Padel Grip Spray: 4on TotalGrip vs Nox ProGrip, and Do You Need One?

Grip spray is a small aerosol that makes a sweaty hand stick to a padel racket. TotalGrip, from the Swedish company 4on, is one of the best-known grip sprays in padel, and several top professionals are shown using it. In August 2026 the racket brand Nox launched its own. Both cost about €25 for a large can. Neither maker lists the ingredients online, and nobody independent has tested either. This guide covers what the sprays do, what they cost, how to use them, and the cheaper things to try first.

The short version

• What it is: an anti-slip aerosol for the hand or the grip, used in small amounts before and during play.
• Who it is for: players whose hands still slip after fitting a fresh overgrip. Heat, humidity and indoor summer courts are where it earns its place.
• 4on TotalGrip: the best known. About €16 for 100 ml and €23 to €27 for 200 ml.
• Nox ProGrip: new in August 2026. €15 for 100 ml and €25 for 200 ml.
• Unknowns: the ingredients, any independent test, and any proof behind the tennis-elbow claims.
• First: try a new overgrip. It costs about €2.

The problem it solves

Sweat makes an overgrip slippery. When the handle starts to turn in your hand, you do the natural thing and squeeze harder. A tight grip costs you feel on soft shots and tires the forearm.

It matters more in padel than it sounds. The elbow is the most commonly injured part of a padel player’s body, according to a 2023 review of the research, and coaches have long linked a clenched grip to sore forearms and elbows. That link is reasonable. It has not been measured in padel, and we come back to it below.

Try the cheap fixes first

Most slipping is not a sweat problem. It is a worn overgrip.

1. A towel and a wristband. Dry your hand between points. A wristband stops sweat running down your arm into your palm.
2. A fresh overgrip. Overgrips cost €6 to €9 for three. If yours is shiny, it is finished.
3. An absorbent overgrip. Perforated and “dry” overgrips are made for sweaty hands.
4. An antiperspirant for the hands. This reduces the sweat itself. It goes on before you play.
5. Grip spray or paste. For when the first four are not enough.

If you are new to the game, the first three are covered in our guide to equipment for beginners. If your elbow already hurts, read how I healed my padel elbow before buying anything.

What grip spray is

It is an aerosol that leaves a thin layer on your skin or on the overgrip. 4on’s own description of TotalGrip says the fine particles in the spray are activated by moisture and turn tacky, giving a high-friction grip in “wet, sweaty and hot conditions”. In other words, it is meant to work better as you sweat, where a dry overgrip works worse.

It belongs to a small family of products:

• Sprays, such as 4on TotalGrip and Nox ProGrip.
• Multi-sport hand sprays, such as Raquex Enforce from the UK brand Raquex: a 50 ml bottle at £13.50, sprayed onto the hands and sold for tennis, squash, padel and pickleball. Unlike 4on and Nox, Raquex lists its ingredients online: silica, alcohol, water and fragrance.
• Pastes and gels, rubbed onto the fingers and palm. 4on sells TotalGrip as a 50 ml paste as well.
• Antiperspirants, which reduce sweating instead of adding grip. 4on’s is called TotalDry. It is applied to the wrist, palm and back of the hand five to ten minutes before play.
• Chalk, magnesium and resin, the older solutions from climbing, gymnastics and handball. Resin grips very hard and leaves residue, so it is little used in padel. Some shops still file grip spray under “magnesium”, which tells you what it replaced.

4on TotalGrip

4on is a Swedish company. Retailers describe it as a padel start-up with chemists on the team. It sells through distributors in the United States, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and elsewhere.

The spray comes as a 200 ml can and a 100 ml travel can. The range around it includes the paste, the TotalDry antiperspirant, overgrips, and a rough coating for the face of the racket that has nothing to do with grip.

On its American site, 4on shows four professionals using the product: Paula Josemaría, Franco Stupaczuk, Sanyo Gutiérrez and Manu Martín. 4on presents them as ambassadors; it does not say what the arrangement is.

Prices seen in October 2026:

That is about 12 cents per millilitre for the large can and 16 cents for the small one.

Nox ProGrip

Nox is one of the biggest Spanish racket brands and already has a place in our brand pages. Its ProGrip spray went on sale on Nox’s own store on 13 August 2026.

