Best Pull Up Bar For Home Gym
Pull up bar is an essential part of your home gym setup. It is an excellent and unavoidable piece of equipment.
It will primarily help you develop your upper back as well as your core muscles. It’s also great for building your biceps. In combination with bands it can help you work your entire upper body.
The best possible option would be a bar that will let you do all exercises you can perform on it.
You would want to be able to hang freely from a bar without touching floor with your feet. You would also want to be able to grip a bar with your hands and stand on your arms on a bar with your arms straight.
However, you might be limited with the height of your ceilings and size of your room for your home gym. This is where various options come into play.
What are the different types of pull up bars?
To be able to find a perfect version for your needs there are several options for you.
Pull up bars come in various shapes and sizes. Here are 4 different types for home use:
- Pull up bar stand (or freestanding pull up bar)
- Wall mounted pull up bar
- Ceiling mounted pull up bar
- Doorway pull up bar
Pull up bar stand
When thinking about getting this piece of equipment, first thing to consider is the space. You will need to consider where it will be placed in your home.
If your home has high ceilings and you have at least 215 square feet of space for your home gym you can pick the best possible option.
Pull up bar stand is probably the best option if you have enough space in your home. It will give you the most versatility and help you do the most exercises.
It’s like having a calisthenics park in your home. You will have almost no restrictions for what exercises you can perform on it.
When you are considering a pull up bar stand, I would recommend to get as simple variant as possible. Basically, one bar on a stand. This is also the recommendation for all other different types.
If you get a multi purpose stand with option to do dips on it it will restrict what exercises you can do for your back. Also, I would avoid getting a pull up bar with various possible grips which will also limit it’s main purpose.
Basically, the simpler is better.
Pull Up Bar Stand Options
The best pull up bar stand is the one on which you can perform all pull up exercises. You will be able to hang freely without touching the ground with your feet. The higher the better.
Before going shopping, check your home ceiling height and room free space you have in your exercise room. The main limiting factors will be:
- Ceiling height
- Free space in your home gym
Ideally the bar will be 50″ wide to be able to perform archer pull ups.
Bellow are available options sorted from the highest to lowest.
Pull Up Bar Stands
Khanh Trinh Pull Up Bar Stand
Main Features:
- Hight adjustable up to 100.4″
- 39.37″ usable bar width
- 485 lbs max load
- Adjustable A frame for stability
- Foldable for storage
Pros:
- Allows you to do most pull up exercises
- People up to 6.56″ will hang freely without touching the ground
- Can be folded to store
Cons:
- Can be wobbly compared to other more professional variants
- Would be better without grips
- For archer pull ups wider bar would be better
- High price
Rugged Strength & Fitness Half Rack
Main Features:
- Bar height 88.4″
- 48.5″ usable bar width
- 1000 lbs max load
Pros:
- Allows you to do most pull up exercises
- Can be used for other exercises like squats and bench press
- Mid price
Cons:
- Can’t be folded and stored
- Depending on your ceiling height, wall mount pull up bar might be a better solution
Papababe Power Rack
Main Features:
- Bar height 86″
- 44″ usable bar width
- 400 lbs max pull up load
- 800 lbs total load (with weights)
Pros:
- Allows you to do most pull up exercises
- Can be used for other exercises like squats and bench press
- You can keep your weight plates and barbell on this rack
- Low price
Cons:
- Can’t hang freely without touching the ground
- For archer pull ups wider bar would be better
- Depending on your ceiling height, wall mount pull up bar might be a better solution
CAP Barbell Power Rack
Main Features:
- Bar hight 84″
- 42″ usable bar width
- 500 lbs max pull up load
- Price varies with color options
Pros:
- Allows you to do most pull up exercises
- Can be used for other exercises like squats and bench press
- You can keep your weight plates and barbell on this rack
- Low price
Cons:
- Can’t hang freely without touching the ground
- For archer pull ups wider bar would be better
- Depending on your ceiling height, wall mount pull up bar might be a better solution
Wall mounted pull up bar
Another great option for home use is a wall mounted pull up bar. It may be a bit limiting because it is mounted to a wall.
The closer it is to a wall the more limiting it will be. You may find some exercises can’t be done or will have to be modified on a wall mounted bar.
However there are wall mounted bars that are far enough from a wall. Those bars will let you do all pull up exercises.
