The staffers at Best Products are on their computers 40-plus hours each week, so trust us — we’re familiar with wrist fatigue after sitting at a desk all day. Using an ergonomic mouse instead of scrolling on your laptop trackpad can help reduce muscle activity level and prevent fatigue from long working sessions. While most people want an ergonomic mouse that offers a traditional design with two buttons, a scroll wheel, and an affordable price, there's a lot more than that on the market.
What to Consider
The two most important things to consider when shopping for an ergonomic mouse are the type you want (vertical or traditional), and scroll positioning (pointer finger or thumb). A traditional ergonomic mouse positions your hand in a similar manner as a regular mouse, where your hand is relatively flat. A vertical mouse will position your hand in more of a "handshake" shape, which takes pressure off your wrist and forearm. However, it's worth noting that if you're someone who doesn't like getting used to new products, you might want to opt for a standard model.
For scroll positioning, you'll either use your pointer finger like with a regular mouse, or use your thumb. Using your thumb to scroll will require less movement move your wrist, which could lead to a more comfortable position for you. But again like with a vertical mouse, you'll probably have a bit of an adjustment period with a thumb-scrolling option.
How We Chose
To separate the best ergonomic mice from the rest, we did a week's worth of research and read user reviews of different ergonomic mice models. We scoured Amazon and other tech retailers to find their best-selling ergonomic mice, and then tested them ourselves. Ten of our colleagues spent a minimum of four work weeks putting them to the test (and some have been using their mouse for years). During that time, we judged the mice based on the following criteria:
Comfort
Tracking
Button placement
Overall quality
How did they stack up? See below, as we rank the 12 best ergonomic mice based on editor feedback!
A note on availability: Due to increased demand, some of these products may fluctuate between in and out of stock — especially on Amazon. We will be frequently checking and refreshing the links to these products as they become available again.
Tester Asya Akchurin raved about this ergonomic mouse, even if she was in the minority. Three different editors tried it for a few hours only to complain it was just too weird for them to use.
Well, Akchurin, who in the past relied solely on her laptop’s scroll pad, had nothing but praise for it. “It took no time getting used to the scrolling and clicking,” she said. “It feels like such a natural position for my hand and keeps it from cramping up throughout the day. Both my wrist and hand feel very comfortable, and there’s no straining or awkward turning."
The only downside she points to is that it’s pretty large to carry around, so it's not the most portable pick on our list.
Tester Comfort Level: 5/5 Likelihood of Tester to Recommend: 5/5
Product Highlights > Vertical style > Traditional scrolling > Wireless (AAA batteries not included)
This mouse is designed to keep your hand in a natural, handshake-like position. And while it took our tester Zarah Kavarana a day or two to get used to using a mouse in that position, she came to really like it.
“By day two, I could feel a difference in the strain level on my wrist. My previous mouse had zero hand or wrist support,” she said.
Kavarana also advised not to judge this mouse by its appearance.
“I was genuinely apprehensive about using this mouse upon first receiving it, because compared to my usual sleek and slim Apple model, this massive mouse looked sort of like a spaceship. But this mouse totally keeps my hand from cramping up during the day."
She also notes that the heightened arch cradles her palm at just the right angle, and though its shape is super unique, the buttons are placed in very intuitive places.
TesterComfort Level: 4/5 Likelihood for Tester to Recommend: 4/5
Product Highlights > Standard style > Trackball for scrolling > Wireless (AAA batteries not included)
Our tester Scott Simone's favorite thing about this best-selling ergonomic mouse is that it's stationary, as the trackball is located on the side.
Simone said that this mouse took some getting used to — lining up his thumb to the cursor motions took some practice. But, after a few days, he had mastered it. After testing, Simone said that he prefers this mouse to his previous one since he didn't have to constantly move his wrist while clicking around on the screen.
Comfy. Tracks well. Scrolls efficiently. What more could you want?
