Training guide
A dumbbell bench press, or dumbbell press, is a bench press with a dumbbell in each hand: each arm steadies its own weight, and you can choose your grip. You'll lift about a sixth less than with a barbell at first, with similar chest work, and the gap closes with practice.
The risky moments are getting the dumbbells into place and putting them down, not the press itself. Nobody has compared chest growth with dumbbells and a barbell, and the safest ways in and out come from coaching practice rather than trials, so this guide says which is which.
It shows the whole lift step by step on the 3D figure, from your thighs to the bench and back, and covers spotting, flat, incline and neutral-grip versions, dumbbells against a barbell, how heavy to go and your shoulders, with a dumbbell chest workout to follow.
Sit on the end of a flat bench with the dumbbells on your thighs, lie back bringing them to your chest, press them up over your chest, lower them under control to the sides of your chest, and press again. At the end, bring them back to your chest and thighs and sit up. This follows the National Strength and Conditioning Association's (NSCA's) technique column and our move pages.
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Use your knees to help each dumbbell into place. If a rep fails, lower the weights to your chest and tip them out to the sides, never over your face, as our move page says. In emergency department data, weights dropping on the person were the commonest cause of weight-training injuries (65.5%) and of dumbbell injuries (78.4%). A spotter holds your wrists, not your elbows.
Two dumbbells came to about 17% less than a barbell in 12 trained men. After 10 weeks of training only with dumbbells, the gap all but closed, from 81% to 99% of the barbell. There are no validated dumbbell strength standards, so find your weight by reps.
Chest activity is similar or a little higher with dumbbells and the triceps work less, and dumbbell training carried over to the barbell. No study has compared chest growth between them, so "dumbbells build more chest" is unproven.
Flat for most. An incline of about 30 to 45 degrees shifts work towards the upper chest and front shoulder, as our incline bench press guide explains. Palms facing, or a floor press, if your shoulders complain: a sensible clinical swap that no study has tested.
3 or 4 sets of 6 to 12, stopping about 2 reps short, with 90 seconds to 2 minutes' rest, once or twice a week (our bench press guide's starting point). Reach the top of the range on every set before the next dumbbell, because each step is 1 to 2 kg a hand. Never go to failure on your own.
Lying on a flat bench with a dumbbell in each hand, you lower the weights to the sides of your chest and press them back up over it. Each arm steadies its own weight on its own path, and you can turn your palms towards your feet, angle them, or have them face each other.
Your chest, the front of your shoulders and your triceps, as in a barbell bench press. With dumbbells the biceps work more and the triceps less, and chest activity is similar or a little higher in muscle activity (EMG, electromyography) studies. The wrist stays straight under each dumbbell.
Controlled push-ups or a machine chest press (our bench press guide's ladder), a bench that doesn't wobble, and dumbbells light enough to get into place. "Dumbbell chest press" often means the same lift; without a bench, the floor press is the version to use.
Dumbbells come in fixed steps, often 1 to 2 kg a hand and bigger at the heavy end, so smaller and newer lifters may find the jump between pairs large (our incline bench press guide). How used you are to dumbbells matters most for how they compare with a barbell. Older adults gain with dumbbells too: in 65 healthy adults aged about 66, 6 weeks of training raised arm muscle and pressing strength.
From the NSCA's dumbbell bench press technique column, our dumbbell press move page, our bench press guide and the American Council on Exercise's (ACE's) wrist cue. The knee kick-up and the tip-out are coaching practice, not tested in studies.
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The movement on the figure: Dumbbell bench press
The NSCA's technique column starts seated on the lower end of the bench with the dumbbells resting on the top of your thighs, and finishes by sitting up slowly and returning the dumbbells to your thighs before standing up.
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Our dumbbell press move pages add the knee kick-up: start with the dumbbells on your knees and kick them back one at a time as you lie down. And the bail-out: when a rep fails, lower the weights to your chest, tip them out to the sides and let them go; never fight a falling dumbbell over your face. We found no professional body's source for the kick itself: it's coaching practice. Don't drop dumbbells from straight arms, as our floor press guide says.
ACE puts the spotter in a split or half-kneeling stance with their hands as close to your wrists as possible, and a strength-training textbook says spotting at the elbows is wrong because it lets the dumbbell move forwards or backwards. This is expert advice: we couldn't open an NSCA source on it.
