Top 8 Best Bumper Plates for Your Home Gym

When you buy through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. Learn more

Looking for the best bumper plates for home gyms in the market? The Olympic bumper plate is a piece of versatile equipment for home gyms because these plates ensure the utmost safety to the athlete when you drop a loaded Olympic bar from different positions, such as overhead, hips, and rack positions. Also, these bumper plates produce lower noise than iron weight plates.

Bumper plates are a great value addition to your home gym setup. Buying a high-quality, affordable bumper plate for your home isn’t that hard when you have enough knowledge about the features integral to any bumper plate.

Good-quality rubber bumper plates are also a great assurance for durability and minimal risk. Color-coded plates are also helpful in recognizing the weight range of the plate without taking a double-take on the product.

You can feel good exercising with the bumper plates and achieve your desired training goal. In this guide, I will list the 8 best affordable bumper plates that last long, making every penny you invest worth it.

How to Choose the Best Bumper Plates for Home Gym?

Pricing is not the only criterion that determines a plate’s quality. The best bumper plates are those that offer quality, durability, and affordability in one package.

Typically, if you perform heavy lifting at your home, you don’t need the bumper plates, and steel plates are enough for you.

Because the bumper plates are designed for weightlifting that involves dropping weights, and you don’t want to drop your weights your home. And you should protect your flooring before you performing heavy lifting. A durable mat is what you need.

A good-quality bumper plate lasts long though you are required to shell out a considerable amount of money. But all bumper plates look the same.

They are almost of the same dimension and weight that one needs the perfect equipment to figure out minute differences between plates of the same weight. How to choose the best bumper plates for you? The features below are integral in making your plate a worthy buy.

#1. Determined What Type Do You Need

Bumper plates come in three different types, and buying the wrong one can ruin your experience.

Competition Bumper Plates

These competition bumper plates are only required for serious lifting or competition. They are expensive and fulfill rigorously set standards to the dot.

They are colored, very carefully calibrated to the exact weight. Still, quality cannot be the only feature that justifies the pricing. Though they fit the bill for certain competitions, they might not be the best for average lifters.

Training Plates

Training plates are usually black, and they are accurate as most gym weights. Most commercial gyms stack up these plates for their trainers, which would be the right plate for your purpose.

Some training plates are so uniform in size and weight that they offer the perfect competition to competition plates. Different standard weights and fulfilling stringent specifications are highly in demand as they are recommended for home gyms.

Technique Plates

Technical plates are basic but durable, and they are often used to master weight lifting techniques standing to its name. These are good for rehabilitation purposes as an Olympic bar is suitable for lifters recovering from muscle strain or an injury.

#2. Bumper Plate Material

Bumper plates are made of thick, dense rubber, and hence, choosing the perfect rubber material goes a long way towards offering longevity on your plate. You can choose from any of the three kinds of rubber material, and the material choice made affects the plate’s pricing, functionality, and durability.

Virgin Rubber

High-quality weights make use of virgin/non-recycled rubber as this material is costly to produce and manufacture. The plate is worth the pricing as it can last a lifetime.

For those into CrossFit, Olympic, or other exercises that include dropping the bar, your primary requirement would be to get minimal bounce when you drop the weight.

Virgin plates should be your pick as they are the least bouncy, making them the safest and least annoying but as strong as commercial gym plates.

Recycled Rubber

Though priced cheap, these plates are more bouncy and less durable compared to virgin rubber plates. But you can choose recycled rubber plates if you primarily do bench press and curls.

The product can also smell initially, and you might need to leave it out for a week or so before using them in your home gym. This should take care of the smell emanating from the plate. Otherwise, it is harmful to your health.

Crumb Rubber

Crumb rubber is the cheapest to manufacture, and hence these plates also cost minimal compared to other ones. Like pressboard wood sheets, the rubber is made of rubber pellets pressed and glued together.

It is not advised to use a crumb rubber bumper plate for drops, as they are likely to split and chip. You can keep adding up their downsides as they also bounce a lot than other bummer plates.

If you want to save money and perform landmine exercises, presses, curls, and rack-based lifts, it’s ok to use these plates.

What Do the Colors on the Bumper Plates Mean?

Basic bumper plate sets are black, but there are colored variants primarily found in large-hub competition-worthy bumpers.

