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barbell clean and press strength standards

What is a good barbell clean and press?

For a 180 lb male, an Intermediate barbell clean and press is about 116 lb (0.64x bodyweight). Advanced starts around 151 lb. Enter your own bodyweight below to get the exact standard and FVCP rank.

Good target 116 lb Intermediate at 180 lb
Next tier 151 lb Advanced standard
Gym median Separate tab Self-reported, not blended
Check My Level Estimate Your 1RM Methodology
Evidence ledger No blended rankings
Primary source FitnessVolt standards model
Available views Standards
Coverage 21 bodyweights × 5 levels

Competition results, gym submissions, and reader logs stay labeled separately so the ranking source is clear.

Quick Answer barbell clean and press

A solid (Intermediate) barbell clean and press for a 180 lb male is about 116 lb (0.64x bodyweight). Use the calculator below to convert your own barbell clean and press into an FVCP percentile for your bodyweight. An Advanced lifter at this weight reaches 151 lb (0.84x bodyweight).

FitnessVolt standards, with FVCP competition rankings shown separately from gym percentiles

barbell clean and press demonstration
Estimated Standards

How strong is your barbell clean and press? Compare your 1RM against standards for 21 bodyweight categories, from Beginner to Elite.

Primary Muscles quads
Equipment barbell
Standards Coverage 21 bodyweights × 5 levels
Difficulty Advanced
Type Compound

Estimated Standards - The level table for this exercise is modeled from FitnessVolt strength ratios for a related base lift, not from direct measurements of this movement. Learn about our methodology

How Strong Is Your barbell clean and press?

Intermediate (competition scale)
Typical FVCP: 50th percentile
A 180 lb male lifting 116 lbs (0.64x bodyweight) on the barbell clean and press ranks Intermediate on the FVCP competition scale, stronger than ~50% of verified competition lifters at this bodyweight. Enter your own numbers above to see where you stand.

That clears the median for this bodyweight and gives you a useful benchmark for the next tier.

Over 40? Our calculator also reports an age-adjusted percentile and an age-30 equivalent using the McCulloch age factor, so masters lifters are compared to lifters their own age. See the age-adjusted (Masters 40+) standards below for the full breakdown.

FVCP competition ranking, shown separately from gym percentiles and reader logs
Your FVCP:
Age-adjusted percentile
lb Age-30 equivalent 1RM

FVCP competition ranking, shown separately from gym percentiles and reader logs
th percentile

Illustrative: a normal-distribution model anchored to the real Beginner to Elite percentile thresholds for your bodyweight. The marker shows where your lift falls, not a measured frequency count.

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to track your progress over time.

Reader Data Is Still Building

We do not have enough reader-submitted barbell clean and press entries yet to publish a stable crowd benchmark. Until then, this panel shows the Intermediate standards baseline only:

116 lb Typical 1RM (Intermediate)
0.64x x Bodyweight

Baseline figures for a 180 lb male at Intermediate level, from the standards table. This is not reader-submitted data. So far readers have logged a lift here.

Enter your numbers above first. We publish reader benchmarks only after a sample threshold is met.

How Much Should You barbell clean and press?

Use this table to find the standard closest to your bodyweight. The tiers are standards, not claims about reader submissions.

How a male lifter's expected 1RM scales with bodyweight at each level. Exact numbers in the table below.

BW (lbs) Beginner Novice Intermediate Advanced Elite
110 26 43 66 94 125
120 31 50 74 103 135
130 36 56 82 112 145
140 41 62 89 120 155
150 46 68 96 129 164
160 50 74 102 136 173
170 55 79 109 144 182
180 60 85 116 151 190
190 64 90 122 158 198
200 69 95 128 166 206
210 73 101 134 172 214
220 78 106 140 179 221
230 82 110 146 186 228
240 86 115 151 191 234
250 90 120 157 198 242
260 94 125 162 203 248
270 98 129 167 210 254
280 102 134 172 215 261
290 106 138 177 221 266
300 109 142 182 226 273
310 113 146 186 231 278

Is Your barbell clean and press Good?

