Trap Bar Deadlift Alternative: 8 Swaps Ranked by How Close They Get

The best trap bar deadlift alternative is the dumbbell deadlift, holding a heavy dumbbell at each side, because it's the only common swap that keeps the load beside your body with a neutral grip, which is exactly what the hex bar does. If you need more weight than your dumbbells allow, the sumo deadlift is the closest straight-bar substitute. Below are eight alternatives ranked by how faithfully each one copies the trap bar's load path and stance, with how to do each one and what you keep or lose by swapping.

Quick answer: the ranking at a glance

Rank	Alternative	Kit needed	Closest to the trap bar because
1	Dumbbell deadlift (weights at sides)	Two dumbbells	Same load path and neutral grip
2	Kettlebell deadlift (single or double)	One or two kettlebells	Load between or beside the feet, upright torso
3	Sumo deadlift	Barbell and plates	Most upright straight-bar pull
4	Landmine deadlift	Barbell and landmine	Load in front but close, arc keeps you upright
5	Belt squat	Belt squat machine or dip belt	Hips and legs loaded with almost no back demand
6	Block pull or rack pull	Barbell, blocks or rack	Copies the high-handle trap bar's short range
7	Conventional deadlift	Barbell and plates	Same muscles, more hip and back demand
8	Cable pull-through	Cable or long band	Hip hinge only, very light load

The conventional deadlift trains everything the trap bar does. It sits at seven because it changes the lift more than any other barbell option, and that's usually the change people are trying to avoid.

Why people look for a trap bar deadlift alternative

Most of the time it's access. Plenty of commercial gyms own a single hex bar, it lives in the corner with someone's chalk on it, and home gyms often skip it altogether because it takes up a lot of floor space and only does one job well. Bars vary a lot in weight too, and our guide on how much a trap bar weighs covers why they range from under 15kg to 27kg depending on the brand.

The other reason is that you want a change of stimulus. The trap bar is a hybrid of a squat and a hinge, so if you've plateaued on it, a variation that leans harder into one of those patterns can help.

It helps to know what you're trying to replace. A study of 19 powerlifters found they lifted a heavier 1RM with the hexagonal bar than the straight bar (265kg against 245kg on average) and produced more peak force, velocity and power across submaximal loads. The hex bar also lowered peak loading at the lumbar spine, hips and ankles while raising it at the knees. So any alternative trades along that line: more knee and quad, or more hip and back.

The 8 best trap bar deadlift alternatives, ranked

1. Dumbbell deadlift (weights at your sides)

Stand with your feet hip-width apart and a heavy dumbbell just outside each foot, handles parallel to your feet. Push your hips back, bend your knees until you can grip both handles with straight arms, brace, then stand up by pushing the floor away. The dumbbells travel straight up beside your legs, just as trap bar handles do.

• What it keeps: the load path, the neutral grip, the upright torso and the quad-heavy hybrid pattern. It's the most faithful swap on this list.
• What it loses: load. Most adjustable sets stop at 24kg to 40kg a side, and wobbly plates make heavy sets awkward. Fixed hex dumbbells feel more like trap bar handles.
• Sets and reps: 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 12. Use higher reps to make up for lighter weights.

Our dumbbell deadlift guide has the full setup, and if you need heavier weights at home, see our best adjustable dumbbells UK guide.

2. Kettlebell deadlift (single or double)

With one heavy kettlebell, stand over it with the handle in line with the middle of your feet, set your hips back, grab the handle with both hands and stand up. With two bells, place one beside each foot and treat it like the dumbbell version. The load stays directly under your centre of mass, which keeps your torso upright.

• What it keeps: the upright posture and the load sitting under your hips.
• What it loses: range and weight. The bell's handle sits lower than the trap bar's high handles, so taller lifters may need to stand on two plates. A single bell also caps out quickly; 32kg feels heavy for about a month.
• Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15, or pair it with swings.

See our kettlebell deadlift guide for foot position, and our best kettlebells UK roundup if you're buying a pair.

3. Sumo deadlift

Take a wide stance with your toes turned out, grip the bar inside your knees with your arms hanging straight down, push your knees out over your toes and drive the floor apart as you stand. The wide stance lets your shins stay close to vertical and your chest stay high, so it's the most trap-bar-like straight-bar pull.

