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You need a treadmill with a higher weight limit than the standard home gym treadmills but don’t want to spend a lot of money? Here are the cheapest options at every weight range.
Many treadmills in different price ranges have a load limit of over 300 lbs. Some treadmills have a load limit of up to 500 lbs. Higher load limits do tend to come at a higher price because better and stronger parts have to be used.
Let’s get straight into it and see what the cheapest heavy duty treadmills are at different load limits. We’ll look at treadmills with 300, 350, 400 and 500 lbs. claimed load limits.
Treadmills with higher load limits are going to be more expensive because of material and construction differences. So while these are the cheapest treadmills with a certain load capacity, that doesn’t mean they’re ‘cheap’. That said, you still get decent value for money with most of these treadmills. You pay a bit more but you also get more.
1. Horizon Fitness T101 & Up
Of all the treadmills with a 300 lbs. weight limit, the cheapest option is the Horizon Fitness T101. It’s a decent treadmill for anyone who is looking for something compact for a reasonable price.
You get a 55” by 20” belt to run on with 3 zone cushioning. There’s a 2.25 CHP motor which is very decent for the price range. One of the biggest benefits of this treadmill is that the deck can fold up as well. This means it takes up a whole lot less space between workouts and you can use the floor space for something else. Usually treadmills with higher load limits aren’t foldable so this is an uncommon feature here.
You also get a lifetime warranty on the frame and motor which is a really good thing to have. There’s a good amount of controls and the treadmill responds quickly to inputs from the buttons.
There is no support for fitness apps and heart rate monitors but it’s possible to stream music to the built in speakers.
Features;
- Speed is adjustable in 0.5 mph increments from 0.5 to 10 mph
- Incline is adjustable from 0 to 10%.
- 20” x 55” belt size
- 2.25 CHP motor
- 30 built in programs
- Bluetooth music streaming to built-in speakers
The 55″ long belt is long enough for people under 6′ to run on. However, if you’re over 6′ it can be a bit too short to run all out without worry.
If you want something with more features/power/weight limit, check out the rest of the range of the Horizon Fitness range. They all have 300 lbs. or higher weight limits.
- 2.25 CHP motor
- 20 X 55 belt
- 10 mph top speed
- Adjustable incline from 0-10%
- Lifetime warranty on motor and frame
honorable mention: Sunny health SF-T7857
The Sunny Health SF-T7857 doesn’t quite make it to 300 lbs. It almost does with a 295 lbs. limit though. And while it’s only 5 pounds below our cutoff here, it does that with a significantly lower price tag. So if this is something that would work for you, give it a look.
Not sure how to choose the right treadmill for you? Click here to find a complete guide on how to select the right treadmill for you.
2. XTerra TRX3500
In this load limit range, the XTerra TRX3500 is the cheapest choice. You’re not necessarily missing out on much though;
- 3 CHP motor
- 20” x 60” belt size
- Bluetooth that connects with third party apps.
- 12 mph top speed
- 0 to 12% incline
- Incline and speed are very easily adjustable with buttons on the console
- Built in fans
- 6.5” LCD display
- Soft cushioning
- Quiet and powerful high torque 3.0 HP motor
- Speed range: 0 - 12 mph
- Incline range 0 - 12%
- Large 6.5” Blue Backlit LCD display
- 20 x 60 Belt size
- 350 lbs. user weight limit
The TRX4500 (Amazon) is a nice upgrade from the TRX3500. It’s almost the same but has a slightly stronger motor, which is a good thing if you’re a heavier person, as well as a bigger screen and a higher max incline.
3. Sole Fitness Range
The whole treadmill range from Sole Fitness can handle at least 300 lbs. Many of them more. If you really need something sturdy that doesn’t have a sky high price, check out the S77 although the F80/F85/TT8 are also great choices.
In the category of treadmills that can handle 400 lbs. of user weight, the Sole Fitness S77 is a relatively affordable and good choice.
- 4 HP motor
- Speed adjustable in 0.5 mph increments from 0.5 to 12 mph.
- Cushioned deck that claims to reduce joint impact by 40%
- 22” x 60” belt size. Good for every size
- Included heart rate monitor
- 10.1” TFT display with all the information you could want.
