Bench Press Grip Widths 101
The infamous barbell bench press. Every minute detail of this lift impacts your performance in it. One little cue, setup change, or technical adjustment can make or break a PR. Bench press is a constant work in progress: a project that evolves as you gain strength and find what works best with your body. While we have general form guidelines, many individual differences apply, and experimenting with these changes is valuable. One of the potentially variable elements is grip width- whether close, moderate, or wide. Different lifters will be stronger in different positions- so let’s discuss the important aspects of each and why you may want to incorporate non-competition-grip benching into your program.
Close grip
A “closer” grip is defined as anywhere from the first knurling on the bar to halfway between the 1st & 2nd. In the Powerlifting World, this is considered narrower than average.
A) Potential Advantages of this Grip
-More tricep activation: The close grip places increased stress on the triceps: as the elbows go through more flexion and are closer to the body, your triceps are further recruited to extend at the top. If you’ve got super strong triceps, respectively, this grip can take advantage of that fact.
-Less shoulder discomfort: Shoulder pain can occur in different positions, but if you find a wider grip irritating, a narrower one may feel better. This fact alone can increase the utility of a closer grip for you- the position you can sustain is the best one to train!
B) Technical Differences
-Elbow angle: To maintain “stacked” joints under the bar- (as well as lat engagement) with a narrower grip, more elbow tuck is required- the elbows are closer to the sides of your body.
-Range of Motion: Because the grip is closer, the bar has to travel a greater distance.
-Touchpoint: With a closer grip, since the elbows are more tucked and the range of motion is greater: the touchpoint on your chest will slightly be lower- more toward your belly button.
-Weak point: With a closer grip, you’re more likely to fail at mid-range/lockout and are stronger off the chest (since there’s greater tricep activation). During the bench press, the pecs are more responsible for the initial portion of the ascent.
C) Benefits in Your Programming
Even if you’re not a particularly close-grip bencher, this exercise should be a staple in your programming and can benefit you in a multitude of ways, including:
-Tricep strength and hypertrophy-The increased stress on this muscle group makes this exercise a great option to help build them up! Since the triceps are the main mover when benching, no matter where our hands are on the bar, getting them strong is vital for performance increases. The close grip bench provides a specific, effective approach to accomplish that goal. Additionally, you can program a CG bench for higher sets/reps if the goal is hypertrophy. This lift serves as both a solid off-season variation and a secondary one during meet prep.
-Undulated Intensity: If the close grip isn’t your primary lift, your loads lifted in it will be lighter. So, incorporating it on a secondary bench press day can help you receive a training effect even at a lower weight- reaping those benefits while still getting enough recovery.
-Lat engagement, reducing elbow flare: If you’re struggling with bench press technique, the close grip is a great way to cue you into shape. The narrower width forces you to focus on your lats- and by proxy, elbow angle. You can tell if you’re flaring too much, and your lats are challenged to maintain the increased elbow tuck position. That way- you can reinforce setup and bar path, improving your competition form.
Whether it’s your preferred style or not, incorporate Close grip in your training to unlock serious gains.
2. “Moderate Grip”
I define a moderate grip as anywhere from hands halfway between 1st-2nd knurlings, to the pinkies touching the 2nd ones, depending on arm length, etc. While this one isn’t necessarily a bench press “variation,” it may be your strongest position for overall benching, so let's discuss its details.
A) Possible advantages
-Most well-rounded: A moderate grip bench press recruits your pecs, triceps, and shoulders relatively equally. If you aren't drastically stronger in one of these muscle groups vs. the other, to the point of changing technique- (most people): a moderate grip is likely your best bet. Being able to use all muscles simultaneously will likely improve your movement efficiency. The range of motion isn’t too great, unlike a close grip- but you’ll have more strength off the chest, unlike a wide grip. It may be the easiest to find and maintain lat tension, and your bar path/chest touchpoint is more straightforward.
-Potentially the most sustainable: Extreme alterations in technique don’t produce the best results for most in the long run. Finding the “sweet spot” middle ground is likely a position you can train for multiple months, continuing to build over time. Of course, this is not the case for every lifter- outliers always exist.
B) Technical Differences
-Bar Path: With the “moderate grip,” like all other grips, the bar path has a J curve. The bar is lowered slightly “down” to the chest, then pressed slightly “back” toward the rack. Bar path will be influenced by your elbow angle.
-Weak point: This depends on the lifter: most raw lifters fail off the chest, but since the moderate grip isn’t particularly biasing one muscle group, there’s no set-in-stone rule here.
-Range of Motion: The middle between the two extremes.
-Elbow Angle: With a moderate grip bench press, you want to balance between the “tuck” and the “flare.” The main focus is on engaging the lats: pulling the shoulders *down* and “breaking the bar apart” on the descent. When you do that, the elbows should fall into place. A slight tuck usually equates to lat engagement, but the goal is to keep the elbows and wrists stacked under the bar- not too far in or out, for the most efficient lift possible.
