For chest growth
For chest growth, cable fly rates well ahead on our research criteria: more of the work on the chest, easier to progress.
Both are good choices, and they train the chest differently. Using both across your week covers more of the muscle than either alone: in studies, varied exercises grew parts of a muscle that one exercise missed. (Fonseca et al., 2014; Costa et al., 2021)
The research score comes from these, scored by hand from the studies. Lifter scores appear once an exercise has 10 ratings. How scores work
Cable Fly. Constant tension that stays high in the stretch, and almost nothing else limits the set.
Dumbbell Bench Press. Dumbbells go deeper than a barbell, giving the chest a bigger stretch.
For chest growth, cable fly rates well ahead on our research criteria: more of the work on the chest, easier to progress. Both are good choices, and they train the chest differently. Using both across your week covers more of the muscle than either alone: in studies, varied exercises grew parts of a muscle that one exercise missed.
About the same: both are easy to learn.
Cable fly needs a cable station, so for most people it’s a gym exercise. Dumbbell bench press needs dumbbells and a bench, so a home gym covers it.
Cable fly: it rates Excellent for joint and recovery cost in our research rubric, against Strong for dumbbell bench press.