13 Best Dumbbell Chest Exercises (At-Home Workout Plan)

You’ll want to see these dumbbell exercises if you want to build muscle and strength in your chest. You can sculpt and define your chest muscles from the comfort of your home with only a pair of dumbbells.

It’s common to get frustrated by a plateaued chest growth by doing the same old chest exercises. You’ll only limit your results by doing these chest exercises, and you need some new ones.

But with these dumbbell chest exercises, you’ll get the best simple yet powerful moves to target your pecs. Many of these dumbbell exercises for the chest don’t need a bench and can be done at home.

So keep going to uncover the top dumbbell exercises and at-home workout for the chest. In my 20 years as a personal trainer, these are the absolute best and I’ll show you the proper form to do them.

How to Exercise Your Chest With Dumbbells

There are pros and cons of using only dumbbells for your chest exercises. It’s important to know them so you can take better advantage of the pros while reducing the downsides of the cons. This will give you better results.

Pros:

Greater Range of Motion – Dumbbells allow a more natural movement. This better activates your muscle fibers and promotes improved muscle and strength development.

Improved Muscle Balance & Symmetry – With dumbbells, you’ll work out each arm independently. This prevent muscle imbalances that often happens with barbells and machines.

Higher Muscle Stabilizer Activation – Muscle stabilizers are small supporting muscles that keep your joints steady and under control. Dumbbells force stabilizing muscles to engage more.

Versatility and Convenience – Dumbbells are portable, compact and versatile with what you can do with them. They’re ideal for doing a dumbbell chest workout at home or if you’re limited by space.

Reduced Injury Risk – Dumbbells allow a more natural movement that’s easier on your joints. This reduces the wear and tear or overuse injuries that can come with doing barbells or machines.

Cons:

Limited Heavy Lifting – Since each arm will be lifting the dumbbell, this could make it more difficult to handle at a heavier weight. This could cause compensation by using other muscles or using improper form.

Progressive Overload Limits – Progressive overload is the gradual increase of weight or intensity in workouts to keep challenging your muscles, this leads to better strength and muscle gains.

Gradually leveling up with heavier dumbbells is a simple solution. Just get heavier dumbbells when the exercise becomes too easy. Can also get a set of adjustable dumbbells.

Stability Demands – If you’re a beginner then it could make it more challenging to use dumbbells initially. This could slow down progress some until your stabilizing muscles strengthen and your body adapts.

3 Must-Have Factors for Dumbbell Chest Exercises

An exercise with high muscle activation in the chest will be better than others. The more the chest muscles “activate” during the specific exercise, the harder it’s working.

High muscle activation during the exercise will create better strength and muscle growth gains. It recruits more muscle fibers, especially the fast-twitch muscle fibers that are responsible for growth and power.

You’ll create higher mechanical tension on the chest muscles as well as more metabolic stress and muscle fatigue. All of these are key drivers of muscle adaptation, giving you better strength and muscle growth with time.

Having a deep stretch at one end of the exercise movement adds tension on the muscle as it’s lengthened. This increases chest muscle fiber recruitment, maximizes mechanical tension, and causes more muscle damage. Micro-tears from this muscle damage trigger muscle repair and adaptation.

Then you’ll want a strong contraction on the opposite end of the stretching phase of the exercise. A forceful contraction maximally engages more motor units, especially the fast-twitch fibers. You’ll also increase time under tension, which is a key factor for muscle mass growth.

Having all three of these factors is a must-have when choosing the best dumbbell chest exercises.

Tips For Maximizing Your Dumbbell Chest Exercises

When doing these exercises, be sure to try and feel the stretch in your chest at the right end. And then squeeze your chest muscles at the other end to maximize the contraction.

Be sure to try to keep proper form throughout the movement. This will minimize momentum that can cause you to compensate using other muscle groups. It’s also a lot easier on your joints when you’re doing the exercise the right way.

At the end of the pressing movement (i.e. at the top of the push-up) stop short of your elbows locking out and your arms fully locking out. Keeping a slight bend in the elbow will help to keep the tension on your chest muscles instead of your arms and shoulders.

The first three chest exercises below are what I deem to be the best and should become core movements. I usually involve all three of these when doing a dumbbell chest workout. But variety and mixing things up are important to keep your chest muscles from adapting.