Wall Mounted Pull Up Bars
Rage Fitness Wall Mounted Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- Dimensions 22″(h) x 36″(d) x 52″(w)
- 500 lbs max load
Pros:
- Allows you to do all pull up exercises
- 34″ off wall clearance
- Low price
Cons:
- Depending on available space in your home might be too space consuming
Titan Fitness Wall Mounted Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- Dimensions 31″(h) x 32″(d) x 52″(w)
- 500 lbs max load
Pros:
- Allows you to do all pull up exercises
- 30″ off wall clearance
Cons:
- High price
- Depending on available space in your home might be too space consuming
Yes4All Wall Mounted Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- Dimensions 31″(h) x 32″(d) x 50″(w)
- 500 lbs max load
Pros:
- Allows you to do all pull up exercises
- 30″ off wall clearance
- Low price
Cons:
- Depending on available space in your home might be too space consuming
Ceiling mounted pull up bar
Ceiling mounted pull up bars may be another useful option for you depending on where you can mount it inside your home. For my home this was the best possible option.
Unfortunately it also comes with limitations. You have limited space above the bar. So, high pull ups, muscle ups and bar dips are out of the question depending on your ceiling height.
Ceiling Mounted Pull Up Bars
Stud Bar Ceiling Mounted Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- 3 options for 8, 9 and 10 foot ceilings
- 48″ bar width
- 600 lbs max load
Pros:
- Allows you to do some pull up exercises (depending on your ceiling height)
- Handles heavy load
Cons:
- 8 foot ceiling option allows for max 12.5″ clearance from ceiling which is not optimal
- Higher price
Ultimate Body Press Ceiling Mounted Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- 2 options for 8 and 9 foot ceilings
- 48″ bar width
- 450 lbs max load
Pros:
- Allows you to do some pull up exercises (depending on your ceiling height)
- Lower price
Cons:
- 8 foot ceiling option allows for max 12.5″ clearance from ceiling which is not optimal
Doorway pull up bar
Doorway bars comes in two different variants:
- Friction mounted bar
- Leverage mounted bar
I’m not a fan of either of those options. However, if I must choose I would have to go with friction mounted version.
Friction mounted bars can be mounted at any height inside a door frame. Leverage bars on the other hand can be mounted only at the top of a door frame. It’s because they need to sit on a door frame as leverage to your own weight.
So, friction mounted doorway bars can be used as low bars for inverted rows, while leverage bars can’t.
I would choose any other option available instead of leverage doorway bar.
Do pull up bars mess up door frames?
Regardless of the variant both friction and leverage mounted bars will mess up your door frame.
As a first option I used a friction mounted doorway bar and it caused damage to my door frame. Recently we had renovated our flat.
To avoid ruining my new door frames, I will no longer use this bar.
Doorway Pull Up Bars
Innstar Doorway Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- Suitable for door widths 29.5″ – 37.4″
- 880 lbs max load
Pros:
- Highest load capacity
Cons:
- Smallest range of door widths
- Highest price
Hogimcty Doorway Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- Suitable for door widths 28″ – 42.7″
- 440 lbs max load
Pros:
- Widest range of door widths
- Lower price
Cons:
- Low load capacity
Aoyar Doorway Pull Up Bar
Main Features:
- Suitable for door widths 29″ – 39.5″
- 440 lbs max load
Pros:
- Lowest price
Cons:
- Low load capacity
Do pull up bars build muscle?
The shortest answer – Yes. If you do pull ups and chin ups, pull up bars can build some serious muscle. Especially your back and biceps.
This is what they are primarily used for. If you want a V-shaped body, pull up bar is a great choice for you.
What muscles do pull up bars work?
If you use pull up bar to do pull ups and chin ups you will mostly work the following muscles:
- Lats
- Teres Major
- Rear Delts
- Traps
- Rhomboids
- Biceps
However, if you use resistance bands with a pull up bar there is almost no limit to what you can do. You can work your entire upper body.
What is the ideal height for pull up bar?
The ideal height for a pull up bar would be different depending on your height. It will have to be so high that you can’t touch the ground with your feet when you are hanging freely.
However in a home setup, you are limited with the height of your ceiling. Pull up bars should be mounted in a way that will give you enough room for performance.
You have to be able to at least touch the bar with your chest. Ideally, you have to be able to perform a full muscle up. In the highest position you would need to stand on your fully extended arms.
You will also want to be able to hang freely without touching ground with your feet if possible.
I have a ceiling mounted bar, so I have little room above the bar – 12.5″. This is just about enough to come close to a bar with my chest.
I’m also with my feet on the ground when I hang freely from a bar. Not ideal, but you have to compromise if you don’t have high ceilings in your home.
Is it worth getting a pull up bar?
To build a well developed upper body you need to work on your upper back. People tend to work primarily on their chest and biceps (mirror muscles).
Doing upper body exercises will help you avoid muscle imbalances and injuries. Without this piece of equipment, it will be next to impossible.
So, the answer is simple. Pull up bar is an essential calisthenics piece of equipment. No home gym should be without it.
Your workouts will be missing some of the most important exercises without it.
I can’t imagine my home gym setup without a pull up bar. It’s one of the most important pieces of equipment I have. I use it constantly.
