Razer is one of the premier peripheral manufacturers going right now, especially when it comes to gaming mice. The company’s product range is diverse enough that narrowing down your options and choosing the best Razer gaming mouse can be quite challenging.

Choosing a gaming mouse is personal enough that we can’t tell you which mouse to get directly. But we can pick out a handful of the best Razer mice across a few useful categories, which should help make choosing your next mouse a little bit easier. Let’s get started.

Our Favorite Razer Gaming Mice

1. Razer Viper V2 Pro

Razer’s Viper Ultimate used to be the company’s top dog, but no longer. The company’s latest ultralight mouse, the Viper V2 Pro, takes the Viper Ultimate and trims 16 grams (0.56 oz) off to create an even leaner and meaner gaming mouse.

For the unfamiliar, the Razer Viper shape is an elongated, low symmetrical shape that excels for fingertip and claw grips. It’s one of the best shapes I’ve used, even if it’s not quite my all-time favorite. The Viper V2 Pro retains the shape but makes some changes in the interest of weight and longevity.

First up, the Viper V2 Pro drops the left-handed thumb buttons, making this a more typical “false-ambidextrous” mouse like most of the competition. The V2 Pro also loses the rubbery finish on the sides, which tended to wear down on the old Vipers. To make up for it, Razer ships the V2 Pro with a set of optional mouse grips that you can install yourself if you prefer a more textured shell.

But it’s not all about what Razer’s removed in the name of weight. The Viper V2 Pro also features a few improvements over the old Viper Ultimate. The V2 Pro sees the debut of Razer’s new Focus Pro 30K sensor, the company’s most advanced sensor yet. The new maximum DPI is impressive, but the highlight is what Razer calls “Asymmetric Cut-Off.”

This lets you set the lift-off and landing distance separately, with 26 settings to choose from. If you’re ultra-picky about lift-off distance and want a mouse that enables you to dial it in precisely, the Viper V2 Pro is it.

You also get a longer-lasting battery (Razer claims “up to 80 hours” of life with constant movement) and new third-generation Razer Optical switches. These new switches feel much closer to conventional mechanical switches and boast an improved 90-million-click lifetime.

The Razer Viper V2 Pro is the new king of the hill as far as Razer’s pure gaming offerings go. And in an age where wireless mice perform just as well as their wired counterparts, we’d go so far as to say it’s the new king of the hill overall.

The Razer Viper V2 Pro is also available in white. If you’re a left-hander, check out the ambidextrous Viper Ultimate instead.

2. Razer Orochi V2

Sure, Razer has some tremendous high-end wireless mice that could have taken this spot, but we feel that the Orochi V2 is the company’s most versatile, best-value wireless offering. It’s a mouse perfect for work and play, all without breaking the bank.

The Razer Orochi V2 has a symmetrical, “egg”-like rounded shape that’s not too dissimilar to Logitech’s classic G305. The Orochi V2 is, however, on the small side, so users with larger hands may have to resort to a fingertip grip here. But it’s a safe and comfortable shape overall that we think will work for most gamers.

Unlike many gaming wireless mice, the Orochi V2 gets its power from AA or AAA batteries instead of the typical rechargeable internal battery. This helps keep the price down, but it means that the Orochi V2 sits closer to 80 grams (2.82 oz) than the 60-gram weight Razer claims. That’s still not bad, but it’s not as light as it might seem at first glance.

Slightly misleading claims aside, the upside is that you get up to 950 hours of battery life on Bluetooth and 450 hours on Razer’s low-latency 2.4 GHz connection. Yes, many cheap wireless mice boast similar longevity claims, but none pack a (rebranded) PixArt 3369 sensor and long-lasting mechanical switches.

And that’s where the Orochi V2 excels. Features like long battery life and support for Razer’s HyperShift (for a second layer of button mappings) make it a perfect everyday productivity mouse. But it also has the hardware to back you up when you want to let loose and pop some heads.

Even if it’s not the outright best mouse Razer makes, we think the Orochi V2’s mix of features and price makes it an excellent buy for all but the most competitive players. The Orochi V2 is available in black and white.