A quick read on what counts as a good barbell clean and press at each level, for a typical male and female lifter.

Men (180 lb): a good (Intermediate) barbell clean and press is about 116 lb (0.64x bodyweight). Advanced lifters hit 151 lb (0.84x), and Elite is 190 lb (1.06x).

Women (140 lb): a good (Intermediate) barbell clean and press is about 58 lb (0.41x bodyweight). Advanced lifters hit 82 lb (0.59x), and Elite is 110 lb (0.79x).

How Much Should You Be Able to barbell clean and press?

Men: a 180 lb male should lift about 116 lb at an Intermediate level (a beginner target is around 60 lb).

Women: a 140 lb female should lift about 58 lb at an Intermediate level (a beginner target is around 23 lb).

By bodyweight (men): A 150 lb lifter lifts about 96 lb, and a 220 lb lifter lifts about 140 lb at an Intermediate level. Find your exact bodyweight in the table above.

By age (men): at an Intermediate level a 30 year old male lifts about 114 lb, while by age 50 the Intermediate standard is about 101 lb. See the By Age tab for every age band.

FitnessVolt standards, with FVCP competition rankings shown separately from gym percentiles

How Does Age Affect barbell clean and press Strength?

How barbell clean and press standards change across different age groups. Values represent a 1RM in lbs.

How a male lifter's expected 1RM changes with age at each level. Exact numbers in the table below.

Age Beginner Novice Intermediate Advanced Elite
15 45 68 97 131 169
20 51 78 110 150 193
25 53 79 114 154 198
30 53 79 114 154 198
35 53 79 114 154 198
40 53 79 114 154 198
45 50 75 108 146 188
50 46 70 101 137 176
55 43 66 94 126 163
60 39 60 86 116 149
65 36 54 77 105 134
70 32 49 70 94 121
75 29 43 62 84 108
80 26 38 55 75 97
85 23 34 50 67 86
90 21 31 45 61 78

What Do barbell clean and press Strength Standards Mean?

Beginner

Stronger than 5% of lifters. You are learning to hit proper depth on the barbell clean and press, building ankle and hip mobility, and developing the bracing pattern needed to keep your torso upright under load.

Novice

Stronger than 20% of lifters. You can execute the barbell clean and press with consistent depth and bracing. You are adding weight session to session using linear progression and building foundational leg strength.

Intermediate

Stronger than 50% of lifters. Your barbell clean and press technique is solid through heavy loads. You use periodized programming, understand RPE-based autoregulation, and can grind through sticking points without form breakdown.

Advanced

Stronger than 80% of lifters. You have refined your barbell clean and press stance, bar position, and breathing to maximize leverage. You train with block periodization, manage fatigue across training cycles, and likely compete or train at a competitive level.

Elite

Stronger than 95% of lifters. Your barbell clean and press is at a regional or national competitive standard. You have years of structured peaking cycles behind you and have optimized every technical detail from walkout to lockout.

How to Progress Your barbell clean and press

Tier-specific training recommendations to move your barbell clean and press to the next level.

Beginner → Novice Building Your Foundation
  • Train the barbell clean and press 2x per week, focusing on hitting consistent depth every rep.
  • Use linear progression: add 5 lbs each session as long as form stays solid.
  • Record sets at RPE 6-7 to build volume without excessive fatigue.
  • Prioritize ankle and hip mobility work before each session.
Track progress with the one rep max calculator →
Novice → Intermediate Structured Progression
  • Switch from linear to weekly periodization (e.g., light/medium/heavy days).
  • Add a barbell clean and press variation (pause squats, tempo squats) for weak-point work.
  • Keep most working sets at RPE 7-8, with occasional top singles at RPE 9.
  • Start tracking your training volume (sets x reps x load) week to week.
Plan your RPE-based sessions →
Intermediate → Advanced Periodized Training Blocks
  • Run 4-6 week training blocks with planned intensity peaks and deloads.
  • Use RPE 8-9 for primary sets, RPE 7 for backoff volume.
  • Address specific sticking points with targeted accessory work.
  • Manage fatigue: total weekly sets of 12-20 for the barbell clean and press movement pattern.
Program your backoff sets →
Advanced → Elite Competition-Level Peaking
  • Run structured peaking cycles (8-12 weeks) leading to maximal attempts.
  • Fine-tune technique details: walkout, descent speed, breath timing.
  • Use the RPE chart to hit precise percentages during peaking blocks.
  • Consider competing to test your barbell clean and press under meet conditions.
View RPE-to-percentage chart →

