Essentials

There are 4 essential pieces of home gym equipment you need to get up and running:

Barbells
Power racks (also called squat racks)
A weight bench
Weight plates

As soon as you have these 4 items you can do the majority of exercises in your home gym. We like to use the 80/20 rule for most things in life and these are the 20% of equipment that will bring you 80% of the results (maybe even more!)

You can find out more about this in our guide on how to build a home gym here.

Get the basics right first.

A very close 5th essential are dumbbells.

If you buy separate dumbbells they can often end up costing a lot very quickly. However, if you are on a tight budget then some adjustable dumbbells and a weight bench is a good way to start.

This page will help you choose the best home gym essentials for you based on your budget and fitness levels.

Essential Home Gym Equipment

As you can see in our guide on how to build a home gym, there are some pieces of equipment that you will use far more than others.

Here are the main items that most people will use more than others in a home gym...

Barbell

Squat Rack

Weight Bench

Best Weight Bench

Weight Plates

Best Bumper Plates

Dumbbells

Best Adjustable Dumbbells

For full transparency: This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through a link I would earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Only personally used or thoroughly researched products are recommended. Learn more.

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