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“Which drumsticks should I get?” is probably the question we hear most often from beginners. And the codes on the sticks don’t help: 5A, 5B, 7A, 2B sound more like inventory numbers than answers. The good news is the system is simpler than it looks. The numbers and letters aren’t quality grades—they just describe the thickness and weight of the stick. A 7A isn’t “worse” than a 5B; it’s made for a different hand and a different context.
Below, we’ll break down what the sizes mean, how wood and tip shape affect your playing, and then share what we’d actually recommend based on what our customers really buy. If you haven’t picked your drum kit yet, start with our guide on acoustic vs electronic drums and come back here for sticks.
What 5A, 5B, and 7A Actually Mean
The code comes from an old numbering system: the number indicates thickness, and the letter distinguishes variants at the same number. For the same number, B is thicker and heavier than A, as you can see below with 5A vs 5B. The unintuitive part: a higher number means a thinner stick—so 7A is thinner than 5A. On our product pages, the differences are tenths of a millimetre: a Vic Firth American Classic 5A is 14.4 mm in diameter, the 5B version is 15.1 mm, and a Meinl 7A drops to 13.6 mm. Less than a millimetre between sizes, but you’ll feel the difference right away—it translates into grams and balance.
Length, on the other hand, barely changes: all three are around 40 centimetres. So the choice isn’t “long or short stick”, but “how thick and heavy”.
| Size | Diameter | Feel | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5A | 14.4 mm (Vic Firth American Classic) | standard balance | first kit, almost any style |
| 5B | 15.1 mm (Vic Firth American Classic) | thicker and heavier, fuller hit | rock, band rehearsals |
| 7A | 13.6 mm (Meinl Waxed Hickory) | thin and light | kids, quiet practice, low volume |
If you’re not sure what to pick, the short answer is 5A. It’s not a compromise—it’s the industry’s starting point: lessons and method books are built around 5A, and it’s the size with the most models in our range. Once you have a pair in hand, the test is simple: hold it with your normal grip and play a few double strokes on your knee or a practice pad. The right stick feels natural; the wrong one makes you grip harder to control it.
Understanding Drumstick Woods
The standard is American hickory. It absorbs shock before it reaches your wrist, which is why almost all the “serious” sticks we carry are hickory—from Vic Firth and Promuco to Rohema and Meinl.
Maple is lighter. A maple stick of the same size feels livelier and less tiring, making it a great choice for beginners and for practice. No surprise, our best-selling pair by units sold is maple: Promuco Rock Maple 5A, with 157 pairs sold in a single year.
Oak is at the other end: dense wood, sturdier stick, built to last. Promuco makes all three sizes in this guide from oak, still at entry-level prices.
There’s also a European story: hornbeam. Artbeat makes their Hornbeam Standard 5A from this local wood, with a wooden tip and a 14.6 mm diameter. A wood from continental forests, instead of the classic American import.
The Tip: Where Your Cymbal Sound Starts
The tip is what hits the cymbal, so it shapes your ride sound. The practical rule: wooden tips are standard, and the shape matters. Rohema, for example, describes the acorn tip on their 5A Classic as chosen specifically for a nuanced cymbal sound; Meinl uses the same acorn shape on their Waxed 7A. Nylon tips are the modern alternative, available from Dimavery in our range. For starters, stick with wood; try nylon only when you have something to compare it to.
What to Choose for Your Situation
For your first drum kit, get 5A hickory and don’t overthink it: any teacher will work with you on it, and after a few months you’ll know if you want something different.
If you’re practising at home, in an apartment, or playing in places where volume is an issue (church, small venues, late-night rehearsals), go for 7A. The thinner stick naturally plays quieter, and for truly silent practice, a practice pad solves the problem with any pair: you can even use your regular 5A on the pad, so your hands get used to the stick you’ll use on the kit.
If you play hard, play rock, or just feel like the 5A “flies” out of your hand, move up to 5B. It’s not just us saying this—even the Vic Firth American Classic 5B product page calls them ideal for rock and practice. More wood means a fuller hit and a bit more in reserve when you’re playing loud.
For kids with small hands, 7A is the natural choice: thinner and lighter, easy to control. But a school-age child with a larger hand can start right on 5A—the size they’ll use in lessons anyway. For more on drum kits for kids (sizes, setups, what makes sense at what age), see our separate guide for kids’ drums; here we’re just talking sticks.