TesterComfort Level: 5/5 Likelihood of Tester to Recommend: 4/5
Product Highlights > Standard style > Traditional scrolling > Wireless (USB-C charging)
According to our senior tech editor, Stefan Vazharov, the MX Master 3 is the best wireless mouse in the business. He said his favorite feature is the mouse's electromagnetic scrolling wheel.
“It is fast, insanely precise, and ideal for work,” Vazharov said. “I also really like its tactility! It’s crafted from steel, so it has a quality finish.”
The gadget can pair with and seamlessly switch between two computers thanks to its nifty Flow feature. It's a customizable and comfortable mouse that works on any surface. Plus, its battery can last for months between charges. We like that Logitech has equipped the mouse with a USB-C connector for charging, too.
It's worth mentioning that this mouse is a bit on the larger side. Our senior home editor, Melanie Yates, has also used it. “My fingertips are right at the edge of the mouse buttons, though this doesn't impede my ability to click them at all," she said.
Product Highlights > Standard style > Traditional scrolling > Wireless (AA batteries included)
It appears that tester Sanah Faroke really liked this mouse, despite it being a bit too big for her self-described tiny hands.
“I love how it curves to hold my hand in a natural way that's more comfortable than other mice I've used,” she said. “The hold even curves at the bottom to hold my thumb and my pinkie fingers, preventing them from dragging. It's all one quick movement! I will say that I have (very) small hands, so it took a bit to get used to, but overall, I would most definitely recommend.”
The one downside that she points to: the scrolling ring. “The scroll wheel took a bit to get used to,” she said. “The Apple mouse allows me to scroll any which way I want, including side-to-side, which this Amazon mouse could not do. It also took a longer time to scroll through the page via the scroll wheel.”
TesterComfort Level: 5/5 Likelihood for Tester to Recommend: 4/5
Product Highlights > Standard style > Trackball for scrolling > Wireless (AA batteries included)
This ergonomic pick isn’t a typical slide-along-the-desk mouse. Instead, to move your computer’s cursor, you use your thumb to control the trackball. When our senior electronics editor, Brandon Carte, tested this mouse, it took him a couple of days to get used to it. However, Carte said it was still easy to grip, doesn’t feel too cumbersome, and has useful back and forward buttons that come in handy when you're surfing the internet.
The mouse connects to your Mac or PC one of two ways: over Bluetooth or with the included USB receiver. Unfortunately, it’s powered by a single AA battery, rather than a rechargeable one. The good news is that it still offers an impressive 2 years of battery life.
Brandon said he also liked the mouse's angled scroll wheel, which was comfortable to use for reading super long PDFs. The ERGO M575 comes in either black or white.
Test Comfort Level: 4/5 Likelihood for Tester to Recommend: 4/5
Product Highlights > Standard Style > Trackball for scrolling > Wireless (AA batteries included)
Asked to sum up the MX Ergo mouse, tester Latifah Miles put it bluntly: “It gives my big, clumsy hand space to scroll, click, and swipe with ease.”
Similar to the ERGO M575, this pick requires you to use your thumb to scroll, which takes some getting used to. “The trackball is on the side, and it's huge, so it took a day or so to get used to my thumb sitting there,” she said. “The trackball controls the mouse icon on the page so I didn't have to physically push the mouse around — which also took some getting used to — but after a while, I did like that my hand was able to sit in one spot.”
Again, if you have small hands, you might want to try another mouse. As Miles said, “The mouse is pretty big, but so are my hands! My hand sat very comfortably and allowed me to control it more than I would a smaller mouse.”
TesterComfort Level: 5/5 Likelihood for Tester to Recommend: 4/5
Product Highlights > Standard style > Traditional scrolling > Wireless (USB-C charging)
For those in search of a portable, comfortable, and convenient wireless mouse that you can easily toss in your laptop bag, consider this option from Logitech. It’s the perfect mouse for working on the go because of its compact design and versatility. Our senior technology editor, Stefan Vazharov said this mouse has a comfy design and no unnecessary bells and whistles to distract you while you take care of tasks on your computer.
