10 Best Smith Upright Row Alternatives for Shoulder Strength

If you can’t use the Smith-machine upright row, choose dumbbell upright rows, barbell upright rows, cable upright rows, dumbbell lateral raises, or face pulls to hit the delts. Cue: lead with your elbows, keep the torso tall, and stop at chest height to emphasize lateral deltoid activation while minimizing scapular impingement.

Original Exercise: Smith Upright Row

Smith Upright Row
Primary Muscle
Delts
Equipment
Smith-machine
Difficulty
Intermediate
Type
Compound
Secondary Muscles: Traps, Biceps
How to Perform Smith Upright Row
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, facing the smith machine.
  2. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Keep your back straight and your core engaged.
  4. Pull the barbell up towards your chin, leading with your elbows.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
  6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Ranked Smith Upright Row Alternatives

Best Match
Lever Lateral Raise

1. Lever Lateral Raise

89.1% Match
Delts Lever Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Adjust the seat height and position yourself on the machine with your back against the pad.
  2. Grasp the handles with an overhand grip and keep your arms straight.
  3. Exhale and raise your arms out to the sides until they are parallel to the floor.
  4. Pause for a moment at the top, then inhale and slowly lower your arms back to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Dumbbell Upright Row

2. Dumbbell Upright Row

88.7% Match
Delts Dumbbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand with an overhand grip.
  2. Let the dumbbells hang in front of your thighs, with your arms fully extended.
  3. Keeping your back straight and your core engaged, exhale and lift the dumbbells straight up towards your chin, leading with your elbows.
  4. Pause for a moment at the top, then inhale and slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Standing Front Barbell Raise Over Head

3. Standing Front Barbell Raise Over Head

87.9% Match
Delts Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. To begin, stand straight with a barbell in your hands. You should grip the bar with palms facing down and a closer than shoulder width grip apart from each other.
  2. Your feet should be shoulder width apart from each other. Your elbows should be slightly bent. This is the starting position.
  3. Lift the barbell up until it is directly over your head while exhaling. Make sure to keep your elbows slightly bent when performing each repetition.
  4. Once you feel the contraction, begin to lower the barbell back down to the starting position as you inhale.
  5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Standing Dumbbell Straight-Arm Front Delt Raise Above Head

4. Standing Dumbbell Straight-Arm Front Delt Raise Above Head

84.2% Match
Delts Dumbbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Hold the dumbbells in front of your thighs, palms facing your thighs.
  2. Keep your arms straight with a slight bend at the elbows but keep them locked. This will be your starting position.
  3. Raise the dumbbells in a semicircular motion to arm's length overhead as you exhale.
  4. Slowly return to the starting position using the same path as you inhale.
  5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Front Cable Raise

5. Front Cable Raise

83.7% Match
Delts Cable Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Select the weight on a low pulley machine and grasp the single hand cable attachment that is attached to the low pulley with your left hand.
  2. Face away from the pulley and put your arm straight down with the hand cable attachment in front of your thighs at arms' length with the palms of the hand facing your thighs. This will be your starting position.
  3. While maintaining the torso stationary (no swinging), lift the left arm to the front with a slight bend on the elbow and the palms of the hand always faces down. Continue to go up until you arm is slightly above parallel to the floor. Exhale as you execute this portion of the movement and pause for a second at the top.
  4. Now as you inhale lower the arm back down slowly to the starting position.
  5. Once all of the recommended amount of repetitions have been performed for this arm, switch arms and perform the exercise with the right one.
Front Dumbbell Raise

6. Front Dumbbell Raise

83.7% Match
Delts Dumbbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Pick a couple of dumbbells and stand with a straight torso and the dumbbells on front of your thighs at arms length with the palms of the hand facing your thighs. This will be your starting position.
  2. While maintaining the torso stationary (no swinging), lift the left dumbbell to the front with a slight bend on the elbow and the palms of the hands always facing down. Continue to go up until you arm is slightly above parallel to the floor. Exhale as you execute this portion of the movement and pause for a second at the top. Inhale after the second pause.
  3. Now lower the dumbbell back down slowly to the starting position as you simultaneously lift the right dumbbell.
  4. Continue alternating in this fashion until all of the recommended amount of repetitions have been performed for each arm.
Front Plate Raise

