Best Dog Frisbee of 2021
The Chuckit! Paraflight was our overall favorite dog frisbee. When given the option of several toys, our canine testers opted for this toy most often. The outer rim is gentle on gums with a soft and chewy feel, allowing for easy pick-up and grab. The inner section is comprised of a lightweight mesh material that helps the disc to glide across the air at reduced speeds so that your dog can focus in and perform a solid catch. The weight balance also makes it great for play in the water.
We had very few gripes with the Paraflight, but some of the positives attributes can also present a downside at times. Its light weight can also make it harder to throw in stronger winds. The soft rubber and fabric, though good for chewers who need a toy that's gentle on gums, also means that it's less durable than harder plastic or rubber. After an aggressive tugging play session, the stitching had some small tears in it where the rubber and mesh meet on the outer ring, meaning it should be used under supervision. This is a great choice for dogs that enjoy variety in their play and for owners who want a good balance of fun for their dollar. The large size we tested was a good fit for medium to large dogs.
Available Sizes: Small, Large
The Hyper Pet Flippy Flopper is an all-purpose nylon frisbee that comes in a multi-pack option, giving you more fun for your dollar. Unlike some softer choices, the rigid outer ring is more user-friendly for both humans and their canine companions. The inner material is made of lightweight nylon, allowing the disc to soar well without feeling too insubstantial or thin.
Unfortunately, the black nylon stitching on the outer rim shows wear quickly. Luckily, this frisbee comes with a spare (or four, depending on which option you purchase). Our dog testers are heavy chewers, and we would expect them to need a new one by the six-month mark. The rigid outer ring on this frisbee makes it very fun to throw and catch, but it is not as soft on teeth or fun to chew as some foam or rubber alternatives. Overall, this frisbee is a great option if you're looking for a lightweight, user-friendly, and affordable toy.
Available Sizes: One Size
The Hyperflite Jawz Competition Disc will truly make you and your dog feel like masters of the craft. This disc is the Ferrari of dog frisbees: its aerodynamic shape and weight balance allow you to effortlessly make long, arcing tosses for your dog to chase. It is made of a supremely durable and puncture-resistant plastic, and it comes in a variety of bright colors (including glow in the dark!), making it as easy to locate as it is fun to throw.
The downside of any sportscar is that its capability is limited in scope. While the Jawz Competition Disc is a great option for large, open fields or dog parks, it flies so far that it can be hard to use in a typical backyard setting. It also only comes in one size, which can be cumbersome for smaller or lighter dogs, and the hard-plastic material makes it a frisbee that should be used with a great deal of supervision. Buddy, who loves to play fetch and tug in the yard, had trouble catching and carrying this disc. Peitu, who enjoys long runs, jumping, and other athletic feats, was enamored with it. This frisbee is a great choice for medium to large athletic dogs with owners who have plenty of time and space to supervise play.
Available Sizes: One Size
The KONG Flyer is made for durability. Its simple construction also touts all-natural rubber, which we found was soft on hands and teeth and easy to clean. It's flexible enough to be packed into a jacket pocket or backpack for fun on the go, yet sturdy enough to have some loft when tossed. Unlike some other soft rubber alternatives, this disc is pretty easy to get the hang of throwing.
The Flyer falls short in predictable ways, which we also appreciate — no surprises here. Like most soft rubber discs, it does not have a ton of loft or airtime when thrown. It also does not float in water, so it's best used away from the beach. This is a great option for pet owners who want a durable, reliable, and simple backyard frisbee.
Available Sizes: Small, Large
If your dog loves to play tug and fetch, look no further than the ZippyPaws Rope Gliderz frisbee. Our canine testers unanimously loved this disc. They had so much fun fetching and tugging with it that we were entertained for hours, too! This frisbee is made from real climbing rope, which stood up to heavy biting and tugging from multiple dogs. The nylon inner provides a high-visibility surface and aids with floatation, while the crescent-shaped cutouts create space for a firm grip on the outer rope.
