Incline Bench Press Strength Standards
Modeled — anchored to measured lifts
How strong is your incline bench press? Graded Beginner → Elite for your sex, bodyweight and age. Intermediate for a 180 lb man is about 166 lb; for a 140 lb woman about 71 lb.
Standards are benchmarks for tracking progress and finding weak points — not the last word on your training.
Incline Bench Press is not contested in meets, so no competition data exists for it. Its ladder is modeled by applying a fixed ratio to a measured anchor lift: 0.82x bench (M) / 0.82x (F) — incline ~80-85% of flat. That ratio is a conventional strength relationship used in coaching practice and selected by Strenf — a modelling assumption, not a measurement and not a published finding. How modeled standards work.
Is your incline bench press good? Common loads, graded
Tiers below are before age adjustment. Use the calculator above for your own bodyweight, age and rep count.
- A 95 lb incline bench press is Beginner for a 180 lb man — 43 kg, 0.53× bodyweight; 29 lb short of Novice.
- A 135 lb incline bench press is Novice for a 180 lb man — 61 kg, 0.75× bodyweight; 31 lb short of Intermediate.
- A 185 lb incline bench press is Intermediate for a 180 lb man — 84 kg, 1.03× bodyweight; 71 lb short of Advanced.
- A 225 lb incline bench press is Intermediate for a 180 lb man — 102 kg, 1.25× bodyweight; 31 lb short of Advanced.
- A 275 lb incline bench press is Advanced for a 180 lb man — 125 kg, 1.53× bodyweight; 22 lb short of Elite.
- A 315 lb incline bench press is Elite for a 180 lb man — 143 kg, 1.75× bodyweight.
- A 35 lb incline bench press is below the Beginner standard for a 140 lb woman — 16 kg, 0.25× bodyweight; 7 lb short of Beginner.
- A 50 lb incline bench press is Beginner for a 140 lb woman — 23 kg, 0.36× bodyweight; 5 lb short of Novice.
- A 70 lb incline bench press is Novice for a 140 lb woman — 32 kg, 0.5× bodyweight; 1 lb short of Intermediate.
- A 95 lb incline bench press is Intermediate for a 140 lb woman — 43 kg, 0.68× bodyweight; 30 lb short of Advanced.
- A 120 lb incline bench press is Intermediate for a 140 lb woman — 54 kg, 0.86× bodyweight; 5 lb short of Advanced.
- A 160 lb incline bench press is Elite for a 140 lb woman — 73 kg, 1.14× bodyweight.
Standards by bodyweight
Men
| Bodyweight (lb) | Beginner (lb) | Novice (lb) | Intermediate (lb) | Advanced (lb) | Elite (lb) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 120 lb | 62 lb | 83 lb | 110 lb | 170 lb | 198 lb |
| 130 lb | 68 lb | 90 lb | 120 lb | 185 lb | 214 lb |
| 140 lb | 73 lb | 97 lb | 129 lb | 199 lb | 231 lb |
| 150 lb | 78 lb | 103 lb | 138 lb | 213 lb | 248 lb |
| 160 lb | 83 lb | 110 lb | 147 lb | 227 lb | 264 lb |
| 170 lb | 88 lb | 117 lb | 156 lb | 241 lb | 280 lb |
| 180 lb | 94 lb | 124 lb | 166 lb | 256 lb | 297 lb |
| 190 lb | 99 lb | 131 lb | 175 lb | 270 lb | 314 lb |
| 200 lb | 104 lb | 138 lb | 184 lb | 284 lb | 330 lb |
| 210 lb | 109 lb | 145 lb | 193 lb | 298 lb | 346 lb |
| 220 lb | 114 lb | 152 lb | 202 lb | 312 lb | 363 lb |
| 230 lb | 120 lb | 159 lb | 212 lb | 327 lb | 380 lb |
| 240 lb | 125 lb | 166 lb | 221 lb | 341 lb | 396 lb |
| 250 lb | 130 lb | 172 lb | 230 lb | 355 lb | 412 lb |
| 260 lb | 135 lb | 179 lb | 239 lb | 369 lb | 429 lb |
| 270 lb | 140 lb | 186 lb | 248 lb | 383 lb | 446 lb |
