Calculator
Barbell plate calculator
What to load per side — and, when the number will not load exactly, what you will actually be lifting.
Work it out
How it is calculated
Standard competition bars are 20 kg for men and 15 kg for women; most commercial-gym bars are 20 kg, and a 45 lb bar is 20.4 kg, not 20. The calculator assumes a full set of plates down to 0.25 kg.
When a target cannot be loaded exactly, this tool tells you rather than quietly rounding. Being told "you asked for 102.5 and the bar says 100" is the entire point.
SOURCE·IPF technical rules — competition plate denominations and 20/15 kg bar·REVIEWED JUL 2026