# Strength standards

> Your percentile and level for squat, bench, deadlift and total among tested raw powerlifting meet results, by sex and IPF weight class, with the tables.

Updated 2026-09-27. Canonical: https://povver.ai/tools/strength-standards

## The standards by class

Weight in kg where each level starts, from tested raw meet results (OpenPowerlifting, meets 2016-09-20 to 2026-09-20). Novice = 1st percentile, Intermediate = 10th, Advanced = 50th, Elite = 90th of lifters in that sex and IPF class. Under Novice is Beginner.

### Squat standards

#### Men (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 59 | 30 | 60 | 113.5 | 165 |
| 66 | 60 | 97.5 | 147.5 | 192.5 |
| 74 | 75 | 120 | 165 | 210 |
| 83 | 85 | 135 | 183.5 | 230 |
| 93 | 90 | 145 | 197.5 | 245 |
| 105 | 95 | 155 | 210 | 260 |
| 120 | 100 | 160 | 220 | 278 |
| 120+ | 92.5 | 162.5 | 231.5 | 300 |

#### Women (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47 | 25 | 45 | 75 | 105 |
| 52 | 37.5 | 60 | 90 | 120 |
| 57 | 43 | 67.5 | 100 | 130 |
| 63 | 45 | 72.5 | 105 | 137.5 |
| 69 | 50 | 77.5 | 111 | 145 |
| 76 | 50 | 80 | 115.5 | 152.5 |
| 84 | 50 | 82.5 | 120 | 160 |
| 84+ | 50 | 84 | 125 | 175 |

### Bench press standards

#### Men (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 59 | 22.5 | 40 | 75 | 111.5 |
| 66 | 41 | 65 | 97.5 | 127.5 |
| 74 | 52.5 | 80 | 110 | 140 |
| 83 | 60 | 90 | 120 | 152.5 |
| 93 | 65 | 97.5 | 130 | 162.5 |
| 105 | 67.5 | 102.5 | 140 | 175 |
| 120 | 70 | 105 | 150 | 190 |
| 120+ | 70 | 107.5 | 157.5 | 205 |

#### Women (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47 | 17.5 | 27 | 42.5 | 62.5 |
| 52 | 25 | 35 | 50 | 70 |
| 57 | 27 | 37.5 | 55 | 75 |
| 63 | 29.5 | 40 | 57.5 | 77.5 |
| 69 | 30 | 42.5 | 60 | 82.5 |
| 76 | 32 | 45 | 62.5 | 87.5 |
| 84 | 32.5 | 45 | 65 | 90 |
| 84+ | 32.5 | 47.5 | 67.5 | 95 |

### Deadlift standards

#### Men (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 59 | 50 | 84 | 143 | 200 |
| 66 | 84 | 125 | 180 | 227 |
| 74 | 102 | 147.5 | 200 | 242.5 |
| 83 | 113.5 | 165 | 215 | 260 |
| 93 | 120 | 175 | 227.5 | 275 |
| 105 | 124.5 | 182.5 | 237.5 | 285 |
| 120 | 130 | 185 | 242.5 | 300 |
| 120+ | 122.5 | 185 | 247.5 | 305 |

#### Women (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47 | 37.5 | 60 | 95 | 132.5 |
| 52 | 55 | 80 | 112.5 | 145 |
| 57 | 62.5 | 87.5 | 120 | 155 |
| 63 | 67.5 | 95 | 127.5 | 160 |
| 69 | 72.5 | 100 | 132.5 | 170 |
| 76 | 75 | 105 | 140 | 175 |
| 84 | 75 | 105 | 140 | 180 |
| 84+ | 79.5 | 110 | 145 | 185 |

### Total standards

#### Men (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 59 | 107.5 | 187.5 | 330 | 465 |
| 66 | 197.5 | 295 | 425 | 532.5 |
| 74 | 240 | 350 | 472.5 | 580 |
| 83 | 270 | 397 | 515 | 627.5 |
| 93 | 290 | 425 | 550 | 667.5 |
| 105 | 300 | 447.5 | 582.5 | 705.5 |
| 120 | 313 | 460 | 607.5 | 745 |
| 120+ | 312.5 | 462.5 | 630 | 790 |

#### Women (kg)

| Class | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47 | 84 | 132.5 | 210 | 292.5 |
| 52 | 120 | 177.5 | 250 | 330 |
| 57 | 140 | 195 | 272.5 | 350 |
| 63 | 147.5 | 210 | 287.5 | 370 |
| 69 | 161 | 223.5 | 305 | 390 |
| 76 | 165 | 235 | 317.5 | 405 |
| 84 | 165.5 | 237.5 | 323.5 | 420 |
| 84+ | 172.5 | 245 | 340 | 442.5 |

Worked example: a man at 82.5 kg (83 kg class) with a 160 kg squat is stronger than 27% of 44,172 tested raw men in that class: Intermediate, 1.94× bodyweight.

