Looking to improve your workouts? A weightlifting belt is always a great investment for the powerlifter or weightlifter who wants to increase their volume while keeping their form and maintaining the proper support. Workout belts are crucial for heavier loads since they stabilize your spine and core muscles, ensuring a proper posture that will help you avoid injury.
What makes the best workout belt, though? We’ve looked at multiple workout belts and investigated their durability, support, comfort, and price to find which are the best to add to your workouts. Here are 13 of our favorite workout belts that we believe will be a great match for you whether you are a man or woman.
Our Top Picks for 2024
- Best Overall: Gymreapers Weight Lifting Belt
- Best Self-Locking: Element 26 Self-Locking Weight Lifting Belt
- Best Style: Iron Bull Strength Powerlifting Belt
- Best for Lumbar Support: Iron Bull Strength Weight Lifting Belt for Men and Women
- Best Color Options: Gymreapers Quick Locking Weightlifting Belt
- Best for Simplicity: Rogue 5” Nylon Weight Lifting Belt
- Best Leather Belt: Rep Fitness Premium Leather Weight Lifting Belt
- Best for Squats: DMoose Fitness Weight Lifting Belt
- Best on a Budget: Dark Iron Fitness Weight Lifting Belt
- Best for Women: Harbinger Padded Leather Belt
- Best for Durability: Jaffick Genuine Leather Weight Lifting Belt
- Best for Quick Unlock: IBRO Powerlifting Lever Gym Belt
- Best for Beginners: ProFitness Leather Weight Lifting Belt
Product Reviews
Best Overall: Gymreapers Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Black
- Leather
- Buckle closure
- 7 mm thickness
What We Love About It
This premium leather workout belt is perfect for power and weight lifting since it has 7mm of thickness to protect and support the core and back area. We recommend this belt as the best workout belt overall because although it seems on the pricier side at $49.99, it is still within the average price range and its double-stitch design ensures that it will be able to span hundreds of workouts.
We love the buckle, which is a simple dual-pronged mechanism to ensure it stays in place. It also comes with a belt carrying case so you can conveniently carry it in your gym bag without it taking up too much space or getting wrapped up in other things.
Best Self-Locking: Element 26 Self-Locking Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Nylon
- Buckle closure
- 8 color options
What We Love About It
This workout belt is the best lever-lifting belt that can self-lock since it has a self-locking system that ensures it won’t wear down or loosen during a workout. Your belt won’t pop open when you are working out and the design provides even support throughout the circumference of your core.
We love that it is a competition-approved belt so you can train with it, get familiar with it, and feel comfortable competing with it on as well. The material is nylon so it provides breathable comfort and is hand washable. In general, it’s a simple belt, and the quick release of the buckle makes it convenient as well.
Best Style: Iron Bull Strength Powerlifting Belt
Key Specs
- Leather
- 7 color options
- 10 mm
What We Love About It
If you are looking for a belt that looks and feels good, we recommend this belt from Iron Bull. This is the best workout belt from a style perspective since it comes in 7 different colors and has a great leather look and feel. The material also isn’t too stiff when you get it so it provides the perfect flexibility from the first use to the last.
The double-prong buckle of this belt locks it into place and ensures stability and no risk of opening while in the middle of a heavy lift. We also love how adjustable the belt is since it has 10 rows of holes so you don’t have to worry about it fitting while you are bulking or cutting.
Best for Lumbar Support: Iron Bull Strength Weight Lifting Belt for Men and Women
Key Specs
- Nylon and Neoprene
- 7 color options
- Buckle, hook and loop closure
What We Love About It
This workout belt is the best workout belt for those who require extra lumbar support since it is designed with a lumbar area that is reinforced with ribs, has a foam core, and covers more area. The design matches the natural contour of the body so you can move freely without feeling stiff or hindered in your workouts.
We love that this belt auto locks and has heavy-duty velcro to hold your belt in place, without any risk of it coming open in the middle of a workout. Even though this feels heavy-duty and gives substantial support, it is also light and breathable.
Best Color Options: Gymreapers Quick Locking Weightlifting Belt
Key Specs
- Nylon
- Buckle closure
- 12 color choices
What We Love About It
One of our favorite brands for weightlifting belts is Gymreapers since we love the quality and material, and to be fair this is the quick-release version of our best workout belt overall so we knew we had to include it. This belt features a nylon design that provides breathability and makes it easy to wash. With 12 color options, it’s also the best workout belt if you want some style options.
The quick-release feature means that it locks quickly to heavy-duty velcro so you don’t have to toy with a prong buckle system. This simple quick lock system also makes this belt a great choice if you are looking for something simple and no fuss.
Best for Simplicity: Rogue 5” Nylon Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Black
- Hook and loop closure
- Nylon
What We Love About It
If you want a belt that doesn’t seem complicated and doesn’t require much thought allow us to introduce the Rogue 5” Belt. This belt is going to cover more area than other belts since it is 5” whereas others tend to be 4”. This means more support that you can feel around your core.
We love the nylon material, which makes it breathable, but it also means you can safely wash it unlike a lot of leather belts, which seem unwashable and can gather that sweet gym smell. We also find that this is a great belt if you aren’t going too heavy since it isn’t a heavy-duty guy, but is still versatile since it allows for flexibility for various workouts outside of just weightlifting and powerlifting.
