Anti fatigue mats are useful for a variety of working environments and conditions. When you need to provide a cushioned area at home or at work for someone to stand and operate, or you need a type of material that can stand up to solvents and other chemicals in case of a spill, this type of mat is the answer.

When shopping for anti fatigue mats, you will want to try to match the type of material to the use case you have in mind. Here are some of the most important features to understand in these safety industrial mats.

Comfort. When you want the maximum comfort in anti fatigue mats, either rubber or foam will give you a high level of performance. Sometimes, a combination of rubber and foam in separate layers delivers the best performance.

Some interlocking anti fatigue tiles consist of PVC plastic, and these have a nice level of comfort too, especially when you want to provide a bit of insulation against a cold cement floor.

Rubber mats should have a textured design that encourages you to move and shift your weight regularly, while delivering just a bit of cushioned comfort. Foam mats will sink under your weight a little bit more than rubber, yet they’ll also support your body nicely as you stand for long periods of time.

Comfort is especially important when you will be standing at a desk or workstation for long periods of time consecutively. When working in the kitchen or in a laundry room at home, a cushioned mat can make the jobs of preparing a meal, washing the dishes, or sorting clothing a lot more comfortable.

Wet environments. Anti fatigue mats allow you to create a safe flooring in areas where spills will be common. With the right mat material and textured surface, you’ll reduce the chances of slipping in a wet area.

A common design for this type of wet environment mat is a dual layer construction. You may have a rubber layer on the top that’s bonded to a foam layer underneath. The rubber resists chemicals and water, while the foam delivers the extra cushioning you’re seeking in this type of mat.

You’ll also find anti fatigue mats that have perforations that run through the entire thickness of the material, allowing water and other liquids to drain all the way through to the subfloor. This is common in an industrial kitchen workspace.

If there's a likelihood for standing water, be sure to find a antifatigue flooring system with a raised base. These are most common among PVC materials.

Difficult working conditions. Some mats are made to handle the roughest working environments. If you will be working around harsh chemicals, oil and grease, or heavy power equipment for construction or welding, finding just the right type of mat material is key.

You’ll find some PVC, foam and rubber mats that are made to resist multiple types of chemicals, solvents, oils, and other liquid spills.

You also may want a type of material that is non-flammable, just to provide additional protection against the possibility of an accident during welding or other types of industrial work, especially if flammable chemicals or oils may spill.

Sizes. You can select from anti fatigue materials that appear in a mat, tile, or roll format, each of which has different sizes available.

A common size for a mat is 3 by 5 feet. Interlocking tiles can cover anywhere from 1 square foot to 4 square feet apiece and connect together to easily adjust to any size space. A roll can be anywhere from 1 to 4 feet in width and up to 33 feet in length.

If you choose interlocking tiles, you’ll have rubber, foam, and PVC plastic materials available. PVC and foam give you a lighter weight material than rubber, which simplifies installation. This is a smart idea when you want to install the anti fatigue flooring for certain projects and then remove it and return to the subfloor for other projects.

Safety markings. Safety markings are a key component of some anti fatigue mats. These markings are important to clearly mark the edge of the mat, giving you a visual cue that you need to step up over the lip of the surface.

Safety markings most often will appear in a solid yellow stripe along the border of the black mat. But you also can select other colors on the borders like red, blue, or green on a black mat. By using different colors on the safety mat borders, you can provide a visual clue as to the type of work that’s being done in a certain area of the facility.