Barbell Plate Calculator
Enter your target weight and get an instant breakdown of which plates go on each side of the bar. No more gym math.
Tired of doing plate math in your head?
The Bench Press Builder app calculates this automatically during your rest periods — just tap the weight and see exactly which plates you need.
Download on the App StoreStandard Barbell Plates
Olympic barbells are standardized at 20 kg (44 lbs) for men and 15 kg (33 lbs) for women. The standard plate sizes used in competition and commercial gyms are 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, 2.5, and 1.25 kg (or 45, 35, 25, 10, 5, 2.5, and 1.25 lbs). Always load plates symmetrically — equal weight on both sides.
How Plate Math Works
To find out which plates to load: subtract the barbell weight from your target weight, then divide by two (for each side). Work from the heaviest plate down, using as many of each as fit. This calculator does exactly that using a greedy algorithm — heaviest plates first to minimize the number of plate changes.
Common Bench Press Loads
135 lbs
Two 45s per side
185 lbs
Two 45s + 25 per side
225 lbs
Three 45s per side
275 lbs
Three 45s + 25 per side
315 lbs
Four 45s per side
405 lbs
Five 45s per side