Best Leather Belt: Rep Fitness Premium Leather Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Leather
- Buckle closure
- Double stitch design
What We Love About It
Just by looks alone, we love this belt and have got to say that to us it has to be the best workout belt that uses leather out there. This really gives the most heavy-duty feeling, and you will really feel the support of the leather with every workout. Don’t be fooled either, it may look rigid and stiff, but it provides the right amount of flexibility for various workouts.
We love how simple it is since it’s just one buckle and the leather belt, with no velcro or extra frills for those looking for just a simple leather workout belt. Something that we don’t love is that it has a single-prong buckle, and maybe it’s all mental, but it was concerning to us during our workouts.
Best for Squats: DMoose Fitness Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Dual prong buckle closure
- Leather
- Brown or black
What We Love About It
Are squats your jam? If so, we need to get you acquainted with this belt from DMoose. The leather design of this belt makes it slightly stiff, but the expanded lumbar section provides the perfect support for deep squats when you are squatting heavy.
We love that it doubles up on many of the aspects of a belt – the buckle system has two prongs and it has two belt loops to prevent the excess belt from flapping around and ensuring reliable locking. We also enjoy the extra padding on the interior to provide extra comfort.
Best on a Budget: Dark Iron Fitness Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Double prong buckle closure
- Leather
- White or black
What We Love About It
Want to invest in your workouts, but don’t want to drop so much money? This weightlifting belt will provide the proper support and is made of high-quality leather, but is an affordable price at $25.99. With double-stitched genuine leather, your workout will prove to be supported, but it will also feel comfortable and flexible.
We love how reliable this belt is since it can help support deadlifts up to 600 lbs, and at such a low price, there’s no excuse not to get lifting. This belt also has a wide range and can be adjusted to your size.
Best for Women: Harbinger Padded Leather Belt
Key Specs
- Black
- Buckle closure
- Leather
What We Love About It
This belt has a simple leather design that won’t get in the way and can comfortably fit smaller body types, which is why we find it to be the best workout belt for women. This doesn’t mean it’s not for men, but women may benefit from the support and size more.
We love the interior, which is padded to provide extra comfort and support for longer workouts and helps you to avoid irritation and rashes from excessive friction. This belt is also great for lighter workouts or exercises outside of powerlifting and weightlifting since its stiffness loosens to give a flexible and breathable workout.
Best for Durability: Jaffick Genuine Leather Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Leather
- Brown, white, or black
- Buckle closure
What We Love About It
The simplicity of the design of this belt is what stood out to us, and it’s the best workout belt if you are looking for durability. Its simplicity is what makes it so durable since it uses high-quality leather with double stitching so it won’t come apart. It also has a substantial width to cover the back fully and therefore provides plenty of protection to the lumbar area during heavy lifts.
We also love the metal hardware for the buckle, which feels sturdy and reliable and gives great support. Best of all the interior is lined with suede, giving it a great look and amazing comfort. The leather is already soft and flexible so you will be able to move comfortably through a range of most workouts.
Best for Quick Unlock: IBRO Powerlifting Lever Gym Belt
Key Specs
- Leather and suede
- Quick release buckle closure
- 12 styles
What We Love About It
This belt really hugs the core and spine area providing support you can really feel. It has an evenly distributed compression so that all of your abdominal muscles will be activated and maintain the right shape and posture even with the heaviest load. What we love about this belt is its simple locking feature, a heavy-duty lever allows you to get to the perfect tightness and it can quickly be released in case you need a break between sets.
The construction makes it so that this belt doesn’t have any sharp or irritating edges so you can wear it for long workouts and not damage or irritate the skin. We also love that this comes with a storage bag so you can easily travel anywhere with your belt.
Best for Beginners: ProFitness Leather Weight Lifting Belt
Key Specs
- Black
- Leather
- 5 mm thick
- Buckle closure
What We Love About It
If you have some fears or reservations about working out and want to get a belt that is sure to protect your back for lever exercises, we find this to be the best lever lifting belt for beginners for multiple reasons. One, the belt is 5mm thick, providing plenty of support but also allowing for flexibility so won’t feel suffocated. Two, the belt has a sturdy leather design so you will feel confident during each lift.
Third, the double-prong buckle system ensures it won’t open up during a workout and the double stitching means it will last long beyond your beginner status. This beginner belt is great for both men and women.
How We Chose the Best Workout Belt
To find the best workout belt of 2024 we looked into some of the most important factors that make a workout belt great. One is the material; leather is the classic material used for workout belts and for good reason. Leather provides plenty of support, is durable, and it has a fantastic look. Nylon is another material we looked for since it is breathable and washable, helping to fight away the dreaded gym locker room smell.
Durability was a crucial factor as well, so we looked for items belts that were double stitched or reinforced so we knew they would last. The buckle and locking system was also crucial to us, so we looked for belts that had reliable buckle systems or substantial velcro locking systems to ensure the belt didn’t release in the middle of workouts.
Of course, we also looked for extra support; any kind of added features, thickness, or material that could provide added support during heavy lifting was always welcome. Hopefully, this list has helped you to find the best workout belt to add to your weightlifting or powerlifting regimen.
