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Exercises

Dumbbell row alternatives: what to row when the dumbbells or bench are missing

Published October 23, 2026

The best dumbbell row alternative is the single-arm cable row, because it keeps the same one-arm pull to the hip and holds tension through the stretch. If your lower back is tired, a chest-supported machine row takes it out completely. At home without a bench, do bent-over dumbbell rows; with no dumbbells, inverted rows or band rows train the same back muscles.

What a one-arm dumbbell row alternative has to replace

The one-arm dumbbell row trains your lats and mid-back, with your rear shoulders and biceps helping. It loads hardest when your elbow passes your side, and the bench brace lets you row heavy without your lower back limiting the set. The long reach at the bottom stretches the lat, which is a big part of why it works.

A replacement should keep a full stretch and a pull toward the hip. One-arm swaps keep the left-right balance; two-arm swaps let you use more weight. Pick by what you have and whether your lower back needs a break.

How to do the one-arm dumbbell row

Cables and machines

A cable or a chest pad replaces the bench brace. Both let you take sets close to failure without your lower back or grip ending them first.

Closest cable swap

Single-Arm Cable Row

Upper Back, Lats

The same one-arm pull with a long reach and the elbow driving to your hip, and the cable keeps tension at the stretch where a dumbbell gets light. Pick it when the dumbbell rack is busy or your heaviest dumbbell is too light.

How to do it

  1. Set a pulley at about chest height with a single handle and stand facing it, feet about shoulder-width apart.
  2. Take the handle in one hand, step back until your arm is straight, then soften your knees and lean forward slightly from the hips.
  3. Row the handle to your side by driving your elbow back past your ribs, keeping your chest square to the stack.
  4. Let the arm straighten and your shoulder reach toward the pulley, finish the set, then switch hands.

Cues

  • Reach, then pull
  • Elbow tight to the side
  • Finish square

Common mistakes

  • Twisting far back at the finish to move more weight: the rotation stays small.
  • Letting the stack yank your arm forward: control the return.
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Machine swap, nothing on your lower back

Chest-Supported Row

Upper Back, Lats

Your chest rests on the pad, so you can row hard without bracing on a bench or holding a hinge. Use it when your lower back is tired or you want to push close to failure safely.

How to do it

  1. Set the seat so the handles are at chest height and the pad sits against your upper chest.
  2. Grab the handles with arms straight and your shoulders stretched forward.
  3. Pull the handles back by driving your elbows behind you until your hands reach your torso.
  4. Return slowly to straight arms and repeat without lifting off the pad.

Cues

  • Chest stays on the pad
  • Wide elbows for upper back, tucked for lats
  • Full stretch each rep

Common mistakes

  • Pulling your chest off the pad to finish reps: the set is over when you cannot finish with the chest down.
  • Setting the seat too low so you pull toward your neck: handles should line up with your mid-chest.
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Barbell and landmine

With a bar, you can row much heavier than with one dumbbell. The landmine rows are easier on your lower back than a free bent-over row.

Heavier two-arm swap

T-Bar Row

Upper Back, Lats

Both hands on a loaded bar in a landmine lets you row far more than any one dumbbell. It trains the same lats and mid-back, but your lower back holds the hinge.

How to do it

  1. Stand over the bar facing away from the anchor, plates in front of you.
  2. Put a V-handle under the sleeve or grip the bar with both hands.
  3. Hinge until your chest is at about 45 degrees and your back is flat.
  4. Pull the plates toward your lower chest, elbows close.
  5. Lower until your arms are straight and your shoulders stretch forward.

Cues

  • Chest stays over the plates
  • Elbows to your hips
  • Full stretch at the bottom

Common mistakes

  • Standing up as you pull: the angle you start at is the angle you finish at.
  • Shortening the bottom: let your shoulder blades spread before the next rep.
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One-arm swap with a barbell

Meadows Row

Upper Back, Lats

Rowing the end of a landmine bar keeps the one-arm, elbow-to-hip pull of a dumbbell row, with a deeper stretch and more weight than most dumbbell racks allow.

