Choosing pool balls.

Regulation size

WPA pool balls are 2.25 inches in diameter, within 0.005 inch, and weigh 5.5 to 6 ounces. Sets should be the same size as each other; better sets hold tighter tolerances for roundness, diameter and weight, so they roll truer and replacement balls match more easily.

Phenolic resin or polyester

This is the main decision. Phenolic resin is a thermoset plastic that cannot be remelted once molded, and sources consistently place it as the premium material and polyester as the budget one.

• Polyester balls are softer. Black Label Billiards says they lose shine and roundness faster, chip more easily, run hotter from friction, and leave burn marks on the cloth.
• Phenolic resin balls, such as Aramith's, are harder. Aramith claims its balls last up to five times longer than others and withstand far more impacts than polyester; those are the manufacturer's claims, without independent testing cited.
• Numbers. Cheaper balls may have painted or inlaid numbers that wear or fall out; better balls have engraved numbers.

TV sets and training cue balls

• TV sets swap the dark purple 4 and 12 for pink and the maroon 7 and 15 for a lighter brown so the balls are easier to tell apart on camera, and some include a spotted cue ball.
• Measles cue balls carry dots so you can see spin. Aramith's black-dot version came from a collaboration with Matchroom and was used at the Mosconi Cup.
• Coin-op cue balls may be larger and slightly heavier so the table can separate them, which makes draw harder. Do not use one as your home cue ball.

Our picks by category

Keep them clean

Chalk marks on balls can cause extra, unpredictable throw, as Dr. Dave Alciatore explains on his throw page. Aramith recommends cleaning phenolic balls after each game with its cleaner.