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Every exercise ranked by research, by lifters and by results. Find what’s S-tier for your goal, then train it.

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Explore/Climbing

Gym exercises for

Climbing

Finger strength first, pulling second, healthy shoulders always.

  • Finger and grip strength
  • Pulling strength relative to bodyweight
  • Shoulder and elbow resilience

24 exercises · Waiting for the first lifter ratings · Updates live

Climbing workout My tier list
S
Hangboard Hang
Pull-Up
A
Weighted Pull-Up
Dead Hang
Neutral-Grip Pull-Up
Towel Hang
B
Single-Arm Cable Pulldown
Cable External Rotation
Hanging Leg Raise
Hammer Curl
Negative Pull-Up
Wrist Curl
Band Pull-Apart
Dumbbell Rotations
Incline Y-Raise
Lat Pulldown
Ab Wheel Rollout
C
Rope Climb
Face Pull
Reverse Wrist Curl
L-Sit
Push-Up
D
Seated Dumbbell Press
Deadlift
F
—

Full ranking

  1. 1S
    Hangboard Hang
    Other
    No ratings yet
    86
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  2. 2S
    Pull-Up
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    85
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  3. 3A
    Weighted Pull-Up
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    79
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  4. 4A
    Dead Hang
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    74
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  5. 5A
    Neutral-Grip Pull-Up
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    74
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  6. 6A
    Towel Hang
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    74
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  7. 7B
    Single-Arm Cable Pulldown
    Cable
    No ratings yet
    68
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  8. 8B
    Cable External Rotation
    Cable
    No ratings yet
    66
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  9. 9B
    Hanging Leg Raise
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    66
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  10. 10B
    Hammer Curl
    Dumbbell
    No ratings yet
    63
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  11. 11B
    Negative Pull-Up
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    63
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  12. 12B
    Wrist Curl
    Dumbbell
    No ratings yet
    63
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  13. 13B
    Band Pull-Apart
    Band
    No ratings yet
    59
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  14. 14B
    Dumbbell Rotations
    Dumbbell
    No ratings yet
    59
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  15. 15B
    Incline Y-Raise
    Dumbbell
    No ratings yet
    59
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  16. 16B
    Lat Pulldown
    Cable
    No ratings yet
    56
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  17. 17B
    Ab Wheel Rollout
    Other
    No ratings yet
    55
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  18. 18C
    Rope Climb
    Other
    No ratings yet
    54
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  19. 19C
    Face Pull
    Cable
    No ratings yet
    53
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  20. 20C
    Reverse Wrist Curl
    Dumbbell
    No ratings yet
    51
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  21. 21C
    L-Sit
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    49
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  22. 22C
    Push-Up
    Bodyweight
    No ratings yet
    40
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  23. 23D
    Seated Dumbbell Press
    Dumbbell
    No ratings yet
    34
    Research
    —
    Lifters
  24. 24D
    Deadlift
    Barbell
    No ratings yet
    31
    Research
    —
    Lifters

What are the best gym exercises for climbing?

Right now Hangboard Hang ranks first, with an overall score of 86 from the research rubric. It’s followed by Pull-Up and Weighted Pull-Up. The best choice for you depends on your equipment and how it feels on your joints, which is why every exercise links to alternatives.

Why it ranks: Finger strength is the clearest strength marker of climbing level. Build it gradually.

How these scores are calculated →