## Who you are compared with

Drug-tested lifters who competed raw (no squat suits, bench shirts or knee wraps) and placed at a meet between 20 September 2016 and 20 September 2026. That end date is the newest meet in the OpenPowerlifting data used here. Disqualified entries, guests and bodyweights outside 30–300 kg are dropped. Squat, deadlift and total come from full-power meets. Bench also counts bench-only meets.

Each lifter counts once per lift, at their heaviest result, in the IPF class of the bodyweight that day. That leaves 302,337 lifters with a full-power total and 353,001 with a bench.

Your percentile is the share of lifters in your sex and class whose best is at or below your number. Between the 1st and 99th percentiles it is interpolated.

## Why meet results

Referees pass every meet lift. Squat depth, a paused bench, a locked-out deadlift. A gym max has none of those checks, and the price is who ends up in the data:

- people who chose to compete
- lifts done on the day, often after a weight cut, so bodyweight reads low and the class can be one below the lifter's usual weight
- two men for every woman: 66.7% of full-power lifters and 68.2% of bench lifters

## The levels

Povver sets the cut points, against lifters in your sex and class:

- Beginner: under the 1st percentile
- Novice: 1st to 10th
- Intermediate: 10th to 50th
- Advanced: 50th to 90th
- Elite: 90th and above

Anyone who enters a tested meet is already past beginner, so these levels read stricter than a gym standard. Advanced means stronger than the median competitor in your class.

## From a set to a percentile

With "A set", we estimate your 1RM with Epley on reps plus reps in reserve: weight × (1 + (reps + RIR) / 30). RIR above 3 counts as 3. A single with nothing left is its own 1RM.

That estimate has error. At the same share of 1RM, the reps people manage vary by about a quarter either way (Nuzzo 2024), and lifters misjudge RIR by about a rep (Halperin 2022). We turn that spread into a likely 1RM range and show the percentile at each end. Three to failure: narrow. Ten at RIR 3: wide.

## Cross-check against published norms

van den Hoek and colleagues (2024) published 90th-percentile bodyweight multiples for tested raw lifters aged 18–35, from 809,986 competition entries. We built the same subset from this data (tested raw full-power entries, age 18–35, every year, each entry counted):

| Lift | Men, here | Men, 2024 | Women, here | Women, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squat | 2.89 | 2.83 | 2.33 | 2.26 |
| Bench | 1.90 | 1.95 | 1.34 | 1.35 |
| Deadlift | 3.30 | 3.25 | 2.73 | 2.66 |

The 2024 values are as the paper reports them. Every lift agrees within 0.07 × bodyweight.

## Data

This page uses data from the OpenPowerlifting project, https://www.openpowerlifting.org. You may download a copy of the data at https://gitlab.com/openpowerlifting/opl-data.

## In the Povver app

Povver estimates your 1RM on every lift each week from your best set: Epley on reps plus reps in reserve.

## Sources

1. OpenPowerlifting. Powerlifting meet results, data as of 2026-09-20. https://www.openpowerlifting.org
2. OpenPowerlifting data download. https://gitlab.com/openpowerlifting/opl-data
3. van den Hoek DJ, Beaumont PL, van den Hoek AK, Owen PJ, Garrett JM, Buhmann R, Latella C. Normative data for the squat, bench press and deadlift exercises in powerlifting: data from 809,986 competition entries. J Sci Med Sport. 2024;27(10):734–742. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2024.07.005
4. Nuzzo JL, Pinto MD, Nosaka K, Steele J. Maximal number of repetitions at percentages of the one repetition maximum: a meta-regression and moderator analysis of sex, age, training status, and exercise. Sports Med. 2024;54(2):303–321. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01937-7
5. Halperin I, Malleron T, Har-Nir I, et al. Accuracy in predicting repetitions to task failure in resistance exercise: a scoping review and exploratory meta-analysis. Sports Med. 2022;52:377–390. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-021-01559-x
6. Epley B. Poundage chart. Boyd Epley Workout. Lincoln, NE; 1985.