How to Perform barbell clean and press

["Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and the barbell on the floor in front of you.","Bend your knees and hinge at the hips to lower down and grip the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.","Drive through your heels and extend your hips and knees to lift the barbell off the floor, keeping it close to your body.","As the barbell reaches your thighs, explosively extend your hips, shrug your shoulders, and pull the barbell up towards your chest.","As the barbell reaches chest height, quickly drop under it and catch it at shoulder level, with your elbows pointing forward and your palms facing up.","From the catch position, press the barbell overhead by extending your arms and pushing the barbell straight up.","Lower the barbell back down to the starting position and repeat for the desired number of repetitions."]

Read the complete barbell clean and press guide on FitnessVolt →

Where Do These barbell clean and press Standards Come From?

FitnessVolt keeps each data population labeled. Competition percentiles use verified raw meet results where available. Gym percentile tabs use self-reported Symmetric Strength data. Reader-submitted benchmarks appear only after enough entries are logged for this lift.

Standards data last refreshed: March 29, 2026

Is Your barbell clean and press Good for Your Weight?

Use this page to compare your barbell clean and press against clearly labeled standards and percentile datasets. Here is the cleanest way to read it:

  1. Start with Standards to find the tier closest to your bodyweight.
  2. Use Gym Percentiles when you want self-reported gym comparisons.
  3. Use Competition for verified meet-result percentiles where the lift supports it.
  4. Use By Age when age-segmented gym data is available.

If you do not know your 1RM, use the one rep max calculator to estimate it from any rep set. For example, if you can barbell clean and press 185 lbs for 5 reps, the calculator will estimate your max.

The important rule: do not mix the tabs. Standards, gym percentiles, competition percentiles, and reader logs answer different questions.

Frequently Asked Questions

A "good" barbell clean and press depends on your bodyweight, sex, and training background. The Intermediate tier is a useful first serious target, while Advanced and Elite represent much harder standards. Use the table above for the number closest to your bodyweight.
Many lifters can reach the Intermediate tier on the barbell clean and press after steady training, but the timeline depends on starting point, technique, programming, recovery, and bodyweight changes. Treat the tier as a benchmark, not a deadline.
Yes. Competition views use verified meet-result data where available, gym percentile views use self-reported gym cohorts, and reader-submitted benchmarks are shown only after enough entries are logged. The populations are labeled separately.
For weighted lifts, enter a clean raw 1RM or an estimated 1RM from a recent hard set. For rep-based movements, enter controlled full-range reps. Avoid equipped lifts, partial reps, or bounced reps unless you are comparing against the same style every time.

Related Exercise Standards

Related Calculators

One Rep Max Calculator Estimate your one-rep max from any rep set Benchmarks Compare against competition data RPE Chart Training load percentages by RPE
Written by Tom Miller, CSCS · Reviewed by Editorial Team
Tom Miller, CSCS, is a Sr. Editor & Content Strategist with 10 years of experience in Powerlifting and Personal Training. As a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, he is dedicated to delivering informative, engaging, and reliable health and fitness content. His work has been featured on websites including the-sun.com, Well+Good, Bleacher Report, Muscle and Fitness, UpJourney, Business Insider, NewsBreak and more.