The Best Pool Floats, According to Swim Instructors, Lifeguards, and Pool Pros
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From single-person loungers for basking in the sun to massive floating islands that can accommodate multiple adults, buoyant coolers, game sets, and fanciful floats for kids, a great pool float can make a hot summer day in the pools much more relaxing.
We’ve rounded up floats of all shapes, sizes, and types through research and recommendations from a panel of experts. Here, you’ll find a massive novelty swan float, an affordable pool hammock, floats for the kids, a tough tube that’s as ready for the river or lake as it is a swimming pool, and plenty more.
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Whatmakesagreatpoolfloat
Float type and design
While perhaps the most classic type of pool float is an adult-length lounger suitable for reading, resting, or just basking in the sun (after having applied yourfavorite sunscreen), there are floats designed for playing games, island-style floats that can be enjoyed by multiple users, cooler floats. Consider how you and your friends and family best enjoy the water before selecting your best pool float option, keeping in mind that you may want to acquire multiple floats for maximum fun.
Features
A pool float’s primary job may be to keep you bobbing blissfully atop the water, but we looked for welcome extras like built-in cupholders, head- and backrests, attachment points that let you lash several floats together, mesh seating that lets you stay cool thanks to partial submersion, and more. And note that some novelty features, like a swan float’s long neck and wings, can offer extra stability for the user.
Materials
“Inflatable floats will typically use PVC, or polyvinyl chloride, for its air- and water-tightness, plus the ability to tailor it to different shapes and sizes,” says Matthew Larsen, marketing director withIntex. He adds, “More sophisticated floats may introduce fabric coverings or mesh surfaces made with nylon or polyester.” Some floats also feature buoyant foam construction, which can add weight and some heft but also make for pool floats that never require inflation and can’t go flat.
Safety
While fun is the name of the game here, when it comes to anything aquatic, safety always has to be top of mind. Dominick Lotito, head lifeguard and swim instructor at theCranford Pools, says, “I evaluate pool products through two lenses: how enjoyable they are and whether they contribute to a safer swimming environment.” He adds, “One drawback with floats is that parents may develop a false sense of security … Floats should never replace constant adult supervision, swim instruction, or layered water-safety practices such as pool barriers and a designated water-watcher.”
“Most floats should be used only by adults and older kids who can swim,” says Jason Margulies, partner and maritime attorney atLipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A.“Children using floats should never be left unattended; this is a toy, not a safety device, and being smart around the water is important no matter how fun it is. Most of the drowning incidents that wind up in court … involve products that weren’t approved as personal-flotation devices by the United States Coast Guard. Instead, they were unicorn rafts, neck rings, foam noodles, and other toys that were never certified or engineered to provide water safety.” So always keep in mind that your primary concern when it comes to younger swimmers is safety.
Safety first, people. But make good times a close second.
A classic inflatable lounger
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Stonful Pool Lounger With Headrest - 2-pack
Dimensions:75 by 34 by 10 inches |Weight limit:300 pounds| Color/pattern choices:4| Age range:15+
This lounger float from Stonful is a classic design: an extra-thick body topped by a raised headrest. “Thicker floats like this keep the user above water, and are therefore great for relaxing,” says Intex’s Matthew Larsen.
Broad and long, this lounger float has an impressive 300-pound weight capacity. It’s made from durable PVC and is perforated, with 21 holes through which cooling water can splash, keeping you cool on the hottest days. This float can also be used as a comfortable air mattress laid out on the pool deck or a sandy beach. And it’s a very inexpensive, even in a two-pack.
A great floating recliner
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Dimensions:57 by 36 by 16 inches|Weight limit:250 pounds| Color/pattern choices:3| Age range:15+
This reclining chair-style float from SwimWays has a built-in cupholder, a padded backrest, a mesh seat bottom that keeps your bottom in the pool, and a footrest.
Inflation is easy thanks to a large self-sealing valve that lets air in but prevents it from leaking back out, plus an internal spring system lets the float literally spring open into shape. The Spring Float Recliner folds down into a package about the size of a round serving dish for easy transport or for storage when pool season passes.
A floating hammock
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Dimensions:44 by 16 inches |Weight limit:250 pounds| Color/pattern choices:8| Age range:7+
“Hammock-type floats with mesh seat surfaces allow water contact, so they’re great for cooling off and a weightless feel,” says Larsen. This hammock float from Aqua Leisure is called “four-in-one” because you can lounge in it lengthwise with your head on one float and feet on the other, sit deeper in the water while using the floats as armrests, sit deepest of all by straddling the mesh seat, or you can place the floats side by side and toss your arms and chest over them, letting you kick and paddle around the pool.