It comes in the same two sizes, at €15 for 100 ml and €25 for 200 ml. Nox says it was developed to improve grip between the hand and the racket in sweat, humidity or high temperatures, and sells the small can as suitable for airport security.

Nox also says the spray helps reduce tension in the arm, “which helps minimize the risk of epicondylitis”. That is tennis elbow. It is a health claim, and Nox does not cite a study to support it.

Side by side

We have not tested either spray, and we found no one who has compared them independently. On price and format they are the same product. 4on has the track record and the wider range. Nox has the shop presence of a major racket brand.

What is still unknown

What is in the can. We found no ingredient list or safety data sheet online for either product, so check the label on the can. Every description of how the sprays work traces back to the makers’ own text.

Whether it is safe for everyone. One retailer describes 4on’s spray as having “skin-safe ingredients”. That is a seller’s line, not a test result. The sensible approach is the one you would take with any new product on your skin: read the label on the can, try a little first, and wash your hands after you play. 4on’s own instructions say to wash your hands after use.

Whether it works better than the alternatives. Shops say professionals prefer TotalGrip to chalk and magnesium. Customer reviews are positive. There is no independent test.

Whether it protects your elbow. Both Nox and at least one 4on retailer suggest it does. A racket that stays put lets you hold it more loosely, and that is a real benefit. No study shows that a grip spray prevents or treats tennis elbow. If your elbow hurts, see a physiotherapist.

Whether the rules allow it. The rules of padel regulate the racket and the ball. We found nothing in them about products applied to the hands.

How to use it

1. Start with a clean, dry hand and a clean overgrip.
2. Shake the can.
3. Spray a short burst from about 20 cm. Keep it away from your face.
4. Wait a few seconds before you pick up the racket.

Then:

• Use little. 4on says not to use too much. Start with less than you think you need.
• Hand or grip? The advice is inconsistent. 4on’s American site says the hands, the grip or both. Another describes spraying the overgrip. Try the hand first, since it keeps the overgrip cleaner.
• Reapply when needed. Between sets is the usual moment.
• Wash your hands afterwards.

One shop says a 200 ml can lasts several months of regular play. We could not check that.

Travelling with it

These are pressurised aerosols. Several European shops will not send them by air or outside Europe. The 100 ml cans are sold as hand-luggage size, but airline and airport rules on aerosols differ, so check before you fly. Whether an aerosol can fly at all depends on its propellant, not only its size: some sports aerosols are allowed only in checked bags, and flammable ones not at all.

Who should buy one

Worth trying if:

• your hand slips on a fresh overgrip
• you play in heat or humidity, or indoors in summer
• you find yourself squeezing the handle to keep control

Probably not yet if:

• you have not changed your overgrip in a month
• you are in your first weeks of padel
• you have sensitive skin and cannot find out what is in the can

Quick answers

What is padel grip spray? An aerosol applied to the hand or the grip that adds friction, so the racket does not slip when you sweat.

Does padel grip spray work? Users and shops say it does, and the idea is simple: more friction when the hand is wet. But no independent test exists, so try a fresh or absorbent overgrip first.

Is 4on TotalGrip worth it? If a fresh overgrip does not stop your hand slipping, it is a reasonable thing to try at about €16 for the small can. It has many satisfied users but no independent test.

What is the difference between 4on TotalGrip and Nox ProGrip? Very little on paper. Same sizes, almost the same price. 4on has been on sale for several years. Nox launched in August 2026.

Do you spray the hand or the racket? The makers and shops do not agree. 4on says hands, grip or both. Start with the hand.

Is grip spray allowed in padel? We found nothing in the rules of padel that restricts products applied to the hands.

Can I take grip spray on a plane? The 100 ml cans are sold as hand-luggage size, but rules on aerosols vary. Check with your airline.

Sources

• 4on: TotalGrip Spray, TotalGrip Paste, TotalDry Spray and players shown using the products (US distributor’s sites).
• Nox: ProGrip Spray 200 ml and 100 ml.
• Retailer descriptions and prices, read on 6 October 2026: Padel Market, MyPadelLife, Tiendapadelpoint, System Padel, Padel USA, Padel Reference.
• Zona de Padel: types of grip products for sweaty hands.
• Dahmen and others, Incidence, prevalence and nature of injuries in padel: a systematic review, BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, 2023.
• International Padel Federation: Rules of Padel.