• What it keeps: heavy loading, an upright torso and plenty of quad and adductor work.
• What it loses: the neutral grip and the natural stance. Some people's hips hate the wide position, and the bar still has to clear your knees.
• Sets and reps: 3 to 5 sets of 3 to 6 for strength.

Our sumo deadlift guide explains stance width.

4. Landmine deadlift

Wedge one end of a barbell into a landmine or a corner, load the other end, and straddle the sleeve so it sits between your feet. Grip the sleeve with both hands (or use a V-handle), hinge and squat down, then stand up. The bar travels in an arc towards you, which keeps the load close and lets you stay fairly upright.

• What it keeps: a close load path and a comfortable, back-friendly hybrid pattern you can load with real weight.
• What it loses: the side-by-side load. Your hands are close together in front of you, so the upper back works harder to stay set.
• Sets and reps: 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 10.

If you don't have one, a landmine attachment slots into most racks and costs far less than a trap bar.

5. Belt squat

On a belt squat machine, or with a dip belt and plates hung between your feet while you stand on two boxes, you load your hips directly. You then squat down with a fairly upright torso and stand back up. Nothing presses on your spine and nothing pulls through your hands.

• What it keeps: heavy quad and glute work, which is the "squat" half of the trap bar deadlift.
• What it loses: the hinge, the grip work and the upper back. It's a leg exercise, not a pull.
• Sets and reps: 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 15.

It's the pick if your back or grip is the reason you're swapping. See our belt squat guide.

6. Block pull or rack pull

Set a barbell on blocks, stacked plates or rack pins so it starts around mid-shin, then deadlift it with a conventional stance. Raising the start position copies the high-handle trap bar's shorter range and lets you load heavily without the hardest bit off the floor.

• What it keeps: the short range of motion and heavy loading.
• What it loses: the in-line load. The bar is still in front of you, so your hips and lower back take more strain.
• Sets and reps: 3 to 4 sets of 3 to 6.

Our rack pull guide covers pin heights.

7. Conventional deadlift

The straight-bar deadlift trains every muscle the trap bar does, but the bar in front of your shins forces more forward lean. That shifts work from the quads to the hips, hamstrings and lower back, which matches what the Swinton study found at the joints.

• What it keeps: total-body strength and the heaviest loading of any free-weight option.
• What it loses: the forgiving technique. It's harder to learn and less kind to your lower back.

If you're switching for the long term, start lighter than you think and rebuild. Our deadlift guide covers setup.

8. Cable pull-through

Face away from a low cable with a rope between your legs, hinge back, then drive your hips forward to stand. It's a pure hip hinge with no knee drive and very little load on your spine.

• What it keeps: glute and hamstring work through the hinge.
• What it loses: almost everything else, including the quads, the grip and the heavy load. Treat it as an accessory or a warm-up rather than a main lift. See our cable pull-through guide.

How to choose the right swap

Start with why you're swapping. If it's a busy gym or a missing bar, use dumbbells or kettlebells for moderate loads and the sumo or landmine deadlift once you need more weight. If it's your back, go belt squat or landmine and keep straight-bar pulls light. If you mostly trained the high handles for power, block pulls are the closest match.

Then think about what weight you actually lift. Below roughly 80kg on a trap bar, a pair of dumbbells will do almost everything the bar did. Above that, you'll need a barbell option, or you'll spend most of your time doing 20-rep sets with dumbbells that feel light.

How to programme your alternative

Swap the trap bar deadlift set for set in the same slot in your week. For strength, that's 3 to 5 sets of 3 to 6 reps on a barbell option; for dumbbells or kettlebells, raise the reps to 8 to 15 and stop one or two reps short of failure. Keep the frequency at once or twice a week, the same as most people deadlift.

A home session with only dumbbells could be: dumbbell deadlifts for 4 sets of 10, then Romanian deadlifts for 3 sets of 10, then goblet squats for 3 sets of 12. The first covers the trap bar pattern, the second picks up the hamstrings and the third adds more quad.

If grip gives out before your legs do, lifting straps fix it; see our best lifting straps UK guide. And if you keep reaching for a hex bar you don't own, it may be time to buy one. Our best trap bar UK guide compares open and closed bars, and our home gym hub covers the rest of the kit.

Recommended reads

• Trap bar deadlift: how to do it, muscles worked and benefits
• The best trap bar in the UK
• How much does a trap bar weigh?
• The best adjustable dumbbells in the UK
• The best kettlebells in the UK