LiftGauge

Is a 225 lb deadlift good?

Short answer: it depends on bodyweight. A 225 lb (102 kg) deadlift is elite for a lighter lifter and ordinary for a heavyweight. Here's the exact percentile at every bodyweight, against gym-goers and against competitors.

· OpenPowerlifting + StrengthLevel data

225 lb deadlift for men percentile by bodyweight

Versus recreational gym-goers (StrengthLevel):

BodyweightPercentileReads as
50 kg 110 lb58thtop 50%
55 kg 121 lb49thtop 75%
60 kg 132 lb38thtop 75%
65 kg 143 lb29thtop 75%
70 kg 154 lb22thtop 90%
75 kg 165 lb17thtop 90%
80 kg 176 lb13thtop 90%
85 kg 187 lb10thbottom 10%
90 kg 198 lb6thbottom 10%
95 kg 209 lb5thbottom 10%
100 kg 220 lb5thbottom 10%
105 kg 231 lb4thbottom 10%
110 kg 243 lb4thbottom 10%
115 kg 254 lb4thbottom 10%
120 kg 265 lb4thbottom 10%
125 kg 276 lb4thbottom 10%
130 kg 287 lb4thbottom 10%
135 kg 298 lb3thbottom 10%
140 kg 309 lb3thbottom 10%

Versus raw competitors (OpenPowerlifting):

BodyweightPercentileReads as
53 kg 117 lb47thtop 75%
59 kg 130 lb10thtop 90%
66 kg 146 lb8thbottom 10%
74 kg 163 lb7thbottom 10%
83 kg 183 lb6thbottom 10%
93 kg 205 lb6thbottom 10%
105 kg 231 lb6thbottom 10%
120 kg 265 lb6thbottom 10%
140 kg+ 309 lb6thbottom 10%

225 lb deadlift for women percentile by bodyweight

Versus recreational gym-goers (StrengthLevel):

BodyweightPercentileReads as
40 kg 88 lb87thtop 25%
45 kg 99 lb83thtop 25%
50 kg 110 lb80thtop 25%
55 kg 121 lb75thtop 50%
60 kg 132 lb69thtop 50%
65 kg 143 lb65thtop 50%
70 kg 154 lb60thtop 50%
75 kg 165 lb57thtop 50%
80 kg 176 lb53thtop 50%
85 kg 187 lb50thtop 50%
90 kg 198 lb46thtop 75%
95 kg 209 lb43thtop 75%
100 kg 220 lb40thtop 75%
105 kg 231 lb37thtop 75%
110 kg 243 lb34thtop 75%
115 kg 254 lb32thtop 75%
120 kg 265 lb29thtop 75%

Versus raw competitors (OpenPowerlifting):

BodyweightPercentileReads as
43 kg 95 lb82thtop 25%
47 kg 104 lb47thtop 75%
52 kg 115 lb35thtop 75%
57 kg 126 lb23thtop 90%
63 kg 139 lb18thtop 90%
69 kg 152 lb12thtop 90%
76 kg 168 lb12thtop 90%
84 kg 185 lb10thtop 90%
120 kg+ 265 lb10thtop 90%

These are dead-stop pulls; raw competition allows both conventional and sumo stance on the same scoreboard, so the standard pools them. Dead-stop is the meet standard — touch-and-go reps use the stretch reflex off the floor and read higher than a competition pull. Vanderburgh & Batterham 1999 is why the deadlift standard climbs with bodyweight while strength-per-kilo falls (PMID 10613442).

FAQ

Is a 225 lb deadlift good?
It depends entirely on bodyweight. A 225 lb deadlift is elite for a lightweight lifter and average-to-good for a heavyweight. The tables on this page give the exact percentile at every bodyweight, against both recreational gym-goers (StrengthLevel) and competitive powerlifters (OpenPowerlifting).
225 lb deadlift — what bodyweight makes it impressive?
Read down the bodyweight column: the lighter you are, the higher the percentile a fixed 225 lb deadlift represents, because Strength scales sub-linearly with bodyweight — heavier lifters lift more in absolute terms but less per kilo of bodyweight (Vanderburgh & Batterham 1999, PMID 10613442). The same bar is a top-tier lift at one bodyweight and a working set at another.
Is the comparison against gym-goers or competitors?
Both, side by side. The recreational percentile uses StrengthLevel's self-reported logs — the right yardstick if you train at a commercial gym. The competitive percentile uses OpenPowerlifting meet data — the yardstick if you plan to compete. The same lift usually ranks higher against gym-goers than against competitors.

Competitive figures: OpenPowerlifting (public competition meet data (CC0), snapshot 2026-05-16, CC0). Recreational figures: StrengthLevel (153 million+ self-reported gym-log lifts; self-reported). Full method at /method. Check your own lift on the percentile calculator.