
- Electronic scoring — No mental arithmetic needed. The board does the maths
- Safety — Plastic tips won't damage walls or injure bystanders (much less, anyway)
- Game variety — Electronic boards often include dozens of built-in games
- Social features — Many modern electronic boards include online play and stats tracking
Disadvantages
- Bounce-outs — Soft tips can bounce off the board more frequently than steel tips
- Board durability — Plastic segments wear out faster than sisal
- Sound — Electronic boards are louder on impact
- Feel — Purists find the experience less satisfying than steel-tip on bristle
Weight
Soft-tip darts are typically lighter than steel-tip — usually 14-20g — because electronic boards are more fragile and can be damaged by heavier darts.
Price Range
Entry-level electronic board + dart sets: 30-50. Quality electronic boards: 80-200+. Soft-tip dart sets: 10-60.
Magnetic Darts
Best for: Children, safety-first environments, caravans, offices, and anywhere sharp points are unwelcome
Magnetic darts use flat magnetic tips that stick to a metal or magnetic dartboard surface. They're the safest option by far — no sharp points, no damage to walls.
Advantages
- Completely safe — No sharp points whatsoever
- Zero wall damage — Misses bounce off harmlessly
- Flat boards — Magnetic boards are thin and can hang anywhere
- Child-friendly — Many sets designed for children from age 6+
- Travel-friendly — Lightweight, compact, no risk of injury in luggage
Disadvantages
- Reduced accuracy — Magnetic darts don't stick with the precision of steel or soft-tip
- Limited scoring — Darts can slide on the metal surface
- Less satisfying — The "thwack" of a dart embedding in sisal is absent
- Not for serious play — The physics are different enough that skills don't fully transfer
Best Magnetic Sets
Magnetic boards range from cheap novelty items to surprisingly well-made products. Look for:
- A board with properly printed, clearly legible segments
- Darts with strong rare-earth magnets (not weak fridge magnets)
- A board surface that isn't too slippery
- A set that includes enough darts for at least 2 players
Price range: 10-40 for a complete set (board + darts).
Velcro (Hook-and-Loop) Darts
Best for: Very young children (3+), nurseries, schools
Velcro dart sets use balls or darts with a hook-and-loop surface that sticks to a fabric board. Entirely safe for toddlers and young children. The accuracy is minimal, but it introduces the concept of aiming at a target — and children love the sticking action.
Price range: 5-15 for a complete set.
Suction Cup Darts
Best for: Young children, novelty play
Darts with rubber suction cups that stick to a smooth board (or any smooth surface). More toy than game, but they introduce children to the throwing action. The suction cups tend to lose grip quickly and fall off.
Choosing for Your Situation
Pub / Social Club
Steel-tip tungsten (22-24g) + quality bristle board. This is the standard, the tradition, and the best playing experience.
Home (Dedicated Space)
Steel-tip + bristle board with surround. If you have a garage, spare room, or dedicated wall, invest in a quality bristle board, a surround to catch strays, a proper oche, and decent lighting.
Home (Living Space / Apartment)
Soft-tip + electronic board or magnetic set. Safety and wall protection take priority in shared living spaces. Electronic boards add fun features for casual play.
Children (Under 8)
Magnetic darts. Safe, fun, and teaches the basics. Graduate to soft-tip when they're old enough to understand safety rules.
Children (8-14)
Soft-tip or supervised steel-tip. Depends on the child's maturity and the setup. A soft-tip electronic board in a bedroom or playroom works brilliantly.
Office / Breakroom
Magnetic or electronic. Safety and noise considerations matter. Magnetic is silent; electronic adds game variety for groups.
Travel / Caravan
Magnetic. Lightweight, compact, and safe in confined spaces.
The Bottom Line
The "right" dart is the one that matches your environment and ambitions. A 30 set of well-balanced tungsten darts on a quality bristle board will give you years of excellent play. A 15 magnetic set will keep the family entertained safely. The game is the same — it's the circumstances that dictate the equipment.
Product descriptions are based on general market categories. Specific product links may include affiliate partnerships — see our affiliate disclosure for details.