For glute growth
For glute growth, the two are close. Hip thrust machine rates slightly higher: more of the work on the glutes.
Glute kickback machine gives more stretch.
Both are good choices that train the glutes the same way, so they swap freely. Rotating between them every few weeks is an easy way to vary your training.
The research score comes from these, scored by hand from the studies. Lifter scores appear once an exercise has 10 ratings. How scores work
Glute Kickback Machine. Isolates one glute at a time on a fixed path. Simple to load and easy to recover from.
Hip Thrust Machine. Puts the glutes first with a stable setup and easy loading, though most tension comes at the top, where they’re short.
For glute growth, the two are close. Hip thrust machine rates slightly higher: more of the work on the glutes. Glute kickback machine gives more stretch. Both are good choices that train the glutes the same way, so they swap freely. Rotating between them every few weeks is an easy way to vary your training.
About the same: both are easy to learn.
Glute kickback machine needs a machine, so for most people it’s a gym exercise. Hip thrust machine needs a machine, so for most people it’s a gym exercise.
About the same: both rate Excellent for joint and recovery cost in our research rubric.