Weight lifting straps are strips of material that tether your hands to a barbell, dumbbell, or exercise machine handle.
They make holding onto weights significantly easier, allowing you to train with heavy loads without your grip becoming the limiting factor.
Several types of lifting straps are available, some of which will suit your style of training more than others.
This expert guide will help you choose which type of straps are best for you. In it, you’ll discover the best weight lifting wrist straps on the market, including the best lifting straps from Gymreapers, Pioneer, Rogue, Harbinger, and more.
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Table of Contents
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The Best Lifting Straps
- Best Lifting Straps Overall: Gymreapers Lifting Straps
- Best Heavy-Duty Lifting Straps: Pioneer Lifting Straps
- Best Leather Lifting Straps: Pioneer Leather Lifting Straps
- Best Weight Lifting Wrist Straps: Rogue Lifting Straps
- Best Budget Lifting Straps: Harbinger Lifting Straps
- Best Lifting Straps for Deadlifts: Strength Shop Lifting Straps
- Best Lifting Straps with Hooks: Harbinger Lifting Hooks
- Best Figure 8 Lifting Straps: Cerberus Figure-8 Lifting Straps
Best Lifting Straps Overall: Gymreapers Lifting Straps
These Gymreapers lifting straps were our favorite straps overall because they’re excellently made, comfortable, and affordable.
They’re made of durable, high-quality cotton, constructed using robust “box-X stitching,” measure 18 inches long, and feature a neoprene pad that prevents the cotton from digging into your skin, a detail that makes them significantly more comfortable than unpadded straps.
They also come in various colors, which will appeal to those who like to color-coordinate their training gear.
The only minor drawback is that they’re slightly shorter than other wraps on this list.
This isn’t an issue when using a regular barbell, but they may feel slightly short if you use a thick specialty bar (an axel bar, for example) or if you use straps for an exercise like the Meadows row, where you have to grip the barbell’s girthier sleeve.
Specs
- Style: Lasso
- Material: Cotton
- Length: 18 inches
- Price: $16.99
Pros
- Comfortable
- Come in a range of colors
- High-quality construction
Cons
- Slightly short
Best Heavy-Duty Lifting Straps Overall: Pioneer Heavy Duty Lifting Straps
The Pioneer Heavy-Duty lifting straps were the most durable lasso straps we tested.
As straps go, they’re simple: they don’t have the rubber “grips” or neoprene padding seen on some types of lifting straps, the branding is subtle, and they come in just one color—black. Importantly, what they lack in finesse, they make up for in performance.
They’re made from thick, strong cotton that, once wrapped around a bar, secures your hand perfectly. The loop is also fixed to the strap by box-X stitching, which ensures it won’t weaken with heavy use.
Finally, they’re 21 inches long, which makes them ideal for all kinds of pulling exercises, including heavy deadlifts, rows, and rack pulls, even if you use specialty bars thicker than regular barbells.
Their price was the only thing that kept them from taking the top spot.
At almost $34, these are expensive straps. However, you typically have to replace cheaper lifting straps every few years. Given the quality of these, I don’t know if you’ll ever have to replace them, which makes the price more justifiable.
Specs
- Style: Lasso
- Material: Cotton
- Length: 21 inches
- Price: $33.95
Pros
- Top-notch material
- Excellent construction
- Perfect length for most exercises
Cons
- Expensive
Best Leather Lifting Straps: Pioneer Leather Lifting Straps
Some weightlifters prefer leather lifting straps because, once broken in, leather tends to be more supple than cotton or nylon, making wrapping the straps around a barbell or dumbbell slightly easier.
Leather straps also feel significantly plusher than straps made of other materials, which appeals to some.
If you’re looking for leather lifting straps, Pioneer’s are excellent.
They’re made in the US from high-quality leather, feature box-X stitching, and are extra long, so they’re suitable for all kinds of strength training.