How to do it

  1. Wedge one end of the bar into a corner or landmine and load the other end.
  2. Stand side on to the loaded end in a staggered stance, front knee bent, and rest your free forearm on that knee.
  3. Grip the sleeve end overhand and pull it up toward your hip, driving your elbow back and slightly out.
  4. Lower until your arm is fully straight and your shoulder dips toward the floor, then row again. Finish the set and switch sides.

Cues

  • Elbow back and slightly out
  • Let the shoulder drop at the bottom
  • Hips stay square

Common mistakes

  • Rotating your torso to heave the bar: keep your shoulders level and lighten the load.
  • Gripping the thick sleeve too far from the end: hold just behind the collar so your hand does not slip.
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Barbell swap

Barbell Row

Upper Back, Lats

A bent-over barbell row trains both sides at once with heavy load. Expect your lower back to work harder than on a braced dumbbell row.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your feet roughly hip width and hold the bar with an overhand grip just outside your thighs.
  2. Soften your knees and push your hips back until your torso is around 45 degrees or lower, with the bar hanging at arm's length below your knees.
  3. Pull the bar into your lower ribs, driving your elbows back past your torso.
  4. Lower the bar until your arms are straight again, holding the same torso angle for every rep.

Cues

  • Chest proud, back flat
  • Elbows past the ribs
  • Same angle top to bottom

Common mistakes

  • Standing taller with each rep until the row becomes a shrug: pick a load you can row at a fixed angle for every rep of the set.
  • Bouncing the bar off your thighs with a hip thrust: if you need the hip drive, the weight is too heavy for the rep range.
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Other dumbbell rows

Still have dumbbells but no flat bench, or want a change: these keep the free weights and change the setup.

Same dumbbells, chest on a bench

Incline Dumbbell Row

Upper Back, Lats

Lying face down on an incline bench takes your lower back and balance out of the row, so all the work goes to your upper back and lats. Use it when you have an adjustable bench.

How to do it

  1. Set a bench to about 45 degrees and lie chest-down on it, a dumbbell in each hand, arms hanging straight toward the floor.
  2. Row the dumbbells up by driving your elbows back and slightly out, until your upper arms reach the line of your body.
  3. Squeeze your shoulder blades together for a second at the top with your chest still on the pad.
  4. Lower until your arms are straight and your shoulder blades slide forward, then repeat.

Cues

  • Chest glued to the pad
  • Elbows wide for upper back, tucked for lats
  • Full stretch between reps

Common mistakes

  • Lifting your chest off the pad to finish reps: that is your lower back joining in. Stop the set there.
  • Shrugging the dumbbells up instead of rowing them: pull the shoulder blades down and back before the elbows bend.
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Same dumbbells, no bench

Dumbbell Bent-Over Row

Upper Back, Lats

Hinging over with a dumbbell in each hand trains both sides at once with nothing to lean on. It is the dumbbell row you can do in a living room.

How to do it

  1. Take one dumbbell per hand, feet about hip-width apart, and hinge forward from the hips with soft knees until your torso is nearly level with the floor.
  2. Let the dumbbells hang straight down under your shoulders, palms turned in.
  3. Pull both dumbbells up to your lower ribs, keeping the elbows close, and hold the top for a beat.
  4. Lower to straight arms without letting your torso rise and repeat.

Cues

  • Torso angle stays locked
  • Pull to the ribs
  • Squeeze, then lower

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hinge rise until you are rowing upright: keep a mirror or phone camera to the side and stop the set when your chest climbs.
  • Yanking the dumbbells with your hips: the legs stay still and the elbows do the work.
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One arm, standing, longer stretch

Dumbbell Lawnmower Row

Lats

A low reach across your front foot and a pull to the hip give your lat a longer stretch than a bench row. Brace a hand on your thigh instead of a bench.