Dumbbell Bench Press

1. Sit on a bench with a dumbbell in each hand. Lie back with your feet flat on the floor.
2. Hold the dumbbells at chest level and in line with your chest. Keep your elbows bent with palms facing forward.
3. Breathe out as you press the dumbbells straight up by extending your arms. But stop short of your elbows fully locking out and don’t let your arms go completely straight. Keep your elbows slightly bent at the top.
4. Breathe in and control the dumbbells as you slowly lower them back to the starting position.

Dumbbell Incline Bench Press

1. Set up by adjusting the bench to a 30-45 degree incline angle. Hold a pair of dumbbells in each hand and sit at the end of the bench.
2. Lie back and bring the dumbbells up so they’re now to the side of your chest and in line with your chest muscles.
3. Breathe out as you press the dumbbells up by pushing them upward. But stop before your arms fully lock out and keep your elbows slightly bent.
4. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells and control the descent as you bring the weight back down to chest level.

Neutral Grip Bench Press

1. Sit at the end of the bench, hold a dumbbell in each hand, and then lie back on the bench.
2. Hold the dumbbells next to your chest and in line with your chest with your palms facing towards your chest.
3. Breathe out as you slowly press the dumbbells straight up, but keep a slight bend in your elbows at the top.
4. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells back down to chest level. Be sure to keep the dumbbells under control on the way down.

Dumbbell Key Press

The Key Press exercise is a great way to better target your lower chest. Similar to doing decline bench press.

1. Lie on your back on your bench and hold a pair of dumbbells by your lower chest with your palms facing your head.
2. Breathe out as you press the dumbbells upward and rotate your arms so your palms will be facing towards your feet when they reach the top. Keep a slight bend in your elbows at the top
3. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells back down. Rotate your arms as you lower the dumbbells so your palms are facing your head again by the time you reach the bottom of the movement.

Dumbbell Incline Champagne Press

1. Set up an adjustable bench at a 45-degree angle. Sit at the end of the bench, hold a pair of dumbbells in each hand, then lie back on the bench.
2. Hold the dumbbells together right over your chest and keep your elbows close to your side torso. Tilt the dumbbells by lowering your thumb towards your chest and lifting the pinky side up.
3. Breathe out as you press the dumbbells up but try to press the weight up at an angle so your thumbs are over your forehead at the top.
4. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells back in the same pattern as pressing them up. Lower the thumb side of the dumbbell down so it reaches the top of your chest.

Dumbbell Floor Flyes

1. Lie flat on your back with dumbbells in hand. Bend your knees and keep your feet flat on the floor. Extend your arms over your chest with your palms facing each other.
2. Arch your chest up and squeeze your shoulder blades together on your back. Keep a slight bend in your elbows as you slowly lower the dumbbells out to the sides in a wide arc until your elbows touch the floor.
3. Pause and don’t allow the dumbbells to touch the floor. Feel a deep stretch in your chest at the bottom position.
4. Bring the dumbbells back together over your chest until they’re shoulder width apart. Squeeze your pecs together at the top.

Dumbbell Incline Flyes

1. Set up a bench in a 30-45 degree incline. Lie on your back, holding a dumbbell in each hand with palms facing each other.
2. Extend your arms above your chest with a slight bend in your elbows. Keep dumbbells shoulder width apart.
3. Arch your chest up and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Slowly lower the dumbbells outward in a wide arc until you feel a deep stretch in your chest.
4. Bring the dumbbells back together over your chest. Don’t bring them all the way together and keep them shoulder width apart at the top. Squeeze your chest muscles at the top to maximize the contraction.

Dumbbell Deficit Push-ups

Holding the dumbbells while doing push-ups allows you to go lower and get a deeper stretch in your chest muscles.

1. Place a pair of dumbbells on the ground wider than shoulder width apart.
2. Get in the push-up position by holding the dumbbells and making a straight line with your body. Tighten your abs and keep your toes on the ground.
3. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and arch out your chest. Keep your elbows slightly tucked in at a 45-degree angle to your body.
4. Slowly lower your body towards the ground until your chest is slightly above the floor. Briefly pause at the bottom to maximize the stretch.
5. Breathe out and slowly push yourself back up to the starting position. Don’t go all the way up to the point your elbows lock out. Keep a slight bend in the elbows to keep tension on your chest muscles.

