Anyone serious about fitness knows the importance of having a high-quality, well-designed barbell for their weightlifting regimen, and an American made barbell will definitely stand the test of time. Here we cover all the great barbells made in the USA. Let’s take a look!
Complete List of Barbell Brands Made in the USA
PRx Performance has a great selection of Olympic bars for men and women that are made in the USA. Their Power Elite bar, safety squat bar, junior bar, and several others are also made here. Check out their racks and other strength equipment too – a lot of it is manufactured domestically.
Rogue sells a wide variety of barbells which are handily categorized on their website into sections, making it easy to find the one most suited for your needs. Categories include men’s, women’s, junior’s, technique, specialty, athlete, boneyard bars, and custom bars. There’s also an option to filter by bar use: multipurpose, specialty, powerlifting, Olympic weightlifting, and technique. You’re also able to filter for ones that are made in the USA. No matter where you are in your weightlifting journey, you’ll find a bar for your needs with Rogue.
American Barbell offers a solid American-made training barbell at a good value. They have a range of barbells depending on your needs. Used by CrossFit athletes, powerlifters, and Olympic lifters, American Barbell promises to offer safety, durability, and precision.
The bars on offer include the California bar, Performance Training bar, Precision Training bar, Performance Bearing bar, Stainless Bearing Bar (comp spec), Mammoth Power bar, and a Training bar, amongst other power bars. All have smooth sleeves, precision machining, and a patented recessed weld.
After 40 years in the business, American Barbell’s products can be found in universities, Gold’s gym, military bases, Planet Fitness, Orangetheory, and several other strength and conditioning facilities across the globe.
After getting frustrated about the lack of grip on Olympic bars back in the 60s, the founder of Texas Power Bars made it his mission to create a barbell that would have a much improved knurled grip and whose sleeves wouldn’t slide into the center.
Manufactured in the USA since 1980, Texas Power Bar has a number of barbells in its offering, each specified for different uses, including the “Original” Texas Power Bar, Texas Squat Bar, Texas Deadlift Bar, Texas Bench Bar, and Texas Monster Squat Bar. There are also Cerakote versions of all these products too – a coating that protects the wear and tear of the product more.
You can order these barbells in either bare steel, black zinc, or chrome shafts and also pick between chrome and bare steel shaft. These bars offer big tensile strength and have been used to set powerlifting records across the globe.
While they aren’t known for their barbells, Stray Dog Strength has some great traditional and specialty bar options. They have a hex bar, marrs bar, power bar, and multi-grip bar that are all made domestically.
Biggins Iron has a few Olympic barbells for folks to consider: a 47″ Olympic curl bar, an 86″ Olympic barbell, and a 20kg Olympic barbell. There is aggressive knurling on the shaft and dual knurling rings at the official weightlifting competition marks.
Weight It Out primarily focuses on plates, but they have one barbell available that is made in the USA. It has a medium knurl, weighs 45 lbs, and has been tested up to 2,000 lbs.
Power Lift makes a few of their own barbells for various uses – Olympic bars, deadlift/trap bars, safety squat bars, steel logs, and a few other options. Just keep your eyes peeled if you’re looking at their online store – they carry other brands they don’t manufacture for that aren’t made here.
Bridge BUILT has a few good barbells for men and women. Check out their Workhorse bars for the basic training bar option, and their Clydesdale Power Bar if you want to lift heavier.
Mike’s YouTube Video on American Made Barbells
How To Find Barbells Made in the USA
Whether you are new to weightlifting or a seasoned professional, a barbell should be one of the first additions to any respectable home gym. A single barbell can help you do many exercises and target different muscles, so you want to ensure you buy a quality barbell when you invest in one. For many, this means buying barbells made in the USA. Unfortunately, most production nowadays takes place abroad, and finding a product made in the USA is not as easy as picking the first product you see. So, in addition to our recommendations above, these tips should help you find amazing barbells made in the USA.
What Does “Made In The USA” Mean?