Color coding makes identifying them easier when you want to pick one from the storage peg. Color-coded plates have an Olympic finish.  Color coding is useful as most plates have a similar diameter and look with the primary difference visible only through their thickness.

The letters are color-coded, and sometimes, a colorful stripe is drawn around the diameter or the outside of the plate. Brighten up your home gym and simplify your workouts with plates in different colors.

Are Bumper Plates Certification Necessary (IWF Certification)?

Different bumper plates are certified by different groups, the most well-known of which is the IWF. A certification from the IWF weightlifting organization means that the plate is competition-fit.

Certifications always add value to the product, but unless you use the plates in an actual competition that requires certified plates, you needn’t spend extra bucks choosing a plate that comes with certification.

Will Bumper Plates Bounce Away?

Bumper plates are primarily used to minimize the impact on the flooring. The rubber material used in bumper plates helps negate forceful contact with the ground surface.

Any bumper plate does bounce, but it’s only the extent of bouncing that differs. Recycled rubber plates have more bounce than virgin rubber, while crumb rubber plates bounce even more than the other two materials.

Top 8 Best Bumper Plates for Home Gym

Below is the list of the top 8 bumper plates that excel in durability, quality, and pricing.

TITAN Fitness Black Bumper Plates

Titan Fitness 230 LB Set Black Economy Olympic Bumper Plates,

Don’t worry about the kind of Olympic bar you have at home, as buying the TITAN Fitness Black Bumper Plates fits any of them without the slightest effort. This is primarily because every plate has a perfect 50 mm steel-lined holed in the center.

The manufacturer has smartly produced the plate using a thick black rubber that stands as a mark of durability. The product comes as a set of four pairs of bumper plates weighing 10, 25, 35, and 45 pounds, each amounting to 230 pounds in total.

The inner ring made of heavy-duty stainless steel material and the outer material made from excellent rubber make a neat and clean job of retaining the shape of the plate even after dropping it to the ground as many times as possible.

Do your weighted pull-ups, sit-ups, squats, lunges, bent-over rows, and presses using the TITAN bumper plate sets that improve your fitness levels to staggeringly high levels.

The 450 mm width matches IWF standards assuring quality. The plates are quite thin, enabling you to accommodate as many of them as possible in the bar for challenging exercise levels.

Purchase the Titan bumper plates if you plan on doing high-intensity circuit training or Olympic lifting in your home gym, as the product is built to bear greater reps and intense workouts.

Pros

  • The rubber material used is thick and strong
  • The inner steel ring is durable
  • The excellent quality plate that’s highly recommended for home gym use

Cons

  • Can smell quite badly for sometime

ROGUE HG 2.0 Weightlifting BUMPER PLATES

ROGUE HG 2.0 BUMPER PLATES

The main features that come to our mind immediately when we think about Rogue HG 2.0 Bumper Plates are their durability, consistent dead bounce, and unmatched smooth finish that’s quite expected from HG.

Don’t be surprised to hear that the plates are tested at the CrossFit Games and Regionals owing to their good performance.

The plates follow the IWF standard, measuring 450mm in diameter but are manufactured quite thinly to accommodate more weights to be loaded onto the plates.

Rogue HG 2.0 weightlifting bumper plates are ideal for any training facility or home gym use.

These Rogue bumper plates are made from rubber, and the inner stainless steel inserts locked to the rubber prevent them from coming off quickly, as witnessed in low-quality plates.

Another great feature that needs to special mention here is the weight tolerance aspect of the plates, which is +/-1% of the claimed weight.

Coming only in black color, the plates are a good choice for using them at your home gym due to their different features, including durability, bounce, and safety.

Pros

  • Low bounce that’s consistent
  • Stainless steel inserts add great strength to the plates
  • Good craftsmanship and design
  • Weights are thin to accommodate more of them in numbers

Cons

  • Some complaints about a black grease coming from the plates after use
  • Smell initially
  • The pricing might be quite high

Rep Fitness Bumper Plate Sets

REP Fitness 160lb SET Bumper Plates – Black Low Odor
The Rep Fitness bumper plates are made of the best rubber material—virgin rubber, strong and odorless. Some might not consider smell to be a vital feature while making a purchase, but it’s very integral for day-to-day use.

We don’t want our home gym to smell like a tire showroom for months after purchasing. You get the best bumper plates in sets of 160, 190, 210, 230, 250, 260, and 370 pounds and pairs of plates.