In US emergency departments from 1990 to 2007, weights dropping on the person were the commonest cause of weight-training injuries (65.5%). Of 2,873 fitness-facility injuries in Victoria, Australia, dumbbells were named in 111, and 78.4% of those were weights falling or dropping on the person. In 15,348 more recent US cases, dropped equipment caused 12% of men's visits and 19% of women's. These are counts without exposure data: they can't show that dumbbells are riskier than a barbell.
Reported deaths from pressing involved a barbell on the neck. We found no study of dumbbells for this risk. A dumbbell can't pin you to the bench, but it can land on your face or chest if you fight a failed rep (our reading).
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In 12 trained men, people lifted 14% less with dumbbells than on a Smith machine and 17% less than with a barbell, with similar chest activity; the barbell was about 3% heavier than the Smith machine. In 11 men from the same lab, probably partly the same people, the dumbbells came to about 84% of the barbell.
After 10 weeks of chest pressing only with dumbbells, 11 trained men's dumbbell 6-rep best rose from 60.8 to 82.7 kg and their barbell best, which they hadn't trained, from 75.3 to 83.7 kg, so the dumbbells went from 81% to 99% of the barbell.
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At each lift's own maximum, chest and front-shoulder activity didn't differ in 12 trained men, while the biceps worked more with dumbbells and the triceps less. In 12 men and women, chest activity didn't differ across the barbell press, dumbbell press and dumbbell fly. In 19 trained men doing 4 sets of 10, the dumbbell press drew more chest activity and less triceps. Activity over a few reps shows effort, not growth.
In trained men pressing twice a week for 10 weeks, each group got best at the press it trained, but dumbbell training still raised the barbell bench by 11.6%. No study has compared chest growth after dumbbell and barbell pressing, so whether either builds more chest is unknown.
In 36 novice men, 10 weeks of free weights, including the dumbbell bench press, or machines gave similar gains in size and strength. In 65 older adults, 6 weeks of dumbbell training raised arm muscle and strength. Across 13 studies of 1,016 adults, free weights and machines gave similar strength and growth.
We found no study measuring whether two dumbbells go deeper than a barbell. Pressing one dumbbell rather than two gave about 7 degrees more shoulder range in 22 adults, and the authors couldn't say whether that matters. Wobbly loads lower the weight you can lift, as in a seated press in 30 trained people. Full range built more strength than partial range across 16 studies.
In 40 college football players, the same total weight as two dumbbells allowed about 9% fewer reps than as a barbell (12.5 against 13.8).
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Barbell studies put the upper chest's biggest share at about 30 degrees of incline, with the front of the shoulder taking over above 45; in the largest, the upper chest's peak at 30 degrees wasn't significantly above flat. The only dumbbell incline study, of 24 women with 4.5 kg dumbbells, found more upper-chest activity at 45 degrees than flat, though its abstract contradicts its results. ACE's incline page uses 45 to 60 degrees, steeper than these studies suggest; we keep our incline bench press guide's 30 to 45 degrees.
Clinicians and a strength textbook suggest palms-facing dumbbells for sore shoulders and elbows, as our bench press guide does ("switch to neutral-grip dumbbells or a floor press"). We found no study of a neutral-grip dumbbell press, so this is expert opinion. ACE calls the floor press a great alternative to the dumbbell bench press for people with shoulder problems.
In 12 men, a palms-up barbell grip raised upper-chest and biceps activity, and on a seated chest press machine a neutral grip drew slightly more upper-chest activity than a wide bench press in 20 adults. In a computer model of the barbell bench press, grip width and shoulder-blade position mattered more to shoulder load than elbow angle. ACE lets you keep the elbows close (more triceps) or flared (more chest); our bench press guide's 45 to 75 degrees, with forearms upright, sits between.
A decline adds little over flat and puts your head down, which some people should avoid (its move page lists who). A squeeze press, dumbbells pressed together, works the triceps more. Neither is needed as a main press (our view).
The dumbbell bench press at 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 12, stopping about 2 reps short (our bench press guide). The incline dumbbell press at 3 sets of 8 to 12, 2 or 3 short (our incline bench press guide and push day workout), and the neutral-grip press at 3 sets of 8 to 12 (our suggestion). The floor press and the squeeze press at 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12, stopping with 2 or 3 reps in reserve (their move pages' doses), and the palms-in incline press at the same dose (our suggestion). There's no 3D demo of the one-arm or alternating dumbbell press: the dumbbell bench press is the closest.
