Find out how your squat, bench press or deadlift compares to typical strength levels for your body weight — from beginner through to elite — with exact kg targets for your next milestone.
Strength standards compare the weight you lift to your own body weight, producing a "strength ratio" (weight lifted ÷ body weight). That ratio is then matched against five broad performance bands — Beginner, Novice, Intermediate, Advanced and Elite — built from bodyweight-multiplier benchmarks widely used in strength-training reference material. For example, an 80 kg man squatting 136 kg has a ratio of 1.70×, which sits exactly at the Intermediate benchmark for men's squat.
| Level | Multiplier | Your Threshold |
|---|
The calculation behind every result on this page is simple division. Your strength ratio is the weight you lifted divided by your body weight, both measured in kilograms. That single number is then checked against the five bodyweight-multiplier bands for your sex and the lift you chose, to see which level it has reached or is progressing toward.
Multiplying an 80 kg body weight by each squat benchmark gives the exact kilograms needed to reach every level.
| Level | Multiplier | Squat (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner | 0.75× | 60.0 kg |
| Novice | 1.25× | 100.0 kg |
| Intermediate | 1.70× | 136.0 kg |
| Advanced | 2.15× | 172.0 kg |
| Elite | 2.60× | 208.0 kg |
The same approach applied to a 70 kg woman's deadlift benchmarks.
| Level | Multiplier | Deadlift (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner | 0.80× | 56.0 kg |
| Novice | 1.25× | 87.5 kg |
| Intermediate | 1.70× | 119.0 kg |
| Advanced | 2.15× | 150.5 kg |
| Elite | 2.60× | 182.0 kg |
Looking across all three lifts, deadlift multipliers are consistently the highest, squat sits in the middle, and bench press is the lowest — for men, Elite is 3.10× bodyweight for deadlift versus 2.60× for squat and just 2.00× for bench. A few practical factors explain the pattern. The deadlift starts from a dead stop on the floor, covers a shorter range of motion for most lifters than the squat, and recruits an unusually large amount of total muscle mass — the entire posterior chain (glutes, hamstrings, spinal erectors), plus grip and upper back — with a bar path and leverage that suit a wide range of body types. The squat demands more range of motion, balance and mobility under load, which tends to cap the weight moved relative to the deadlift. Bench press, in contrast, is performed lying down and relies on a comparatively small group of pressing muscles (chest, shoulders, triceps), with outcomes strongly influenced by arm length and shoulder mechanics — shorter arms are a real mechanical advantage. That smaller muscle base is a big part of why bodyweight-relative bench numbers land lowest of the three lifts for both men and women.
Bodyweight-ratio strength standards are aggregated from large-scale lifting performance datasets and widely published strength-training reference material, rather than from any single study.
What is a good squat for my body weight?
A useful benchmark is your strength ratio — squat weight divided by body weight. For men, reaching 1.25× bodyweight (Novice) is a solid early goal, while 1.70× bodyweight (Intermediate) shows well-established technique and training age — for an 80 kg man that's 100 kg and 136 kg. For women, the equivalent milestones are 0.95× and 1.30× bodyweight — for a 60 kg woman that's 57 kg and 78 kg.
Is a bodyweight bench press good?
It depends on your sex under these standards. For men, a 1.00× bodyweight bench sits just above the Novice threshold (0.95×) — about 14% of the way toward Intermediate (1.30×). For women, the same 1.00× ratio is much further along — roughly 70% of the way from Intermediate (0.84×) to Advanced (1.07×) — because the women's bench benchmarks sit proportionally lower than men's.
How long does it take to reach an intermediate deadlift?
There's no fixed timetable — it depends on training frequency, body weight, technique and individual genetics. As a general guide, many lifters training the deadlift consistently two to three times a week can move from Beginner toward Intermediate (2.05× bodyweight for men, 1.70× for women) within one to two years of focused training. Progress is usually fastest in the first year and naturally slows as you approach Advanced and Elite.
What's the difference between Novice and Intermediate strength?
The bands represent a meaningful jump in absolute weight. For men's squat, Novice starts at 1.25× bodyweight and Intermediate at 1.70× — a difference of 0.45× bodyweight, or 36 kg of extra squat for an 80 kg lifter (100 kg vs 136 kg). In practice, reaching Intermediate usually takes noticeably longer than reaching Novice, since strength gains slow as you get closer to your current training ceiling.
How is my strength ratio calculated?
Divide the weight you lifted by your body weight, with both figures in kilograms. For example, a 70 kg woman deadlifting 119 kg has a ratio of 119 ÷ 70 = 1.70×, which lands exactly on the Intermediate threshold for women's deadlift. The calculator on this page does this automatically and also shows the exact kg you'd need to lift at your body weight to reach each of the five levels.
What counts as Elite strength under these standards?
Elite is the top of the five bands and represents lifters near the top of the performance distribution for their body weight — roughly 2.60× bodyweight for men's squat, 3.10× for men's deadlift and 2.00× for men's bench; and 2.00× for women's squat, 2.60× for women's deadlift and 1.30× for women's bench. Very few recreational lifters reach this level; it typically takes years of dedicated, well-programmed training.
What if my ratio is below the Beginner threshold?
That's completely normal, especially early in training or when returning after a break — the calculator shows this as "Below Beginner" along with your percentage progress toward the Beginner benchmark. Everyone starts here. Building the habit of consistent, progressive training is what moves the ratio, not any single session.
Do these standards apply to everyone the same way?
They're population-level statistical benchmarks aggregated from large lifting datasets, not a personalised prediction. Factors such as limb length, training history, body composition and the specific exercise variation you use can shift where an individual realistically sits. Use the bands as general context for where you are and where you're heading, rather than a strict pass or fail test.
Select your sex, enter your body weight in kilograms, choose the lift (squat, bench press or deadlift), then enter the weight you lifted — ideally a true or recently tested one-rep max, or a confident working max. The calculator instantly shows your strength ratio, the level it falls into, and a table with the exact kilograms you would need to lift at your body weight to hit each of the five levels. If you don't yet know your one-rep max, our One Rep Max Calculator can estimate it from a lighter set.