As far as holding a rug in place, this does it's job fine.  I own two of these.  One is for a 5 x 8 rug and one is for a 9 x 12 rug.  With a larger rug, this pad is very cumbersome because it's thin and does not maneuver well.  Also, trimming it down to size is a much more daunting task as the size of the pads increase.  That said, they do their job of holding the rugs in place and they are an economical alternative to a thicker pad.