The Best Lat Pulldown Machine for a Bigger Back | 8 Ranked
Are you looking for the Best Lat Pulldown Machine? Do you love to do lat pulldowns and want to grow your back muscles? We will rank and review Amazon’s top 6 best lat pulldown machines.
We’ll discuss the benefits of doing pulldowns with a cable lat pull-down machine and how a lat machine can help you achieve your strength training and fitness goals at home or the gym.
We will also review the two different types of lat pull machines and the benefits of both. And don’t forget, with Amazon Prime, you get free shipping. with these big cable machines.
The Best Lat Pulldown Machine – 2 Types To Choose From
There are two different types of cable lat pulldown machine options that we are going to review on this list; a traditional lat pull machine and a power rack with lat pulldown option.
Let’s take a quick look at the difference between both.
The Traditional Cable Machine
A traditional lat pulldown machine is a simple and often compact piece of fitness equipment built to be used as a pulldown exercise accessory for doing back exercises such as lat pulldowns.
This typically consists of a place to sit, a lat bar and pully system for pulling down, and a place to put weights for storage and lifting.
The Power Rack With A Lat Option
A power rack is a solid piece of much larger home gym equipment, often called a squat rack or power rack. This cage-like rack allows many workouts, squats, and bench press exercises.
Many of the newer racks and lat pulldown machines can add a pulldown feature to the power rack, which is a great add-on for those wanting to add additional lat pulldowns to their workouts.
Though a bit pricier because of their overall features, this exercise system is another great option for those building a home gym.
Let’s look at the 6 Best Lat Pull Machines on Amazon, Ranked and Reviewed that should be in all home gyms.
Ranking The Best Lat Pulldown Machine
The XMart was easy for us when deciding which piece of exercise equipment we would mark as the best lat pulldown machine for traditional setups.
These heavy-duty lat pulldown machines are made of 11-gauge steel, have a 2in x 3in frame construction, and are baked in a scratch-resistant coating, ensuring the machine holds up even under the hardest of environments.
But this piece of exercise equipment is great because of its versatility and high quality.
This strength training machine has a second pulley from a low point, which makes it possible to do other exercises, such as bicep curls, bench presses, upright rows, shrugs, seated row, and more upper-body exercises. This is in addition to the numerous exercises you can do using the high bar, like the lat pull-downs, face pulls, tricep extensions, and even pull-ups.
The Xmart machine lat pulldown has a chrome-plated lat bar and a low-row bar.
No weights are included.
This standalone lat pulldown machine is your best bet for those looking for the best high-end back exercise machine.
Product Pros
Product Cons
The CB-12 is great for weight lifters who want to create their workout routine on home lat pulldown machines and don’t enjoy following prebuilt programs. This traditional lat pulldown, with its two inches wide by two-inch long steel construction, ensures you can do all lat exercises without worrying about stability or support issues.
The 12 gauge steel unit also has double stitching on two straps, made for adding in ab exercises and ensures durability.
The CB-12 can accommodate 2″ Olympic plates or bumper plates – for a snug fit with these heavier weight bars; the EX-10 Olympic Adapter Sleeve converts standard 1-inch to 2″ Olympic posts, but at a cost.
The only downside of these back machines is that the max weight capacity of this unit is 200 pounds, compared to the above unit, which is higher.
200 pounds is still a lot of weight, and the limitation might not concern some gym goers.
No weights are included.
Product Pros
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The adjustable Plated-Loaded Lat Tower is an extra space-saving strength trainer that builds your back and shoulder muscles.
This Titan Fitness high-quality cable machine combines with a low row position, making it a smart addition to any commercial or home gym for those looking to work various muscle groups in their workouts without having too much fitness equipment or taking up valuable flooring space.
With dual 13-inch loadable weight plate sleeves, you can slowly work towards higher-intensity workout routines by adding more resistance, up to 400 pounds.
This steel frame option on this basic lat pulldown machine also has the low row machines option for additional workouts and comes with the lat bar and lat pulldown low row handles.
Does not include weights.
Product Pros
Product Cons
The 4-position adjustable foam roller thigh pad fits your height and locks you in position for high pulley lat work.
The rollers will prevent body movement with resistance attached, which is perfect if you want to build upper body strength while simultaneously strengthening biceps muscles, rear delts, lats, or forearms.
The max weight capacity for this lat machine is 500 pounds, and although not as much as we have seen on some other lat pulldown machines, it is still quite a heavy load for a great workout.
Users have also noted that the weight capacity seems to be inflated in the marketing and that the real capacity is closer to 250 lbs, which would explain the lower price point.
Similar to the other models, this steel frame can be used with either standard or Olympic plate weights.
Also, this quality pulldown machine comes with both the longer overhead bar and the shorter bar, which can be used for various exercises, including the lower pulley, a nice bonus for this budget unit.
