Best Barbell For Home Gym (2023)

July 19, 2023

The barbell is one of three big investments you should make for your home gym. A quality barbell will last you a lifetime and make your lifting more enjoyable. A poor-quality barbell will chip, peel, be slippery, and stop spinning with time.

Instead, buy premium barbells for your home gym, and you'll never have a problem. I've owned mine for over a decade, and it's been abused daily within a Weightlifting club. It's still in great shape, even with being dropped often.

As a professional strength & conditioning coach, I've trained with almost every brand barbell imaginable. Partner this experience with my wife's 22 years of international competition as an Olympic Weightlifter, and we've covered them all. So, here are the best barbells for your home gym.

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Eleiko XF Bar

Best Barbell For Home Gym

Titan Fitness Performance Series Power Barbell

Best Budget Barbell For Home Gym

Rogue Ohio Bar

Best Multi-Purpose Barbell For Home Gym

Product

Knurl Marks

Dual

Single (Powerlifting)

Dual

Tensile Strength

215,000 PSI

165,000 PSI

200,00 PSI

Knurling

1 mm Mild

Medium Mountain Texture

Hybrid Knurling

Coating

Chrome

Chrome

Multiple Options

Sleeve

Needle Bearing

Bronze Bushings

Bronze Bushings

Warranty

12 Years

1 Year

Lifetime

Price

Best Barbells For Home Gym
Overall Rating:
4.8/5 stars

Quality/durability

Tensile Strength

Coating

Knurling

Price

Eleiko is known for high-end Weightlifting and Powerlifting barbells and is considered the best, period. But it wasn’t until recently they expanded into hybrid barbells for the home gym lifter. It has similar specifications to their IWF Weightlifting Training Bar without price tag.

That is 7 ft in length, 28 mm shaft diameter, chrome coating, and Eleiko’s extreme durability. But this barbell is the perfect home gym bar: mild knurling, dual grip markings, no center knurling, and bushing and needle-bearing combination.

The knurling is 1 mm deep and less aggressive than the Weightlifting barbells. It feels much softer than their other bars, even though you can't tell in the picture, compared to the IWF Weightlifting Training Bar.

Barbell Home Gym

There's no center knurling, so it doesn't rip your neck with high-rep cleans. The dual grip markings mean you can Weightlift and Powerlift with precision.

Most importantly, you have a mixture of bushing and needle bearings to provide smooth rotation when Weightlifting without compromising heavy Powerlifting performance.

With a 215k PSI tensile strength, you won't warp it out of shape, and it will always rebound back to its original form even when moving heavy loads.

You also have a 12-year warranty, but I've used many 10+ year-old Eleiko bars in great shape even after daily abuse in Weightlifting gyms.

Specifications

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Tensile Strength

215,000 PSI

Knurling

1 mm 

Center Knurling

No

Knurl Markings

Dual

Shaft Diameter

28 mm (men's), 25 mm (women's)

Coating

Chrome

Bushing/Bearing

Needle Bearings & Bushings

Spin

Fast

Whip

Whippy

Weight Capacity

1500 kg

Warranty

12 Years

Pros

  • Highest tensile strength barbell owing to its durability and quality.
  • Dual knurling markings for Powerlifting and Weightlifting.
  • Designed as a hybrid barbell for all-strength sports and CrossFit.
  • Combination of bushing and needle bearings for better spin during Olympic lifts while maintaining performance during compound strength exercises.

Cons

  • Very expensive, but it is a lifetime investment when buying Eleiko gear for your garage.
  • 28 mm shaft diameter is great for Weightlifters and multi-purpose lifting but not great for competitive Powerlifters.

Best Barbell For Home Gym - Eleiko XF Bar

Best Barbell For General Strength Training

Fringe Sport Midas Revenge Bar

Best Barbell For General Strength Training
Overall Rating:
4/5 stars

Quality/durability

Tensile Strength

Coating

Knurling

Price

Want a hybrid barbell that stands out in your home gym? The Fringe Sport Midas Revenge Barbell is black with gold titanium sleeves. But it’s not just a gimmick. It’s the perfect barbell for general strength training.

It has dual knurl markings, no center knurling, 28.5 mm diameter, and 190k PSI tensile strength. It's a great bar to dabble in the Olympic and Power lifts and even a bit of CrossFit. The Midas Revenge bar uses a pyramid knurling, so it's not as aggressive as Weightlifting and Powerlifting barbells.

Further, the bar uses bushings, so it spins smoothly but less than an Olympic Weightlifting barbell. It has a Cerakote coating on the shaft to protect it from rust.

And a major benefit is the lifetime warranty, so if it does break with proper use, you can have it replaced.