3D demoDumbbell bench pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoIncline dumbbell pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoNeutral-grip dumbbell bench pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoPalms-in incline dumbbell pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoNeutral-grip incline dumbbell pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoDumbbell floor pressIntermediate · A dumbbell
3D demoDumbbell squeeze pressBeginner · A dumbbell + A bench or boxWe found no professional guidance or tested formula for turning a barbell bench into a dumbbell weight, and online dumbbell "strength standards" have no published source. Our arithmetic from two small, possibly overlapping samples: a pair of dumbbells at about 83% of a barbell maximum, roughly 42% a hand, in men who rarely pressed dumbbells; after 10 weeks of dumbbell practice it was 99%.
Pick a pair you think you could press 10 to 12 times, do 8, and keep 2 or 3 in reserve; in your first two weeks keep 3 or 4, as our plans advise. Most people misjudge the reps they have left by about one.
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3 or 4 sets of 6 to 12, stopping about 2 reps short (our bench press guide's step), or 3 sets of 8 to 12 as a second press. Rest 90 seconds to 2 minutes, or 2 to 3 minutes for heavy sets of 6 to 8. Once or twice a week, counting towards about 10 hard chest sets a week.
Add reps first, then weight. Dumbbells jump by 1 to 2 kg a hand, a big step at light weights, so reach the top of the rep range on every set before you move up (our incline bench press guide). The American Heart Association's "2 for 2" rule adds 2 to 10% once you beat your target by 2 reps in two sessions in a row.
Stop 2 to 3 reps short of failure, so you never get stuck under the dumbbells, as our superset workout puts it. You don't need failure to grow: across 15 studies, training to failure added a trivial amount of growth at most.
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With controlled high blood pressure, the American Heart Association considers low- to moderate-intensity strength training with proper breathing safe. Breathe out as you lift, as our breathing guide advises.
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Bring them down to your chest first, then to your thighs or the floor.
Lower under control and press without a bounce.
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Stop where your shoulder feels secure, about level with your chest (our suggestion).
Keep them about 45 to 75 degrees from your sides (our bench press and incline bench press guides).
Stack your wrists over your elbows; ACE asks for a neutral wrist.
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Press up and slightly together over your chest (our suggestion).
Keep your feet flat and your bottom on the bench, as our bench press guide says.
Ask them to hold your wrists instead.
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Try palms facing, elbows about 45 degrees, a shallower bottom position or a floor press, as our bench press guide suggests. These are clinical swaps, not tested in trials.
Keep shoulder pain to about 5 out of 10 or less during the exercise, back to its usual level by your next session, as our shoulder guides advise. A sharp pinch means lower, lighter or stop.
Our shoulder pain when bench pressing guide maps the causes and has a plan back.
48% of 365 published pec tendon tears happened in weight training. In a review of 664 injuries, all in men, 63% happened in weight training, and the bench press caused 87% of those. In a surgical series of men, the bench press or a similar lift was the commonest cause (54%). No study separates dumbbell presses. Tears start at the stretched bottom of the press, so lower under control.
Push-ups to the floor at 3 sets of 8 to 15, then a chest press machine at 3 sets of 8 to 12 if you have one, then the dumbbell press, then, if you want it, the barbell bench press with safety arms: move on at 3 sets of 10 at a moderate weight with both sides moving together (our bench press guide's ladder). The floor press is the easier dumbbell step without a bench.
Band pull-aparts, 15 reps, and scapular push-ups, 10 reps, as a warm-up, then a warm-up set at about half your working weight (our bench press technique workout). Face pulls, 2 sets of 15 (the same workout), and band external rotations, 2 sets of 12 to 15 (our bench press guide's shoulder-care note), at the end. A supported single-arm dumbbell row, 3 sets of 8 to 12 each side (our dumbbell upper body workout), balances the pressing, and the doorway chest opener for 30 seconds is optional afterwards.
3D demoBand pull-apartIntermediate · A band
3D demoScapular push-up (push-up plus)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoFace pullIntermediate · A band
3D demoStanding band external rotationBeginner · A band + An anchor point
3D demoSupported single-arm dumbbell rowIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoDoorway chest openerBeginner · A wallThe dumbbell chest workout is a whole chest session with a pair of dumbbells and a bench: flat, incline and neutral-grip presses, flys and a pullover, with a row to balance it. The bench press technique, full-body dumbbell, dumbbell upper body and push day B workouts use the dumbbell press inside bigger sessions, and the chest workout at home uses the floor press if you have no bench.
