For chest growth
For chest growth, machine chest press rates higher on our research criteria: easier to progress.
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
Machine Chest Press. Press strength without the balance or spotter a barbell needs.
Single-Arm Cable Chest Press. One arm at a time under constant cable tension: kind to the shoulders, slower to load heavy.
For chest growth, machine chest press rates higher on our research criteria: easier to progress. 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.
Machine chest press needs a machine, so for most people it’s a gym exercise. Single-arm cable chest press needs a cable station, so for most people it’s a gym exercise.
About the same: both rate Excellent for joint and recovery cost in our research rubric.