Best Home Gyms

Best compact home gyms

In most cases, experts recommend home gyms with weight plates over those that employ rods or resistance bands to mimic the heft of a weight stack, especially for serious strength trainers. Home gyms with weight plates provide smoother and more consistent resistance than other gyms, and they usually offer more weight for advanced lifters. On the downside, these gyms are usually heavy and expensive.

The top-reviewed Body-Solid EXM1500S (*Est. $950) attracts numerous recommendations from owners and fitness experts. It has one 160-pound weight stack that increases in 10-pound increments and includes a variety of workout stations for chest, leg, arm and abdominal exercises. Overall, reviewers say the EXM1500S home gym is a great value. Its small footprint is another plus, as many users are able to set it up in a corner of their apartment or condo. Most importantly, reviewers say that the weights move smoothly and they can accomplish all the exercises they need. "This gym is a great buy," says one owner at Amazon.com. "It works perfectly and has practically every exercise you could hope for."

Reviewers acknowledge, however, that assembly can be a real pain. The Body-Solid EXM1500S has numerous small parts (including lots of bolts and nuts that aren't clearly labeled), so most reviewers say it takes from four to six hours to assemble this home gym. In addition, the 160-pound weight stack may not provide enough resistance for some advanced weightlifters. In addition, there's no leg press station.

Bowflex home gyms also get high marks for their compact designs, including the PR3000 (*Est. $1,000). Unlike the Body-Solid gym, the Bowflex PR3000 uses resistance bands instead of weight plates to provide up to 210 pounds of resistance. Users can perform 50 different strength exercises. Owners say the Bowflex machine doesn't have a large footprint, but you'll want to check your ceiling height (the PR3000 is 83 inches tall). The rods provide smooth resistance, according to reviews, and users appreciate that they can add additional rods to increase the total resistance to 310 pounds. "The system of pulleys that the PR3000 uses operates very smooth and provides a good range of motion while exercising," says one reviewer at Amazon.com, where the Bowflex gym has a 4.5-star rating after nearly 50 reviews.

Like the Body-Solid home gym, the Bowflex PR3000 is a challenge to assemble thanks to many small parts. "'Some assembly required' is an understatement," says one owner. In addition, some reviewers say the resistance is not consistent through the entire range of motion.

The Total Gym XLS Trainer (*Est. $800) is another compact option that not only folds for storage but also doesn't require as much assembly as most home gyms. Instead of weight plates, the XLS Trainer works against your body weight and gravity to accomplish more than 80 individual exercises. User reviews are very positive for this infomercial product, although many of the 2,000 reviews at Buzzillions.com are taken from the Total Gym website. Although some users find the cable system awkward to use, most say they can perform a wide variety of exercises. However, many say the bench is very low to the ground, which makes exercising difficult for heavy or obese users. Long-term durability is another concern. "I've had five defective gyms," says one user at Buzzillions.com. "I would love to own one if I knew it would not have a quality issue." In addition, a number of owners complain that customer service is unresponsive.

The BodyCraft Xpress Pro (*Est. $2,600) is a smaller, more compact version of BodyCraft's large home gyms for serious users. It features a single 200-pound weight stack and includes a variety of workout stations with high, mid and low pulleys and an optional leg press. The Xpress Pro is more expensive than the Total Gym or Bowflex gyms discussed above, but reviewers say it is built to last. Paul Rogers, About.com's guide to weight training, picks the BodyCraft Xpress Pro as one of the best home gyms. "[It] is at the higher end of the market for single user home gyms, but it's here because it is an excellent example in this range," he says. Rogers says the BodyCraft gym is sturdy and has a good range of exercises. A lifetime warranty is another plus. 

Best multi-station home gyms

If you're serious about strength training and need more weight than the Bowflex or Body-Solid gyms provides, the best-reviewed BodyCraft X2 Family Xpress (*Est. $4,600) is a good alternative. Although it is much more expensive, the X2 home gym accommodates multiple users with dual 200-pound weight stacks. It includes an adjustable-position cable system for dumbbell-type exercises, an abdominal crunch station, multiple pulley stations and a leg press with up to 400 pounds of resistance.

Both About.com and MadeMan.com, a men's interest site, pick the BodyCraft X2 Family Xpress as one of the best home gyms; these reviewers say the X2 is a good choice for serious users. (Note: ConsumerSearch is owned by About.com, but the two don't share an editorial affiliation.) "This one is a little more expensive, but it is a full-service home gym that incorporates fitness plans for every major muscle group imaginable," says Aric Mitchell at MadeMan.com. The only downside of note, according to reviews, is the gym's cost. Unfortunately, the BodyCraft X2 does not attract any user reviews to back up these opinions.

Another option is the Powertec Workbench Leverage Gym WB-LS (*Est. $1,000), also called the LeverGym, which is a combination between free weights and a home gym. You will need to provide your own weights with this machine, but you can lift large amounts: 500 pounds on the press, 300 pounds on the lat pull-down, 300 pounds on the triceps bar and 500 pounds on the squat bar. Reviews say this isn't the best option for a beginner, and the cost of buying your own weights will quickly add up, but if you're an avid weightlifter who finds it hard to get to the gym, this Powertec home gym can be a convenient home option. "This machine is the closest, and safest, you will get to free-weight training," says MadeMan.com.

Powertec also gets high marks for the Workbench Multi-System (*Est. $1,400), which can accommodate three users simultaneously. The gym includes 12 exercise stations, including a calf raise, shoulder press, squat and more. As with the LeverGym, you'll need to purchase weight plates separately. Paul Rogers at About.com calls the Powertec gym a "leader in its class" that is designed for serious weightlifters.