Introduction – Trending Data
For three years now, we have been asking about two of the best “value options” to fill your home gym – “REP” or “Titan.”
While some prefer neither of these cost-effective options, most of the community seems to favor REP. REP’s lead over Titan has grown even more this year, with 84% of the total votes going to REP, a 12% increase from 2021.
In the following survey, we will be sure to include Bells of Steel as they have established themselves as a strong competitor in this category in recent years.
I do wish we had more than three years of data on this because Titan was the most popular “budget home gym option” 5 and 10 years ago.
Nevertheless, today, REP owns a commanding lead within this community.
I also want to point out that it doesn’t necessarily mean that REP sells more than Titan. Since Titan Fitness has been around longer (2010 vs. 2012) and has a broader variety of products, which we’ll discuss later, they may be the company with higher revenue.
Other factors likely play into this as well.
In addition, it’s very likely that most who participated in the voting and Instagram comments below own items from REP, Titan, and many others.
Outline
This article focuses on this trending data and highlights their differences, though.
That said, here are some additional comparisons between the two. I don’t think any of these are “controversial takes.” All will be summarized below:
- REP is beating Titan regarding innovation around products home gym owners (or those answering these survey questions) care about.
- In Addition, REP’s new product releases are polished, whereas Titan’s usually need a few modifications.
- Titan has a broader selection of products and offers many options REP does not.
- Titan offers a more budget-friendly line,
- But the price gap isn’t vast with comparable products. REP actually wins on price for particular items.
- Also, Titan has more sales.
REP is beating Titan when it comes to innovation around products home gym owners (or those answering these survey questions) care about
It wasn’t even close if you look at what new products REP released vs. Titan in 2022. REP powered its rack lineup with solid rack attachments like the Athena and Ares, while we didn’t see anything new from Titan for the rack. They continue to pump out new products and tease others at a rapid pace. For example, at HomeGymCon, they brought their entire new lineup of bars expected to be released later this year.
In 2022, REP also stepped up its specialty bar game with three popular options.
While Titan has some solid specialty bar items, they are less innovative than REPs. Their most recent drops (Open Trap Bar and American Made SSB) didn’t necessarily gain resounding applause.
I’ll also mention that REP seems to drop more relevant items for this community. For example, I mentioned that they released specialty bars and rack attachments last year. Those are two “hot” items within the home gym community.
In Addition, REP’s New Product Releases are Polished, whereas Titan’s usually need a few modifications.
As previously mentioned, REP released a ton last year. The overall amount of criticism they received on these new releases was low, whereas items like the American Made SSB & Open Trap Bar were not as “polished” as we have seen from REP.
Many of the home gym community typically recommend others to wait until Titan has released at least a V2 of the product.
Nevertheless, many of the Titan V2 products address the issues, and many end up being impressed by the overall value of these options.
For example, Titan has made some excellent adjustments to their SSB, Multi-Grip Bars, and Trap Bar over the years. I would recommened all of these items to certain people on the V2 or later options.
Titan has a broader selection of products and offers many options REP does not.
Titan sells a ton of products. This ranges from the basics for a home gym to several “budget-friendly” strength machines. They also include quite a bit of niche Strongman and other strength tools.
Most of these are not offerings from REP. They seem to focus more on the essential items for a home gym.
Therefore, there are many specific pieces of equipment that Titan has that REP doesn’t. In my experience, most of these will “get the job done” for most home gym owners.
Titan offers a more budget-friendly line,
I’d say for the general population, most of Titan’s products, including their barbells are just fine. They’ll do the job and serve the intended purpose, which is to build a home gym at the lowest possible cost. I have purchased dozens of products from Titan over the years and can personally say that all did the job.
For example, you can grab an Economy Olympic Bar from Titan for $149.99, whereas the cheapest option from REP is the Sabre, which is 25% more expensive.
But the price gap isn’t vast with comparable products. REP wins on price for particular items.
Titan offers quite a bit more “cheap options.” For example, there are several budget barbells, more basic plates, and entry-level benches. While many of the audience answering these questions believe that you should “buy once, cry once,” these entry-level prices are a great way to grow the home gym community.
Many people mention that if it weren’t for Titan offerings, they wouldn’t have started a home gym, to begin with.
REP doesn’t offer many of these products.
When you look closer at the comparable products, the price gap isn’t quite as large as you may expect.
Some examples of similar products include:
- 230 LB Black Bumper Plates with White Lettering: Titan ($429) vs. REP ($512.99)
- REP PR-1100 ($379.99) vs. Titan T-2 ($419.99)
- Titan Open Trap Bar ($329.99) vs. REP Open Trap Bar ($399)
- 4 Post Titan Series Power Rack (90″ H, 42″ D, Back Crossmember is 2 in pullup bar, standard pull up bar in front, sandwich j-hooks, and flip down safeties) – $1,121.94 with current discounts an $1,329 if not on sale vs. REP PR-5000 (93″ H, 41″ D, Logo Plate Crossmember, Standard J-Cups, Strap Safeties, and 2″ Pull-Up Bar) – $1,229.92. These are not a 1 to 1 match, but I tried to line up with the cheapest option both companies had.
- 5-50 Hex Dumbbells from Titan ($1,099.99) vs. 5-50 Fully Knurled Hex Dumbbells from REP ($1,099.99)
- Titan Hefty Bench V2 ($239.99) vs. Wide Pad FB-5000 Competition Flat Bench ($269.99)
- REP FT-5000 V2 (2,499) vs. Titan Functional Trainer ($2,599.99)
Also, Titan has more sales.
REP rarely has sales, whereas Titan has items on sale constantly. If you need a particular product and see it on sale, I’d typically recommend jumping on it – from both companies,.
Nevertheless, Titan always has a sale and Scratch and Dent sections. Here, you’ll find items that may not be in perfect shape but should be 100% usable at a pretty heavy discount.
Conclusion
According to those that answer these surveys, the gap between Titan and REP is getting larger. While many more factors go into whether you will choose a product from Titan or REP, this basic does seem to paint a clear picture that aligns with most of the comments I see online today.
While most products from Titan will get the job done, REP is starting to separate itself, at least according to the knowledgeable home gym owners answering these survey questions for products they are considering adding to their home gym.
I’d love it if you could let me know what you think of this article by addint to the comments below!