Beyond that versatility, hammock floats have the added benefit of being easy to get onto and off of, so for people with muscle, joint, or mobility issues, these types of floats can be easier to use than more rigid fully-inflated or foam loungers. The four-in-one Monterey Pool Float packs down quite small when the two pillow-shaped floats are deflated. It comes in multiple different colored stripe options and is quite affordable.
An inflation-free foam float
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TRC Recreation Sunsation Foam Pool Float Lounger
Dimensions:70 by 26 inches |Weight limit:250 pounds| Color/pattern choices:8| Age range:13+
Jimmie Meece, brand president withAmerica’s Swimming Pool Co., says foam loungers like this one from Sunsation are a great alternative. Soft and flexible, your body will settle into the closed-cell foam while a rolled pillow cradles your head and neck. And you can start enjoying that floating comfort just as soon as you get to the pool. “It’s a ‘ready to go’ float that doesn’t need an air pump,” says Meece. “This is a great option without the inflating and deflating hassle.” Heavier and pricier than most of the inflatable floats we’re featuring here, it’s unsinkable, even when you give it a few gentle wiggles to get water flowing over its surface, cooling you down in a hurry.
A totally tubular float for pool or river use
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Dimensions:53-inch diameter |Weight limit:250 pounds| Color/pattern choices:1| Age range:Adult
This durable tube-style float from Intex comes recommended byKristy Squire, an ISR (infant-swim resource) master instructor with 19 years of swim-teaching experience. The River Run 1 is durable enough to use in lakes and on rivers where its thick PVC material may be bumping up against rocks or brambles, so it’s plenty tough enough for use in the swimming pool.
The River Run 1 features two built-in cupholders, a raised backrest, a mesh seat bottom, and a pair of grab handles that can be used to carry the float on land, to climb in from the water, or to hold on tight as you run the (Class I or Class II) rapids. The float also has a grab rope running around its perimeter and connection points for easily strapping two or more floats together so friends or family can hang out without drifting apart.
A kids’ animal pool float with classic style
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Dimensions:80 by 45 inches |Weight limit:100 pounds| Color/pattern choices:10| Age range:3+
This alligator float is a true classic, seen plying pools for the better part of 40 years now. It’s big enough for several kids to clamber aboard at once, with four sturdy handles assisting with getting on or off the float or for added stability during use. Just note the 100 pound recommended weight limit if more than one kid will be playing with this gator.
Jen Boersma, trend forecaster at Foley PR and “summer-loving mom of six who has personally tested every float that has ever entered a pool” says of the Intex alligator float: “This alligator is pure summer, and it’s iconic for a reason. My kids have fought, wrestled, cannonballed, and staged full naval battles over this thing, and it just keeps going. At around 20 bucks, it’s the best deal in the pool. Honestly, if it only survived one glorious afternoon of chaos it would still be worth every penny, but ours have lasted summer after summer. There is never not a good time when a giant green gator is floating by.”
A great float for younger kids
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Dimensions:42 by 27 inches |Weight limit:59 pounds| Color/pattern choices:3| Age range:3 to 6
You don’t know exactly what you’re going to get when you order this kids’ float from Intex: a boat-shaped float, an airplane, or maybe a seal. But regardless of the design (they’re all attractive), the Pool Cruiser is a great way to introduce kids from the ages of 3 to 6 to playing in the pool. Squire appreciates that with these floats “no part of the child is dangling in the water, and they are supported on at least three sides,” which reduces the chances of a tip-over or tumble-out.
Again, adult supervision is a must, but with safety considerations in place, these floats are plenty of fun for the younger members of the family. They are also a hit with families who have water-loving dogs: The recessed center with the solid panel of PVC can support the weight of smaller- to medium-size dogs, letting them enjoy some float time without getting soaked.
Best large inflatable floating mat
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Intex Giant Inflatable Floating Mat
Dimensions:114 by 84 inches |Weight limit:660 pounds| Color/pattern choices:1| Age range:14-plus
“If you’re looking for a flexible pool float for kids to play on or for quiet lounging by yourself or with friends, this Intex model is a great choice,” says Rafi Friedman, president ofCoastal Luxury Nocatee Pool Builders. “I strongly recommend the brand, for starters; they’re good at making floats that are actually durable to real-life use, with strong seams, puncture resistance, and UV resistance.” And all of those are good points, but you really buy this massive mat because it measures 9.5 by seven feet and has a huge 660-pound weight capacity.