Why Drumsticks Break (and Why That’s Normal)
Let’s be clear: drumsticks are consumables. Every rimshot, every hit on the cymbal edge, and every metal rim eats away at the wood, and eventually the stick gives out. It’s not a defect—it’s physics. It’s a good habit to roll the stick in your hand before rehearsal: chips and cracks can be seen and felt long before an actual break. That’s why we recommend anyone playing with others always keeps a spare pair in their bag: sticks never break at home, only in the middle of a song. A stick bag solves both transport and quick access to your backup pair.
Our Recommendations
Eight pairs, chosen from real store sales, not from lists copied off the internet. Prices and stock shown on the cards are always up to date.
The go-to reference: Vic Firth American Classic 5A. Hickory, wooden tip, 14.4 mm: the industry standard pair and, by revenue, our best-selling stick—131 pairs in a year. When a customer asks for “normal sticks”, this is our no-brainer recommendation.
If you want to start with the minimum investment, the maple pair from Promuco is our unit sales champion. Maple, wooden tip, true 5A size: everything you need to find out if drums are for you.
For heavier hands, the same American Classic in 5B: 15.1 mm, hickory, wooden tip, described on the product page as ideal for rock and practice. Same Vic Firth consistency, just more wood.
Budget 7A pair, also from Promuco: maple, 39.7 cm, thinner and lighter than 5A and 5B. The natural choice for a beginner child or for quiet practice.
If 7A is your main size, not just a trial, Meinl makes the premium version: American hickory, acorn-shaped wooden tip, waxed finish for grip, and sticks matched by weight and pitch, made in Germany. Thin doesn’t mean cheaply made.
Between the two worlds sits the Rohema 5A Classic: lacquered American hickory, acorn tip for cymbals, medium taper. A pair from a German maker for those who want a step up from budget lines without jumping straight to the reference price.
The European story in practice: Artbeat Hornbeam Standard 5A, made from hornbeam with a wooden tip. Stock for these comes and goes, so check the card below for today’s availability.
And if you’re curious about nylon, the black pair from Dimavery: maple with a nylon tip, in 5A. This way you can judge for yourself, on your own cymbals, if nylon tips are for you.
Next Steps
The full range, with size filters, is in our drumsticks category, with separate shelves for 5A, 5B, and 7A. There are also signature sticks, replicas of models used by famous drummers, but those are chosen for fandom, not from a guide. And if your situation isn’t covered above (small hands, specific style, picky teacher), write to us: we’ll recommend a specific pair, not just send a list of links.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which pair of drumsticks should I start with?
A 5A pair made from American hickory, with a wooden tip. It’s the middle size, works for almost any style, and most lessons and technique videos are based on it. Only after a few months of playing will you know if you need something heavier or lighter.
Wood tip or nylon tip for beginners?
Wood. It’s the standard—almost all pairs in our range have wooden tips. Nylon tips are an alternative, for example from Dimavery, and you can try them later when you have a reference point.
Why do my sticks break so quickly?
Because drumsticks are consumables, not defective. Wood is a natural material, so two identical pairs can last differently without either being faulty. Hitting the metal rim of the snare drum, rimshots, and cymbals all wear down the wood at every rehearsal, and a chipped stick can break without warning. If you break sticks often, check how you hit your cymbals: a stroke that lands straight into the edge wears out sticks much faster than one that glances off.
Are more expensive sticks worth it?
Yes, but not because they magically sound better. The real difference is consistency: at Meinl, for example, the product specs state that sticks are matched for weight and pitch, so both sticks in the pair feel and sound the same. With very cheap pairs, the manufacturer doesn’t promise this kind of matching, which is perfectly fine for home practice.
What about size 2B?
It’s the next step up from 5B: thicker and heavier than anything covered in this guide. It’s for drummers who want the most solid stick, or who deliberately practise with a heavy stick. We have a smaller selection of 2B in the main drumsticks category; for a first kit, it’s a niche choice.
Can sticks in a pair have different weights?
With cheap pairs, yes, there can be small differences in weight and sound between the two sticks. More careful manufacturers sort them: Meinl, for example, states in the specs that sticks are matched for weight and pitch. If imbalance bothers you, this is the first thing worth paying extra for.
