Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength Standards Calculator
Compare your Close Grip Lat Pulldown strength with Endura's strength standards for men and women at your bodyweight. A useful benchmark for a good one-rep max is our Intermediate standard: approximately 181 lb at 190 lb for a man and 110 lb at 150 lb for a woman.
How does your best lift compare? Enter your bodyweight, the exact exercise weight accepted by this calculator, and the reps you completed below. The calculator estimates your one-rep max and shows your strength level for your bodyweight. Enter the number of repetitions you completed in one set, using whole numbers. Performed seated at a cable lat pulldown station with thighs secured under pads. Use a close neutral-grip or semi-neutral-grip pulldown attachment held with both hands. Attachment reaches a repeatable upper-chest, upper-sternum, or chest-level finish.
The calculator compares that estimated one-rep max with the Close Grip Lat Pulldown standards for your sex at your bodyweight. It preserves the calculator's existing equations, thresholds, and input meanings; the benchmark is a comparison target, not a working-set prescription.
Understanding Your Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength Score
Your Close Grip Lat Pulldown strength score is your estimated 1RM divided by bodyweight. It ranks strict seated close-grip cable vertical pulling strength, not the biggest stack number you can move with a row-like layback.
The useful result is the ratio. A 200 lb male with a 250 lb estimated 1RM has a 1.25 ratio, which reaches the Advanced line. A lighter lifter with the same estimate scores higher, while a heavier lifter with the same estimate scores lower.
This calculator assumes a close neutral-grip or semi-neutral-grip attachment, thighs secured under pads, arms starting overhead near full extension, elbows driving down and slightly back, a repeatable chest-level finish, and a controlled return.
The result does not measure standard-bar Lat Pulldown, Neutral Grip Pull-Up, Chin-Up, Seated Cable Row, Machine Seated Row, straight-arm pulldown, pullover, shrug, curl, or grip-only strength. Cable-stack readings also vary by pulley ratio, friction, routing, and attachment, so compare progress on the same station whenever possible.
If the set uses straps, excessive layback, stack bounce, partial range, a missed chest-level finish, a single-arm handle, a standard wide bar, or a row substitution, the score is inflated and should not be treated as a valid Close Grip Lat Pulldown standard.
Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength Standards
Close Grip Lat Pulldown standards convert your estimated 1RM-to-bodyweight ratio into Beginner, Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, Elite, and Stretch targets. Use the table for your sex, find the closest bodyweight row, and compare your estimated 1RM with the listed targets.
These standards use selected cable resistance only. Do not add bodyweight, do not enter pull-up added weight, and do not enter row-machine resistance. The rep must use the same close-grip attachment, overhead start, chest-level finish, and strict seated posture across the set.
Men’s Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength Standards
| Bodyweight | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite | Stretch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 120 lb | 78 lb | 114 lb | 150 lb | 186 lb+ | 218 lb |
| 130 lb | 85 lb | 124 lb | 163 lb | 202 lb+ | 237 lb |
| 140 lb | 91 lb | 133 lb | 175 lb | 217 lb+ | 255 lb |
| 150 lb | 98 lb | 143 lb | 188 lb | 233 lb+ | 273 lb |
| 160 lb | 104 lb | 152 lb | 200 lb | 248 lb+ | 291 lb |
| 170 lb | 111 lb | 162 lb | 213 lb | 264 lb+ | 309 lb |
| 180 lb | 117 lb | 171 lb | 225 lb | 279 lb+ | 328 lb |
| 190 lb | 124 lb | 181 lb | 238 lb | 295 lb+ | 346 lb |
| 200 lb | 130 lb | 190 lb | 250 lb | 310 lb+ | 364 lb |
| 210 lb | 137 lb | 200 lb | 263 lb | 326 lb+ | 382 lb |
| 220 lb | 143 lb | 209 lb | 275 lb | 341 lb+ | 400 lb |
| 230 lb | 150 lb | 219 lb | 288 lb | 357 lb+ | 419 lb |
| 240 lb | 156 lb | 228 lb | 300 lb | 372 lb+ | 437 lb |
| 250 lb | 163 lb | 238 lb | 313 lb | 388 lb+ | 455 lb |
| 260 lb | 169 lb | 247 lb | 325 lb | 403 lb+ | 473 lb |
Women’s Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength Standards
| Bodyweight | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite | Stretch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 lb | 48 lb | 73 lb | 99 lb | 124 lb+ | 142 lb |
| 110 lb | 53 lb | 80 lb | 109 lb | 136 lb+ | 156 lb |
| 120 lb | 58 lb | 88 lb | 119 lb | 149 lb+ | 170 lb |
| 130 lb | 62 lb | 95 lb | 129 lb | 161 lb+ | 185 lb |
| 140 lb | 67 lb | 102 lb | 139 lb | 174 lb+ | 199 lb |
| 150 lb | 72 lb | 110 lb | 149 lb | 186 lb+ | 213 lb |
| 160 lb | 77 lb | 117 lb | 158 lb | 198 lb+ | 227 lb |
| 170 lb | 82 lb | 124 lb | 168 lb | 211 lb+ | 241 lb |
| 180 lb | 86 lb | 131 lb | 178 lb | 223 lb+ | 256 lb |
| 190 lb | 91 lb | 139 lb | 188 lb | 236 lb+ | 270 lb |
| 200 lb | 96 lb | 146 lb | 198 lb | 248 lb+ | 284 lb |
| 210 lb | 101 lb | 153 lb | 208 lb | 260 lb+ | 298 lb |
| 220 lb | 106 lb | 161 lb | 218 lb | 273 lb+ | 312 lb |
For men, Beginner is below 0.65, Novice begins at 0.65, Intermediate begins at 0.95, Advanced begins at 1.25, Elite begins at 1.55, and Stretch is 1.82x bodyweight. For women, Beginner is below 0.48, Novice begins at 0.48, Intermediate begins at 0.73, Advanced begins at 0.99, Elite begins at 1.24, and Stretch is 1.42x bodyweight.
