Top 3 doorway pull-up bars and one to avoid, tested (2022)
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I love pull-up bars; they’re a great way to get in shape in the shortest amount of time. If you’re able to do them, they’re a very efficient way to work out. Doing regular pull-ups is great for your biceps, and flipping your hands around for a chin-up is fantastic for your back and shoulders! I’ve used many of the options available, and I can attest that some of them are quite bad. Luckily I’ve fallen onto my knees so that you don’t have to. Here are the top pull-up bars that you can get now in 2022.
#3: More beginner friendly, one of the best options if you can drill into your frame
The Perfect Pull-up Bar: $32.99
Let’s get this out of the way: to use this you have to drill 4 holes on each side of your door frame (8 total). I’ve done this before even in apartments; the 5/32″ holes were easy to cover up.
While it isn’t as easy to remove as the others that don’t need to be drilled, it has a much less obtrusive appearance than the others do.
Doing pull-ups on this bar feels very secure, but you might have to bend your legs so that your feet don’t touch the ground while doing them.
One of the reasons I really like this bar is that it can swing down, allowing you to do some more beginner-friendly exercises such as a standing row, or an “Australian pull-up.”
Australian pull-up
Features/Specifications:
- Alternative exercises available
- For doorways 24″ to 41″
- Weight limit: 220lbs.
- Very secure
- Doesn’t look as bad as some other options
Cons:
- Requires drilling holes
- More involved installation than others
- Not as high up after installation as some others
#2: Basic option with no installation required:
Perfect Fitness Multi-Gym bar: $44.99
Another Perfect Fitness item, this is among the best of the pull-up bars that wrap over the top of your door frame. These work by going over the top of your door frame molding, and then braced against the opposite side of your door frame.
They actually work better than I thought they would! They are more secure than you think, and are very easy to take down when you want to put it away. This bar also has more adjustments to better fit different molding sizes. I’ve had cheaper pull-up bars that don’t fit my doorway in the past, since some older houses have thicker molding.
What makes it better than others of this type are the pads on it, which provides a more secure fit on your door and protects the wood and paint on your frame. While it lacks the other exercises of the perfect pull-up, this one is better for doing pull-ups:
Features/Specifications:
- No drilling or installation required
- Easy to remove from doorway
- For doorways up to 33″
- Multiple grip points for wide or narrow pull-ups
- Weight limit: 300lbs.
- Very secure
- More options and adjustments to fit molding
Cons:
- More obtrusive appearance
- More expensive than the Perfect Pull-up
- More involved installation than others
- Not as high up after installation as some others
If you want this style but for less money (and not as good), check out the Iron Gym Pull up bar.
#1: The highest up bar for the best pull-ups
Ultimate Body Press XL Bar: $74.99
This is another over-the-door frame type pull-up bar. While this is the most expensive pull-up bar, there is one thing about it that makes it worthwhile for me: how high up off the ground it hangs!
As you can see, it wraps around like the Perfect bar Multi-Gym bar, but then it goes up several inches. This makes it so that I can do pull-ups without having to bend my legs at all. This also means that if you are shorter, it might be more difficult to reach the bar. I’m 6ft tall and it’s just within reach for me. I find that the higher-up bar gives forces me to do much more complete pull-ups, giving me a better workout. They also have a thicker grip than others, which is more comfortable when doing more repetitions.
I feel very secure using this bar, rivaling only the Perfect Pull-up bar. This has a high weight rating, which is unsurprising given how hefty it is.
Features/Specifications:
- The highest bar available, making for better pull-ups
- No drilling or installation required
- Easy to remove from doorway
- For doorways up to 36″
- Multiple grip points for wide or narrow pull-ups
- Weight limit: 300lbs.
- Very secure
Cons:
- The most obtrusive appearance of all
- Most expensive
What about friction-fit pull-up bars?
If there is one takeaway that you get from this article, it’s this: don’t get this type of pull-up bar! I very stupidly have bought these twice now. They use friction to stay in place, much like a shower curtain. Both of them fell while I was doing pull-ups. The second time it happened I fell directly onto my kneecaps on a hard floor. This was extremely painful, and potentially caused some severe pain that I got hiking a couple of months later. It really isn’t worth it!
So next time you are researching pull-up bars, and come across a bunch of strange ones that are photoshopped with the wrong proportions (the bar is definitely not that thick), steer clear!
Wrap-up
Pull-ups give you a lot of bang for your buck when exercising, costing less than a one month membership at most gyms. For me, they are a great way to get back in shape or stay in shape when I’m not going to the gym very much. The three that I recommend I like for different reasons, but for me, the high-up bar on the XL made it my top pick.
