The ranking of tear strength from the lowest to highest of all impression materials generally is as follows:

Tear strength is an important property for some materials such as impression materials; the impression must be removed from the undercuts without distortion or tearing of the edges. This  resistance to tearing is known as tear strength. Polysulfide impression materials have high tear strength that allows them to be removed from undercuts without tearing. Hydrocolloids, on the other hand, lack adequate tear strength. Hence, to prevent tearing, most impressions have to be removed with a snap motion, parallel to the long axis of the teeth.