What is the diameter of an NHL hockey puck in inches?

The diameter of an NHL hockey puck is 3 inches. The standard puck is a short, solid disk made from vulcanized rubber, designed to slide smoothly across ice while surviving repeated impacts from sticks, boards, skates, and other pucks.

A regulation puck is also 1 inch thick and weighs about 6 ounces, or roughly 170 grams. Its black color provides strong contrast against the white ice, making it easier for players, officials, spectators, and television cameras to follow.

The 3-inch measurement describes the puck’s width from one edge straight across the center to the opposite edge. It is not the puck’s circumference or thickness, a common source of confusion. Some training, weighted, or specialty pucks may differ, but those are not standard NHL game pucks.

The puck’s compact cylindrical shape is central to hockey’s style of play: it can be passed along the ice, controlled on a stick blade, deflected toward the net, or lifted into the air. Its standardized dimensions help keep equipment and gameplay consistent across the league.