Pull-up bar for the door frame: dimensions, mounting and load capacity

A pull-up bar is one of the pieces of equipment that does the most for a home gym: it needs hardly any space and trains back, shoulders, arms, grip strength and core all at once. Wood feels pleasant to grip and blends into your home better than a steel tube. To make sure it hangs safely and fits your door, there are four things to check: door frame dimensions, mounting type, load capacity and material.

1. Door frame: what dimensions does it need?

A hang-in pull-up bar sits on top of the door frame. Three measurements decide whether it fits:

• Lip: The hook needs an overhang of at least 5 mm at the top of the door frame.
• Height of the trim: The hook has to be able to reach around the frame. With the fixed hook the trim can be at most 8 cm tall, with the adjustable hook up to 15.3 cm.
• Width: If the door frame is narrower than 99 cm, the bar fits. For wider frames it rests directly on top or is made up to 18 cm longer.

If you live in an older building with thick walls or unusually tall frames, the adjustable pull-up bar for period buildings with its adjustable hook is the better choice. Not sure? Send us a photo of your door frame and we'll tell you which version fits. If a measurement still doesn't fit, just write to us: for unusual door frames we can often find an individual solution.

2. Mounting: hanging in, drilling or free-standing?

There are three ways. A bar to hang in needs no tools – you hang it up and take it down again in seconds, which is ideal for rented flats. A bar to screw on to a wall or ceiling is fixed but leaves drill holes. Free-standing stations such as the rollholz Base are independent of door and wall but need floor space. If you don't want to – or aren't allowed to – drill, a hang-in pull-up bar is usually the best fit. Exactly how the principle works is explained in our guide to the pull-up bar without drilling.

3. Load capacity: how much weight does the bar support?

The most important thing first: look at the maximum user weight stated by the manufacturer. It should be clearly shown on the product page and be enough for your body weight plus the swing of a pull-up. For both rollholz pull-up bars – the wooden doorway pull-up bar and the adjustable pull-up bar for period buildings – the maximum user weight is 130 kg. They work on the counter-pressure principle: the more weight you hang on the bar, the more firmly it presses against the door frame – without screws, wall plugs or drill holes.

4. Material: what matters in a wooden pull-up bar

With wood, what matters most is what the load-bearing parts are made of. On the rollholz pull-up bar, the bar itself and the half-round end caps are made of Black Forest beech; the feet and hooks are made of birch plywood with beech veneer. The surface is oiled with pure linseed oil and needs no special care. Questions you can ask about any model: which wood was used? How is the surface treated – smooth and grippy, but not slippery? Are all edges rounded?

Accessories: bands and parallettes

If you can't do a pull-up yet, start with a resistance band that takes some of your body weight. That's why the rollholz pull-up bar is also available as a set with bands, with parallettes or with both. That way you can add dips and other exercises later.

What does a wooden pull-up bar cost?

Prices vary widely: in a Google search in October 2026, wooden pull-up bars ranged from just under €70 to over €400. It depends on material, workmanship, mounting and accessories. What matters is less the price than whether load capacity, door frame dimensions and mounting type suit your home.

Frequently asked questions

How many kg can a door frame take? That depends on how the door is built and can't be answered in general. What matters is that you stick to the manufacturer's information on user weight and door frame dimensions; if in doubt, have the frame checked by a professional.

Does the bar damage the door frame? Not with the rollholz pull-up bar: it needs no drilling and no screws. At the contact points on the wall a slight mark can appear over time; small felt pads help.

Do I have to take the bar down after every workout? No, you can leave it hanging. While it's hanging, though, the door can't be closed.

In short

First check the dimensions of your door frame, then mounting type, load capacity and material – then you'll find the right wooden pull-up bar. You'll find all models in our pull-up bar overview; the wooden doorway pull-up bar is our most popular model.