10 Best Inverted Row With Straps Alternatives for Back Strength
The Inverted Row With Straps is done hanging. Ranked closest by our scoring: the Suspended Row, the Inverted Row and the Bodyweight Standing Row (With Towel). A harder version, the Muscle-up (On Vertical Bar), is listed below as a progression rather than a swap.
The Inverted Row With Straps leans back off a suspended handle and pulls the chest to it to work the lats. The Suspended Row is the closest swap: the same lean-back pull on the same straps under a different name. With no straps, the Inverted Row hangs from a fixed bar instead; with no bar either, the Bodyweight Standing Row (With Towel) holds a towel taut in both hands and rows from standing.
Updated Ranked by our 12-factor similarity model How it works
Original Exercise: Inverted Row With Straps
- Primary muscle
- Lats
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Type
- Compound
Secondary muscles: Biceps, Forearms
How to perform Inverted Row With Straps
- Set up a suspension trainer or straps at chest height.
- Stand facing the anchor point and grab the handles with an overhand grip.
- Walk your feet forward, leaning back until your body is at an angle.
- Keep your body straight and engage your core.
- Pull your chest towards the handles, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower yourself back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Ranked Inverted Row With Straps Alternatives
10 substitutes, ranked by how closely each one matches the Inverted Row With Straps on movement pattern, muscles worked, equipment and body position. The higher the score, the less you change. Open "How to perform this exercise" on a card for the steps; every card title links to that exercise's own alternatives page. Harder versions are tagged as progressions and kept out of the top spot even when they score higher.
Best match 1. Suspended Row
86% match- Lats
- Bodyweight
- Intermediate
- Compound
It uses the same equipment and still works the lats.
How to perform this exercise
- Set up a suspension trainer at an appropriate height.
- Stand facing the anchor point with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Hold the handles with an overhand grip, palms facing each other.
- Lean back, keeping your body straight and your heels on the ground.
- Pull your chest towards the handles, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower yourself back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: a suspension trainer, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Body position: hanging, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
2. Inverted Row
85% match- Lats
- Bodyweight
- Intermediate
- Compound
The same equipment, taken with an overhand grip.
How to perform this exercise
- Set up a bar at waist height or use a suspension trainer.
- Stand facing the bar or suspension trainer, with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Grab the bar or handles with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
- Lean back, keeping your body straight and your heels on the ground.
- Pull your chest towards the bar or handles, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower yourself back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: bodyweight only, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: hanging, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
Progression
3. Muscle-up (On Vertical Bar)
84% match- Lats
- Bodyweight
- Advanced
- Compound
Pick this when you want a harder version that still works the lats.
How to perform this exercise
- Start by hanging from a vertical bar with your palms facing away from you and your arms fully extended.
- Engage your core and pull your body up towards the bar, leading with your chest.
- As you pull yourself up, lean back slightly and bring your elbows towards your sides.
- Continue pulling until your chest reaches the bar and your elbows are fully bent.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: bodyweight only, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: hanging, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Lats
- Bodyweight
- Intermediate
- Compound
The same equipment, done standing instead.
How to perform this exercise
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold a towel in front of you with both hands.
- Bend your knees slightly and hinge forward at the hips, keeping your back straight.
- Pull the towel towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly release the tension and return to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: bodyweight only, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: standing, not hanging
5. Inverted Row On Bench
71% match- Upper Back
- Bodyweight
- Intermediate
- Compound
A looser match: it uses the same equipment, but it works the upper back rather than the lats.
How to perform this exercise
- Set up a bench at a height that allows your body to hang freely underneath it.
- Lie face up on the ground with your head towards the bench.
- Reach up and grab the bench with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
- Position your body so that your heels are on the ground and your arms are fully extended.
- Engage your core and squeeze your shoulder blades together as you pull your chest up towards the bench.
- Pause for a moment at the top of the movement, then slowly lower your body back down to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: upper back, not lats
- Equipment: bodyweight only, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: hanging, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
6. Dumbbell Bent Over Row
71% match- Lats
- Dumbbell
- Intermediate
- Compound
A good swap when you have dumbbells to work with, and it still works the lats.
How to perform this exercise
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, and hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing your body.
- Bend forward at the hips, keeping your back straight and your core engaged.
- Let your arms hang straight down towards the floor, with your elbows slightly bent.
- Pull the dumbbells up towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: free weights, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: standing, not hanging
7. Inverted Row Bent Knees
70% match- Upper Back
- Bodyweight
- Beginner
- Compound
How to perform this exercise
- Set up a bar at waist height and lie underneath it.
