HEAD Squared Tennis Racquet Review

Edited and updated 9/7/2026

The Head Squared is the most unusual racquet Head has made in years, and one of the few genuinely new ideas in the category. It is the most head-light frame the brand has ever produced, built on a patent-pending Dual Tube design that pairs a carbon power tube with a foam comfort tube, and it swings faster and spins harder than almost anything at its weight while looking after your arm the whole time.

Head tries something new

Most new racquets are a refinement of something that already exists. The Squared is not. It is a completely new line and a completely new concept, and it is the first frame to walk away from the single-tube carbon construction that every racquet has used for decades. Head has effectively created a new category with it, which is why, as our own playtesters put it, there is almost nothing to compare it to.

The pitch is simple, even if the engineering is not: real power and real arm comfort in one frame, in the most head-light package Head has ever built. For a player who wants to swing freely and hit big without paying for it the next morning, that is a genuinely interesting promise.

Dual Tube, explained

The name Dual Tube is literal. Where a normal racquet is built around a single hollow tube of carbon, the Squared uses two, one inside the other. The outer tube is made from Toray's T800S carbon fiber, the high-grade material you find in elite frames, and it does the traditional job of a racquet, driving power and holding the frame stable through contact.

The inner tube is the new idea. It is filled with foam and acts as a second layer that soaks up vibration before it can travel up the shaft into your arm, and Head connects this comfort tube directly to the main strings so you still feel the ball clearly. The payoff is a frame that Head has tested and shown to reduce muscle activity during a swing, a real benefit for anyone managing arm fatigue or a history of tennis elbow. It is the clearest attempt yet at genuine power that still protects the arm.

The most head-light Head ever

The other headline is the balance. At a 295-millimeter balance point, the Squared is the most head-light racquet Head has ever produced, and it is dramatically more head-light than a normal frame, which typically sits between 315 and 330. Paired with a swing weight under 300 strung, a genuinely rare number these days, it makes the racquet feel almost weightless to swing.

What that gives you is speed. The head whips through the hitting zone with almost no effort, so you can prepare late and still accelerate hard into the ball. It makes the Squared a natural at the net, where fast hands matter most, and it is a big part of why the frame is so easy to pick up and play.

The 16x18 comeback

The Squared runs a 16x18 string pattern, an open, old-school layout Head has not used in a long time, and it is a big part of the racquet's character. The wider gaps between strings let the ball sink into the string bed and launch back out with heavy spin, and it pairs neatly with the head-light balance, since all that weight in the handle helps you rotate up and over the ball on a topspin swing.

Head also uses a directional drilling pattern that creates a more uniform, square-shaped grid across the face, which is where the Squared gets its name. The point of it is consistency: the string bed responds the same whether you catch the ball dead center or a little off, so the sweet spot feels large and predictable.

How it plays

On court, the Squared does several things you do not expect from a frame this light, and that element of surprise came up again and again in our playtest.

Effortless to swing

The first thing you notice is how easy it is. The head-light balance and sub-300 swing weight make the racquet almost disappear in your hand, so you can take a full, fast cut with very little effort. A developing player can generate real racquet-head speed without the strength or technique that usually demands, and a doubles player gets lightning-quick hands at the net.

Stable where it shouldn't be

The fair worry with a frame this light is stability, and it was the first thing our testers checked. The surprise is that the Squared holds up. It stays planted through contact rather than getting knocked around, which is not what a 10.4-ounce, head-light racquet is supposed to do, and it is a big part of what makes the frame credible for real play rather than just easy swinging.

Sam, on the Squared

Spin from a rotational swing

This is where the Squared shines. The open 16x18 pattern and the whippy, handle-weighted balance work together to help you rotate over the ball, and the result is heavy topspin and easy net clearance. Our testers got their best results from full, rotational groundstrokes, especially from deep behind the baseline, where the spin let them push the ball back deep into the court.

Sam, on the Squared

Alex, on the Squared

More control than you'd guess

For a frame with a power tube and an open pattern, the Squared plays with a surprising amount of control. Our testers expected a cannon and found something more balanced, neither overpowered nor underpowered, which runs counter to how the racquet looks on paper. The foam comfort tube does mute the feel a little, so it is more cushioned than crisp, but it stays clean and connected rather than dead.

Spencer, on the Squared

The catch, and how to fix it

The Squared's strengths and its limits come from the same place, that featherweight, head-light build. All that maneuverability comes with less mass to plow through the ball, so a strong, advanced player who wants heavy put-away power, or who faces big hitters, may find it lacks the plow they are used to, and the extreme head-light feel is genuinely unusual and will not be for everyone. The good news is that the frame is easy to customize. A couple of grams of lead tape at 3 and 9 o'clock adds stability without killing the maneuverability, and a little at 12 adds power and swing weight if you want more punch.

Strings and setup

Head recommends its Velocity multifilament at 52 pounds, a soft, comfortable string that leans into the frame's arm-friendly design and suits a player who wants maximum comfort. If you want to chase the spin the 16x18 pattern makes available, a shaped co-poly like Head Lynx Tour in the high 40s bites hard through that open bed, while a full co-poly at a moderate tension is a good all-around middle ground. Because the frame supplies comfort on its own, you have room to string a little firmer for control without punishing your arm.

How it compares

The obvious comparison, and the one our team reached for first, is the Wilson Clash, the other big arm-friendly, flexible frame on the market. The two share a comfort-first mission, but they feel very different in the hand. The Clash is more conventionally balanced, while the Squared is far more head-light and gets through the contact zone noticeably faster. If you want Head's own take on comfortable power in a more traditional layout, the Boom is the frame to look at, though it is heavier and less overtly spin-oriented. And if the Squared appeals but you want even more help, Head offers a lighter Squared Team on a bigger head.

Who should swing it

The Squared is one of the most versatile frames on the wall. It is built for players of all levels and ages who want easy power and spin with real comfort in a single racquet, and it genuinely covers a lot of ground. A beginner gets easy depth from the open pattern, an intermediate gets spin and an effortless swing, a doubles player gets fast hands at net, and a teaching pro who spends all day on court gets a frame that is kind to the arm. A modern baseliner with a full, rotational stroke will get the most spin out of it.

Who should think twice? A strong, advanced player who wants a heavy, planted frame with big put-away power will find the Squared too light in stock form, though lead tape closes some of that gap, and anyone who dislikes an extreme head-light feel should try before they buy. But that is the whole point of a racquet this different: it plays counter to expectations, and the only way to know is to hit it. As our playtesters kept saying, the proof is in the demo.