How I Set Up My Home Gym For Less than $1000

Having a home gym is a necessity for me. It’s the only way to guarantee that I never miss a day. There’s never a reason to miss a day. Luckily for me, I have a decent 2-car garage. I use one side for working on vehicles, and the other side is all for training.

I actually set up my gym for less than $500 when I first moved into this house, as I already had a bunch of standard plates and a barbell. But, for the sake of this guide and helping you guys out, I will start from scratch and explain how to set up a home gym for less than $1,000 USD.

This home gym will have everything you need to make gains, even without all the fancy options found at commercial gyms. That’s okay, trust me, I started out at 145 pounds, super skinny, and got up to 190, which is pretty jacked for my height. All I had was a couple of barbells, 700 total pounds in plates, and a bench with a leg curl/extension attachment.

With that said, this set up here will include more than just the essentials! Let’s get to it!

Barbell and Plates: The Foundation – $350-$500

It’s amazing what you can achieve with just a barbell and heavy weight. Seriously, it’s truly amazing. I mean, you can deadlift, shoulder press, squat, curl, row, etc. A decent barbell and plates will go a long way in helping you reach your strength and/or aesthetic goals.

So, what’s the best deal right now? Barbell vary from $30 to hundreds of dollars. It’s not always easy to choose.

First, I suggest you look for used weights locally, using CL or FB Marketplace. That’s where I got all the equipment for my first home gym (the bench, 700+ pounds of plates, etc mentioned above) – and I only spent $150 for everything.

You might luck out and get a deal that covers just about everything you need. If not, no worries, there are affordable options on the market. Plus, new is always better when getting a fresh start with a new gym setup.

Recommended Barbell and Plates

I started with a bunch of standard barbells and plates (1″ inch diameter plates) – but seriously recommend you start with Olympic from the start. Especially if going all new. For some reason, you can get the barbell and plates cheaper.

So, what brand should you get? CAP. This is going to be your best bet when it comes to the Olympic barbell and plates. You can get plates for about $1 per pound, which is insane!! That’s crazy cheap for new equipment. And yes, they are great! I have and use a cheap CAP barbell with CAP bumper plates every single day… hasn’t let me down yet.

For additional plates, I recommend Signature Fitness Bumper Weights on Amazon. They are often sold for less than $1 per pound. I use a combination of CAP and Signature Fitness plates. Both are great options.

Once you have a solid barbell and enough plates, you can get a solid workout in. I recommend buying enough plates to seriously challenge yourself on deadlifts and squats. If you can progress on the deadlift, you will build more muscle – and this is especially important for natural lifters.

A Bench That Can Handle Heavy Weight – $80

I learned a long time ago that not all benches are created equal. Some look like great buys, and then you read the specs and find they aren’t rated for more than a couple hundred pounds. That’s including you and the weight you’re benching.

So here’s what I recommend – get a bench that incline options and make sure it’s rated for 800# or more. Even if you don’t plan on using that much weight, it’s worth getting something more sturdy. There are many options. The one I bought a few years ago doesn’t seem to be on Amazon anymore, but here’s a similar one that I would choose if I had to start over:

Power Rack or Squat Stands – $75

Not gonna lie, the Power Rack is the better option if you can afford it. I would if I could, but honestly I am usually on a budget and have to get by squat stands. Which is great, because I have 2 sets of them for less than the price of a power rack. I use one for bench and for squats.

They adjust plenty low and high for my needs, they can handle heavy weight, and they are just very versatile overall. If I need to move my gym equipment over to get another car in the garage, I can. It’s no big deal. A power rack is going to use up a lot more space. This may or may not be an issue for you. One more thing, I can adjust the height of the safety racks to do dips!!

Pull Up Bar – $25

Pull ups are an essential exercise and I wouldn’t want to go long without doing them. I prefer heavy rows, but pull ups are incredibly effective. A pull up bar is not expensive, so it’s definitely worth every penny.

Floor Mats – $100 (optional)

I actually use stall mats I purchased from a local farm supply store, and they were about $50 each when I got them. I have 3. You may or may not need them. When I set up my first home gym in a garage, I never had them and didn’t need them. I now use them just because I have them, honestly I don’t need them. I like them for deadlifts, less noise.

Cable Pulley System – $50

This entire set is easy to install and less than $50. It’s not the same as having a machine, but it gets the job done and allows you to do more lifts. So if you want to do pull downs, tricep push downs, cable curls, and other cable movements – get this set and use it with your already-owned plates.

Resistance Bands – $25 (optional)

This is definitely optional, but honestly underrated. Resistance bands are useful for stimulating the muscles in a different way and you can do a lot of different movements with them at home. I like lateral raises with resistance bands. I sometimes wrap them to the pull up to do tricep push downs.

Another cool thing you can do with them is use them for leg extensions and leg curls. The set I recommend comes with ankle straps so you can easily perform leg exercises. Obviously, heavy squats are the foundation for big legs, but you can use these bands and stack them to get an epic quad pump with leg extensions. There are many ways to set up for that movement, I’ll explain in another article soon. Reddit is also full of ideas.

Curl Bar (optional) – $35

The EZ Curl Bar is a great optional bar to get, especially if straight bar curls give you wrist pain. I like to use a curl bar for curls, but mainly for skull crushers. It’s optional, but if you get one, obviously get a good Olympic variation like the one below:

Dumbbells

Unfortunately, dumbbells are the most challenging thing to get without going over-budget. The best thing you can do is buy them used, or buy a set that comes with the curl bar and dumbbells. There are many barbell/dumbbell vinyl sets that come with plates. If you can find a set that includes them with a barbell and plates you can get a decent deal.

Do you actually need them? I don’t think so. Although, CAP makes some decently-priced heavy dumbbells, so buying a pair of 50 pound or more DBs is not too bad. The most fancy adjustable type are awesome, but super expensive. This is all about building a home gym on a budget, and some things just aren’t necessary.

That’s All You Need to Get Jacked!

Other than the equipment used, the biggest factor is your mental strength and desire to get jacked. How bad do you want it? You’ve heard it before, and for good reason. This is what matters the most. Many guys go to a gym with all the best equipment and hardly make any progress. Many of them hop on SARMS and other PEDs and still make mediocre gains.

You though, are determined and want to train hard. Pushing past the pain. Getting close to failure on every set. Truly challenging your body. Barbells are where it’s at! They stimulate the entire body in a way that machines don’t…

We have covered all the best programs for getting stronger and bigger! So whether you’re training for strength or aesthetics, or both – check out the best workout routines here.

Once you have the gym set up, you can start buying accessories, like lifting straps, shoes for weight training, and workout clothes.

Affiliate Disclosure

In order to support the site and make this possible, I use affiliate links and may earn commission from products recommended in this article. I still kept it real with you, and I only recommended gym equipment that I personally use or would choose if I had to buy again today.

Also, I bought my entire set up from Amazon, so I trust it’s a good source for the products listed above. I may earn commission at no cost to you. Thanks for the support!