For chest growth
For chest growth, pec deck rates higher on our research criteria: more of the work on the chest.
Both are good choices that train the chest 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
High-to-Low Cable Fly. Cables keep the chest loaded through the whole arc, and the downward path angles the work toward the lower and middle chest.
Pec Deck. Isolates the chest with a fixed path, so every rep is the same quality.
For chest growth, pec deck rates higher on our research criteria: more of the work on the chest. Both are good choices that train the chest 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.
High-to-low cable fly needs a cable station, so for most people it’s a gym exercise. Pec deck 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.