Use exact boundaries. A male ratio of exactly 1.25 counts as Advanced, and a female ratio of exactly 1.24 counts as Elite.
How the Close Grip Lat Pulldown Calculator Works
The calculator estimates your 1RM from resistance and reps, divides that estimate by bodyweight, then compares the ratio with sex-specific Close Grip Lat Pulldown standards. One-rep entries use the entered resistance directly; multi-rep entries use the e1RM helper before the bodyweight ratio is calculated.
Ratio = estimated 1RM / bodyweight.
If a 200 lb male enters a 250 lb estimated 1RM, the ratio is 250 / 200 = 1.25, which is Advanced. If he enters 310 lb, the ratio is 1.55, which reaches Elite.
If a 150 lb female enters a 149 lb estimated 1RM, the ratio is 0.99, which is Advanced. A 186 lb estimate at the same bodyweight reaches Elite because 186 / 150 = 1.24.
The calculation only ranks strict close-grip pulldown reps. A pull-up, chin-up, row, straight-arm pulldown, or strapped partial overload may produce a number, but it does not answer the same standards question.
For repeat tests, keep the cable station, attachment, thigh-pad setting, upper-body angle, overhead start, chest-level finish, and raw grip rule the same.
Elite Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength Levels
Elite Close Grip Lat Pulldown strength starts at 1.55x bodyweight for men and 1.24x bodyweight for women. Stretch benchmarks sit higher at 1.82x for men and 1.42x for women.
Elite means the lifter can move heavy selected cable resistance through the full close-grip pulldown standard: overhead start, chest-level finish, controlled return, stable upper-body position, and no row conversion.
For a 200 lb male, Elite starts at about 310 lb estimated 1RM and Stretch is about 364 lb. For a 150 lb female, Elite starts at about 186 lb estimated 1RM and Stretch is about 213 lb.
At these levels, small cheating patterns change the result dramatically. Straps, partial range, stack bounce, or a layback that turns the movement into a row should invalidate the entry even when the calculator displays an Elite tier.
A clean Elite score should be repeatable on video. The attachment, start, finish, upper-body angle, and controlled return should look like the lower-tier standard with more resistance, not like a different exercise.
Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength Compared to Other Lifts
Close Grip Lat Pulldown sits near standard Lat Pulldown, Neutral Grip Pull-Up, Chin-Up, and Strict Pull-Up in the vertical-pull ecosystem, but the scoring method is different. It uses selected cable resistance, not bodyweight movement or added pull-up weight.
| Movement | Relationship | What The Gap Reveals |
|---|---|---|
| Lat Pulldown (Strict) | Closest cable pulldown anchor | Grip width and attachment can change elbow drive, shoulder comfort, and loading. |
| Neutral Grip Pull-Up | Closest grip-family bodyweight pull | Bodyweight control and cable-stack resistance are not interchangeable. |
| Chin-Up | Supinated vertical-pull contrast | Strong elbow flexors may help, but a chin-up is not a cable pulldown. |
| Seated Cable Row | Horizontal cable contrast | A close handle does not make a row and a pulldown the same standard. |
| Dumbbell Lying Pullover | Lat accessory contrast | Pullovers use mostly shoulder extension rather than an elbow-bending pulldown path. |
If your pull-up numbers are high but your close-grip pulldown score is modest, the cable station, attachment path, or controlled chest-level finish may be the limiter. If your pulldown score is high but pull-ups lag, bodyweight movement skill and trunk control may be the missing piece.
Use comparisons to find weak links, not to convert one lift into another. The standards result only belongs to strict Close Grip Lat Pulldown reps.
Milestones in Close Grip Lat Pulldown Strength
Milestones are bodyweight-ratio targets. They are useful only when the same attachment, setup, range, and raw no-strap standard stay intact.
| Men’s Milestone | Ratio | 200 lb Target |
|---|---|---|
| Intermediate | 0.95x | 190 lb estimated 1RM |
| Advanced | 1.25x | 250 lb estimated 1RM |
| Elite | 1.55x | 310 lb estimated 1RM+ |
| Stretch | 1.82x | 364 lb estimated 1RM |
| Women’s Milestone | Ratio | 150 lb Target |
|---|---|---|
| Intermediate | 0.73x | 110 lb estimated 1RM |
| Advanced | 0.99x | 149 lb estimated 1RM |
| Elite | 1.24x | 186 lb estimated 1RM+ |
| Stretch | 1.42x | 213 lb estimated 1RM |
When you are close to the next milestone, preserve the standard first. A smaller valid improvement is more useful than a larger number produced by shortening the top range or leaning back harder.
Related Strength Standards Tools
Related tools help explain whether a pulldown result reflects vertical-pull strength, bodyweight-pull skill, cable setup, or row mechanics.
- Seated Cable Row separates close-handle horizontal cable pulling from overhead vertical pulldowns.
- Machine Seated Row helps identify whether row strength is ahead of vertical close-grip pulling.