Dumbbell Divebomber Push-ups

1. Place a pair of dumbbells on the ground wider than shoulder width apart.
2. Get in the push-up position by holding the dumbbells and making a straight line with your body. Tighten your abs and keep your toes on the ground.
3. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and arch out your chest. Keep your elbows slightly tucked in at a 45-degree angle to your body.
4. Bring your hips back and up over your heels. Then lower your body towards the ground in a “scooping” motion towards the dumbbells.
5. When your chest reaches the dumbbell, keep pushing your body forward and up. This part will target your lower pecs, like doing a decline press .The
6. Reverse the motion to bring yourself back up to the starting position

Dumbbell Front Raise (Palms Up)

This is a standing chest exercise that targets more your upper chest muscle. It’s an effective exercise to target the upper chest if you don’t have a bench.

1. Stand with your feet hip width apart and hold a dumbbell in each hand. Turn your hands so your palms are facing up.
2. Arch out your chest and squeeze your shoulder blades together.
3. Keep a slight bend in your elbows as you raise one arm up in front of you. Bring your arm up at a 45-degree angle towards the middle of your body.
4. Briefly pause at the top and squeeze your chest muscle. Then slowly bring your arm back down to the starting position. Repeat on the other arm.

Dumbbell Standing Incline Flyes

This is a standing exercise that targets the upper chest. If you don’t have a bench, then this is another exercise you’ll want to do for the upper chest. But if you have bad shoulders, you might want to skip this one.

1. Stand with your feet hip width apart and hold a dumbbell in each hand.
2. Raise the dumbbells overhead so they’re over your shoulders with palms are facing forward.
3. Tilt your head slightly back, arch up your chest, squeeze your shoulder blades together, and keep a slight bend in your elbows.
4. Slowly lower the dumbbells out in a wide arcing motion until your arms are slightly above your shoulders.
5. Briefly pause at the bottom to maximize the stretch and then reverse the motion back up into the starting position.

Dumbbell Hammer Fly

This is a standing exercise will target more your upper and inner chest. Another one you can do if you don’t have a bench.

1. Stand with your feet hip width apart and hold a dumbbell in each hand.
2. Rotate your shoulders inward so your palms are facing the front of your thighs.
3. Arch out your chest and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Keep a slight bend in your elbows.
4. Raise your arm up across the front of your body until the dumbbell is about in front of the opposite shoulder.
5. Briefly pause at the top and squeeze your chest muscle to maximize the contraction. Then slowly lower the dumbbell back to the starting position by reversing the movement.

At-Home Dumbbell Chest Workout

Ok, so now that you know the best dumbbell chest exercises, how do you structure it into an actual effective workout?

For beginners, it’s best to focus on one exercise at a time and avoid doing every chest movement in a single session. Instead, choose 3-5 key exercises per workout to focus on.

You can rotate exercises for each workout or stick with the same ones for a while. For beginners, I recommend using the same core chest exercises for 4-6 weeks to master technique and track progressive overload. This leads to better muscle growth and strength gains.

Progressive overload is a key strategy to keep making gains. Gradually increase weight, add more reps, or slow down rep tempo for more tension. If you only have one pair of dumbbells then try using drop sets, paused reps, or increasing time under tension by going slower.

More intermediate and advanced lifters can benefit from doing supersets, which involve doing two exercises back-to-back. The key to effective supersets is pairing non-competing movements to maximize efficiency while minimizing fatigue.

For example, you could pair incline dumbbell chest presses and incline chest flyes. The press targets strength and power while the fly isolates and stretches the chest for a deeper muscle contraction. This combination keeps the workout challenging while preventing early fatigue.

You can also structure your sets using either timed reps or numbered reps. Usually, numbered reps with a challenging weight will give you better results. But if you only have one dumbbell set, using timed reps can help increase intensity and promote progressive overload.

Here’s an example workout plan you can use with these dumbbell chest exercises.

A1, A2, etc. are supersets. Perform one set of each exercise in a circuit format, until you have completed all the work sets. Move onto the next superset group after completing all the sets for the previous group (After A group, move to B group, etc).