Bench press standards — men, 137.5 kg and above
Median 173 kg. Top fifth starts at 210 kg. The top 5% bench press 243 kg or more. From 9,076 judged lifts.
Percentile
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9,076 judged bench presss, men, 137.5 kg and above
No lift entered. The curve is every judged bench presss in this class — add yours to it.
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The full table
| Percentile | Lift (kg) | Lift (lb) | Band |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 115.0 | 254 | Novice |
| 20th | 136.1 | 300 | Intermediate |
| 25th | 142.5 | 314 | Intermediate |
| 30th | 150.0 | 331 | Intermediate |
| 40th | 160.0 | 353 | Intermediate |
| 50th | 172.5 | 380 | Advanced |
| 60th | 183.7 | 405 | Advanced |
| 70th | 195.0 | 430 | Advanced |
| 75th | 200.0 | 441 | Advanced |
| 80th | 210.0 | 463 | Elite |
| 90th | 227.5 | 502 | Elite |
| 95th | 242.5 | 535 | World-class |
| 99th | 272.5 | 601 | World-class |
Novice
0–20
Bottom fifth of the platform
Intermediate
20–50
Below the median competitor
Advanced
50–80
Above the median competitor
Elite
80–95
Top fifth of the platform
World-class
95–100
Top 5% of everyone who has competed
By age
Masters lifters compete in their own divisions, and the data shows why. Age here is age at the meet.
| Age | Median | 80th | 95th | Lifters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14-17 | 95.0 | 120.0 | 145.0 | 23,526 |
| 18-19 | 115.0 | 140.0 | 165.0 | 18,518 |
| 20-23 | 127.5 | 152.5 | 180.0 | 47,152 |
| 24-34 | 140.0 | 165.0 | 197.5 | 77,757 |
| 35-39 | 140.0 | 172.5 | 205.0 | 12,452 |
| 40-44 | 137.5 | 167.5 | 200.0 | 8,440 |
| 45-49 | 135.0 | 165.0 | 195.0 | 4,841 |
| 50-54 | 127.5 | 156.0 | 185.0 | 3,821 |
| 55-59 | 120.0 | 145.3 | 175.1 | 2,244 |
| 60-69 | 105.0 | 132.5 | 160.0 | 2,811 |
| 70+ | 85.0 | 107.5 | 135.0 | 980 |
Age bands pool every bodyweight, so they answer "how does age move the number", not "what should a 45-year-old at this exact weight lift".
As a multiple of bodyweight
| Percentile | × bodyweight |
|---|---|
| 25th | 0.90× |
| 50th | 1.10× |
| 75th | 1.30× |
| 90th | 1.50× |
| 95th | 1.60× |
| 99th | 1.80× |
The "2× bodyweight bench" style of goal, measured against people who actually did it in competition.
Who these numbers describe. Everyone in this dataset entered a powerlifting competition. They are stronger than the general gym population, so a 50th percentile here is well above an average gym-goer — we would rather tell you that than quietly flatter you. Nobody has ever published a trustworthy random sample of what people lift in commercial gyms; what exists instead is app data that people type in themselves.