Short on space and big on your lifting goals? Here is a breakdown of the best folding squat racks for home and garage gyms.
There are a metric ton of benefits to having your own squat rack at home.
For starters, there is no commute. No line-up for machines. And no membership fees and *surprise* improvement fees and contracts.
But squat racks require space.
Most commercial-grade racks are huge, and while there has been a big surge in low-cost racks in recent years, especially with power cages, squat stands, and half racks, probably the biggest innovation has come with the folding squat rack.
When you break it down, fold back squat racks are pretty epic:
Okay—some pretty solid benefits there!
Let’s stop mucking around with the perks and get right into the best folding squat racks for every kind of home or garage gym.
Rogue RML-3WC Fold Back Squat Rack
If you are a longtime reader of this blog, you know that I tend to gush and awe about Rogue Fitness and their stuff. Whether it’s their bumper plates, flat weight benches, or even their kettlebells, Rogue makes some of my all-time favorite gear.
The RML-3WC continues my absolute fandom of Rogue equipment. For the more heavy-duty user, it’s perfect.
The frame is put together with 3×3” American steel and constructed in Ohio. Spacing, as with many Rogue racks, is done Westside-style, and Rogue offers these racks with three different depth options. You can go super slim mode with a 9” depth, 21.5”, or 41.5”, which is about the regular depth of a normal rack (and longer than what is in my opinion the best squat rack for everyday humans, the R-3).
For the home or garage gym enthusiast looking to round out their gym in a specific color or décor, Rogue also has eleven different color options that you can play around with and choose from.
Height of the rack is about 90”, but you will want to leave extra space at the top of that if you plan on using the pull-up bar.
Made with Rogue’s customary and legendary durability, tested and used by countless elite athletes and lifters, Rogue’s RML-3WC is the best in class when it comes to heavy-duty foldable wall racks.
The biggest reason why you should use these racks is that Rogue offers Stringers (the two steel plates that are anchored into the wall) that provide an added degree of stability and security when installing the rack. Few of the other brands on this list offer this option.
Price-wise, the RML-3WC varies in price depending on the depth of the rack you choose, with the “slim” 9” model costing $570 and the extend-o 41.5” model costing around $700 (check Rogue’s website for current pricing and shipping options here).
Rogue R-3W Fold Back Wall Mounted Squat Rack
Want something quality but maybe not as beefy at the RML-3WC? The Rogue R-3W is a perfect wall-mounted squat rack that takes up a minimal amount of space while also giving you lots of options for exercises and training.
The key difference with the R-3W is the steel frame construction, which is a slimmer 2×3”. This is still plenty for most lifters and athletes, and the slimmer frame also means it sticks out less from the wall. When folded up, the R-3W protrudes just 5”.
Rogue makes two different depth options for this rack, with 20” or 40” rack depths. The 20” is just enough to be able to slide a bench under to do exercises like bench press (but probably not skull crushers), and Rogue offers Stringers as an add-on (with the customary Rogue insignia blasted across the plate).
The R-3W is an excellent balance of durability with Rogue’s American-made steel and pricing, costing around $500 for the rack (check Rogue’s website for current pricing and availability).
PRx Performance Profile Rack
The folding wall-mounted squat rack hasn’t been around very long—less than a decade!
The O.G. inventors are PRx Performance who brought the rack to mainstream attention with a 2016 appearance on the popular show Shark Tank.
Key features of the PRx Performance rack:
- Frame is 2×3” 11-gauge steel frame (they have a Pro range that has a beefier 3×3 frame) that is powder-coated to prevent corrosion. The powder coating also simply looks badass.
- Choice of pull up bars. The main difference in price (the Profile Rack ranges from $549 to $899) is the pull-up bar. You can go no-frills and get a rack without one ($549), a regular pull-up bar ($699), Kipping bar ($799), or a multi-grip bar ($899). The Kipping bar does create some extra distance from the wall when folded, FYI.
- Tons of attachment options. The PRx is designed to be your all-in-one strength training hub for your home, and they offer a comprehensive number of add-ons and attachments, including a pulley system, grip ball set, landmine attachment, dip station, weight plate holders, and more.
- Dimensions are excellent, with just 4” of space being taken up when folded up against the wall.
Reviewers consistently note that installation is straight-forward and that the unit is very sturdy when in use. Unlike most of the cheap and unstable China-made racks on Amazon, the PRx Performance racks are made with American steel in North America.
Titan Fitness T-3 Series Folding Wall-Mounted Power Rack
Titan Fitness is another big player in the home and garage fitness space, making many of the same products that Rogue does with a slightly cheaper price tag. I’ve reviewed and generally like a lot of their stuff (especially at the price point!), including their power racks with lat pulldown, weight sleds, and even Titan’s full-sized lat pulldown machines.
The T-3 Series Folding Power Rack shows up on the scene with a lot of different options, including different heights (82 or 91 inches—save space for head clearance while doing pull-ups!) and rack depth (21 or 41 inches).
The rack swings out and locks with four steel pins (and two more on the pull up bar), the frame consists of 2×3 inch steel, and the rack comes with J-hooks for parking your barbell between sets. Titan offers stringers for this rack, but in a surprising twist are priced more expensively than Rogue’s.
The T-3 Series Racks start at just $323, considerably cheaper than both the Rogue and PRx Performance racks, and the full height and full depth model costs around $420 (check Titan Fitness’ website for current pricing and stock).
Rep Fitness 4100 Series Foldable Wall Mounted Squat Rack
The Rep Fitness 4100 Series is another heavy-duty option that is very similar to the Rogue RML-3WC. They both have a similar 3×3” steel frame construction, giving you that stronger, thicker rack that we see in commercial-grade gyms and boxes.
One of the things I really like about this rack (that you will find in the RML-3WC, as well) is the 1” hole spacing in the mid and lower part of the rack, which means you can find a height for doing bench and pulls that works specifically for you.
The 4100 Series is available in a pair of depth option (21 and 41 inches), has a straight pull-up bar, sturdy J-hooks for barbell parking, and a 4-pin locking mechanism that makes extending and folding the squat rack (securely) very easy.
The Rep Fitness 4100 Series Folding Wall Mounted Squat Rack costs in the $400s depending on depth and is available exclusively at their website (check for current pricing and availability).