All the plates come in a standard 17.7″ diameter except for the 10-pound and 5-pound training technique plates that come at 17.5″. The difference in diameter protects these thin plates from any shocks created due to dropping them.

Also, when the small and big diameter plates are placed together on the bar, it’s the big one that hits the flooring.

The combination of hook hubs and virgin rubber makes this home gym bumper plate as strong as possible–you can expect protection from any damage due to regular use, including overhead drops.

Rep Fitness brand is particular about making cool bumper plates, and they have taken every caution to manufacture products that are as durable as possible.

The brand has tested its bumper plates by dropping them from eight feet onto their edges over 15,000 times.

Pros

  • Extremely durable and long-lasting
  • Virgin rubber emanates the minimal smell
  • Comprised of hook hubs that increase safety
  • Elegant and simple design with black color and white lettering

Cons

  • Expensively priced that’s not affordable by many

X Training Equipment Solid Black Bumper Plates

Premium Black Bumper Plate Solid Rubber with Steel Insert -

The durability and robustness of X Training Equipment Solid Black Bumper Plates are better than the best as they have been designed, tested, and used by coaches and athletes.

This is excellent news as these individuals possess maximum knowledge regarding exercise equipment.

The plates are made in such a way that they are capable of withstanding any lift. The company has taken the utmost caution to manufacture the plates from 100% recycled rubber to improve the sustainability of Mother Earth.

While recycled rubber material does have some bounces, these are uniquely designed to bring about as minimal bounce as possible.

These cheap bumper plates are available in 160, 230, 260, and 350 pounds as standalone pieces or as pairs for sale.

Black is the standard color here, but surprisingly the sturdy plates are also available in pink and Olympic finish.

It has to be mentioned here that the colored ones are bright and shiny due to the rubber formulation, but it’s not the same with black color.

Though the company does boast of having designed the plates as low-odor, they emanate a strong smell. You have to wait patiently as it might even take weeks together for the smell to wear away.

Try out any strength training or fitness workouts right from deadlifts to max rep lifts; the X Training Olympic plates boast rock-solid construction to withstand the test of time.

The plates fit any standard 2-inch barbell, and the steel inserts fit snugly, guaranteeing safety.

The set includes two 10lb, 15lb, 25lb, and 35lb plates and four 45lb plates amounting to 350lb in total. Every plate comes with a different warranty period. 10lb and 15lb plates have six months warranty, while 25, 35, and 45lb plates are covered under a one-year warranty period.

Pros

  • Durable and offer low bounce.
  • Color-coded Olympic finish options and also available in black and pink color
  • Medium pricing

Cons

  • Do not bounce on concrete-like nicer brands

OneFitWonder Contrast Bumper Plates – 260-Pound Set

Fringe Sport Contrast Bumper Plates Set | 260 lbs Weights

Like the Rep Fitness bumper plates, the plates from OneFitWonder are also made of 100% virgin rubber making them suitable for your home gym needs—primarily because you needn’t worry about any strong smell of stinking odor.

The competition bumper plates give off minimal rubber odor that disappears in less than a week.

I wouldn’t mind saying that these plates are the best when it comes to the bounce feature—there is no other plate that causes a minimal bounce as the OneFitWonder plates as they only cause barely any thud sound even when the 260lbs plate is dropped to the floor.

This makes them perfect for indoor use as they absorb maximum sound and have a dead bounce even when dropped from the overhead position.

The plates come in pairs with different weights, including 10, 15, 25, 35, and 45 lbs.

Having a 2” hole, the product fits any Olympic barbell perfectly without any concerns about sliding around when doing your deadlifts, snatches, and other exercises. And the plate slides on and off the barbell smoothly without any issues.

Though certifications are important only if you participate in competitions, the IWF color-coding system on the lettering increases its value multi-fold times. The different color-coding makes it easier for you to pick a plate of your choice.

Another feature that’s attractive for many customers is the company’s return policy. You can try the equipment for one year and return it anytime during the period if you don’t find it satisfactory!

Customer satisfaction is the company’s primary motive, proving that the product design is classy and durable.

