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.
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  JOYIN Glow in the Dark Lawn Darts Game Set The same soft-tip format with a glow feature, which matters more than it sounds: lawn darts is a game of watching an arc land, and it is the first thing you lose when the light goes. | Best for playing after dark | 6.1/10 | |
| 2 |  NERF Soft Tip Lawn Darts Four soft-tipped darts and two targets from a brand with a safety reputation to protect — the modern form of a game whose pointed original the CPSC banned outright in 1988. | Best overall | 6.8/10 | |
| 3 |  Sports Illustrated Lawn Darts Set with Target Rings A branded lawn dart set that ships with its own target rings — the pick for a household that wants the game set up properly rather than aimed at a patch of grass. | Best daylight alternative | 6.8/10 |
Verdict: buy the JOYIN glow set. It is the only product here that publishes both soft tip and glow in the dark, which is the combination the search is actually looking for. Buy the NERF soft tip set if glow does not matter and you want a known brand, and the Sports Illustrated set if you want target rings in the box and will be playing in daylight.
One thing to settle before anything else: there is no such thing as a dangerous lawn dart on sale in the United States. The metal-tipped version was banned outright in 1988. Everything below is soft tip, and the decision is about light, not about safety class.
What each one publishes
The three sets
| Set | Tip | Glows | Target rings | Published age floor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JOYIN glow set | Soft tip | Yes | Included | Not published |
| NERF soft tip | Soft tip | Not published | Included | Not published |
| Sports Illustrated | Not published | Not published | Included | Not published |
The pattern across the whole category is the same: tip type and contents get published, and dart weight, glow duration and age floor do not. Dart weight is the one we would most like, because it is what decides whether a dart sticks in a lawn or skitters across it.
Beyond darts
Playing after sunset, in general
Glow darts solve one game. If the actual problem is that your evenings are dark from five o'clock and you want the yard to stay usable, the cross-game answer — lighting the space rather than the equipment — is in playing yard games after dark. Cold is the other half of the October problem, and that is in yard games for cold weather.
The picks in full
Every pick, with its published specs
Best for playing after dark
JOYIN Glow in the Dark Lawn Darts Game Set
JOYIN
Our spec score
6.1/10
- Spec completeness
- 3/10
- Footprint clarity
- 2/10
- Durability
- 4/10
- Pack-down
- 9/10
Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.
The same soft-tip format with a glow feature, which matters more than it sounds: lawn darts is a game of watching an arc land, and it is the first thing you lose when the light goes.
Skip this if
Skip this if the set has to survive a season outdoors. A glow additive is a plastic property, and plastic left on a lawn is the thing that goes brittle first.
What works
- Glow is the one feature that extends a throwing game past sunset without floodlighting the yard
- Soft tip, so it is legal to sell and sane around children
What does not
- No published glow duration or recharge time, which is the only spec that would tell you if it works
- No published dart weight or dimensions at all
Published specifications
- Tip
- Soft tip
- Glow
- Glow in the dark
- Legal status
- Outside the 1988 pointed-lawn-dart ban
- Darts
- —
- Targets
- —
- Dart weight
- —
- Glow duration
- —
- Age floor
- —
- Set weight
- —
Source: Amazon product listing
Source: Amazon product listing
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Manufacturer listing: Amazon product listing (JOYIN)
Best overall
NERF Soft Tip Lawn Darts
NERF
Our spec score
6.8/10
- Spec completeness
- 4/10
- Footprint clarity
- 2/10
- Durability
- 6/10
- Pack-down
- 9/10
Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.
Four soft-tipped darts and two targets from a brand with a safety reputation to protect — the modern form of a game whose pointed original the CPSC banned outright in 1988.
Skip this if
Skip this if you wanted the weighted metal game you remember from the 1970s. That game is illegal to sell in the United States, and this one deliberately does not fly or stick like it.
What works
- Soft tip is the whole point: it is the design that makes a lawn dart legal to sell at all
- Two targets means two scoring circles, which is how the original game was played
- A national toy brand's name on the box is worth something in a category defined by a safety ban
What does not
- No published dart weight, and weight is what decides whether a dart flies straight
- No published throwing distance, so the footprint is whatever you agree it is
- No published age floor on a game bought almost entirely for children
Published specifications
- Darts
- 4 soft-tipped darts
- Targets
- 2 targets
- Tip
- Soft tip — not designed to stick in the ground
- Legal status
- Outside the 1988 pointed-lawn-dart ban
- Dart weight
- —
- Target diameter
- —
- Throwing distance
- —
- Age floor
- —
- Set weight
- —
Source: Amazon product listing
Source: Amazon product listing
Source: Amazon product listing
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Manufacturer listing: Amazon product listing (NERF)
Best daylight alternative
Sports Illustrated Lawn Darts Set with Target Rings
Sports Illustrated
Our spec score
6.8/10
- Spec completeness
- 3/10
- Footprint clarity
- 6/10
- Durability
- 6/10
- Pack-down
- 8/10
Scored on published specifications only. We have not played this set.
A branded lawn dart set that ships with its own target rings — the pick for a household that wants the game set up properly rather than aimed at a patch of grass.
Skip this if
Skip this if the point was playing after sunset. Nothing on this listing glows, so once the light goes this set is finished for the day.
What works
- Target rings included, so the scoring zone is defined rather than imagined
- A recognised brand name on a category full of anonymous listings
What does not
- No glow, which is the whole reason most people search this category in October
- No published dart weight or tip type — and tip type is the safety spec
- No published age floor
Published specifications
- Included
- Darts and target rings
- Intended use
- Lawn, picnic, beach and outdoor activities
- Glow
- Not published
- Dart tip type
- —
- Dart weight
- —
- Ring diameter
- —
- Age floor
- —
Source: Amazon product listing
Source: Amazon product listing
Source: Amazon product listing
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Not published by the manufacturer.
Manufacturer listing: Amazon product listing (Sports Illustrated)
FAQ
Questions people actually ask
Are glow in the dark lawn darts safe?
How do glow in the dark lawn darts work?
Can you see the target as well as the darts?
What age are lawn darts suitable for?
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.
Read next
Related pages
Picks
Best lawn darts
The pointed original is banned in the US. What is legal, what changed, and the three soft-tip sets worth owning.
Guide
Lawn dart rules and safety
How the modern game is scored, what the CPSC banned in 1988, and what to do with a vintage set.
Guide
Playing yard games after dark
Which games survive losing the light, and why you light the target rather than the yard.
Guide
Yard games for cold weather
What still works in gloves, frozen ground and 5 pm darkness — and what to put away until spring.
Picks
Best Halloween yard games
The sun is down by dinner — the glow games that keep a Halloween yard party going.
Guide
Yard game safety and age floors
What each maker actually publishes about age, and how to judge the games that publish nothing.
Sources
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission — lawn dart ban (1988)
- JOYIN glow in the dark lawn darts — published listing
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.