Spend less time and energy loading and unloading barbells and more time destroying PRs. Here is a breakdown of the best deadlift jacks and wedges.
Today was the day.
It finally happened.
You crushed a huge PR on your deadlift. The pride swells, running through your ragged breaths and burning forearms.
Now it’s time to unload all of those weight plates from the bar.
But there’s a little issue:
With all of that weight and the plates flush to the ground, once you’ve unbuckled the barbell collars it’s a game of tug of war to pull the plates off.
That’s where the right deadlift jack or deadlift wedge can help.
Both devices elevate the bar and weight plates so that you can quickly load and unload plates.
In this breakdown of the best deadlift jacks and wedges, we are going to:
- Look at the differences between deadlift jacks and wedges
- Review the best jacks for commercial and home gyms
- Break down mini portable jacks
- And look at deadlift wedges—a cheap and portable alternative to jacks
Ready?
Let’s do this.
Rogue HD Bar Jack
Rogue sets the bar high when it comes to making gear and equipment for hard core gymgoers and athletes. Whether it’s their flat weight bench or series of trap/hex bars, Rogue flat-out kills it.
In this case, Rogue lifts the bar on deadlift jacks (rather literally).
The Rogue HD Bar Jack is hands-down the best deadlifting jack for heavy-duty lifters.
Made in the United States with North American steel, Rogue’s HD Bar has the distinction of being the only deadlift jack I’ve ever used that allows you to roll a loaded bar across the gym floor.
Six embossed wheels means that you load up the bar in one corner of the gym and then roll it on over to the other side of the gym.
The T-bar, coasted with rubber for superior grip, makes titling the weight up and pulling the jack a breeze.
A key feature of the HD Bar is thick plastic coating where the barbell rests—this is to ensure that your Olympic barbells don’t get scratched up and damaged due to metal on metal contact.
At $275, all the bells and whistles don’t come cheap, but after quickly pumping the bar up and down you will be stunned at how much time, energy and frustration you are saving yourself.
If you are building the ultimate home gym, run powerlifting meets, or want something for your commercial gym, the Rogue HD Bar Jack is hands-down the best deadlift jack on the market.
Ader Barbell Deadlifting Jack
The Ader Full Bar Deadlifting Jack is larger—the footprint is 44 inches by 44 inches—but the one-piece construction provides a nice balance between the Rogue HD and the smaller, portable jacks that I will cover in a bit.
If you have the room for it in your home or garage gym, this is an economical and easy way to quickly lift barbells for loading and unloading weight.
The cups (where the barbells rests) are lined to protect the barbell, and a rubber-gripped handle makes leveraging the stand easy.
Assembled quickly (it comes in two pieces, with a handful of bolts to be tightened from the handle to the stand), the Ader Barbell Deadlifting Jack is a great choice for those who don’t want all the bells and whistles of the Rogue HD or the two-step lifting that the mini deadlift jacks require.
YES4ALL Mini Deadlift Barbell Jack
While I love the big jacks that you most commonly see in commercial gyms, the reality is that they aren’t always practical (or economical) for the home garage.
Mini deadlift jacks solve this by providing the main functionality (getting the bar in the air) with a fraction of the footprint. Pull them out when you have a big lift, and when the plates are unsleeved and tucked back onto the weight plate rack, tuck the jack away as well.
The YS4ALL is a perfect example of this kind mini deadlift jack.
Made of heavy-duty steel, you simply slide the two levers under the barbell, and using either the handle or the pedal on the lever, apply pressure, and just like that, up goes the bar and plates.
The only downside with this kind of set-up is that you have to lever each side individually. Make sure your plates are properly buckled in with weight collars otherwise they will slide right off.
YES4ALL backs their mini deadlift jack with a 365-day warranty, and the contact “U” where the barbell sits is padded to protect the knurling on the bar.
RUNOW Barbell Jack
The RUNOW and the YES4ALL mini dead jacks share a lot of the same function.
When you are ready to change the weight on the barbell, slide the two jacks under the barbell and use either your foot or hand to grip the rubber-coated handle to lever the barbell and weight into the air.
The RUNOW version looks better (in my opinion, blue is definitely my jam!), the jacks are backed by a 12-month warranty, and each jack is rated for up to 660lbs.
Deadlift Jacks vs Deadlift Wedges
There are two kinds of tools to keep the bar elevated for easy plate changing. (Obviously not including the safety arms on a power rack.)
Both have their own perks and benefits.
Deadlift jacks utilize leverage and heavy-duty steel frame to, yup, “jack” a loaded barbell into the air.
The primary benefit of deadlift jacks is that they raise plates so high that many lifters don’t even have to bend over to slide weights off the sleeves.
More expensive, and available in a range of pro-models to portable models that you can tuck away after use, deadlift jacks are built to take a beating.
Deadlift wedges are small, sloped tools that allow the plates to rest.
The trick is to have the wedges lined up to the most inner plates (the two plates closest to your body) so that you can slide the other plates on and off.
Deadlift wedges are also great because they keep your bar from rolling between sets.
Smaller, and cheaper, they do require you get down closer to the floor to peel off plates compared to jacks, but this is a small inconvenience when you consider that you can drop them into your gym duffel bag.
Barbell 1 Lift-EZ Deadlift Wedges
Deadlift wedges are simple, cheap, and portable. Although they require accuracy to line up, I love the fact that they keep your fully loaded barbell from rolling away.
The Barbell 1 Lift-EZ Deadlift Wedge executes the simplicity of this device superbly.
About the width of three metal weight plates, the Barbell 1 wedges offer a significantly cheaper and more portable option compared to deadlift jacks.
Barbell 1 rates the wedges for up to 800lbs, making it an excellent wedge for both beginner and experienced lifters.
Dead Wedge Lifting Wedge
Finally, we have the Dead Wedge.
The best deadlifting wedge I have ever tried.
Thinner than the Barbell 1, the width of the Dead Wedge is the same as one Olympic weight plate. Which means that if you set it down on the innermost plates, you can remove nearly every plate without having to lift the bar at all.
The Dead Wedge is available in a couple of colors. I appreciate the orange one because it is easier to line up after a heavy round of reps, whereas the black one can melt into my black gym flooring.
Portable, durable, and with over 1,500 five-star ratings on Amazon, the Dead Wedge is a killer choice for keeping the bar in place and elevating it enough that you can quickly access plates on the sleeves.