Pros

  • Extremely durable and minimal bounce
  • One year return policy with no questions asked
  • Almost odorless rubber
  • IWF color coding

Cons

  • Quite expensive

REP FITNESS Colored Olympic Bumper Plates

Rep Color Bumper Plates for Strength and Conditioning Workouts and

Rep Colored bumper plate is one of the best cheap bumper plates for Crossfit. For those who love HIIT training besides performing Olympic weightlifting, these plates should be the ultimate choice.

They come in pairs, including weights such as 10 lbs, 25 lbs green Olympic plates, and 45 lbs weightlifting plates, with each weight measure available in different thicknesses.

For instance, the 10 lbs plates are extra thick to provide additional durability, while the 45 lbs plates are comparatively thinner to allow more weight to fit on the bar.

As the name suggests, the bumper plates are available in different colors and are made of the same standard as the black plates.

The color-coding only improves ease of loading as you get to see how much load is loaded altogether simply by looking at the plate. If you are bored with the regular black plates, you can also use colorful and bright plates pleasant to the eyes.

Made from solid rubber with a steel insert, the plates promise a lower bounce rate than most other rubber bumper plates made from recycled rubber. You wouldn’t feel the need to keep an eye on the plates that they might hop somewhere out of place.

The company has released the product only after factory testing it over 15,000 times, dropping the plates from a height of 8 feet.

A plate that endures such harsh testing environments is sure to sustain longer and promise undaunted effectiveness in our day-to-day life.

Pros

  • The 10 lbs plates come with a one year warranty, while the 25, 35, 45, and 55 lbs plates come with a 3 year warranty period
  • Tested for more than 15,000 drops
  • Low bounce
  • Excellent craftsmanship and the steel material used increases durability

Cons

  • Rubber plates are smelly initially
  • Yellow plates can be too bright for some people to use

XMark Go Green Bumper Plates (Xmark 3391)

XMark is a brand that’s trusted by all due to its precise manufacturing design and workmanship. The Xmark Go Green bumper plates are made from recycled car tires using the environment-friendly manufacturing process.

There might be a little bounce here and there, but they are also well-designed to withstand more abuse and also last twice as long as other plates comparatively.

The rubber material used for making these plates is extremely durable, and you needn’t worry a bit about replacing them every few years or so.

The precision-tooled commercial-grade stainless steel inserts allow easy slide of plates on the bars.

It wouldn’t be wrong to quote that these XMark Go Green plates are engineered for dropping them onto the ground, especially because of the rubber material used that’s tough and durable.

But the same material also has the characteristic of releasing a distinct smell that disappears naturally over time.

The bumper plates come as four 15 lbs plates amounting to 60lbs in total. Bumper plate sets also include a combination of 25, 35, 45, and 55-pound plates, which are covered under a three-year warranty period. Whereas, for commercial use, it is for one year only.

The plates can be used both outdoors and indoors and are almost indestructible and highly durable.

Pros

  • Excellent material quality
  • Can withstand maximum drops
  • Precision-tooled steel plates
  • Rubber material assures twice the durability comparatively

Cons

  • The extra bounce feature might be annoying

XMark Hi-Impact Bumper Plates (Xmark 3393)

XMark Hi-Impact Bumper Plate Weight Plate for Olympic Barbell, 160

How about making plates that are designed specifically to be dropped? That’s how it is with the XMark Hi-Impact bumper plates that are engineered specially to withstand any strenuous drops imposed on them.

Made of premium-quality natural virgin rubber material, the weightlifting bumper plates look slimmer and boast of a dead bounce assuring utmost safety to you.

But besides the rubber material used for making the plates, it is also how they are manufactured and technology that impresses us more.

The precision-tooled and polished 2-inch stainless steel inserts help the plates to move freely on the bar.

Don’t worry about pushing or feeling stressed about inserting the plates as they fit snugly due to their excellent finishing.

The XMark company has contributed greatly to the bending and breaking of 10lbs plates by following IWF standards and reducing the height and diameter of the plates.

Instead, the plates are made with the same thickness as a 15-pound plate.

The only downside is that rubber naturally releases smell (but will vanish over time), and this affordable XMark bumper plate made using virgin rubber is no exception.

You can use them on your Olympic weight bars, hex bars, EZ curl bars, and others.

Pros

  • XMark is a brand that promises relentless quality and durability
  • Premium-quality rubber stays tough and long-lasting
  • Three year warranty period

Cons

  • It gives off a distinct smell initially, which vanishes in due course

Read also:

Pin It on Pinterest