A 35-minute chest session with dumbbells and an adjustable bench: flat and incline presses, a neutral-grip press, flys and a pullover, with a row to balance it.
35 minBeginner10 movesA band, A dumbbellA 30-minute practice session for the bench press: shoulder blade work, push-ups and dumbbell presses, then the empty bar with the safety arms set.
30 minBeginner7 movesA band, A dumbbellA 35-minute full-body strength workout with dumbbells: goblet squats, presses, rows, Romanian deadlifts and carries.
35 minIntermediate9 movesA band, A dumbbellChest, back, shoulders and arms with dumbbells: presses, rows, raises, reverse flyes, curls and extensions.
40 minIntermediate9 movesA dumbbell, A bench or boxPush day B: seated dumbbell press, dumbbell bench press, cable flyes, cable lateral raises, dips and skull crushers, with sets, reps and rest.
50 minIntermediate11 movesA band, A dumbbellA 30-minute chest workout at home with a pair of dumbbells or a band: push-ups, dumbbell floor presses, flys and a squeeze press, with no bench needed.
30 minBeginner8 movesA band, A dumbbellA 4-day dumbbell-only plan for home or gym: two upper and two lower days, every set, rep and rest, and how to keep progressing when the dumbbells max out.
4 training days45 minBeginner3 days a weekThree full-body home workouts a week with dumbbells or no equipment at all, plus walks and an 8-week plan to keep progressing.
3 training days35 minBeginnerIf you get chest pain or pressure, feel faint or dizzy, are unusually breathless, or your heart races or beats irregularly during exercise, as our plans advise. The American Heart Association says these need immediate medical evaluation.
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For chest pain that comes on suddenly and doesn't go away, feels tight or like squeezing, spreads to your arms, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, light-headedness or breathlessness; arm pain that comes on suddenly with pressure, heaviness or squeezing across your chest; severe difficulty breathing, or a chest that feels tight or heavy; someone who faints while exercising; palpitations that don't go away, or come with chest pain, shortness of breath or feeling faint; or a headache that starts suddenly and is extremely painful, especially while lifting or straining. The NHS says a bleed on the brain may be more likely when lifting something heavy. Don't drive yourself to A&E.
Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for a headache that's triggered or made worse by coughing, sneezing, bending down or exercising.
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Same day (NHS 111 or an urgent treatment centre): a pop or tearing at the front of the armpit or chest during a lift, a dip or a tackle, followed by bruising into the chest or upper arm, a change in the shape of the chest or armpit (a thinner or lost armpit fold, or a chest or nipple that looks uneven), or weakness pushing. Don't wait for it to settle: it can be a torn pec tendon. In the US, go to urgent care.
Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for sudden or very bad shoulder pain, an arm you can't move, a shoulder that has changed shape or is badly swollen, pins and needles that don't go away, no feeling in your arm or shoulder, an arm or shoulder that's hot or cold to touch, pain after an injury or a fall, severe pain in both shoulders, or feeling feverish or unwell. Go to A&E if, after an injury, you can't move your arm or your shoulder looks out of place or has changed shape. See a GP if shoulder pain is getting worse or hasn't improved after 2 weeks.
Call 999 or go to A&E if you heard a crack, the injured foot or hand has changed shape or points at an odd angle, it's numb, tingling or has pins and needles, or the skin has changed colour or is cold to touch, as the NHS sprains and strains page lists. A headache after a blow to the head in the last 3 months is also a 999 or A&E matter, as the NHS headaches page lists. Don't drive yourself.
Get help from NHS 111, or go to an urgent treatment centre (in the US, urgent care), if it's very painful or the pain is getting worse, there's a large amount of swelling or bruising or it's getting worse, it feels very stiff or is difficult to move, it's not feeling any better after treating it yourself, or you also have a very high temperature or feel hot, cold or shivery.
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For severe wrist pain; feeling faint, dizzy or sick from the pain; a snap, grinding or popping noise at the time of the injury; being unable to move your wrist or hold things; a wrist that has changed shape or colour; a very painful, hot or red lump; or lost feeling in your hand. In the US, use urgent care.
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See a GP if you think you have a hernia, a bulge or lump that may get bigger when you strain and smaller when you lie down. Get help from NHS 111 if you have a hernia and pain in or around it, a bloated tummy, you feel or are sick, you're vomiting blood or your vomit looks like coffee grounds, you're constipated, you have a high temperature or feel hot, cold or shivery, or you've suddenly become confused. Call 999 or go to A&E for a femoral hernia (a small lump at the top of your thigh, in your groin) with very bad tummy pain, sickness, being unable to fart or poo, a high temperature or sudden confusion.
