Average Deadlift Weight in kg: Standards by Bodyweight and Level

The average untrained man deadlifts roughly 0.75 to 1 times his bodyweight for one rep, which works out at about 60kg to 80kg for an 80kg man. A typical untrained woman pulls about 0.5 to 0.75 times bodyweight (around 30kg to 45kg at 60kg), and both numbers climb quickly once you train the lift regularly.

Those figures come from coaching norms and large crowd-sourced lift logs rather than a controlled study, so treat them as rough bands. People who log their lifts online are mostly keen gym-goers, which nudges the "average" up compared with the general population. Below you'll find the kg standards for common bodyweights, what pushes your number up or down, and how to estimate your max without testing it.

Deadlift standards as bodyweight multiples

Strength coaches generally describe deadlift levels as multiples of bodyweight for a single rep (your one-rep max, or 1RM). These are the bands most coaches would recognise:

Level	Men (x bodyweight)	Women (x bodyweight)	Typical training age
Untrained	0.75 to 1	0.5 to 0.75	None, or first few sessions
Novice	1 to 1.25	0.75 to 1	Up to about 6 months
Intermediate	1.5 to 1.75	1.25 to 1.5	Roughly 1 to 3 years
Advanced	2 to 2.5	1.75 to 2	Several years of focused training

Elite powerlifters pull beyond 3 times bodyweight in the lighter weight classes, but that's a tiny fraction of lifters and not a useful target for most people. If you can deadlift 1.5 times your bodyweight with clean form, you're stronger than most people who train in a commercial gym.

Average deadlift weight in kg by bodyweight

Here are the same bands converted to kilograms and rounded to the nearest 5kg, so you can find your row and see where you sit.

Men

Bodyweight	Untrained	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced
60kg	45 to 60kg	60 to 75kg	90 to 105kg	120 to 150kg
70kg	55 to 70kg	70 to 90kg	105 to 125kg	140 to 175kg
80kg	60 to 80kg	80 to 100kg	120 to 140kg	160 to 200kg
90kg	70 to 90kg	90 to 115kg	135 to 160kg	180 to 225kg
100kg	75 to 100kg	100 to 125kg	150 to 175kg	200 to 250kg

Women

Bodyweight	Untrained	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced
60kg	30 to 45kg	45 to 60kg	75 to 90kg	105 to 120kg
70kg	35 to 55kg	55 to 70kg	90 to 105kg	120 to 140kg
80kg	40 to 60kg	60 to 80kg	100 to 120kg	140 to 160kg
90kg	45 to 70kg	70 to 90kg	115 to 135kg	155 to 180kg
100kg	50 to 75kg	75 to 100kg	125 to 150kg	175 to 200kg

One caveat on the heavier rows: bodyweight multiples don't scale in a straight line. A 100kg lifter will usually pull more total weight than a 60kg lifter but a lower multiple of their bodyweight, so heavier people should aim for the lower end of each band and lighter people can expect to reach the upper end.

What moves your number

Training age matters most. Someone who has followed a sensible programme for two years will out-pull a naturally sporty newcomer almost every time, regardless of genetics. The first year is where the big jumps happen.

Bodyweight comes next. More muscle mass means more force, which is why the absolute numbers in the tables climb with each bodyweight row even though the multiples shrink.

Lever lengths are the part nobody can train. Long arms shorten the distance the bar has to travel and let you start with your hips higher, so a lanky lifter with a short torso often deadlifts well relative to their squat. Short arms and a long torso do the opposite; you'll start deeper and the first few inches off the floor will feel brutal.

The style of pull changes the number too:

• Conventional. Feet hip-width, hands outside the knees. The benchmark most standards assume, and the version we break down in our deadlift form guide.
• Sumo. A wide stance with hands inside the knees cuts the range of motion and keeps the torso more upright. Some lifters pull 5 to 10 percent more sumo, others pull less; it depends on hip structure. Our sumo deadlift guide covers the setup.
• Trap bar. Handles sit at your sides, so the load lines up with your centre of mass. Most people lift noticeably more on a trap bar deadlift than a straight bar, which is why trap bar numbers shouldn't be compared with the tables above.
• Romanian and stiff-legged variations. These are accessory lifts with far lighter loads. If you're unsure how they differ, see stiff-leg deadlift vs RDL.

Kit adds a few more kilos. Lifting straps remove grip as the limiting factor, and for a lot of novices grip gives out well before the legs and back do. A lifting belt gives your abs something to brace against and typically adds a small amount to a max for people who've learned to use it. Neither is cheating in the gym, but be honest with yourself about which number you're comparing.

How to estimate your 1RM safely

You don't need to grind out a true max to know roughly where you stand. Take a recent set of 3 to 8 reps, done with good form and close to failure, and plug it into the Epley formula:

Estimated 1RM = weight x (1 + reps / 30)

So if you deadlift 100kg for 5 reps: 100 x (1 + 5/30) = 100 x 1.167, which gives an estimated 1RM of about 117kg. A 70kg set of 8 works out at around 89kg.

Keep the rep range low. Prediction equations get less accurate as reps climb, because endurance starts to matter more than strength. A 2024 study on 1RM prediction equations compared Epley and several other formulas against measured maxes and found sets in the 5 to 8 rep zone gave the closest estimates, typically within about 4 to 7 percent. That study used trained older adults on machines, so a barbell deadlift estimate for you will carry a similar or slightly wider margin. It's a guide, not a promise.

Why you shouldn't max test early

If you've been lifting for less than six months, a true 1RM test tells you very little that a 5-rep set won't. Your technique is still changing week to week, so a max attempt is where form breaks first: hips shoot up, the lower back rounds and the bar drifts away from your shins. That's the rep that hurts people.

Novices also gain strength so quickly that the number is out of date within a fortnight. The ACSM position stand on resistance training progression recommends that beginners train with moderate loads for higher reps (roughly 8 to 12) while they learn the movement, and reserve heavier, lower-rep work for when they've built a base. Estimating from a rep set gives you the information with a fraction of the risk.

When you do test a max, warm up properly, pull on a clear platform with bumper plates if you have them, and stop the attempt the moment your back position goes.

How fast novices progress

Quickly, at least at first. Because the deadlift uses so much muscle, beginners can often add 5kg a week to their working sets for the first two to three months, then 2.5kg a week for another few months. An untrained man starting at 60kg and reaching 120kg by the end of his first year is a normal outcome on a basic programme, not an exceptional one. Women typically progress at a similar rate relative to their starting point.

Things slow down once you hit the intermediate band. Adding 10kg to your max over a whole training block becomes a good result, and from there you'll need planned variation (heavier and lighter weeks, accessory work like stiff-legged deadlifts or deficit deadlifts) to keep the number moving.

If you're training at home, a barbell, some plates and thick rubber flooring are all the lift needs. Browse our home gym guides for the kit.

Recommended reads

• How to deadlift with proper form
• Trap bar deadlift guide
• Sumo deadlift: setup and technique
• How much does a barbell weigh?
• Stiff-leg deadlift vs RDL