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barbell wide-grip upright row strength standards

What is a good barbell wide-grip upright row?

For a 180 lb male, an Intermediate barbell wide-grip upright row is about 99 lb (0.55x bodyweight). Advanced starts around 129 lb. Enter your own bodyweight below to get the exact standard and FVCP rank.

Good target 99 lb Intermediate at 180 lb
Next tier 129 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 wide-grip upright row

A solid (Intermediate) barbell wide-grip upright row for a 180 lb male is about 99 lb (0.55x bodyweight). Use the calculator below to convert your own barbell wide-grip upright row into an FVCP percentile for your bodyweight. An Advanced lifter at this weight reaches 129 lb (0.72x bodyweight).

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

barbell wide-grip upright row demonstration
Estimated Standards

How strong is your barbell wide-grip upright row? Compare your 1RM against standards for 21 bodyweight categories, from Beginner to Elite.

Primary Muscles delts
Equipment barbell
Standards Coverage 21 bodyweights × 5 levels
Difficulty Intermediate
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 wide-grip upright row?

Intermediate (competition scale)
Typical FVCP: 50th percentile
A 180 lb male lifting 99 lbs (0.55x bodyweight) on the barbell wide-grip upright row 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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Share your FVCP with friends
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to track your progress over time.

Reader Data Is Still Building

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

99 lb Typical 1RM (Intermediate)
0.55x 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 wide-grip upright row?

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 22 37 56 80 106
120 27 42 63 88 115
130 31 48 69 95 123
140 35 52 75 102 132
150 39 58 82 109 139
160 43 63 87 116 147
170 47 67 92 122 154
180 51 72 99 129 162
190 54 77 103 135 169
200 58 81 109 141 175
210 62 86 114 146 182
220 66 90 119 152 188
230 69 94 124 158 194
240 73 98 129 163 199
250 76 102 133 168 205
260 80 106 137 173 211
270 83 109 142 178 216
280 86 114 146 183 222
290 90 118 150 188 226
300 92 121 154 192 232
310 96 124 158 197 237

Is Your barbell wide-grip upright row Good?

A quick read on what counts as a good barbell wide-grip upright row at each level, for a typical male and female lifter.

Men (180 lb): a good (Intermediate) barbell wide-grip upright row is about 99 lb (0.55x bodyweight). Advanced lifters hit 129 lb (0.72x), and Elite is 162 lb (0.9x).

Women (140 lb): a good (Intermediate) barbell wide-grip upright row is about 50 lb (0.36x bodyweight). Advanced lifters hit 70 lb (0.5x), and Elite is 93 lb (0.66x).

How Much Should You Be Able to barbell wide-grip upright row?

Men: a 180 lb male should lift about 99 lb at an Intermediate level (a beginner target is around 51 lb).

Women: a 140 lb female should lift about 50 lb at an Intermediate level (a beginner target is around 20 lb).

By bodyweight (men): A 150 lb lifter lifts about 82 lb, and a 220 lb lifter lifts about 119 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 97 lb, while by age 50 the Intermediate standard is about 86 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 wide-grip upright row Strength?

How barbell wide-grip upright row 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 38 58 82 112 143
20 44 66 94 127 164
25 45 67 97 131 169
30 45 67 97 131 169
35 45 67 97 131 169
40 45 67 97 131 169
45 42 64 92 124 160
50 39 60 86 116 150
55 37 56 80 107 139
60 33 51 73 99 126
65 31 46 65 89 114
70 27 41 59 80 103
75 24 37 52 71 92
80 22 33 47 64 82
85 20 29 42 57 73
90 18 27 38 52 66

What Do barbell wide-grip upright row Strength Standards Mean?

Beginner

Stronger than 5% of lifters. You are building the mind-muscle connection for the barbell wide-grip upright row, learning to initiate the pull with your back rather than your arms, and developing basic grip strength.

Novice

Stronger than 20% of lifters. You can perform the barbell wide-grip upright row with proper scapular retraction and a controlled range of motion. You are progressively overloading and building back thickness and lat width.

Intermediate

Stronger than 50% of lifters. Your barbell wide-grip upright row shows strong back engagement with minimal momentum. You use RPE to regulate pulling intensity and train strategically to balance horizontal and vertical pull volume.

Advanced

Stronger than 80% of lifters. You have built substantial back development through the barbell wide-grip upright row with refined technique and heavy loads. Your grip is no longer a limiting factor, and you manage rowing and pulling fatigue across training blocks.

Elite

Stronger than 95% of lifters. Your barbell wide-grip upright row strength is exceptional. You can handle loads that most lifters cannot move with strict form, and your back development reflects years of high-volume, periodized pulling work.

How to Progress Your barbell wide-grip upright row

Tier-specific training recommendations to move your barbell wide-grip upright row to the next level.

Beginner → Novice Building Your Foundation
  • Train the barbell wide-grip upright row 2x per week, focusing on initiating the pull from your back, not your arms.
  • Use linear progression with strict form - no swinging or excessive body English.
  • Pause briefly at peak contraction to build the mind-muscle connection.
  • Develop grip strength in parallel to avoid it becoming a bottleneck.
Track progress with the one rep max calculator →
Novice → Intermediate Structured Progression
  • Add a pull variation (different grip width, underhand, or single-arm) for balanced development.
  • Increase pulling volume to 10-15 sets per week across all back movements.
  • Program the barbell wide-grip upright row at RPE 7-8, saving RPE 9 work for top sets only.
  • Balance horizontal pulls (rows) with vertical pulls (pulldowns/pull-ups).
Plan your RPE-based sessions →
Intermediate → Advanced Periodized Training Blocks
  • Run 4-6 week blocks with progressive overload on the barbell wide-grip upright row.
  • Use RPE 8-9 for heavy sets with calculated backoff work at RPE 6-7.
  • Add controlled eccentrics and paused reps to break through plateaus.
  • Total back volume of 15-22 sets per week, distributed across pull patterns.
Program your backoff sets →
Advanced → Elite Mastery
  • Maximize the barbell wide-grip upright row through advanced intensity techniques and precise volume management.
  • Use periodized blocks with planned overreaching and supercompensation phases.
  • Refine execution: squeeze at contraction, controlled stretch, zero momentum.
  • Your back development should reflect years of disciplined, high-volume pulling.
View RPE-to-percentage chart →

How to Perform barbell wide-grip upright row

["Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold a barbell with an overhand grip, hands wider than shoulder-width apart.","Let the barbell hang in front of your thighs, arms fully extended.","Keeping your back straight, exhale and lift the barbell straight up towards your chin, leading with your elbows.","Pause for a moment at the top, then inhale and slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.","Repeat for the desired number of repetitions."]

Read the complete barbell wide-grip upright row guide on FitnessVolt →

Where Do These barbell wide-grip upright row 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 wide-grip upright row Good for Your Weight?

Use this page to compare your barbell wide-grip upright row 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 wide-grip upright row 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 wide-grip upright row 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 wide-grip upright row 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.

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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.