Deadlift Standards: What’s a Good Deadlift for Your Age and Bodyweight?

Last updated: October 2026

A good deadlift depends almost entirely on your bodyweight, not the raw number on the bar. A 150-pound lifter pulling 300 pounds is hitting the exact same relative standard as a 200-pound lifter pulling 400 pounds. That context is what makes flat-number comparisons useless — and why serious strength coaches use bodyweight multipliers instead.

Below you’ll find deadlift standards for men and women across five experience levels, sorted by bodyweight. They use the same bodyweight multipliers as our strength ratio calculator (based on Strength Level’s database of logged lifts). Treat them as practical benchmarks rather than precise population statistics.

Deadlift Standards at a Glance

The fastest way to gauge your deadlift is to divide your 1RM by your bodyweight. Here’s what each multiplier means:

Level	Men (× bodyweight)	Women (× bodyweight)
Beginner	1.0×	0.5×
Novice	1.5×	1.0×
Intermediate	2.0×	1.25×
Advanced	2.5×	1.75×
Elite	3.0×	2.5×

Level definitions:

• Beginner: Under 6 months of consistent training. Still ingraining the movement pattern.
• Novice: 6 months to 2 years. Solid technique, adding weight regularly with linear progression.
• Intermediate: 2–4 years. Progress has slowed and requires structured weekly programming.
• Advanced: 4+ years of dedicated training. Approaching genetic ceiling.
• Elite: Competitive-level strength.

Men’s Deadlift Standards by Bodyweight

These numbers assume a conventional or sumo deadlift from the floor with a lockout — no straps, no hitching. All figures are one-rep max (1RM).

Bodyweight	Beginner	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced	Elite
130 lbs	145 lbs	215 lbs	290 lbs	360 lbs	430 lbs
150 lbs	160 lbs	235 lbs	315 lbs	395 lbs	475 lbs
170 lbs	170 lbs	260 lbs	345 lbs	430 lbs	515 lbs
190 lbs	185 lbs	280 lbs	370 lbs	465 lbs	555 lbs
210 lbs	200 lbs	295 lbs	395 lbs	495 lbs	595 lbs
230 lbs	210 lbs	315 lbs	420 lbs	525 lbs	630 lbs
250 lbs	225 lbs	335 lbs	445 lbs	555 lbs	670 lbs

The intermediate column — roughly a 2× bodyweight deadlift, slightly less for heavier lifters and slightly more for lighter ones, matching our strength ratio calculator — is the standard most serious gym-goers are working toward. A 190-pound man hitting 370 pounds has cleared it. Most trained men who haven’t specifically focused on the deadlift tend to sit somewhere in the novice range.

Women’s Deadlift Standards by Bodyweight

Women’s absolute numbers are lower, but the progression curve is identical. Hitting 1.25× bodyweight as an intermediate woman is a genuine achievement that puts you well above the recreational average.

Bodyweight	Beginner	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced	Elite
100 lbs	55 lbs	110 lbs	135 lbs	190 lbs	275 lbs
115 lbs	60 lbs	120 lbs	150 lbs	210 lbs	300 lbs
130 lbs	65 lbs	130 lbs	165 lbs	230 lbs	325 lbs
150 lbs	70 lbs	145 lbs	180 lbs	250 lbs	360 lbs
165 lbs	75 lbs	155 lbs	190 lbs	270 lbs	385 lbs
185 lbs	85 lbs	165 lbs	205 lbs	290 lbs	415 lbs

Deadlift Standards by Age

Strength peaks in your late 20s to mid-30s. The standards above assume you’re between 18 and 35. After that, peak force production declines — but trained older lifters often outperform untrained younger ones because the skill and structural adaptation from years of training compounds.

Age Range	Approximate Adjustment
18–35	Baseline — no adjustment needed
36–45	~95% of peak
46–55	~85% of peak
56–65	~75% of peak
65+	~65% of peak

Example: a 52-year-old man at 190 lbs should target 85% × 370 = 315 lbs for intermediate. That’s not a concession — maintaining a 323-pound deadlift at 52 is a serious achievement. Competing in masters divisions, you’d stack up very well.

Why the Deadlift Is the Best Strength Test

Every other major lift has a significant learning curve that can mask true strength. The squat requires mobility and positional awareness. The bench press has a technique component that changes how much weight moves. The deadlift is different — everyone can pick a bar off the floor on their first attempt, which makes the numbers easier to compare across people.

It also trains more muscle at once than almost any other lift. Hamstrings, glutes, erector spinae, traps, lats, and grip all contribute meaningfully to a max deadlift. That breadth is why it’s one of the most useful single-number proxies for total-body strength.

Common Sticking Points

Below the knee: Usually hamstring weakness. The bar breaks off the floor but stalls before the knee. Romanian deadlifts and stiff-leg variations directly target this range.

At the knee: Often a positioning issue — the bar drifts away from the legs as it passes the knee, increasing the moment arm and multiplying the load. Keep the bar dragging your shins the whole way up.

Lockout: Hip extension is the limiting factor here. Heavy hip thrusts and rack pulls from just above the knee will train this specifically without the fatigue of a full-range pull.

How to Progress to the Next Standard

At beginner and novice, add weight every session. Linear progression — 3 sets of 5 with 10 pounds added each session — works until it doesn’t. Most people can run this for 3 to 6 months before stalling.

At intermediate, weekly progress replaces session-to-session gains. You need a program that periodizes volume and intensity — 5/3/1, Texas Method, or a dedicated powerlifting template. Contrary to popular belief, research suggests the deadlift doesn’t take longer to recover from than the squat or bench press [1], but many intermediates still do well pulling heavy once per week and doing speed or volume work on a second session.

The single highest-return change for most intermediates isn’t programming — it’s pulling more consistently. Missing sessions slows deadlift progress faster than any programming mistake.

Sources: [1] Belcher DJ, et al. Time course of recovery is similar for the back squat, bench press, and deadlift in well-trained males. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2019.