Unlike the pictures online, which have a Pioneer patch sewn onto the leather, the straps we tested had the leather Pioneer logo embossed on the strap, which added to the premium feel of the product.
The one drawback isn’t of these straps specifically, but of leather lifting straps in general. While leather is a premium material, it’s not as strong or long-lasting as heavy-duty cotton or nylon. And that means all leather straps are unsuitable for heavy deadlifts, rows, and so forth.
Specs
- Style: Lasso
- Material: Leather
- Length: 24 inches
- Price: $23.95-to-$28.95
Pros
- Top-notch material
- Robust construction
- Extra long
- Feel like a premium product
Cons
- Not as strong as heavy-duty cotton or nylon
- Require a break-in period
- Not suitable for heavy weightlifting
Best Weight Lifting Straps: Rogue Oly Lifting Straps
Unlike regular straps, Olympic lifting straps are teardrop-shaped. The design means they’re less supportive than other types of strap but allow you to drop the bar more easily, which offers two benefits to Olympic weightlifters:
- “Oly” lifts don’t have an eccentric (lowering) phase—you drop the bar once you complete the concentric (lifting) phase. As such, you need straps that help you grip the bar but also let you drop it quickly.
- Being able to drop the bar if you “miss” a lift can help you stay safe while performing explosive exercises with heavy weights.
These Rogue Olympic lifting straps are made of nylon. Nylon lends itself well to Oly lifting straps because it’s slightly less “grippy” than cotton, making it easier to dump the barbell. The material and stitching are durable, too, so they should withstand heavy use.
Another plus is that these straps are made in the US by Rogue, a company synonymous with top-tier build quality.
Specs
- Style: Closed loop
- Material: Nylon
- Length: 10 inches
- Price: $13.50
Pros
- Made from strong nylon that allows you to release the bar easily
- Made by a respected brand
Cons
- Only suitable for Olympic weightlifting
- Not as secure as regular straps
Best Budget Lifting Straps: Harbinger Padded Cotton Lifting Straps
If you’re looking for budget-friendly straps, these Harbinger lifting straps are a solid option.
They’re made from durable cotton and feature a neoprene wrist pad, which makes them comfortable to use.
They’re also 21.5 inches long, so there’s enough material to wrap the strap around the bar or dumbbell several times, allowing you to get an exceptionally strong grip on the weight.
At just under $10 per pair, they’re very well-priced, too.
There are two downsides to consider, though.
First, the cotton is stiffer than the other straps we tested, so they take time to break in. Until they become supple, expect them to chafe your skin a little.
And second, the wrist pad is only stitched to the wrap at each end, making it feel flimsy and raising questions about how long it’ll last.
Specs
- Style: Lasso
- Material: Cotton
- Length: 21.5 inches
- Price: $9.97
Pros
- Affordable
- Extra long
Cons
- Cotton is very stiff and uncomfortable at first
- Stitching on the wrist pad is poor
Best Lifting Straps for Deadlifts: Strength Shop Thor Lifting Straps
There are two ways you can go when buying lifting straps for deadlifts: extra-long straps that allow you to wrap around the bar several times, greatly increasing your grip strength, or figure-8 straps (which we’ll come on to shortly).
These Strength Shop straps fall into the first category. They’re made from heavy-duty cotton and measure 28 inches long, so they’re exceptionally secure, even when using thick barbells.
There is one caveat: While long straps like these are great for heavy barbell exercises where you have plenty of space to wrap a long piece of material, they’re less suitable for machine, dumbbell, and pull-up-type exercises.
During these exercises, you typically can’t wrap the material around the handle as comfortably, leaving you with excess strap that becomes cumbersome.
Thus, if you want to deadlift heavy weights, these straps are great. For everything else, choose a shorter strap.
Specs
- Style: Lasso
- Material: Cotton
- Length: 28 inches
- Price: $14.95
Pros
- Excellent for securing your grip on deadlifts
- Made from durable material
Cons
- Only suitable for deadlifts
Best Lifting Straps with Hooks: Harbinger Lifting Hooks
A few decades ago, lifting hooks were a staple training tool, but now that straps are cheaper and more versatile, hooks have fallen out of favor.
