The benefits of gua sha, plus our wellbeing editor’s favourite picks to shop

The ESPA gua sha is the perfect shape and feels great to hold. The proportions are spot on with a deep V-shaped top to sweep over areas like the jaw and a long, gently curved side for moving over flatter areas on the face and body.

This longer side is especially good for the neck, the upper arms and the thighs. If you haven’t tried it before, long strokes with your gua sha on the back of your neck feel incredible, stimulate your vagus nerve and can provide a total nervous system reset.

The price is somewhere in the middle because it’s made from semi-precious rose quartz – the stone of peace and love. So if you’re not looking for a basic budget tool and want something with slightly better hand-feel and a nice weight, this will be the one for you.

This is my all-time favourite affordable gua sha tool. Great for beginners, it does the job and won’t break the bank. It’s a little chunkier than other tools and the V-shape isn’t that deep, so you won’t be at risk of hurting yourself on the edges. However, that does mean the sculpting efficacy isn’t quite as good as with other tools.

What this tool is great for is full body. We often forget about our underarms or our inner thighs and stomachs with this kind of practice, but this tool is perfect for those areas. You can employ the same sweeping motions to smooth and work the areas and target any tension. This is great for activating your nerve endings in areas you might not think to stimulate and encourages better circulation.

The logo indentation and the fact that this tool is made of jade means that although it looks pretty, you have to be diligent about cleaning it before and after use. Soapy water and a cloth will do the trick. Just make sure you clean off any oil, dirt and skin cells to make sure you’re not damaging your skin with a grubby tool.

Intended to be used with the brand’s own clinical skincare, the MZ Skin tool is a slightly heavier piece of rose quartz in the classic gua sha shape. It’s my favourite all rounder for face and body with its gentle curves and medium-sized V-shape.

At the higher end of the price scale, due to being made from a semi-precious stone, you’ll want to use the little travel pouch for protection. And make sure you clean thoroughly before and after use to avoid any bacteria from your skin entering the tiny micro channels in the porous stone.

The cool feeling of the stone is perfect for refreshing your face in the mornings or at the end of a long day. But the large flat side of the tool is also perfect for use all over the body. Use firm sweeping motions to encourage blood flow around the body and tone the skin.

I’ve broken three gua sha tools by dropping them on the floor or having them fall out of my bathroom cabinet, so investing in a stainless steel option is one way to avoid that kind of repeated heartbreak. The Kitsch gua sha is lightweight and easy to hold, and it glides over the skin nicely.

The steel makes it lovely and cool, and the temperature is much more receptive to a stint in the fridge, which can be great for rapid de-puffing in the morning. This is also a great hack for soothing any inflammation after a day in the sun or a long-haul flight.

The added benefit of the stainless steel is that it’s a non-porous material – unlike stones like quartz or jade. Although these are more traditional for gua sha, they are porous so they contain an abundance of tiny micro holes in which bacteria from your skin can build up. Obviously you can prevent this with proper sterilisation but there is a chance that skin cells can get right into the stone and this isn’t ideal. With steel, once it’s clean, it’s clean.

That being said, steel is a little harder on the skin than a stone gua sha might be but, overall, it’s great for sculpting and achieving that snatched look, especially around the jaw and cheekbones. Just be gentle with your forehead and make sure you’re not pressing too hard on any sore areas or broken skin.