7. Front Plate Raise

83.7% Match
Delts Other Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. While standing straight, hold a barbell plate in both hands at the 3 and 9 o'clock positions. Your palms should be facing each other and your arms should be extended and locked with a slight bend at the elbows and the plate should be down near your waist in front of you as far as you can go. Tip: The arms will remain in this position throughout the exercise. This will be your starting position.
  2. Slowly raise the plate as you exhale until it is a little above shoulder level. Hold the contraction for a second. Tip: make sure that you do not swing the weight or bend at the elbows. Your torso should remain stationary throughout the movement as well.
  3. As you inhale, slowly lower the plate back down to the starting position.
  4. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Front Two-Dumbbell Raise

8. Front Two-Dumbbell Raise

83.7% Match
Delts Dumbbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Pick a couple of dumbbells and stand with a straight torso and the dumbbells on front of your thighs at arms length with the palms of the hand facing your thighs. This will be your starting position.
  2. While maintaining the torso stationary (no swinging), lift the dumbbells to the front with a slight bend on the elbow and the palms of the hands always facing down. Continue to go up until you arms are slightly above parallel to the floor. Exhale as you execute this portion of the movement and pause for a second at the top.
  3. As you inhale, lower the dumbbells back down slowly to the starting position.
  4. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Weighted Front Raise

9. Weighted Front Raise

83.7% Match
Delts Weighted Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing your thighs.
  2. Keeping your arms straight, exhale and lift the dumbbells in front of you until they are at shoulder level.
  3. Pause for a moment at the top, then inhale and slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position.
  4. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Kettlebell Pirate Supper Legs

10. Kettlebell Pirate Supper Legs

83.3% Match
Delts Kettlebell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a kettlebell in one hand.
  2. Bend your knees slightly and hinge forward at the hips, keeping your back straight.
  3. Raise the kettlebell up to shoulder height, keeping your elbow close to your body.
  4. Extend your arm fully overhead, straightening your elbow.
  5. Lower the kettlebell back down to shoulder height, then return to the starting position.

Why You Might Need a Smith Upright Row Alternative

People swap the Smith upright row for several reasons: shoulder pain during the lift, limited gym equipment, or a desire for cleaner biomechanics. The fixed bar path of the Smith can force an elevated shoulder position that increases subacromial compression for some lifters. Substitutes let you change elbow angle, range of motion, or plane of movement to load the lateral deltoid and posterior cuff while reducing impingement. For example, a dumbbell upright row lets each shoulder track naturally, and a face pull shifts emphasis to external rotators and scapular stabilizers. Use controlled tempo and stop short of full elevation to protect the rotator cuff.

How to Choose the Right Substitute

Decide based on your goal, equipment, and injury history. For pure delt mass choose heavy dumbbell or barbell upright rows with elbows leading and a compact ROM; for scapular control and posterior cuff strength pick face pulls with high repetitions and full scapular retraction. If you lack free weights, use cables to maintain constant tension and set the pulley height to control elbow flare. If you have impingement history, prioritize lateral raises or face pulls with strict technique, humerus abducted ~30 degrees and neutral rotation, to reduce subacromial contact.

Frequently Asked Questions

What muscles does Smith Upright Row work?

The Smith upright row primarily targets the lateral deltoid and upper trapezius, with secondary activation of the anterior deltoid and biceps brachii. Biomechanically it combines shoulder abduction and elevation; cue a high-elbow pull to bias the lateral deltoid while keeping scapular motion controlled.

What is the best bodyweight alternative to Smith Upright Row?

A strict pike push-up is the best bodyweight substitute to load the delts and train vertical pressing mechanics; position your hips high and drive the head toward the floor while adducting the scapula to engage the lateral and anterior deltoids. If you need more posterior shoulder work, use bodyweight face-pull progressions with a towel around a sturdy post for scapular retraction cues.

Can I build muscle without doing Smith Upright Row?

Yes. You can build shoulder mass using free-weight upright rows, lateral raises, overhead presses, and cable variations that load the delts through targeted ranges. Prioritize progressive overload, proper elbow tracking, and exercise selection that preserves scapular mechanics to maximize hypertrophy without the Smith-machine version.

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