Exercise guide · Intermediate · Compound

Incline Barbell Bench Press: How to Do It & Muscles Worked

The incline bench press is a barbell press on a bench set to roughly 30 to 45 degrees. The incline puts more of the work on the upper (clavicular) chest and front delts than a flat bench.

Primary muscles
Chest
Secondary muscles
Shoulders , Triceps
Equipment
Barbell
Level · type
Intermediate · Compound

Written by the FitStack training team. Last reviewed .

Demonstration of the incline barbell bench press
Front view: muscles worked by the incline barbell bench press. Primary: chest. Secondary: shoulders and triceps.
Back view: muscles worked by the incline barbell bench press. Primary: chest. Secondary: shoulders and triceps.
Primary Secondary

How to do the incline barbell bench press

  1. Step 1: Set up an incline bench at a 45-degree angle.
  2. Step 2: Lie down on the bench with your feet flat on the ground.
  3. Step 3: Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  4. Step 4: Unrack the barbell and lower it slowly towards your chest, keeping your elbows at a 45-degree angle.
  5. Step 5: Pause for a moment at the bottom, then push the barbell back up to the starting position.
  6. Step 6: Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Form cues

  • Set the bench to 30 to 45 degrees; lower angles keep more chest involvement.
  • Pull your shoulder blades back and down and keep your feet planted.
  • Lower the bar to your upper chest, just below the collarbones.
  • Press straight up over your shoulders.

Common incline barbell bench press mistakes

  • Bench set too steep, turning it into a shoulder press.

    Fix: Keep the angle at 45 degrees or below.

  • Lowering the bar to the mid-chest.

    Fix: Aim higher, just under the collarbones.

Sets, reps and programming

Use as the first or second press of an upper session for 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.

Suggested sets, reps and rest for the incline barbell bench press by training goal
Goal Sets Reps Rest Effort
Strength 3–5 3–6 3–5 min 1–3 reps in reserve
Muscle growth 3–4 6–12 2–3 min 1–2 reps in reserve
Muscular endurance 2–3 12–20 1–2 min 1–3 reps in reserve

Ranges follow the ACSM position stand on progression in resistance training. Muscle grows across a wide range of loads when sets end close to failure (Schoenfeld et al., 2017), longer rests between heavy sets support strength and size (Schoenfeld et al., 2016), and stopping a rep or two short of failure works about as well as training to failure (Grgic et al., 2022). Estimate your working weights with the strength calculators.

Variations and progressions

Incline Barbell Bench Press alternatives

More exercises that train the chest as their main target:

Incline Barbell Bench Press FAQs

What angle is best for the incline bench press?

About 30 degrees is a good default for upper-chest emphasis. Above 45 degrees the front delts start to take over.

More chest exercises

See the best chest exercises, ranked →

Sources

  1. American College of Sports Medicine. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(3):687-708.
  2. Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Strength and hypertrophy adaptations between low- vs. high-load resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(12):3508-3523.
  3. Schoenfeld BJ, Pope ZK, Benik FM, et al. Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(7):1805-1812.
  4. Grgic J, Schoenfeld BJ, Orazem J, Sabol F. Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sport Health Sci. 2022;11(2):202-211.

Step-by-step instructions and demonstration media are from the ExerciseDB exercise dataset; cues, mistakes, programming and FAQs are written by FitStack.

This guide is general fitness information, not medical advice. Stop if an exercise causes pain and speak to a doctor or physiotherapist about injuries or health conditions before starting a new programme.