What percent of men can bench 225 lb?
Among 107,887 raw male OpenPowerlifting meet-result entries, roughly 77% record 225 lb or more after each bodyweight class is weighted by its entry count. This is a competition-entry estimate, not the percentage of all men or unique people.
The meet-result answer
OpenPowerlifting — weighted meet-result share. Across n=107,887 raw male meet-result entries, roughly 77% record 225 lb or more after each bodyweight-class share is weighted by that class's entry count. n counts entries, not unique people, and this percentage does not describe all men.
225 lb bench press by male bodyweight
OpenPowerlifting percentile by raw competition class; the weighted percentage above uses each row's meet-result n.
| Bodyweight | Percentile | Reads as |
|---|---|---|
| 53 kg 117 lb | 96th | top 4% of raw meet results |
| 59 kg 130 lb | 74th | stronger than 74% of raw meet results |
| 66 kg 146 lb | 53rd | stronger than 53% of raw meet results |
| 74 kg 163 lb | 37th | stronger than 37% of raw meet results |
| 83 kg 183 lb | 22nd | stronger than 22% of raw meet results |
| 93 kg 205 lb | 16th | stronger than 16% of raw meet results |
| 105 kg 231 lb | 12th | stronger than 12% of raw meet results |
| 120 kg 265 lb | 10th | stronger than 10% of raw meet results |
| 140 kg+ 309 lb | 10th | stronger than 10% of raw meet results |
Reference-class read
In the 83 kg class, 225 lb is 22.9 kg (50 lb) below the 125 kg (275 lb) median and lands around the 22nd percentile. That cell contains 21,716 meet results; the fixed load changes rank as bodyweight changes.
Where 225 lb stands in the field
For men, a 225 lb bench press is a top-10% lift up to the 53 kg class, at or below the field median from 66 kg up.
Weighted across 107,887 raw male meet results, roughly 77% record 225 lb or more.
Competition bench is paused on the chest; a touch-and-go rep inflates the number by 3–6% from the chest-bounce. The standards below are raw (no bench shirt). 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 most honest read of "is this good" is your percentile at your bodyweight, not the raw kilos.
FAQ
- What percent of men can bench 225 lb?
- Among 107,887 raw male OpenPowerlifting meet-result entries, roughly 77% record 225 lb or more after bodyweight-class weighting. The denominator is recorded meet-result entries, not all men or unique people.
- What population does this percentage describe?
- It describes 107,887 raw male OpenPowerlifting meet-result entries across qualifying bodyweight classes. It is not an estimate for all men, gym members, or unique people.
- Does bodyweight change the answer for 225 lb?
- Yes. A fixed 225 lb bench press ranks higher for a lighter lifter and lower for a heavier lifter. Use the tables above for the closest bodyweight, or the percentile calculator for an exact sex, age, bodyweight, and equipment comparison.
- Where does this estimate come from?
- It is calculated from 107,887 raw male OpenPowerlifting meet-result entries. Each bodyweight-class percentile is converted to a share at or above the load, then weighted by that class's entry count. n is not a unique-person count.
Figures: OpenPowerlifting (public competition meet data (CC0), dataset date 2026-05-10). Cell n is a meet-result count, not a unique-person count. Full method at /method. Check your own lift on the percentile calculator.