Nevertheless, some people still prefer the “locked-on” feeling hooks offer. For them, hooking your hands to a weight lets you forget about gripping and focus more closely on the target muscle you’re trying to train.
If you’re a fan of lifting hooks, these Harbinger hooks are great.
The neoprene inside the wrist support is comfortable, and the buckle and Velcro ensure the cuffs fit snuggly and remain in place. The 3-inch hooks are sturdy and have a non-slip coating that stops the bar or dumbbell from slipping around during sets.
They also have two size settings to accommodate different hand sizes, so they’re suitable whether you have large or small hands.
The biggest downside is that these hooks aren’t ideal for heavy lifting: they prevent you from gripping tightly, limiting how much weight you can lift and, thus, how much muscle you build. Many (myself included) also find them awkward, which is why I recommend trying straps first.
Specs
- Style: Hooks
- Material: NA
- Length: NA
- Price: $29.99
Pros
- Remove the need to grip
- May help you engage with the target muscle more easily
Cons
- Prevent you from gripping the weight tightly
- May feel awkward
- Expensive
Best Figure-8 Lifting Straps: Cerberus Elite Figure-8 Lifting Straps
Figure-8 lifting straps are ideal for heavy deadlifts or rack pulls because they secure your hands to the bar by your wrists, spreading the weight more evenly across the hand and wrist than lasso straps.
These figure-8 straps from Cerberus are about as heavy-duty as straps get. In fact, they’re rated up to 1,300 pounds, so you can be confident that they’ll stand up to even the heaviest weightlifting.
There are a couple of things to bear in mind before buying them, though.
First, although these straps will “lock” you to a bar better than most others, they’re not as versatile as lasso straps and don’t work well for dumbbell and machine exercises.
And second, these straps are meant for elite-level powerlifters and strongmen. As such, they come with a hefty price tag. If you regularly pull heavy weights, the price may be justifiable. If not, there are better options on this list.
Specs
- Style: Figure-8
- Material: Polyester
- Length: NA
- Price: $35.99
Pros
- Exceptionally strong
- Very secure
Cons
- Expensive
- Only suitable for deadlifting
The Benefits of Lifting Straps
The main benefit of using straps is that they greatly enhance your grip strength.
Being able to hold onto a weight for longer ensures you can end your sets when the muscles you’re training are sufficiently stimulated rather than when your grip falters.
Additionally, using straps reduces the odds you’ll drop a weight accidentally and allows you to think less about your grip and more about your form, which may reduce injury risk.
How We Chose the Best Lifting Straps
We compared dozens of straps and considered the following while choosing our favorites.
Material
Straps come in many materials, but cotton, nylon, and leather are typically the strongest. As such, we prioritized straps made of these materials.
Stitching
Reinforced stitching is a sign a strap is well-made. We also favored straps that used robust stitching techniques, like box-X stitching.
Comfort
Strapping heavy weights to your hands is never going to be comfortable, per se. But using straps shouldn’t be torturous, either. We only chose straps that were comfortable enough to train without distraction.
How to Choose the Best Lifting Straps for You
Style
For most people, lasso straps are ideal because they offer the best mix of comfort and security. However, if you regularly do Olympic weightlifting, closed-loop straps are more suitable. If you’re a powerlifter or strongman, figure-8 straps are more fitting.
Materials
Cotton lifting straps are ideal for most gym-goers. Nylon can be better for Olympic weightlifters since it’s less grippy than cotton, which allows you to “dump” the bar more easily.
Leather lifting straps are also viable, though they take time to soften, and they’re not as strong as other materials.
Price
Straps typically range from $10-to-$20. It’s wise to steer clear of options priced lower, as their durability might be questionable. Conversely, unless you’re seeking exceptional security, there’s likely no need to invest beyond this price range.