Before we dive headfirst into finding US-made barbells, let’s define what “made in the USA” means. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) protects the “made in the USA” label, and they state that the product must be “all or virtually all” made in the USA. So, everything from the sourcing of the raw material to the assembly of the product must take place in the United States.
To learn more about this topic, check out our general guide on how to find made in the USA.
Materials
The first step to finding products made in the USA is researching the material used to make them. For barbells, that’s steel.
China is the leading steel producer in the world, producing more than half of the world’s steel. So, when looking for barbells and other steel products, you’re more likely to run into Chinese steel than any other steel. Especially since Chinese steel tends to be cheaper. So, this is especially attractive to manufacturers looking to cut costs on production. This also means Chinese steel tends to be of lesser quality. US-made steel is three times stronger than Chinese-made steel.
Thankfully, finding steel made in the United States is not too difficult. The USA is fourth in the world’s steel production, so you can certainly find it. Any reputable American brand should use US steel for its quality and strength. And for extra assurance of quality, look specifically for stainless steel.
Labeling
The next step to finding barbells made in the USA is labeling. Title 19, Chapter 4, Section 1304 of the US Code states that any product made abroad must be labeled as such with the country of origin. Additionally, as already mentioned, the FTC protects the usage of the “made in the USA” label. So, theoretically, finding barbells made in the USA is as simple as looking at the product’s labeling or packaging.
Unfortunately, finding US-made products is more complex than that. The first thing to keep in mind is that the FTC does not do the best job of policing the usage of the label. As there is no pre-approval process, it is up to the companies themselves to decide for themselves whether or not their products meet the “made in the USA” requirements. And ultimately, it is up to the consumers to report any erroneous use.
You should also keep a look out for the wording used in labels. Many companies will use similar words to trick customers into thinking the product is made in the USA. Some examples are:
- Made in America: This means the product could have been made in Canada or Mexico.
- Manufactured in the USA: This means only the assembly of the product takes place in the USA.
- Designed in the USA: This means only a portion of the manufacturing takes place in the USA.
- Made in the USA with imported materials: This means the product is made with non-US materials.
Another thing to watch out for is the usage of the American flag sticker. Unlike the “made in the USA” label, the use of the American flag is not protected. So, just because a product has the flag does not mean it is made in the USA.
Other Tips
Here are some more tips to help you find barbells made in the USA.
Check The Website
Although companies are required to label their products with the country of origin when it comes to the physical product, this is not the case for any online or promotional materials. “Made in the USA” is a huge selling point, so companies will likely advertise this fact on the “About Us” page or the product page of their website. On the other hand, if the product is made elsewhere, the company will likely keep that fact quiet.
Online Shopping Sites
Online shopping websites like Amazon often state the country of origin in the “Product Information” section. Another good place to check is the FAQ section, as another potential customer may have already asked a question regarding the country of origin.
Check Social Media Handles
Social media is another great place to look. Companies often post about their products on their social media accounts, like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok.
Call The Company
If you still can’t find the information, just call the company and ask! A representative should be able to answer your questions regarding the country of origin of the product.
Barbells Not Made in the USA
We’ve also done the work to find the most popular barbell brands that are not making their barbells in the USA. You can find the full list below as well as where they’re manufactured. We’ll update this list as we find more.
- REP Fitness – Primarily made in China.
- Fringe Sport – 60% made in China, 20% made in the USA, and the remainder are made in various places. They have a specific “Made in the USA” range, including some barbells.
- Eleiko – Made in Sweden.
For more fitness recommendations, check out our other guides below.
- Dumbbells made in the USA
- Weightlifting belts made in the USA
- Weight benches made in the USA
- Iron and bumper plates made in the USA
- Squat and power racks made in the USA
- Resistance bands made in the USA
- Weighted vests made in the USA
- Treadmills made in the USA
- Exercise bikes made in the USA
- Rowers made in the USA
- Pull up bars made in the USA