However, upon first glance, we noticed that the stitching between the inner fabric and outer rope is a weak point. This stitching came loose after a few hours of play. The Rope Gliderz is not an extraordinarily capable flyer, either, but this frisbee is a good option if your dog prefers tugging and fetching at shorter distances.
Available Sizes: One Size
The Outward Hound Bionic Toss n' Tug is marketed as a durable, easy-to-use, and interactive frisbee that doesn't "just" fly. In this sense, the frisbee lives up to its description: its synthetic rubber material is a durable texture for chewers, it's easy to clean, and it doubles as a tug toy.
Where we found this frisbee lacking was in the "fun factor" department. It has a relatively two-dimensional construction, and our smaller dogs had a tough time picking this disc up off the ground. The flight pattern is more erratic than other frisbees we tested, and tossing it definitely takes some getting used to. As far as tug goes, we found that while this disc is more durable than others, our canine reviewers were less keen to play tug with the relatively stiff material. Still, this frisbee is a great option for those who have larger dogs and want a versatile, durable frisbee at an affordable price.
Available Sizes: One Size
The Zogoflex Zisc is a frisbee that lives up to everything we expect from West Paw, a Montana-based company that prides itself on making durable, sustainable, "no-frills" dog toys. The rubber-like material is flexible and gentle on teeth, with the added benefit of floating in the water. It's easy to wash, and, unlike many other frisbees, the size small is truly light enough for small dogs.
The Zisc is not a particularly capable flying disc, though. It does well with short and fast tosses and likes to remain low to the ground. This is a good frisbee for those seeking an option for smaller dogs and backyard play, but don't expect it to go super far or fly very high.
Available Sizes: Small, Large
The Chuckit! Flying Squirrel is a flying toy that offers a great alternative for folks who want more versatility than a dedicated frisbee can offer. It is lightweight, brightly colored, and sports a graphic of a squirrel face that is pretty darn cute, too. The abrasion-resistant polyester is reinforced at the feet with a stiffer, glow-in-the-dark material, providing great points for owners and dogs alike to grab onto. These feet are great for tug, too. For the price, we were impressed by the Squirrel's versatility and durability.
Where the Flying Squirrel falls short is in its weight. While its lightweight construction makes it versatile for indoor use or tug, it is also very prone to getting caught up in trees and fences. Its shape and weight come together in an unpredictable flight path, and our testers often found themselves accidentally hurling this toy over fences and onto private property. This is a great option for owners of medium to large dogs who either have a lot of space or who don't mind throwing this highly versatile toy a bit lower to the ground.
Available Sizes: Small, Medium
Unlike other discs, the COLLAR Puller markets itself as a dog fitness tool rather than a toy. At this, it is very effective. The packaging comes with directions and a comic, as well as links to the company's website, where you can find even more training advice and opportunities to compete in running and jumping competitions with your dog. The Puller comes as a set of two rings designed to be used together to incentivize return and increase running time for your dog. In our testing, we did find that introducing the second ring enhanced buy-in for our dogs. These rings are lightweight, making them easy to toss for long periods.
The downside to the lightweight material is that it punctures easily. Chief tester Buddy and his assistant Peitu were quickly bored by the toss game, which negated any enhanced fitness benefits. That said, for those looking to get their dog tired quickly or who want some structure to work on retrieval commands, this tool will do the trick.
Available Sizes: Micro, Mini, Midi, Standard, Maxi
Why You Should Trust Us
Because we know that no two dogs have the same needs or preferences, we assembled a team of two canine testers with very different backgrounds. Buddy, our tester in chief, is a three-year-old terrier mix known for his expressive face and honest demeanor. Buddy spends most of his time playing fetch in the yard in his hometown of Bozeman, Montana. He loves to play with toys, but he will let his humans know if there's one he doesn't like. In classic terrier fashion, Buddy has strong opinions, making him a perfect candidate for rigorous frisbee testing.
