Skip to main content

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

Get Ripped With These Budget Home Gym Equipment Options

Man working out at home.
Fitnation

It’s been more than a year since the pandemic, and it probably has made you nostalgic for the sweaty, smelly gym you loved going to in the morning prior to work or on a lazy weekend morning. And unless you see going to the gym as a chore, there’s no way you won’t miss your favorite exercise machines after many long months indoors. You never know what you have until it’s gone, and you never know how much exercise equipment matters until you’re forced to work out at home. Sure, dumbbell exercises are great and can definitely help you build muscle, but they can’t be the only weapon in your at-home gym arsenal.

If you’re switching from working out at a gym to working out at home, it can be very costly. High-quality at-home exercise equipment is durable, heavy, and versatile. When you buy that equipment for home use, you’re paying for that quality upfront rather than on a month-to-month basis with your gym membership, but rest assured that your investment does prove its value over time. Fortunately, there’s great affordable exercise equipment on the market today that can give you more exercise options and help you grow stronger and faster. Once you outfit your home gym with this equipment, you’ll wonder why you didn’t do it sooner. Below are our top picks for exercise equipment that won’t break the bank.

Fitnation Flex Bike Ultra

Fitnation Flex Bike Ultra on a white background.
Fitnation

Most exercise bikes require you to use hand weights purchased separately if you want to get an upper and lower body workout, but this exercise bike combines a calorie-burning cycling workout with upper-body resistance bands to get a killer full-body workout in just one machine. With a fold-up design, this bike is easy to put away in storage until you’re ready to use it. The bike doesn’t come with a fancy digital monitor you get from, say, a Peloton, but it doesn’t come with a frightening price tag, either.

Stamina Power Towers

Stamina Power Towers on a white background.
Stamina

This all-in-one exercise station is a home gym essential if you want to strengthen your back, biceps, triceps, and core muscles. Perform dips, inverted rows, pull-ups, and more with this compact, vertical exercise equipment. The wide loops provide tons of room for the arms during hanging leg raises. This is a great piece of starter equipment for a home gym if you love the results of bodyweight exercises.

TRX Fit System Suspension Trainer

TRX Fit System Suspension Trainer on a white background.
TRX

When you think of suspension training, you think TRX. It’s the original suspension training system and by far the most popular among athletes. The TRX Suspension Trainer is a great addition to a home gym, especially if you’re low on space. You can get a complete workout using just your own body weight. The straps are versatile and easy to keep stored away. The system is easy and effective, whether you’re just a beginner or you’re a fitness pro. It helps you build a strong core, as well as enhance balance.

Fitnation Rock N Fit

Fitnation Rock N Fit on a white background.
Fitnation

You probably haven’t ever seen an all-in-one exercise machine like this before, but your body will want you to thank us later. The vibrating workout equipment helps you burn calories and fat by igniting your core as you move through a variety of positions and exercises. Maximize the results you get from squats, planks, and bridge positions with the help of the oscillating motion, which causes your muscles to contract hundreds of times in a minute. The whole-body vibration supercharges your workout, so you can get better results in less time. It comes with resistance bands, and as you get stronger, you can swap them for bands with higher resistance. An added bonus: The exercise machine takes up very little space and can be easily stored away when not in use.

Perfect Fitness Multi-Gym

Perfect Fitness Multi-Gym on a white background.
Perfect Fitness

Target the muscles in the arms, chest, core, and back with this easy-to-use pull-up bar. Use it in the doorway or on the floor to perform situps, push-ups, and dips. You don’t have to worry about damaging the door frame or drilling any holes into the wall to install this piece of gym equipment. The different grips allow you to work your entire upper body and ensure maximum muscle engagement.

BCG Dip Station

BCG Dip Station being used by a man.
BCG

Dip bars are a great no-frills piece of strength-training gym equipment. Dips work your triceps and chest and improve your strength in bench presses. This single-piece station has a U shape for stability and is padded so you don’t damage your floor. If you really want to challenge yourself, tie a weight around your waist so that it lands between your legs. Trust me, you’ll be feeling this one the day after.

BodyBoss 2.0 Full Portable Home Gym Workout Package

BodyBoss 2.0 Full Portable Home Gym Workout Package on a white background.
BodyBoss

This package of equipment is hailed as the world’s first portable gym, and while you might not be going anywhere with it anytime soon, it’s a great compact product if you’re running low on space. Featuring a sturdy base, bar, bands, straps, handles, and door anchor, you can simulate just about any exercise you would do at the gym in this lightweight, versatile home gym package. Forget the huge rack of dumbbells and squat rack — this is truly all you need to get a killer full-body workout at home.