Specifications

Header

Tensile Strength

190,000 PSI

Knurling

Moderate-Aggressive Pyramid

Center Knurling

No

Knurl Markings

Dual

Shaft Diameter

28.5 mm

Coating

Black Cerakote

Bushing/Bearing

Bushings

Spin

Slow

Whip

Light Whip

Weight Capacity

1500 lb

Warranty

Lifetime

Pros

  • Lifetime performance warranty that covers breakage when training.
  • Unique gold sleeves for the ultimate flex to your friends.
  • Non-aggressive knurling for general strength training.
  • Perfect for general strength training with bushing sleeves and dual knurl markings.

Cons

  • Lower tensile strength than the Eleiko XF bar reducing the durability.

Best Barbell For General Strength Training - Fringe Sport Midas Revenge Bar

Best Budget Barbell For Home Gym

Titan Fitness Performance Series Power Barbell

Best Budget Barbell For Home Gym
Overall Rating:
3.5/5 stars

Quality/durability

Tensile Strength

Coating

Knurling

Price

While I don’t advise going budget with barbells, I understand some lifters may be looking to save money for other things or want a barbell that can be thrashed on the power rack without worrying about damaging the bar.

The Titan Fitness Performance Series Power Bar is the budget option for these purposes. It only has a 165k PSI tensile strength, so it can't handle the same beating as higher-quality barbells. Everything else is like a typical power bar with medium mountain-style knurling, so it's not as rough as premium Powerlifting bars.

Bronze bushings mean it doesn't spin too much when squatting, benching, and deadlifting and is 29 mm in diameter, like a Powerlifting barbell.

As it is a budget barbell, it only has a 1-year warranty, so bear in mind this won't last if you lift heavy often.

Specifications

Header

Tensile Strength

165,000 PSI

Knurling

Medium Mountain Texture

Center Knurling

Yes

Knurl Markings

Single (Powerlifting)

Shaft Diameter

29 mm

Coating

Chrome

Bushing/Bearing

Bronze Bushings

Spin

Slow

Whip

Stiff

Weight Capacity

1500 lb

Warranty

1-Year

Pros

  • A budget barbell you can thrash in your home gym without worrying about damage.
  • Moderate knurling, so it's not a cheese grater.

Cons

  • Low tensile strength, so avoid exercises like heavy rack pulls as it may bend and remain that way.
  • 1-year warranty, so it may not last very long.
  • Built for basic strength exercises and nothing more.

Best Budget Barbell For Home Gym - Titan Fitness Performance Series Power Barbell

Best Multi-Purpose Barbell For Home Gym

Rogue Fitness Ohio Bar

Best Multi-Purpose Barbell For Home Gym
Overall Rating:
4.2/5 stars

Quality/durability

Tensile Strength

Coating

Knurling

Price

Dabbling in the Olympic lifts and power lifts? The Rogue Ohio Bar is made for this exact purpose. It is 28.5 mm in diameter, giving you the middle ground between a Weightlifting and Powerlifting barbell.

It has a 200k PSI tensile strength which is more than enough to create a durable barbell that will last being dropped repeatedly. The knurling isn't aggressive, and there's no center knurling, so you can perform high-rep movements without shredding your skin.

The Ohio bar has bushing sleeves to provide some spin for Olympic lifts but not too much for the large compound strength exercises.

It has dual markings for Weightlifting and Powerlifting and a decent whip. The stainless-steel build with chrome finish gives it a similar feel to premium Weightlifting bars and keeps it rust-resistant.

Specifications

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Tensile Strength

200,000 PSI

Knurling

Rogue Knurl (Moderate)

Center Knurling

No

Knurl Markings

Dual

Shaft Diameter

28.5 mm

Coating

Stainless Steel

Bushing/Bearing

Bronze Bushings

Spin

Light

Whip

Light Whip

Weight Capacity

Not Available

Warranty

Lifetime

Pros

  • Designed specifically as a multi-purpose barbell for Olympic and Powerlifts.
  • Non-aggressive knurling so you can train more often without losing skin.
  • Dual markings to make switching between Olympic lifting and Powerlifting easy.

Cons

  • Not a specialist barbell, so it doesn't spin as well as a Weightlifting bar during the Olympic lifts.
  • Better suited for basic compound strength exercises even though it can be used for Olympic lifts.

Best Multi-Purpose Barbell For Home Gym - Rogue Fitness Ohio Bar

Best Barbell For Beginners

Fringe Sport Wonder Barbell V2

Best Barbell For Beginners
Overall Rating:
3.8/5 stars

Quality/durability

Tensile Strength

Coating