Our assistant tester is Peitu, a two-year-old mixed breed. Like most members of her mountain town, she is extremely active, joining in on adventures running, biking, and skiing all year long. Peitu loves to run, chase, and catch things, and she's got an iron grip. She helped us immensely in testing the durability of our frisbees and volunteered hours of her time to playing tug.
Since neither Buddy nor Peitu can tell us which ones they like best, human reviewer Hannah Marshall paid close attention to clues the dogs gave. She devised a plan that put each frisbee through rigorous testing with and without each dog and threw the frisbees in all types of settings: windy parks, in the snow, at night, in the yard, and in the sun. We purchased all of these frisbees at retail price to ensure objectivity in our ratings.
Analysis and Test Results
We tested each frisbee based on its flying ability, durability, versatility, quality, and fun factor. Here you can see how we evaluated each metric and which products stood out in each category.
Flying Ability
An unspoken expectation we have of frisbees is that they can fly through the air. Dog frisbees are often intended to double as toys, though, and the myriad designs that allow for both flight capability and resilience to wear and tear result in a similarly wide array of flying styles. Some dog frisbees fly fast and far, others fly slower, and some are designed more as tossing and fetch discs. We scored each frisbee on average flight distance and flight time, measured through repeated throws. The Hyperflite Jawz Competition Disc was by far the most capable in this metric, traveling about 30% farther and longer than the Hyper Pet Flippy Flopper, which was our next most capable flyer. In general, it seemed that soft rubber frisbees flew fast and far, while nylon and polyester models had more airtime and less distance.
Durability
Dogs can be tough on toys. We wanted to know which frisbees could stand up to repeated use and unsupervised play, so we played about an hour of tug with each one then left them overnight in the snow. Our most durable disc was the Outward Hound Toss n' Tug, which showed no visible damage after repeated tugging and chewing.
The Hyperflite Jawz Competition Disc also gets honorable mention in this metric. Similar to flight capability, the materials used seemed to predict durability. In general, the rubber and hard plastic frisbees were more durable than nylon and polyester models, which began to show significant wear after tugging.
Versatility
Most companies attempt to make their frisbees accessible to a range of dogs and owners by making them versatile. We tested versatility based on how well the disc performed as a tug toy, whether or not it floated in water, and if it had any other potential uses such as doubling as a food bowl.
Both the Chuckit! Paraflight and the Chuckit! Flying Squirrel scored highest in our versatility metric: they float, can be used as tug toys, and the bright colors allow for fun day or night. The KONG Flyer and West Paw Zogoflex Zisc are shaped in a way that will enable them to double as water or food bowls when needed. The Hyperflight Jawz Competition Disc, which does not float and is comprised of hard plastic, was the least versatile.
Quality
We evaluated quality based on the materials used in each product, how easy the frisbee was to clean, and how accessible it was for humans to handle and use. The West Paw Zogoflex Zisc stood out in this category, as it's made in the USA from non-toxic, recyclable, and dishwasher safe materials.
The KONG Flyer is also made from natural rubber and is dishwasher safe. These frisbees come in bright colors, which are easy to locate for dogs and humans alike. On the other end of the spectrum, we found that the ZippyPaws Rope Gliderz was difficult to clean and had loose stitching out of the box, though the inclusion of climbing rope is appreciated for dogs that love their tug-of-war.
Fun Factor
While we are firm believers that all dog frisbees are happy things, some make us smile more than others. For this metric, we relied heavily on input from our canine testers. After introducing each toy, we assessed how long the dogs wanted to play with each one and which ones they favored over others.
Two unanimous favorites in this class were the Chuckit! Paraflight and the ZippyPaws Rope Gliderz, and the Paraflight edged into first place as our overall favorite. Both frisbees are made from soft nylon and polyester materials that our dogs kept coming back to chew, fetch, and tug upon. Conversely, it was clear that both dogs were confused by the COLLAR Puller, which they quickly abandoned.
Conclusion
A frisbee can be a great way for you and your dog to bond, get outside, and enjoy some exercise. There are innumerable options out there, and we hope this comprehensive review helps you find the flyer that suits you and your pup best.
— Hannah Marshall