3. Razer Basilisk V3

The Razer Basilisk V3 is a feature-packed ergonomic mouse with enough customization options to appeal to most users. It’s not the lightest mouse on the market, but those who seek comfort and choice will find a lot to like here.

Like many ergonomic mice, the Basilisk V3 is a large mouse designed for palm grips. The Basilisk’s tall shape and huge curves are perfect for relaxed grips, filling out most hand shapes nicely. I’m not a huge user of ergo mice, but the Basilisk V3’s shape and thumb rest make it one of the more comfortable shapes you’ll find.

The main highlight of the Basilisk V3 is its clever scroll wheel. Enabling “Smart-Reel Mode” in Razer Synapse lets the mouse automatically switch between notched and free-scrolling modes depending on how fast you move it. No awkward situations where you forget to switch between the two behaviors; the mouse does it for you. It’s a great feature, and one that we think justifies keeping Synapse running in the background.

The scroll wheel also has programmable left and right tilt, part of the 11 programmable buttons available on the Basilisk V3. Other extra buttons include a third thumb button near the mouse’s front and two buttons right behind the scroll wheel, where many mice have their DPI cycling buttons. All 11 buttons are freely reprogrammable in Synapse.

Despite being a company known for its obsession with RGB, many of Razer’s recent mice have been relatively restrained in terms of lighting. Not so the Basilisk V3. It sports an underglow RGB strip, an illuminated logo, and RGB rings on the scroll wheel. I’m not the biggest fan of RGB mice, but even I have to admit that the Basilisk V3 is quite a looker.

The Razer Basilisk V3 is a solid option that should tick the box for many users. Ultralight mouse fans will want to look elsewhere, but right-handed ergo users will enjoy its comfortable shape, handy additional buttons, and scroll wheel magic.

4. Razer Naga Pro

The Razer Naga Pro sits at the pinnacle of Razer’s Naga range of multi-button MMO mice. But unlike many other MMO mice that won’t work for anything but MMOs, the Naga Pro’s swappable side panels make it viable for other genres as well.

Razer ships the Naga Pro with three side panels: a standard 2-button panel common to almost all non-MMO gaming mice, a 6-button side panel suited for MOBAs, and the full-fat 12-button MMO option. These panels give you 10, 14, or 20 programmable buttons that you can set up however you like in Razer Synapse.

Swapping between panels is straightforward; they snap off and on easily, so changing them between games shouldn’t be an issue whatsoever. Razer includes a profile switch button on the bottom, so you won’t have to open Synapse to change profiles every time you change panels.

The swappable side panels are a novel touch, but don’t mistake the Naga Pro for a mouse that relies on gimmicks to stand out. It also packs some high-end hardware to go with its fancy features. It shares the Focus+ sensor and second-generation optical switches seen in the Viper Ultimate. Hence, performance and longevity aren’t in question here.

The Razer Naga Pro boasts impressive battery life. 100 to 150 hours of uptime, depending on connection protocol, is outstanding for a mouse with a built-in rechargeable battery. It certainly goes some way to justifying the weight (and price).

Overall, the Razer Naga Pro is a worthy mouse for MMO and MOBA gamers who want one mouse to do it all. Its weight probably means the two-button “FPS” panel won’t get much use, but that’s hardly an issue when it works so well in its other configurations.

5. Razer Viper Mini

The Viper Mini is one of the cheapest mice in Razer’s stable, but it punches well above its weight. It retains the core principles of the full-size Viper mice but makes some reasonable cutbacks to offer a brilliant gaming experience for $30 or less.

One of the most significant differences is, as the name suggests, the size. The Viper Mini is shorter and narrower than its larger sibling, making it more suited to smaller hands and fingertip grips. However, the similar height (1.49 inches on the standard Viper vs. 1.51 inches on the Mini) means that those with medium-sized hands will likely still be OK with the Viper Mini.