Most athletes do best with a moderate grip- so I would start there and only make changes if progress stalls, pain ensues, or specific weaknesses arise.
3. Wide grip
A “wide grip” could be defined as anywhere from pinky fingers on the far knurlings to pointer fingers- as you cannot go anywhere wider than this per the rules of USPA.
A) Potential Advantages
-More pec activation: The wider grip further recruits the chest vs. the triceps- making it a good option for pec development. If you have a substantially stronger chest- comparatively- this may be a better grip for you.
-Reduced range of motion: Because of the wider grip, the distance the bar needs to travel is shorter- which could theoretically (not necessarily) help you move more weight.
-Less shoulder discomfort: As mentioned before, shoulder pain can be experienced in different positions, depending on the individual. If closer grips irritate your shoulder, widening it out is a good idea so you can train the movement consistently.
B) Technical differences
-Touchpoint: With the wider grip, the touchpoint on the chest may be higher (slightly above that “bra strap” line), with a somewhat more vertical bar path.
-Elbow angle: With a wide grip- to maintain the stacked joint position underneath the barbell- the elbows will likely be more flared out to the sides.
-Weak point: With a wider grip- since the movement heavily relies on your pecs- you’ll be weakest right off the chest.
-Range of motion: As mentioned before, the wider grip width reduces your overall range of motion.
While the reduced range of motion may be an enticing reason to include this variation- take a step back, and consider the other factors. Even though the range of motion is shorter, that doesn’t inherently make it stronger. If you’re failing immediately off the chest, it doesn’t matter how much further you’d have to travel: you already missed the beginning of the ascent! The triceps are integral movers in a strong bench press, and for most individuals, balancing between the two (close/wide and pec/tricep) will lead to the most overall weight lifted. Having some power off the chest is usually a benefit- if you want to bench a lot of weight. Additionally, with the more flared position, it can be difficult for some to cue lat engagement, and lifters may experience shoulder discomfort here. An excessively wider grip can work for some- but it's often not preferable for many: most do best in the moderate range- which is still relatively wide by non-Powerlifter standards.
C) Benefits in Programming
If you aren’t a particularly wide-grip bencher, why may you want to include it in your program?
Especially if you bench on the closer end or have a weaker chest, this can be a solid option for developing those weaknesses & improving hypertrophy. Pec strength & power off the chest are crucial aspects of benching, and this variation will help you achieve just that. It can be a secondary option during any non-peaking phase in many rep ranges. I wouldn’t say it’s quite the staple that close grip variations are, but wide-grip still has a time and place.
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Now that you have a basic idea of each type of bench press grip, how can you apply this information to your training?
4. Varying Bench Grips
Knowing about the differences between each grip variation, how do you apply this information to your training?
A) Which one is best for you?
As expressed ad nauseam, this is all a game of experimentation. For most individuals, moderate is the strongest. I would always start there- with your grip anywhere from halfway between the two knurlings to resting your pinkies on them. Build your bench press in this position unless a telling sign for change arises, and develop your strength first. Then, you can experiment with another grip if you feel a reason to do so.
General guidelines exist, such as:
-Those with longer arms and who fail at mid-range/lockout (with a moderate grip) may bench better with a somewhat wider grip,
-And those with shorter arms and who fail off the chest (with a moderate grip) may do better with a somewhat closer grip,
But not always. Factors such as injuries, shoulder pain, and mobility also play a role.
Incorporate different bench press variations over time, and if one feels stronger/more comfortable than your competition width- try it out. Experiment, give each alteration a fair chance, and know that these details may change over time. This lift is a perpetual construction project!
B) Including each in programming-
How do you incorporate these variations in your program to reap the benefits of different stimuli?
As mentioned above, the close grip bench should be a staple variation in training, even if not your competition grip (and if it is, you may still benefit from going even closer as an accessory lift). Close grip can be incorporated in off-season as your “primary bench day,” in meet prep as a secondary bench day, or in backoff sets. You can perform it for volume if the goal is hypertrophy- or vary over time, gaining strength in lower rep ranges, too. Add a Spoto, a pause, remove your legs from the equation, 1.5 reps, etc., to alter the lift further and achieve a certain goal.
And, if you’re struggling with pec strength/force off the chest, wider grip benching can be used as a variation. Depending on whether you want to gain strength or hypertrophy, you can perform lower/higher set/rep ranges. It could be used as your main variation for a block or two, to focus on that weakness, or on a secondary day.
Grip width is a simple yet effective way to vary your competition benching, potentially providing exactly what you need to bust through that plateau.
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Bench press. There are many ways to approach the same lift- and grip width is one of these individual variances. Some prefer closer- others prefer wider, but most do best somewhere between the extremes. Each width has its own components, technical differences, and potential advantages- but finding your strongest position requires experimentation. Once you find and stick to a technique you like, including opposing widths as a variation can still benefit you-allowing you to train the movement in ways you may be lacking. Commit to improvement in this lift, sharpening your technique and mastering its alternative versions, and your gains will pay off over time.