- Grab the bar with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
- Position your body so that your heels are on the ground and your body is straight.
- Pull your chest up towards the bar by squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your body back down to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps, and add reps before you add load.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: upper back, not lats
- Equipment: bodyweight only, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: hanging, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
8. Cable Seated Row
68% match- Lats
- Cable
- Intermediate
- Compound
How to perform this exercise
- Sit on the cable row machine with your feet flat on the footrests and your knees slightly bent.
- Grasp the handles with an overhand grip, keeping your back straight and your shoulders relaxed.
- Pull the handles towards your body, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the peak of the movement, then slowly release the handles back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: a cable, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: seated, not hanging
- Balance: easier to stay steady on than the Inverted Row With Straps
- Lats
- Bodyweight
- Beginner
- Compound
How to perform this exercise
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent.
- Bend forward at the waist, keeping your back straight and your core engaged.
- Extend your arms straight in front of you, gripping the bar or handles with a close grip.
- Pull the bar or handles towards your body, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top of the movement, then slowly release and return to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps, and add reps before you add load.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: bodyweight only, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: standing, not hanging
10. Bodyweight Standing Row
68% match- Lats
- Bodyweight
- Beginner
- Compound
How to perform this exercise
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent.
- Grasp a bar or handles with an overhand grip, palms facing down.
- Keep your back straight and core engaged.
- Pull the bar or handles towards your body, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- Pause for a moment at the top of the movement.
- Slowly release and extend your arms back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps, and add reps before you add load.
Why this matches
- Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Inverted Row With Straps
- Equipment: bodyweight only, not a suspension trainer
- Body position: standing, not hanging
Why You Might Need an Inverted Row With Straps Alternative
The Inverted Row With Straps needs a suspension trainer or straps set at chest height, often why lifters look for a substitute. Each of these is still a row, chest pulled to the hands with the shoulder blades squeezed together; what changes is the thing you pull on and whether you lean back, hinge forward or sit. The Suspended Row uses the same straps under a different name. The Inverted Row keeps the lean and swaps the straps for a bar set at waist height; the Bodyweight Standing Row (With Towel) drops the lean altogether and rows a towel held in both hands from a standing hinge. The Dumbbell Bent Over Row puts a dumbbell in each hand and rows from a forward hinge, and the Cable Seated Row keeps a steady pull from a cable stack.
How to Choose the Right Inverted Row With Straps Substitute
If a bar is free but the straps are not, the Inverted Row is the direct swap: the same lean-back pull, chest to the bar, from a bar at waist height instead of suspended handles. The Bodyweight Standing Row (With Towel) and the Bodyweight Standing Close-grip Row drop the lean, so start there if the strap is too much. The Inverted Row On Bench and the Inverted Row Bent Knees are the same lie-under-and-pull row on whatever you can get beneath: a bench underside in one, a bar at waist height in the other, so use them when there is no strap or rack. With dumbbells, the Dumbbell Bent Over Row pulls a dumbbell in each hand from a forward hinge; with a cable stack, the Cable Seated Row keeps steady tension. Walk your feet forward to make it harder.
Inverted Row With Straps FAQ
Which alternative needs no machine at all?
The Suspended Row, the Inverted Row, the Inverted Row On Bench and the Inverted Row Bent Knees all work with your bodyweight alone and something to hang under; the Bodyweight Standing Row (With Towel) needs only a towel, and the Bodyweight Standing Close-grip Row needs a bar or handles to pull on from a standing bend. The Dumbbell Bent Over Row needs dumbbells and the Cable Seated Row needs a cable stack, so skip those two to stay machine free.
Which alternative suits a beginner?
The Bodyweight Standing Close-grip Row is the gentler way in: you stand with a slight forward bend instead of leaning back on straps, so less of your bodyweight hangs from your arms as you pull the bar to your body. The Inverted Row Bent Knees is the same pull from under a bar set at waist height, so move to it once you have a bar; make either row easier by walking your feet back so you lean less.
Can I do the Inverted Row With Straps at home?
Yes, if you own a suspension trainer or a set of straps and something at chest height to anchor them to. Without straps, the Inverted Row uses a bar at waist height instead, and the Bodyweight Standing Row (With Towel) rows a towel to your chest from a standing hinge, no anchor needed.
Which alternative is the hardest step up?
The Muscle-up (On Vertical Bar) is the biggest jump: you hang from a vertical bar with nothing under your heels and pull until your chest reaches it, so treat it as a goal, not the next set. Make the row harder first by walking your feet further forward so you lean back more.
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