| 280 lb | 146 lb | 193 lb | 258 lb | 398 lb | 462 lb |
| 290 lb | 151 lb | 200 lb | 267 lb | 412 lb | 478 lb |
| 300 lb | 156 lb | 207 lb | 276 lb | 426 lb | 495 lb |
| 310 lb | 161 lb | 214 lb | 285 lb | 440 lb | 512 lb |
Women
| Bodyweight (lb) | Beginner (lb) | Novice (lb) | Intermediate (lb) | Advanced (lb) | Elite (lb) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 120 lb | 36 lb | 47 lb | 61 lb | 107 lb | 133 lb |
| 130 lb | 39 lb | 51 lb | 66 lb | 116 lb | 144 lb |
| 140 lb | 42 lb | 55 lb | 71 lb | 125 lb | 155 lb |
| 150 lb | 45 lb | 58 lb | 76 lb | 134 lb | 167 lb |
| 160 lb | 48 lb | 62 lb | 82 lb | 142 lb | 178 lb |
| 170 lb | 51 lb | 66 lb | 87 lb | 151 lb | 189 lb |
| 180 lb | 54 lb | 70 lb | 92 lb | 160 lb | 200 lb |
| 190 lb | 57 lb | 74 lb | 97 lb | 169 lb | 211 lb |
| 200 lb | 60 lb | 78 lb | 102 lb | 178 lb | 222 lb |
| 210 lb | 63 lb | 82 lb | 107 lb | 187 lb | 233 lb |
| 220 lb | 66 lb | 86 lb | 112 lb | 196 lb | 244 lb |
| 230 lb | 69 lb | 90 lb | 117 lb | 205 lb | 255 lb |
| 240 lb | 72 lb | 94 lb | 122 lb | 214 lb | 266 lb |
| 250 lb | 75 lb | 98 lb | 128 lb | 222 lb | 278 lb |
| 260 lb | 78 lb | 101 lb | 133 lb | 231 lb | 289 lb |
| 270 lb | 81 lb | 105 lb | 138 lb | 240 lb | 300 lb |
| 280 lb | 84 lb | 109 lb | 143 lb | 249 lb | 311 lb |
| 290 lb | 87 lb | 113 lb | 148 lb | 258 lb | 322 lb |
| 300 lb | 90 lb | 117 lb | 153 lb | 267 lb | 333 lb |
| 310 lb | 93 lb | 121 lb | 158 lb | 276 lb | 344 lb |
Same standards in kilograms (kg)
Men
| Bodyweight (kg) | Beginner (kg) | Novice (kg) | Intermediate (kg) | Advanced (kg) | Elite (kg) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 54 kg | 28 kg | 38 kg | 50 kg | 77 kg | 90 kg |
| 59 kg | 31 kg | 41 kg | 54 kg | 84 kg | 97 kg |
| 64 kg | 33 kg | 44 kg | 58 kg | 90 kg | 105 kg |
| 68 kg | 35 kg | 47 kg | 63 kg | 97 kg | 112 kg |
| 73 kg | 38 kg | 50 kg | 67 kg | 103 kg | 120 kg |
| 77 kg | 40 kg | 53 kg | 71 kg | 109 kg | 127 kg |
| 82 kg | 42 kg | 56 kg | 75 kg | 116 kg | 135 kg |
| 86 kg | 45 kg | 59 kg | 79 kg | 122 kg | 142 kg |
| 91 kg | 47 kg | 63 kg | 83 kg | 129 kg | 150 kg |
| 95 kg | 50 kg | 66 kg | 88 kg | 135 kg | 157 kg |
| 100 kg | 52 kg | 69 kg | 92 kg | 142 kg | 165 kg |
| 104 kg | 54 kg | 72 kg | 96 kg | 148 kg | 172 kg |
| 109 kg | 57 kg | 75 kg | 100 kg | 155 kg | 180 kg |
| 113 kg | 59 kg | 78 kg | 104 kg | 161 kg | 187 kg |
| 118 kg | 61 kg | 81 kg | 108 kg | 167 kg | 195 kg |
| 122 kg | 64 kg | 85 kg | 113 kg | 174 kg | 202 kg |
| 127 kg | 66 kg | 88 kg | 117 kg | 180 kg | 210 kg |
| 132 kg | 68 kg | 91 kg | 121 kg | 187 kg | 217 kg |
| 136 kg | 71 kg | 94 kg | 125 kg | 193 kg | 225 kg |
| 141 kg | 73 kg | 97 kg | 129 kg | 200 kg | 232 kg |
Women
| Bodyweight (kg) | Beginner (kg) | Novice (kg) | Intermediate (kg) | Advanced (kg) | Elite (kg) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 54 kg | 16 kg | 21 kg | 28 kg | 48 kg | 60 kg |
| 59 kg | 18 kg | 23 kg | 30 kg | 52 kg | 65 kg |
| 64 kg | 19 kg | 25 kg | 32 kg | 57 kg | 70 kg |
| 68 kg | 20 kg | 27 kg | 35 kg | 61 kg | 76 kg |
| 73 kg | 22 kg | 28 kg | 37 kg | 65 kg | 81 kg |
| 77 kg | 23 kg | 30 kg | 39 kg | 69 kg | 86 kg |
| 82 kg | 24 kg | 32 kg | 42 kg | 73 kg | 91 kg |
| 86 kg | 26 kg | 34 kg | 44 kg | 77 kg | 96 kg |
| 91 kg | 27 kg | 35 kg | 46 kg | 81 kg | 101 kg |
