What Is a Good Squat? Honest Numbers by Bodyweight

A good squat for a trained man is about 1.5 times his bodyweight for a full-depth back squat. Under bodyweight is beginner territory. Two times bodyweight is genuinely strong. Two and a half times is elite — the kind of number most lifters never touch.

Those are 1-rep-max standards for a raw, below-parallel back squat. Numbers change with depth, gear, and how long you have actually been under the bar. Here is the honest ladder.

What counts as a “good” squat?

Good is relative to your bodyweight, not a single magic number. A 150-pound lifter squatting 225 is stronger, pound for pound, than a 250-pound lifter squatting 315. Strength standards are written as multiples of bodyweight for exactly this reason.

What is a good squat by bodyweight?

Use these multiples of bodyweight for a full-depth raw back squat. They line up with the standards published by BarBend and Strength Level.

1. Beginner: ~0.75x bodyweight. You just started squatting with load.
2. Novice: ~1.0x bodyweight. A few months of consistent work.
3. Intermediate: ~1.5x bodyweight. A year or two of real training. This is a “good” squat.
4. Advanced: ~2.0x bodyweight. Years of focused effort.
5. Elite: ~2.5x bodyweight and up. Competitive-level strength.

What do those multiples look like in pounds?

For men, at common bodyweights:

• 150 lb bodyweight: Novice 150 · Intermediate 225 · Advanced 300 · Elite 375
• 180 lb bodyweight: Novice 180 · Intermediate 270 · Advanced 360 · Elite 450
• 200 lb bodyweight: Novice 200 · Intermediate 300 · Advanced 400 · Elite 500
• 220 lb bodyweight: Novice 220 · Intermediate 330 · Advanced 440 · Elite 550

What is the average squat for a man?

The average trained man’s 1-rep-max back squat sits around 285–290 pounds, which lands in the intermediate band. The catch: that average is drawn from people who already log their lifts. The true untrained average is far lower. Comparing yourself to a gym app is comparing yourself to people who show up.

What is a good squat for a woman?

The multiples shift down. For women, ~1.0x bodyweight is a solid intermediate squat, ~1.5x is advanced, and ~2.0x is elite. A 140-pound woman squatting 210 for a single is strong by any standard.

How long does it take to squat 2x bodyweight?

For most drug-free lifters, a double-bodyweight squat takes three to five years of consistent, progressive training with real depth. Some get there faster with good leverages. Nobody gets there skipping sessions. It is a long game, and the people who hit it are the ones who kept showing up when it was boring.

Does squat depth change the standard?

Yes. Every number here assumes hip crease below the top of the knee — below parallel. Quarter squats move more weight and mean nothing as a standard. If you want your squat to count, it has to hit depth. Half a squat is half an answer.

One blunt caveat: sharp pain in a squat is not toughness — it is information. If a lift hurts in a way that is sharp, pinching, or one-sided, rack it and see a qualified coach or clinician before you load it again. Chase depth and clean mechanics before you chase the number.

Standards are a map, not a verdict. The bar does not care what the chart says. It cares whether you came back. Train like it matters and wear it like it does — the Barbell heavyweight tee is cut for lifters who actually load the bar.

FAQ

What is a good squat weight?

For a trained man, about 1.5 times bodyweight for a full-depth back squat is a good squat. Two times bodyweight is strong, and two and a half times is elite.

Is a 315 squat good?

It depends on your bodyweight. At 200 pounds, 315 is a solid intermediate squat at roughly 1.5x bodyweight. At 150 pounds, 315 is over 2x bodyweight and genuinely advanced.

How much can the average man squat?

The average trained man squats around 285 to 290 pounds for a 1-rep max, which sits in the intermediate range. Untrained averages are considerably lower.

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