Plate calculator
Enter your target. Get the exact plates per side.
Type the total weight you want on the bar. LiftLoadout works out which plates go on each side — using only the plates you actually own.
Adjust plate inventory
Use − / + to match what you own. Two plates make one usable pair. Results update instantly.
How plate math actually works.
The recipe is simple: subtract the bar from your target, divide what's left by two, and build that per-side weight from your plates, biggest first. A 45 lb bar with a 225 lb target leaves 180 lb — 90 lb per side, which is two 45s. The calculator above runs that recipe instantly, and keeps going where mental math gets annoying: odd totals, limited inventories, and collar weight.
Prefer pounds or kilos? The pound version defaults to a 45 lb bar and US plates, while the kilo version uses a 20 kg Olympic bar and metric plates. Switching units mid-session converts your inputs with full decimal precision — nothing gets truncated.
Worked examples
225 lb on a 45 lb bar
(225 − 45) ÷ 2 = 90 lb per side → 2× 45. The classic two-plate bench.
135 lb on a 45 lb bar
(135 − 45) ÷ 2 = 45 lb per side → 1× 45. One plate — where every lifter starts.
185 lb on a 45 lb bar
(185 − 45) ÷ 2 = 70 lb per side → 1× 45 + 1× 25.
315 lb on a 45 lb bar
(315 − 45) ÷ 2 = 135 lb per side → 3× 45. Three plates.
When the math doesn't cooperate
Limited inventory. Home gyms rarely have eight 45s. Set your real plate counts under "Adjust plate inventory" and the calculator searches only what you own. If the exact target is impossible, it returns the closest achievable load and states the difference plainly.
Target below the bar. If your target is lighter than the bar plus collars, there's nothing to load — the calculator tells you the minimum total instead of showing a nonsense negative.
Odd totals. Totals like 248 lb (a Madcow 5×5 staple) need small plates: (248 − 45) ÷ 2 = 101.5 per side → 2× 45 + 1× 10 + 1× 1.25. This is exactly where change plates earn their keep.
Common questions.
What plates do I need for 225 lb on a 45 lb bar?
Subtract the 45 lb bar from 225 to get 180, then split per side: 90 lb. That's two 45 lb plates per side. The calculator above does this instantly for any target.
What if my gym doesn't have the plates the math needs?
Open "Adjust plate inventory" and set the plates you actually own. LiftLoadout will find the closest achievable load and tell you exactly how far off the target it is, instead of giving you an impossible answer.
Should I count collars in the total?
Competition collars can weigh 2.5 kg (5.5 lb) each, which matters at heavy loads. Toggle collars on above and LiftLoadout includes them in the total and labels it clearly.
How do I add weight between warm-up sets?
Switch to "Add weight" mode, enter your current loaded total and your next target. The calculator shows only the plates to add per side, accounting for what's already on the bar.