How to do it

  1. Stand in a wide staggered stance with your right foot forward and both knees bent, lean your torso forward, and brace your right hand on your right thigh.
  2. Let the dumbbell in your left hand hang low inside your front foot, shoulder turned slightly downward.
  3. Pull the dumbbell up and back toward your left hip, turning your chest square as the elbow passes your side.
  4. Lower back to the floor-side start along the same path and repeat, then switch sides.

Cues

  • Start low and across, finish at the hip
  • Hips still, chest turns
  • Smooth, not yanked

Common mistakes

  • Jerking the dumbbell off the floor like starting a mower: the pull should be steady from the bottom to the top.
  • Turning so far that the lower back twists: the rotation is small and comes from the upper body.
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No dumbbells: bodyweight and bands

Your bodyweight is heavier than most home dumbbells. Rows under a bar or on straps, and a one-sided pull-up, train the same back.

Best swap with no dumbbells

Inverted Row

Upper Back, Lats

Pulling your chest to a bar at hip height trains the same back muscles with your bodyweight. Raise the bar to make it easier, lower it to make it harder.

How to do it

  1. Set a bar at about hip height, lie under it, and grip it with your hands a little wider than your shoulders.
  2. Straighten your body from heels to head, or bend your knees with feet flat for an easier version.
  3. Pull your chest up to the bar, leading with your elbows, and keep your hips in line.
  4. Lower until your arms are straight, then pull again.

Cues

  • Body stays a straight plank
  • Chest touches the bar
  • Bend your knees to make it easier

Common mistakes

  • Letting your hips sag so only your chest rises: squeeze your glutes and move as one piece.
  • Pulling the bar to your neck: aim for the bottom of your chest.
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Suspension straps at home

TRX Row

Upper Back, Lats

Straps over a door give you a bodyweight row anywhere. Walk your feet forward to make each rep heavier.

How to do it

  1. Anchor the suspension straps above a closed door or a beam, take a handle in each hand, and sit back, knees bent, both soles planted.
  2. Lean back until your arms are straight and your body forms a line from knees to shoulders.
  3. Pull your chest up to the handles by driving your elbows back past your ribs.
  4. Lower back to straight arms under control and repeat.

Cues

  • Hips stay up in line
  • Elbows past the ribs
  • Walk the feet forward to make it harder

Common mistakes

  • Letting your hips sag as you tire: squeeze your glutes and end the set when the line breaks.
  • Pulling only with the arms and stopping short: the handles should finish beside your chest every rep.
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Bands only

Band Bent-Over Row

Lats, Upper Back

Standing on a band and rowing to your lower ribs trains your back with no weights. Pause at the top, where the band pulls hardest.

How to do it

  1. Stand on the middle of a long band with your feet hip-width apart and hold an end in each hand.
  2. Hinge forward from the hips with soft knees until your torso is at about 45 degrees, back flat.
  3. Row both handles toward your lower ribs, elbows close, and pause with your shoulder blades pulled together.
  4. Let the band pull your arms back to straight slowly and repeat.

Cues

  • Hold the squeeze for a second
  • Slow on the way back
  • Shorten your grip to add tension

Common mistakes

  • Letting the band snap your arms back down: resist it all the way, because the lowering counts.
  • Using a band so light the set never gets close to failure: choke up on the band or switch to a heavier one.
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One-sided pull on a bar

Archer Pull-Up

Lats, Upper Back

Shifting toward one hand loads one side much more than the other, the bodyweight version of rowing one arm at a time.

How to do it

  1. Take an overhand grip about twice your shoulder width and hang with your arms straight.
  2. Pull your body toward your right hand, letting your left arm straighten along the bar.
  3. Get your chin near your right hand at the top, then lower back to the middle.
  4. Alternate sides each rep, or do all reps on one side and switch.

