Hard plastic mouse pads are louder.

Cloth pads are quieter. That’s the main difference in sound profile.

Hard plastic pads produce a distinct, higher-pitched scratching or skittering sound, especially if your mouse has stock PTFE feet. It’s not unbearable, but in a quiet room you’ll hear it every time you move the mouse.

Cloth pads absorb that sound. The texture is softer and the friction is different — you get more of a low, muted shuffle. Some people actually like the feedback of the hard pad sound. Others find it annoying.

Your mouse feet matter too. Ceramic or glass feet on a hard pad will sound different than plastic on cloth. But generally: hard = clicky, cloth = quiet.

If you share a desk or record audio nearby, go cloth.