| 95 kg | 29 kg | 37 kg | 49 kg | 85 kg | 106 kg |
| 100 kg | 30 kg | 39 kg | 51 kg | 89 kg | 111 kg |
| 104 kg | 31 kg | 41 kg | 53 kg | 93 kg | 116 kg |
| 109 kg | 33 kg | 42 kg | 56 kg | 97 kg | 121 kg |
| 113 kg | 34 kg | 44 kg | 58 kg | 101 kg | 126 kg |
| 118 kg | 35 kg | 46 kg | 60 kg | 105 kg | 131 kg |
| 122 kg | 37 kg | 48 kg | 62 kg | 109 kg | 136 kg |
| 127 kg | 38 kg | 50 kg | 65 kg | 113 kg | 141 kg |
| 132 kg | 39 kg | 51 kg | 67 kg | 117 kg | 146 kg |
| 136 kg | 41 kg | 53 kg | 69 kg | 121 kg | 151 kg |
| 141 kg | 42 kg | 55 kg | 72 kg | 125 kg | 156 kg |
Age adjustment
Age changes the bar. An Intermediate incline bench press for a 180 lb man is about 156 lb at 40, 146 lb at 50, and 134 lb at 60; for a 140 lb woman, about 66 lb, 62 lb, and 55 lb at the same ages.
Your lift is scaled by these multipliers before grading (derived from Masters competition data):
| Age band (years) | Men (× multiplier) | Women (× multiplier) |
|---|---|---|
| 14-17 | ×1.205 | ×1.193 |
| 18-23 | ×1.012 | ×0.993 |
| 24-34 | ×1.0 | ×1.0 |
| 35-39 | ×1.042 | ×1.064 |
| 40-44 | ×1.074 | ×1.095 |
| 45-49 | ×1.109 | ×1.129 |
| 50-54 | ×1.154 | ×1.182 |
| 55-59 | ×1.194 | ×1.234 |
| 60-64 | ×1.267 | ×1.326 |
| 65-69 | ×1.344 | ×1.396 |
| 70-79 | ×1.493 | ×1.566 |
FAQ
What is a good incline bench press for a 180 lb man?
Around 166 lb reaches Intermediate on the Strenf ladder; 297 lb is Elite. Thresholds scale with bodyweight — see the full table.
What is a good incline bench press for a 140 lb woman?
Around 71 lb reaches Intermediate; 155 lb is Elite. Incline Bench Press is not contested in meets, so there are no women's incline bench press competition results to grade against. Women's thresholds here are derived from women's competition results for the anchor lift and scaled by the ratio shown on this page (0.82x bench (M) / 0.82x (F) — incline ~80-85% of flat), then adjusted for bodyweight and age.
What is a good incline bench press for my age?
For a 180 lb man, an Intermediate incline bench press is about 156 lb at 40, 146 lb at 50, and 134 lb at 60. For a 140 lb woman: 66 lb at 40, 62 lb at 50, and 55 lb at 60 — based on strength-retention curves from Masters competition results.
How are these incline bench press standards calculated?
By applying a fixed ratio to a measured anchor lift: 0.82x bench (M) / 0.82x (F) — incline ~80-85% of flat. The ratio is a conventional coaching figure selected by Strenf, not a measured result. Tiers run Beginner, Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, Elite, adjusted for sex, bodyweight and age.
What is the average incline bench press by age?
There is no trustworthy general-population average for any gym lift — no such dataset exists, and sites publishing one are averaging their own users' self-reported entries. Incline Bench Press is not contested in meets, so Strenf grades it against standards modeled from lifts that are. Adjusted for age, an Intermediate incline bench press for a 180 lb man is about 156 lb at 40, 146 lb at 50 and 134 lb at 60; for a 140 lb woman, 66 lb, 62 lb and 55 lb.
Does age affect the incline bench press standard?
Yes — standards are age-adjusted using strength-retention curves derived from Masters competition results, so a 55-year-old is graded against age-appropriate expectations.