The MX Anywhere 3 has both Bluetooth and USB receiver connectivity for up to three computers. Its key features include stylish design, fast scrolling, customizable buttons, and the ability to work on all surfaces.
The gadget's rechargeable battery can last up to 3 months on a single charge. here are three colors to pick from: black, white, and pink. An Apple-only Logitech MX Anywhere 3 without a USB dongle is also available.
TesterComfort Level: 4/5 Likelihood for Tester to Recommend: 5/5
Product Highlights > Standard style > Trackball for scrolling > Wired (USB connection)
Tester Danny Murphy loved that this mouse was ready to use right out of the box. “As someone who is very much a ‘throw away the instructions after opening the box’ kind of person, this mouse is exactly what I needed. All I had to do was open it, plug it in, and start scrolling,” Murphy said.
However, there is a slight learning curve. “The only part that took a little time to get used to was the scrolling circle that would help move the page. Other than that, it was pretty easy to get a hang of.”
Summing it up, Murphy had this to say: “This mouse made me feel like I was on a spaceship, which was fun.”
TesterComfort Level: 4/5 Likelihood for Tester to Recommend: 4/5
Apparently, the Microsoft Arc Mouse, which is more of a trackpad than an ergonomic mouse, leaves a lot to be desired.
“This mouse has a full scroll plane design, meaning you can scroll both vertically and horizontally,” tester Danielle St. Pierre said. “You scroll by lightly moving your pointer finger up/down or left/right along the center plane of the mouse and applying pressure to get around the page."
Best she noted that because the whole clicking surface is one continuous area and there is no dedicated scroll button, scrolling is a bit difficult.
She also said that this mouse is basically one big button with left- and right-click features (no separation between sides). "It's a bit of a smaller, touchier mouse that is more sensitive/responsive to clicks, so that also took some time to get used to."
But overall, the arc-shape of the mouse did feel better than the Apple mouse St. Pierre was using before. It's super lightweight, easy to pair with your Bluetooth device, and a good option for smaller hands.
Tester Comfort Level: 4/5 Likelihood for Tester to Recommend: 3/5
Product Highlights > Standard style > Traditional scrolling > Wireless (AA batteries not included)
Despite this option from VicSting being one of the more straightforward mice we tested (see the space-ship and gaming-looking mice above), it came in last in terms of scoring. That flies in the face of the nearly 22,000 Amazon reviews hyping this up.
Tester Leanna Yip's biggest pet peeve: “I really, really miss the side-scrolling feature you get on the Magic Mouse. And on this one, no matter how many times I fiddled with the settings, the vertical scrolling was always too slow for me.”
Even though she did find it somewhat comfortable, she also said that the mouse was a bit big for her hands. “It doesn’t have a large footprint, but rather the bulgiest part is still too big for me. The Magic Mouse is still more comfortable. I can’t use this one for more than a couple of hours a day before I feel like my body is all tensed-up — and I’m less productive because I’ve spent so much time trying to redo any mistakes the mouse helped me make.”
Not one to mince words, Yip concluded by saying: “I switched to the Magic Mouse halfway through writing this.”
TesterComfort Level: 3/5 Likelihood for to Recommend: 3/5
12Our Testing Process
• Products Tested: 12 • Time Spent Testing: 4 weeks • Number of Testers: 10
Brandon CarteSenior Electronics EditorBrandon Carte has been the technology editor at BestProducts.com since 2017, where he's been covering the latest gadgets and scouring the internet for the greatest deals; His tech reporting has been featured on TopTenReviews.com and USA Today.
Scott SimoneScott is the managing editor at BestProducts.com, overseeing all site content; in his decade-or-so as a journalist and editor, he’s covered everything from travel and drinks to prison arts programs, and his reporting appeared in the Gothamist, the Guardian, and other outlets; When not staring at his screen editing for BestProducts.com, he’s either watching The Office for the umpteenth time, chatting up bartenders around New York City, or adding to his always-growing to-read pile.
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