BCG Ab Toning Wheel Set

BCG Ab Toning Wheel Set on a white background.
BCG

A strong core can help support and improve your form during every other strength-training exercise. This ab wheel strengthens your core and builds muscle in your middle section to give you ripped abs and cut obliques. As you roll it away from your body, you’ll feel the resistance and level of difficulty increase, while pulling it back gives you that full-body crunch that’s impossible to replicate on your back. Stability and balance are key to building all those muscles that keep your core engaged during this challenging workout.

Best Choice Products Adjustable Folding Fitness Barbell Rack and Weight Bench

Best Choice Products Adjustable Folding Fitness Barbell Rack and Weight Bench on a white background.
Best Choice Products

If you’re serious about building a home gym that rivals Lifetime Fitness, you need a versatile bench station. This affordable option is ideal for doing bench presses, squats, step-ups, elevated push-ups, and more. With a maximum weight of 330 pounds, you can get a great workout with a wide range of motion on this one piece of equipment. It’s solidly built and a great value for the price, which makes it perfect for at-home use.

Looking to build your home gym from the ground up? Make sure to check out our guide to creating your home gym for under $350.

Editors' Recommendations

Nate Swanner
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Nate is General Manager for all not-Digital-Trends properties at DTMG, including The Manual, Digital Trends en Espanol…
The Best Fitness Gear For Runners To Help You Run Better
Men's running gear: Do you have everything you need?
Man running in the woods.

There are many amazing benefits of running, from improving cardiovascular health and supporting an optimal weight to reducing anxiety and increasing bone density and muscular strength. Moreover, one of the greatest things about running as a sport is that it doesn’t require a ton of gear, making it a relatively accessible and affordable form of exercise. All you really need is a good pair of running shoes and a running trail, treadmill, or safe road, and you can run for miles.
That said, if you’re going to be running regularly, investing in a few pieces of high-quality, dependable running gear will ensure you’re comfortable, prepared, and equipped to hit the road and enjoy each and every mile you run. The best running gear will not necessarily make you a better runner, but it will make every run better, which in turn can help you fall even more in love with the sport. Take your passion for running to the next level with our picks for the best running gear in 2022.

Related Reading

Read more
The best sandbags for workouts to build upper body strength
The best sandbags for workouts: get buff with a beach in a bag
Rogue Feed Sack.

When the pandemic hit in 2020 and gyms everywhere closed, home workout solutions became an overnight necessity. This boom led to shortages in dumbbells, kettlebells, and other home gym equipment, and as a result, the price of workout iron skyrocketed. Accordingly, many fitness enthusiasts began looking for alternatives. For many, workout sandbags provided the solution.

Even before all of this, sandbags were growing in popularity among the fitness community thanks to their ability to deliver an extremely diverse, effective weight training session. By increasing or decreasing the amount of sand, you can enjoy widely varying loads, and the best workout sandbags come equipped with handles and other features in all the right places, lending themselves to a slew of different movements and lifts.

Read more
Ergatta vs. Hydrow: Which rower should you get?
Learn the differences between Ergatta and Hydrow rowers
Hydrow and Ergatta rowing machines.

Sometimes the best thing for your fitness routine is to invest in some at-home equipment. One such piece that more and more people are beginning to invest in is rowing machines. Just a few years ago, it was very rare to hear of someone buying a rowing machine for their home, let alone talking about one. Treadmills, ellipticals, and exercise bikes dominated the market for home cardio equipment, with a mere sliver of the sector going to rowing machines. However, between CrossFit and Orange Theory, the popularity of rowing for fitness has taken off, spurring the development of engaging, high-quality rowing machines for home use. Rowing is a fantastic total-body exercise, and although it’s not easy or feasible for most people to get out on a river or lake for a workout, a rowing machine can provide all the benefits of rowing right from the comfort and convenience of your home or gym.
There are quite a few rowing machines on the market nowadays, but two of the clear front runners for the best rowing machines are the Hydrow and the Ergatta. Hydrow and Ergatta have shattered the glass ceiling and elevated their products and user experience exponentially. The Ergatta and the Hydrow are premium home rowing machines, each featuring touchscreens and subscription services. They both are well made and designed to be engaging, effective, and durable. They also have quite a few differences as well.

If you’re looking to buy the best rowing machine for home workouts, you’ll likely end up trying to decide between a Hydrow or Ergatta, so we’ve put the two machines head to head to highlight the ways they are different so that you can choose the best rowing machine for you. Before you check out with your virtual shopping cart, read our thoughts on Ergatta versus Hydrow and make sure you’re setting yourself up for success on the virtual water.

Read more