The Best Rowing Machines of 2026

The Concept2 RowErg is the rowing machine most people should buy first. It is the air-resistance rower used in rowing clubs, CrossFit gyms, and Olympic training centers, it costs $990.00 direct from Concept2 for the standard-leg version, and its PM5 monitor works with more than 40 third-party training apps without a subscription. It also carries the highest weight capacity and the longest frame warranty of the five machines in this guide.

The other four picks fill narrower needs. The XTERRA ERG500 is the cheapest way into real air resistance if your budget stops well under $500. The WaterRower Natural Oak trades a folding frame for a solid-oak cabinet and a water flywheel that many owners keep in a living room rather than a garage. The Echelon Row-s and the Hydrow Wave both add a touchscreen and a rowing app library, but both also require a paid membership to unlock most of that content, so budget for the monthly fee before you compare their sticker price to the others here.

How we picked

We scored every rowing machine on five weighted criteria: resistance type and range (25%), build quality and rail length (20%), monitor and metrics (15%), footprint and storage (20%), and 3-year cost of ownership (20%).

For specs and pricing, we read the manufacturer page for the Concept2 RowErg at concept2.com and the Echelon Row-s at echelonfit.com, plus current US retailer listings for the other three: Top Fitness for the WaterRower Natural Oak, 360 Fitness Superstore for the Hydrow Wave, and Target for the XTERRA ERG500, since we could not load Hydrow’s and WaterRower’s own sites directly on the day we checked. For independent data, we read Consumer Reports’ public rowing machine coverage, which names the machines it panel-tests. We also queried the CPSC’s recall database at saferproducts.gov for “rowing machine” and “rower” before including anything on this list. These picks come from published specs, retailer listings, and named independent sources, not from testing in our own lab. See how we score for the full method.

What to look for

• Weight capacity of at least 300 lb. The XTERRA ERG500 and the Hydrow Wave sit at the low end of this guide, at 300 lb and 375 lb. The Concept2 RowErg (500 lb) and the WaterRower Natural Oak (700 lb) clear it by a wide margin.
• Rail length of 48 in or more if you are over 6 feet tall. The Concept2’s 54 in rail and the Echelon Row-s’s 85 in rail both accommodate longer legs; shorter rails on budget machines can force taller rowers into a cramped catch position.
• Decide if you want a subscription-free monitor or a touchscreen. The Concept2 PM5 and the WaterRower S4 show stroke rate, time, and distance with no monthly fee. The Echelon Row-s and Hydrow Wave ship with a touchscreen but gate most of their class library behind a membership.
• A folding or splitting frame if floor space is tight. The Concept2 separates into two pieces, the XTERRA folds to 45 in by 20 in by 57 in, and the Echelon folds to 48 in by 24 in by 69 in. The WaterRower Natural Oak does not fold.
• 8 or more resistance levels, or a naturally variable system. The XTERRA offers 8 air levels, the Echelon offers 32 magnetic levels, and the Concept2 and WaterRower both scale resistance directly with rowing effort instead of a fixed level count.
• Check the recall list before you buy. Search saferproducts.gov for “rowing machine” and “rower” by name. The only current US rowing machine recall as of Sep 16, 2026 covers a NordicTrack model, not any of the five products in this guide.

FAQ

Do I need a touchscreen to get a good rowing workout?

No. The Concept2 RowErg and the WaterRower Natural Oak both ship with a basic monitor rather than a touchscreen, and the Concept2 in particular remains standard equipment in competitive rowing and CrossFit programs that never put a screen on the machine at all.

How much floor space does a rowing machine actually need?

Plan for roughly 8 to 9 feet of clear length while you row, plus room behind the machine for the seat to slide. For storage, the Concept2 RowErg splits into two pieces and stores in a space about 25 in by 33 in by 54 in, the XTERRA ERG500 folds to 45 in by 20 in by 57 in, and the Echelon Row-s folds to 48 in by 24 in by 69 in. The WaterRower Natural Oak and the Hydrow Wave do not fold down as small, so measure your space against their full footprints of 82.25 in by 22.25 in and 80 in by 19 in first.

Do the Echelon Row-s and Hydrow Wave work without a paid membership?

The frame and console still work and still show basic numbers like stroke rate without a membership, but the on-demand and live class library on both machines is largely locked behind a subscription. Echelon lists its own membership at $39.99 a month, or $399.99 a year, directly on echelonfit.com as of Sep 16, 2026. We were not able to load Hydrow’s own membership page on the day we checked, so we left its subscription price out of the 3-year cost total below rather than guess at a number.

What is a damper setting, and does a higher number mean a harder workout?

Not by itself. On an air rower like the Concept2 or XTERRA, the damper controls how much air the flywheel pulls in, which changes how heavy each stroke feels, not how much resistance you are generating overall. A rower pulling hard at a low damper setting can produce more power than someone pulling gently at a high one. Most coaching guidance for new rowers points to a damper setting between 3 and 5 rather than starting at the highest number.

Are any rowing machines currently recalled?

Yes, but not any of the five machines in this guide. The CPSC recalled the NordicTrack Model NTRW19147 rowing machine on Oct 16, 2025 because its screen console could overheat and, in a small number of cases, catch fire or smoke; iFIT sold about 44,800 units of that model between November 2018 and April 2022. We checked saferproducts.gov again on Sep 16, 2026 and found no other open rowing machine recalls. For more home gym picks, see our fitness equipment coverage.