Tabletop and Travel Bocce Sets: 40 mm Balls Compared

Q: Is there such a thing as tabletop bocce?

Two forms: travel sets at around 40 mm (a third of the 107 mm regulation ball) for tables and hard floors, and soft indoor sets around 90 mm in weighted fabric or foam that will not mark a floor.

Q: Can you play real bocce rules with a travel set?

Yes. The USBF rules govern sequence and scoring, not ball size — eight balls, four a team, one point per ball closer than the opponent's best. Only the surface changes: a hard floor instead of grass.

Q: Why does a bocce set need a measuring rope?

Because close ends are measured, not argued, and a shrunken court makes every end close. The GoSports travel set is the only pick here that publishes a measuring rope.

Q: Will travel bocce balls work on grass?

No. At 40 mm there is too little mass to push through grass — it stops dead. Travel sets suit tables, hard floors, sand and gravel; a lawn needs 90 mm minimum, 107 mm properly.

The short answer

Quick picks

Ranked on published specs, not on play we have not done. Tap any row to jump to the full write-up further down this page.

Ranked picks with what each is best for, our published-spec score and a live price link.
#	Product	Best for	Score	Price
1	GoSports 40 mm Travel Size Mini Bocce Set Forty millimetre balls against the 107 mm regulation size, with all eight balls, a pallino, a tote and — the detail that makes it a real bocce set — a measuring rope.	Best overall small-format bocce	8.0/10	$15.08 · View on Amazon Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money
2	GoSports 90 mm Soft Bocce Set Eight 90 mm balls with a composite rubber surface at a published 1 lb 11 oz each, plus a pallino and a carrying bag, published for concrete, grass, gym floors, carpet and hardwood — bocce you can play indoors.	Best for kids and indoors	7.6/10	$39.99 · View on Amazon Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money
3	Great Lakes Sports Indoor Bocce Ball Set The only set here whose listing names indoor play as the purpose rather than as a bonus — which at least tells you the balls were chosen not to mark a floor.	Best set sold specifically for indoors	6.2/10	$42.99 · View on Amazon Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money
4	Franklin Sports Starter Bocce Set A starter set from a maker that supplies school PE programs — the softest, lightest option here and the one least likely to hurt a foot or mark a wall.	Best for young children	6.0/10	$19.99 · View on Amazon $29.9933% off Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money

Verdict: buy the GoSports 40 mm travel set. It is the only small-format bocce here that publishes its ball diameter, it ships the full eight balls plus a pallino, and it includes the measuring rope that a compressed court makes essential. Buy the 90 mm soft set instead if the game is for a carpeted room or small children, and skip both if you have a lawn — that is a 107 mm purchase.

This site already draws search impressions on “table bocce” without having a page for it. This is that page, and the reason it lands in October is that bocce is a lawn game being asked about by people who no longer have a usable lawn.

Diameter decides everything

Three ball sizes, three different games

Published diameters. The regulation figure is the United States Bocce Federation's.
Ball diameter	What it is for	Surface it needs	Who should skip it
40 mm (travel)	Tables, hard floors, holiday rentals, a bag	Table, hardwood, tile, sand, gravel	Anyone with a lawn to play on
90 mm (soft)	Carpeted rooms, small children, indoor play without marks	Carpet, hard floor, short grass	Adults wanting the real weight and roll
100 mm	Smaller adult hands, mixed-age games on grass	Grass, dirt, gravel	Tournament players
107 mm (regulation)	The actual sport, as the USBF defines it	A real court, or a mown lawn	Anyone playing on a table or in a rental

The 90 mm and above comparison is laid out properly in bocce ball sizes compared; this page is the tier below it. The useful thing to understand is that these are not a quality ladder. A 40 mm set is not a worse 107 mm set; it is a set for a room the 107 mm balls would destroy.

Why the top pick is the top pick

The spec gap in this category

Three of the four sets here publish nothing measurable. “Indoor bocce ball set” and “starter bocce set” are descriptions, not specifications: no diameter, no weight, no material, and in two cases not even a ball count. The GoSports travel set publishes 40 mm, eight balls, a pallino, a tote and a measuring rope, and that is the entire reason it ranks first. We have not played any of these and will not pretend to have — what we can do is rank them on what their makers are willing to put in writing.

If the set is going to a household with young children, the softness argument beats the precision one, and that case is made in bocce sets for kids.

The picks in full

Every pick, with its published specs

Best overall small-format bocce

GoSports 40 mm Travel Size Mini Bocce Set

GoSports

Our spec score

8.0/10

Spec completeness: 7/10
Footprint clarity: 9/10
Durability: 5/10
Pack-down: 10/10

Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.

Forty millimetre balls against the 107 mm regulation size, with all eight balls, a pallino, a tote and — the detail that makes it a real bocce set — a measuring rope.

Skip this if

Skip this if you have a lawn and want the actual game. At 40 mm the balls barely interact with grass; this is a table, carpet and holiday-rental set.

What works

Publishes an exact ball diameter, which is the only spec that matters in a bocce set
Ships with a measuring rope, so close ends are settled rather than argued
Eight balls plus a pallino is the full complement, not a cut-down set
Cheapest route into the game on this site

What does not

No published ball weight, and weight is what makes a bocce ball hold its line
40 mm does not play properly on grass of any length
No published age floor

Published specifications

Ball diameter: 40 mm
Balls: 8, plus pallino
Included: Tote bag and measuring rope
Regulation comparison: 107 mm is the USBF regulation size
Ball material: —
Ball weight: —
Set weight: —
Age floor: —

Manufacturer listing: GoSports product listing

$15.08 · View on Amazon

Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money

Best for kids and indoors

GoSports 90 mm Soft Bocce Set

GoSports

Our spec score

7.6/10

Spec completeness: 8/10
Footprint clarity: 5/10
Durability: 7/10
Pack-down: 8/10

Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.