Product Pros
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With an overall weight capacity of 800 pounds, this power rack is a beast (note, the cable lat pulldown machine offers a max capacity weight of 270 pounds.
The power cage allows for various workout options, but adding the pulldown attachment takes the Fitness Reality Power Rack to the next level.
The pulley system offers high and low positions, allowing various exercises from lower and higher lat positions like pull-ups, squats, and more.
The lat bar can accommodate both standard and 2′ Olympic plate weights; however, the Olympic weights will require an adapter (not included).
This power cage comes with a 39″ bar and a 20″ low-row bar with foam grips.
No weights included.
Note: This will come in 2 packages, as it’s the power rack and the pulldown optional upgrade.
Product Pros
Product Cons
This 1000-pound weight capacity power rack with a cable pulldown is a complete home gym, ready to help you get your results.
These lat pulldown machines have a 220-pound weight capacity and comes with 2″ adapter sleeves for Olympic-size plate weights.
But this lat machine has so much more than just the back exercises.
The quality power rack with lat pulldown machine can also do landlines, dips, pullups, and much more, especially when combined with a weight bench (which they also offer in a package with this unit).
As we have seen with other best lat pulldown machines, this comes in 2 packages, and no weights or barbells are included.
Product Pros
Product Cons
With a weight capacity of 1200 pounds, the sturdy 14″heavy gauge steel construction, 2″ x 2″ frame construction of this power rack with lat pull will last through all sorts of intense workouts with no problems!
The cable pull has a max capacity of 250 pounds, which is higher than some power racks we have seen.
This unit also has the required adapters to convert standard plate weights to 2″ Olympic plate weights, so no additional charge is needed.
As we see on other lat pulldown machines, weight plates and barbells are not included.
Product Pros
Product Cons
It’s important to note here that this Amazon listing is for the lat pulldown attachment only and that the Hulkfit unit is a separate listing, so both would need to be purchased together.
But at its price point, this isn’t a hard sell. This lat machine has over 2000 reviews on Amazon, and it’s one of the most popular searches on Google for lat pull-down options.
This one is a surefire hit when it comes to a power cage with lat pull-down options.
Product Pros
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Should I Get A Lat Pulldown Machine?
Is a lat pulldown machine worth it for your home gym? Absolutely, especially for back and upper body training.
Lat pulldown machines offer a unique advantage over free weights: resistance from above. While dumbbells and barbells rely on gravity, a lat pulldown machine provides overhead resistance, allowing for exercises not possible with free weights.
There are two main types of lat pulldown machines. Traditional cable machines, akin to Smith machines found in larger gyms, are great for focused, lat-specific training. They’re compact and offer a variety of exercises. On the other hand, a power cage with a lat pulldown attachment is ideal for a more comprehensive workout. It’s especially beneficial if you use resistance bands or have multiple home gym equipment pieces for versatile workouts in your home or garage gym.
What Muscles Does a Lat Pulldown Machine Work?
The best lat pulldown machine is a weight machine used to work the latissimus dorsi muscle, or “lat muscles.” The lats are the largest muscles in the back.
The cable machine can be used to work the lats in several different ways. For example, it can do pull-downs, which work the back muscles and latissimus dorsi by pulling the weight down from overhead. It can also do rows, which work the latissimus dorsi muscle by rowing the weight back and forth.
A lat pulldown machine is a versatile lat pulldown machine that can work the lats via seated lat pulldowns in several ways and with several muscles involved.
How Do Lat Pulldown Machines Work?
Adjust the seat height of the lat pulldown machine so that your knees form a 90-degree angle when seated under the foam rollers. Start with a low weight to familiarize yourself with the exercise.
Grip the bar with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width. Begin the exercise with the bar above your head. Pull the bar down to your chest, keeping your elbows close to your body and focusing on squeezing your shoulder blades together. This engages your back muscles and upper body strength effectively.
Pause briefly at the bottom of the motion, contracting your back muscles near your neck, then slowly return the bar to the starting position. Keeping your core engaged throughout the movement is important to prevent injury.
The weights on cable machines are typically in two styles: a weight stack or side mounted. A weight stack has plates stacked vertically, while a side mount involves plates slid onto horizontal pegs. This exercise provides a range of workout options for home gym enthusiasts.
Questions? We Have Answers.
Lateral Pull Down FAQ
Final Thoughts On The Best Lat Machine | Reviewed And Ranked
In conclusion, for effective back strength and fitness, the right lat pulldown machine is essential for your home gym. Consider options like traditional cable machines or power racks with lat attachments, ensuring they target the latissimus dorsi muscle through a variety of exercises.
Key features to look for include maximum weight capacity, adjustable thigh pads, and foot braces to support your workouts. Always remember the importance of maintaining proper form to prevent injuries and achieve the best results.
