Conor McClure:

I’m still not sold on the usefulness of standing mats. It’s easy to see why comfortability should be prioritized, but in reality, it doesn’t need to be; after all, your standing desk exists for better health. If going barefoot for long periods of time is uncomfortable, your goal should be to train that, not eliminate the discomfort with a mat.

When I started standing my feet hurt so bad I couldn’t wait to get a fancy anti-fatigue mat. It alleviated some, but not all pain. About 6-9 months into using that mat I started to have pain again, mostly on my heels. It was too easy with the standing mat to put my weight load unevenly on my feet. So I ditched it and haven’t looked back. No pain, no mat.