Cues

  • Pull toward one hand
  • Other arm straight
  • Lower to center

Common mistakes

  • Bending the assisting arm so both share the work: straighten it as much as you can.
  • Rushing back through the middle: control the lowering on each side.
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Example sessions without the one-arm dumbbell row

Session 1

Gym, the dumbbells are taken

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets20 a week
  • Per workout~30 min
  • EquipmentLandmine, Cable Row, Seated Row Machine

You train in a gym with machines and a landmine, but the dumbbell rack or bench is busy.

The T-bar row takes the heavy slot, the single-arm cable row keeps the one-arm pull the dumbbell row gave you, and the chest-supported row finishes your back with your lower back resting. 10 working sets.

Back
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
T-Bar Row1 warm-up set first 3 × 6–10 2 2:30 min
Single-Arm Cable RowSets are per arm. 3 × 10–12 2 75 s
Chest-Supported Row 4 × 10–15 1 90 s
How to run it
Run it as your back day, or the rowing half of a pull day, once or twice a week.
How to progress
When every set of a row reaches the top of its range at the RIR shown, add the smallest plate or pin jump next session and start back at the bottom of the range.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Home, dumbbells but no bench

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets20 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells, Resistance Bands

You have dumbbells at home and nothing sturdy to brace on.

The bent-over row trains both sides at once, the lawnmower row keeps a one-arm pull with a long stretch, and band rows add easy volume at the end. Home dumbbells are often light, so the later sets run higher reps closer to failure. 10 working sets.

Back
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Dumbbell Bent-Over Row1 warm-up set first 4 × 8–12 2 90 s
Dumbbell Lawnmower RowSets are per arm. 3 × 10–15 1 1 min
Band Bent-Over Row 3 × 15–25 1 45 s
How to run it
Twice a week on non-consecutive days. Rest 60 to 90 seconds so the session stays under 30 minutes.
How to progress
Add reps until every set reaches the top of the range, then move up a dumbbell. At your heaviest dumbbell, slow the lowering to three seconds and pause at the top.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

No dumbbells: a bar and a band

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets30 a week
  • Per workout~25 min
  • EquipmentPull-Up Bar, Barbells, Resistance Bands

You train with bodyweight, a pull-up bar, something to row under and a band.

The archer pull-up loads one side at a time like a one-arm row, the inverted row is the main horizontal pull, and the band row finishes with high reps. 10 working sets.

Back
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Archer Pull-UpReps are per side. 3 × 3–6 2 2 min
Inverted Row 4 × 6–12 2 90 s
Band Bent-Over Row 3 × 15–25 1 45 s
How to run it
Two or three times a week. Keep two reps in reserve on the archer pull-up so each rep is clean.
How to progress
On the inverted row, lower the bar or raise your feet once you reach 12 reps on every set. On the archer pull-up, add a rep per side before straightening the assisting arm more.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

What can replace a dumbbell row?

The single-arm cable row is the closest match. A chest-supported machine row, a T-bar row or a Meadows row all train the same lats and mid-back.

What machine can I use instead of dumbbell rows?

A chest-supported row machine or a cable row with a single handle. The chest pad takes your lower back out of it, and the cable keeps tension at the stretch.

How do you do dumbbell rows without dumbbells?

Do inverted rows under a bar or sturdy table, rows on suspension straps, or band bent-over rows. Each trains the same back muscles with your bodyweight or a band.

What is a good one-arm dumbbell row alternative at home?

With dumbbells but no bench, do bent-over dumbbell rows or lawnmower rows braced on your thigh. With no dumbbells, use inverted rows or band rows.

What are the best variations of dumbbell rows?

The incline dumbbell row for a chest-supported version, the bent-over row for both arms at once, and the lawnmower row for a longer stretch.

What can I do instead of a row?

Any horizontal pull works: cable rows, machine rows, barbell rows, inverted rows or band rows. Pick the one you can load hard with a full stretch.