Barbell load chart
Every total a standard bar can be loaded to, with the exact plates that make it on one side. Pick your bar, pick a range, and read the row. No arithmetic mid-session.
Working towards a specific number instead of browsing? The plate calculator solves a single target and tells you what to add or remove.
An estimate from a published formula, not a measurement. Use it as a consistent yardstick for tracking change.
Loadable totals
Rows step by the smallest jump the plates allow: 2.5 kg in metric, 5 lb in pounds. Anything between two rows cannot be loaded without micro plates.
| Total on the bar | Per side | Plates on each side |
|---|---|---|
| 95 kg | 37.5 kg | 25 + 10 + 2.5 |
| 97.5 kg | 38.8 kg | 25 + 10 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 100 kg | 40 kg | 25 + 15 |
| 102.5 kg | 41.3 kg | 25 + 15 + 1.25 |
| 105 kg | 42.5 kg | 25 + 15 + 2.5 |
| 107.5 kg | 43.8 kg | 25 + 15 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 110 kg | 45 kg | 25 + 20 |
| 112.5 kg | 46.3 kg | 25 + 20 + 1.25 |
| 115 kg | 47.5 kg | 25 + 20 + 2.5 |
| 117.5 kg | 48.8 kg | 25 + 20 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 120 kg | 50 kg | 2 x 25 |
| 122.5 kg | 51.3 kg | 2 x 25 + 1.25 |
| 125 kg | 52.5 kg | 2 x 25 + 2.5 |
| 127.5 kg | 53.8 kg | 2 x 25 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 130 kg | 55 kg | 2 x 25 + 5 |
| 132.5 kg | 56.3 kg | 2 x 25 + 5 + 1.25 |
| 135 kg | 57.5 kg | 2 x 25 + 5 + 2.5 |
| 137.5 kg | 58.8 kg | 2 x 25 + 5 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 140 kg | 60 kg | 2 x 25 + 10 |
| 142.5 kg | 61.3 kg | 2 x 25 + 10 + 1.25 |
| 145 kg | 62.5 kg | 2 x 25 + 10 + 2.5 |
| 147.5 kg | 63.8 kg | 2 x 25 + 10 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 150 kg | 65 kg | 2 x 25 + 15 |
| 152.5 kg | 66.3 kg | 2 x 25 + 15 + 1.25 |
| 155 kg | 67.5 kg | 2 x 25 + 15 + 2.5 |
| 157.5 kg | 68.8 kg | 2 x 25 + 15 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 160 kg | 70 kg | 2 x 25 + 20 |
| 162.5 kg | 71.3 kg | 2 x 25 + 20 + 1.25 |
| 165 kg | 72.5 kg | 2 x 25 + 20 + 2.5 |
| 167.5 kg | 73.8 kg | 2 x 25 + 20 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 170 kg | 75 kg | 3 x 25 |
| 172.5 kg | 76.3 kg | 3 x 25 + 1.25 |
| 175 kg | 77.5 kg | 3 x 25 + 2.5 |
| 177.5 kg | 78.8 kg | 3 x 25 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 180 kg | 80 kg | 3 x 25 + 5 |
| 182.5 kg | 81.3 kg | 3 x 25 + 5 + 1.25 |
| 185 kg | 82.5 kg | 3 x 25 + 5 + 2.5 |
| 187.5 kg | 83.8 kg | 3 x 25 + 5 + 2.5 + 1.25 |
| 190 kg | 85 kg | 3 x 25 + 10 |
| 192.5 kg | 86.3 kg | 3 x 25 + 10 + 1.25 |
| 195 kg | 87.5 kg | 3 x 25 + 10 + 2.5 |
The arithmetic, if you want to do it yourself
Subtract the bar, then halve what is left. A 100 kg total on a 20 kg bar is 80 kg of plates, so 40 kg on each side. Everything in the table above is that one operation, done for every loadable total so you do not have to do it while a rest timer is running.
The reason it feels harder than it is: you are halving under fatigue, in a noisy room, and the answer has to come out in plates you actually own.
What "two plates" means
In a pound gym, plates are counted in 45s per side. One plate is 135 lb, two plates is 225 lb, three plates is 315 lb, four is 405. The bar is assumed and never mentioned.
In a kilo gym the same shorthand uses 20 kg plates: one plate is 60 kg, two is 100 kg, three is 140 kg. The numbers are not equivalent, which is why a lifter who trained in kilos and moved to pounds suddenly finds "three plates" harder than they remembered.
Which plates the chart assumes
- Kilo gyms: 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, 2.5 and 1.25 kg. The smallest pair moves the bar 2.5 kg.
- Pound gyms: 45, 35, 25, 10, 5 and 2.5 lb. The smallest pair moves the bar 5 lb.
- Bars: 20 kg and 45 lb are the standard mens bars, 15 kg and 35 lb the standard womens bars. Trap bars, safety squat bars and axles all differ, so weigh yours once and remember it.
If your gym stocks fractional plates (0.5 kg or 1 lb), you can land between the rows. That is the point of them: on a press, a 1 kg jump is a real month of progress.
Loading order matters more than it sounds
Largest plate innermost, then down in size outwards, collars on. Mixed order is not just untidy: a 10 kg plate sitting inside a 25 kg plate lets the stack flex, and on a heavy squat that flex is felt as the bar settling unevenly out of the rack.
Questions people ask
Does the chart include the bar in the total?
Yes. The "Total on the bar" column is what you would call the lift, bar included. The "Per side" column is plates only, which is what you physically load.
Why does the pound chart jump by 5 lb and not 2.5?
Because plates come in pairs. The smallest common pound plate is 2.5 lb, and you need one on each side, so the total moves in 5 lb steps. Gyms with 1.25 lb or 1 lb plates can go finer.
My bar is not on the list. What do I do?
Weigh it, then subtract its weight and halve the remainder yourself, or use the plate calculator, which lets you set any bar weight. Specialty bars vary widely: safety squat bars run from 25 kg to over 30 kg and are almost never labelled.
Should I count the collars?
Competition collars are 2.5 kg each and are counted in the total at a meet. Training spring clips weigh almost nothing and are usually ignored. If you use heavy collars, add 5 kg to every row.
Related tools
The bar maths, built into the set
Mekimeki has a plate calculator inside the session view, so the number you log and the number you loaded are always the same one.
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