The smaller body and reduced material costs go hand-in-hand with cutbacks to the sensor. Instead of the top-end Focus+ sensor, Razer equips the Mini with an older Razer Optical sensor that tops out at 8500 DPI. But the fact that it’s an older sensor doesn’t mean it’s bad: it’ll still perform and track brilliantly, with no spin-out issues in-game.

You also lose the left-handed thumb buttons on the Viper Mini. It’s an understandable cost-saving measure to keep the price as low as possible but slightly disappointing as it leaves left-handed users without a compelling budget option.

On the upside, Razer retains the Razer Optical switches it uses in the Viper Mini’s bigger brothers. These are slightly less-durable versions, rated for 50 million clicks, so they’re not quite on par with those in the Viper Ultimate. But they still have the advantage of being immune to double-click issues, which often manifest in budget mice with cheap switches.

In our opinion, the Razer Viper Mini is a mouse that offers much more than its price point might suggest. Yes, it’s a bit on the small side and won’t be for everyone. But at less than $30, it’s cheap enough to try regardless. If it works out, you’ll have a top-tier mouse for less than a fifth of what the best gaming mice cost.

6. Razer DeathAdder Essential

The DeathAdder shape is one of Razer’s longest-serving shapes, and for a good reason: it’s comfortable and feels great in the hand, as long as you like larger mice. The Essential is a budget version of the shape, refreshing an older design and hardware to offer a cut-price entry into Razer’s ecosystem.

Razer cleverly avoided messing with the shape for this budget model: it’s is as good as ever, with defined comfort curves and a large body that fills out a palm grip very nicely. Instead, the cost savings come in the hardware: the Razer Optical sensor tops out at 6400 DPI, while the switches are only rated for 10 million clicks.

This makes the Essential more of a stop-gap mouse than a long-term daily driver, but that’s hardly a huge issue when it costs less than $20.

Other potential issues include the combo of a 96-gram (3.38-oz) weight and stiff, old-fashioned cable. It’s more than usable, but there’s no chance you’ll ever mistake this for a modern mouse. But, again, that’s perfectly acceptable for the price.

And that’s the whole point of the DeathAdder Essential. Yes, it’s old-fashioned, and the lower-cost parts probably won’t last you more than a couple of years. But it’s a cheap Razer mouse with a safe, comfortable shape that’ll work for many users—good enough if you’re on a budget.

Why Razer?

Razer’s certainly not the only company that makes excellent mice. So if you’re shopping around, you might be wondering why you’d want to check out Razer’s offerings over those from other manufacturers.

That’s not necessarily an easy question to answer, as there aren’t any objective reasons to go for a Razer mouse over one of Logitech’s best mice. Sensor quality is virtually identical across the top-end modern optical sensors, and build quality has reached a point where most quality mice feel just as well put together as any other.

So it boils down to personal preference and the shapes you prefer. And given the variety across Razer’s product range, it’s hard to definitively say that you should check out a Razer mouse over something else.

But that variety means it’s always worth looking at Razer’s product stack when shopping. From minimalist ultralight speed demons to bulkier feature-packed ergonomic options, there’s likely something they make that’ll work for your preferences and budget.

Razer’s Synapse software is a lot better now, too. Its resource drain and forced log-in used to be a big turn-off for most users (myself included). But that’s improved significantly with Synapse 3, now that you can use it as a guest without creating a Razer account. If you’re looking at a modern Razer mouse, rest assured that you won’t have to worry about software issues as much as you used to.

Closing Thoughts

Razer has one of the most robust product ranges amongst peripheral and mouse manufacturers, covering various shapes, use cases, and price points. So one person’s best Razer gaming mouse might not even make the list of another’s. And that’s a good thing: choice is great, especially for such an essential gaming implement.

Of the ones we picked, we like the Razer Orochi V2 for its overall strengths and versatility. It’s the sort of mouse that’s easy to recommend because of its relatively safe shape and affordable price. But if you’re a die-hard gamer who needs the best, there’s no getting past the Viper V2 Pro.

Struggling with all the options available and unsure what features to focus on? Check out our guide to buying a gaming mouse for some valuable suggestions.