Eight 90 mm balls with a composite rubber surface at a published 1 lb 11 oz each, plus a pallino and a carrying bag, published for concrete, grass, gym floors, carpet and hardwood — bocce you can play indoors.

Skip this if

Skip this if you want a ball that runs true on long grass. A soft-surfaced ball is built for hard floors and short turf; it is the wrong ball for a shaggy lawn.

What works

A published per-ball weight, which most bocce sets omit
Published for indoor floors — the only bocce set here that is
A soft surface will not chip a patio or dent a floor
90 mm is a comfortable size for a child's hand

What does not

Well under the 107 mm competition size
Soft balls do not run on long grass
No published age floor

Published specifications

Ball diameter: 90 mm
Ball surface: Composite rubber
Ball weight: 1 lb 11 oz each
Balls: 8 plus pallino
Carry: Carrying bag
Surfaces: Concrete, grass, gym floors, carpet, hardwood
Indoor use: Stated indoors or outdoors
Competition diameter: 107 mm
Age floor: —

Manufacturer listing: GoSports product listing

$39.99 · View on Amazon

Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money

Best set sold specifically for indoors

Great Lakes Sports Indoor Bocce Ball Set

Great Lakes Sports

Our spec score

6.2/10

Spec completeness: 1/10
Footprint clarity: 6/10
Durability: 6/10
Pack-down: 7/10

Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.

The only set here whose listing names indoor play as the purpose rather than as a bonus — which at least tells you the balls were chosen not to mark a floor.

Skip this if

Skip this if you want numbers before you buy. The listing publishes almost nothing: no ball diameter, no weight, no material.

What works

Sold as an indoor bocce set rather than an outdoor set that might work inside
Most expensive option here, which in this category usually means heavier balls

What does not

Publishes no ball diameter — the one spec that decides how a bocce set plays
No weight, no material, no ball count on the listing
Nothing to check our recommendation against, which is why it is not the top pick

Published specifications

Intended use: Indoor
Ball diameter: —
Ball weight: —
Ball material: —
Balls: —
Case: —
Age floor: —

Manufacturer listing: Amazon product listing (Great Lakes Sports)

$42.99 · View on Amazon

Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money

Best for young children

Franklin Sports Starter Bocce Set

Franklin Sports

Our spec score

6.0/10

Spec completeness: 1/10
Footprint clarity: 6/10
Durability: 5/10
Pack-down: 8/10

Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.

A starter set from a maker that supplies school PE programs — the softest, lightest option here and the one least likely to hurt a foot or mark a wall.

Skip this if

Skip this if adults want a game of their own from it. A starter set is sized and weighted for children, and it will feel like a toy in an adult hand.

What works

Franklin Sports is a known school and youth-sport supplier
The cheapest full set here after the 40 mm travel option

What does not

No published diameter, weight or material
'Starter' is a marketing word, not a specification
No published age floor, on a product clearly aimed at children

Published specifications

Type: Starter set
Ball diameter: —
Ball weight: —
Ball material: —
Balls: —
Age floor: —

Manufacturer listing: Amazon product listing (Franklin Sports)

$19.99 · View on Amazon

$29.9933% off

Price as of October 19, 2026. #ad How we make money

FAQ

Questions people actually ask

Is there such a thing as tabletop bocce?

Yes, in two forms. Travel sets shrink the balls to around 40 mm — roughly a third of the 107 mm regulation diameter — so they can be rolled on a table, a carpet or a hard floor. Soft indoor sets keep a larger ball, usually around 90 mm, but make it weighted fabric or foam so it will not mark a floor or a wall. They are different products for different rooms.

Can you play real bocce rules with a travel set?

Yes. The USBF rules govern the sequence and the scoring, not the ball size: eight balls, four a team, one point for every ball closer to the pallino than the opponent's best. A 40 mm set with eight balls and a pallino plays the rules exactly. What changes is the surface — grass stops working, and a hard floor or table starts.

Why does a bocce set need a measuring rope?

Because close ends are decided by measurement, not opinion, and on a shrunken court every end is close. A 40 mm set compresses the whole game into a few feet, which means the gap between two balls is often smaller than a thumb. The GoSports travel set is the only one here that publishes a measuring rope in the box, and that is most of why it is the top pick.

Will travel bocce balls work on grass?

No, and it is the main reason to buy one deliberately rather than by accident. At 40 mm the ball has too little mass to push through grass of any length — it stops dead a foot from your hand. Travel sets are for tables, hard floors, sand and gravel. For a lawn you want 90 mm at minimum and 107 mm properly.

Why you can check our work

We have not played these. Every figure above is copied from a manufacturer's published listing or a governing body's published rules, and named so you can verify it. Where a maker publishes nothing, the field is blank rather than filled in. How we pick explains the whole method, including what would change a recommendation.

Every figure on this page is copied from one of these sources. If you find one that is wrong or out of date, tell us and we will fix it.

Tabletop and travel bocce sets

Quick picks

Three ball sizes, three different games

The spec gap in this category

Every pick, with its published specs