What’s more, you can use the built-in “Connect ’n Float” connectors to attach multiple mats together, creating a massive floating area that multiple people can use. Intex recommends the Giant Inflatable Floating Water Mat be used by swimmers 14 and up, but as long as anyone playing or lounging on around it is a competent swimmer, that’s a bit cautious of a minimum age. Regardless, this inflatable mat can also be used on the beach or in the park to create a comfortable place to flop, no pool, lake, or bay required.
A serious pool noodle
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Dimensions:46 by 5.5 inches |Weight limit:250 pounds| Color/pattern choices:7| Age range:14+
When you think of a pool noodle, you probably picture a polyethylene-foam tube with a hole down the center and a tendency to deteriorate to uselessness before long. The appropriately named First Class Pool Noodle from World of Watersports is a different kind of beast. It’s nearly a half-foot thick and has a smooth, durable vinyl coating over its foam core, providing enough buoyancy for adults weighing up to 250 pounds.
You can toss your arms and chest over this noodle and use it as a swim aid as you kick around the pool, you can lean back onto it and lounge low in the water, or you can loop the noodle under yourself and sit semi-upright for a relaxing float. Out of the water, the First Class Pool Noodle is designed to resist UV damage, so it’s okay to leave it poolside when it’s not in use — unlike all of those other pool noodles.
A floating game to get the party started
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Dimensions:37 by 26 inches (pair) |Weight limit:N/A| Color/pattern choices:1| Age range:N/A
Meece says: “A floating cornhole set takes backyard-party staples and moves them into the pool, and keeps the party going in the water instead of stopping when everyone gets in.” The classic game of cornhole is even more challenging and can be more fun with the bobbing, drifting target, but this set can also be used on the patio or on the lawn. And grommets at the corner of each target piece allow for easy lashing down if you’ll be playing out of the water.
The set comes with eight “blobs,” which are water-safe and buoyant, so it’s easy to retrieve the green-and-blue bags after the game — or after a missed toss. A tip we picked up while researching for this story: Don’t fully inflate the target floats, or the blobs bounce off too easily. Leaving them slightly underinflated lets the blobs and slide around as you expect with classic, land-based cornhole.
Best drink-holder pool float
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Dimensions:34 by 30 inches |Weight limit:N/A| Color/pattern choices:1| Age range:N/A
Hot summer days call for more than just a cool pool to splash around in: They call for cool beverages to imbibe. Be it seltzers, sodas, or just good old bottles of water, this inflatable floating cooler from Intex is a “fun way to keep the party going without leaving the pool,” says Meece.
Not only can this floating cooler keep plenty of cans or bottles chilling within, but it also has multiple built-in cupholders that keep open beverages safely upright. A pair of grab handles make it easy to maneuver the cooler around in the water, while attached lanyards allow you to secure this cooler to another float, keeping your refreshments close at hand.
A real safety device for every pool
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Dimensions:20-inch diameter |Weight limit:N/A| Color/pattern choices:2| Age range:N/A
This one’s a little different. There’s one flotation device every pool should have, even if you hope never to actually use it. “Everyone who owns a home with a pool needs a ring buoy, which should never be used as a toy,” says Jason Margulies. “It’s designed for safety, as per the the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s advice to throw a lifeline to someone struggling in the pool with something that floats.” A ring buoy, ideally with a rope attached, is “the ideal way to affordably add greater peace of mind poolside.”
Each time someone new enters your pool, explain that this buoy is for emergencies only. And maybe remind younger swimmers of that a few times, too. “The downside is that kids often don’t realize it’s not a toy, so make sure you store it in a way that makes it easily accessible in the case of an emergency and is not grabbed by children to use as a toy,” Margulies says. The exception to that emergency use, of course, is practicing its use, which is a very wise idea.
Our experts
• Jen Boersma, trend forecaster and co-owner ofFoley PR
• Rafi Friedman, president ofCoastal Luxury Nocatee Pool Builders
• Matthew Larsen, marketing director withIntex
• Dominick Lotito, head lifeguard and swim instructor at theCranford Pools
• Jason Margulies, partner and maritime attorney atLipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A.
• Jimmie Meece, brand president withAmerica’s Swimming Pool Co.
• Kristy Squire,ISR Master Swimming Instructor
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