The NHS says to avoid lying flat on your back for more than a few minutes in later pregnancy, and not to start new vigorous activity. After the first trimester, our incline bench press guide suggests swapping a flat press for an incline or standing press, at moderate weights.
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After heart surgery through the breastbone, or a heart or lung transplant, follow your surgeon's advice before pushing, pulling or lifting with your arms.
After breast cancer surgery or reconstruction, follow your surgical team's advice on when you can lift your arm above shoulder height, or push, pull or lift with it.
After a recent shoulder dislocation, or shoulder or elbow surgery, follow your surgical team's limits first.
Speak to your GP first if you haven't exercised for some time or have medical conditions or concerns, as the NHS advises. Get advice before hard or straining work if your blood pressure is uncontrolled (140/90 or higher at a clinic, or 135/85 at home), or you have heart disease or chest pain when you're active, a pacemaker or defibrillator, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, a hernia, recent eye or tummy surgery, or you're pregnant, as our breathing guide lists.
With a pacemaker or defibrillator, the American Heart Association asks you to check with your doctor before upper-body strength training, because repeated arm movements can damage or dislodge the leads.
Muscle soreness for a day or two after a new or harder session is common and fades. Sharp pain, or pain that builds during a set or lingers into the next day, isn't: swap to an easier version, and see a clinician if it persists, as our plans advise. The NHS says to stop exercising straight away if you feel any pain or become unwell, and to get help from 111 if symptoms worry you or don't go away.
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A shoulder clinic's handout says dumbbells are more likely to get away from you on an incline, while a barbell needs a spotter to lift off and rack. Neither is safe by default: learn the dumbbell bail-out, and use a spotter or the stops with a bar. Dropped weights are the commonest dumbbell injury, and the reported pressing deaths involved a bar on the neck.
Chest activity is similar or a little higher with dumbbells, but nobody has compared chest growth. Both build strength, and you get best at the one you practise.
At first, a pair came to about 83% of the barbell in trained men, roughly 42% a hand, and after 10 weeks of dumbbell training 99%. There's no fixed conversion: find your weight by reps.
Full range builds more strength, but nobody has measured whether going deeper than a barbell allows adds anything, and pec tears start at the stretched bottom of the press. Lower to about chest level, under control.
It's a sensible clinical swap that our bench press guide already gives, but no study has tested it.
Sit on the end of the bench with the dumbbells on your thighs, then lie back, using your knees to help bring them to your chest one at a time. At the end, bring them back to your chest and thighs and sit up, or lower them to the floor beside you from your chest.
Lower the dumbbells to your chest and tip them out to the sides, away from your face. Better still, stop 2 or 3 reps short of failure so it doesn't happen.
Pick a pair you think you could press 10 to 12 times, do 8, and see how many you had left: 2 or 3 is right. There are no validated dumbbell strength standards, so go by reps rather than a chart.
At first, about 17% less in total, in a study of 12 trained men. With practice the gap closes: after 10 weeks of dumbbell training it was almost gone.
Neither is better. Chest activity is similar or a little higher with dumbbells and the triceps work less, but nobody has compared chest growth. You get best at the one you practise.
Not for moderate weights you can control, if you stop short of failure. If you use one, they should hold your wrists, not your elbows.
Either. Palms facing each other (a neutral grip) keeps your elbows closer and is the usual swap for sore shoulders or elbows, though no study has tested it.
To about the level of your chest, under control, without bouncing. Full range builds more strength, but there's no evidence that going deeper than you can control adds anything.
3 or 4 sets of 6 to 12, stopping about 2 reps short, with 90 seconds to 2 minutes' rest, once or twice a week. Move up a dumbbell when every set reaches the top of the range.
Flat for most people. An incline of about 30 to 45 degrees shifts work towards the upper chest and the front of the shoulders, and our incline bench press guide covers the angle.
Yes: the dumbbell floor press, lying on the floor, stops your arms at about chest level. Our floor press guide shows how.
Try your elbows at about 45 degrees, palms facing, a shallower bottom position or a floor press, and keep the pain to about 5 out of 10. A pop or tearing at the front of the armpit or chest needs checking the same day.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. Check with a GP before starting hard training if you have a heart condition, chest pain, dizziness or breathlessness when active, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