- Tablet holder included
The high power and wide belt make this treadmill suitable for High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) as well. HIIT is a great way to burn more calories in a short period of time and also improve your cardiovascular health. A good interval timer is going to make HIIT workouts much more enjoyable. Check out the GymNext Flex timer. It’s super easy to set up and control contrary to most other interval timers making the set up for any workout a breeze.
- 4.0 HP Motor
- For users up to 400 lbs.
- Wireless Heart Rate Monitoring
- 22 x 60 belt size
- Lifetime warranty on motor, deck and fr
4. Landice L8
Here we get to the treadmill with a very high load limit. It’s also a treadmill with a pretty high price tag. You do get something that’s quite exceptional in this space though.
Landice makes premium cardio equipment for home and commercial use.
The L8 is a treadmill with a few great features;
- 0.5 to 12.0 mph speed range
- 500 lbs. load limit
- 15% grade electric elevation
- 22″ x 63″ running area
- 4 HP continuous duty drive motor
- 3 1/2″ diameter, 22-pound steel rollers
- Quiet
- Very comfortable to run and walk on
- Very high build quality
- Awesome customer service
At a first glance, there might not be that much there except the high load limit. No fancy LCD displays etc. But, the quality of these treadmills is great. There is nothing there that can easily break. It might not have all the latest features but that means there’s less to go wrong. And everything that’s there is very solid. Just look at the weight of the machine itself compared to others and you’ll see there is a lot of stuff under the hood.
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Yes, this is an expensive treadmill. But, it’s one of the few home treadmills with a high load limit like this and it’ll last you a very long time. This is a great choice not only for bigger people but everyone that want’s something exceptional yet simple.
It’s best to order this treadmill directly from the company website.
Image | Brand | Model | Load limit | Buy |
---|---|---|---|---|
Horizon | T101 | 300 lbs. | Buy on Amazon | |
Sunny Health | SF-T7857 | 295 | Buy on Amazon | |
XTerra | TRX3500 | 350 | Buy on Amazon | |
XTerra | TRX4500 | 350 | Buy on Amazon | |
SOLE | F85 | 400 | Buy on Amazon |
Why are heavy duty treadmills so expensive?
The treadmills with the highest load limits get quite expensive, even though these are the “cheapest”. Why is that?
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Well, building a treadmill that has a high load limit requires a few things;
- More material
- More time put in design
- Better quality control
- Sturdier components
All these things cost more money.
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There’s also just the fact that these treadmills tend to be built by the more expensive brands. That’s a good and bad thing at the same time. There are some solid benefits to getting a treadmill from one of these brands besides the load limit;
- Good customer service
- More respected brands will stand behind their products
- Better aftercare if something goes wrong
- Better parts availability
- Usually better designed
- Parts used are higher quality
- Tend to be more comfortable to run on
The fact that it’s a good brand means it’ll be well designed and you can be sure that you’ll have a good experience.
Suggested post: Buy a treadmill or join a gym?
So while it seems like you’re paying a lot extra just for the brand (and you do pay a little extra for it), you also get a lot of extra and better things that aren’t immediately visible.
Find which treadmill I recommend for home gyms here.
Popular home treadmills list
Above you can see the cheapest options per weight range. Here is the full list of the most popular home treadmills so you can see the other options for yourself.
These prices are MSRP at the time of writing. Of course prices can change over time.
Brand | Model/Series | Price | Weight limit |
---|---|---|---|
Life Fitness | T3 | 2750 | 350 |
T5 | 4250 | 400 | |
F3 | 2750 | 350 | |
Sole Fitness | F63 | 1000 | 325 |
F80 | 1600 | 375 | |
F85 | 2000 | 400 | |
TT8 | 2500 | 400 | |
F65 | 1400 | 350 | |
S77 | 1900 | 400 | |
Landice | L7 | 4400-5000 | 400 |
L8 | 5400-6100 | 500 | |
BowFlex | 10 | 2000 | 400 |
22 | 2700 | 400 | |
Nautilus | T616 | 1150 | 300 |
T618 | 1500 | 350 | |
LifeSpan | TR1200i | 800 | 200 |
TR2000i | 1700 | 300 | |
TR3000i | 2000 | 350 | |
TR5500i | 2600 | 350 | |
TR4000i | 2000 | 350 | |
True Fitness | M30 | 2300 | 300 |
M50 | 2400 | 300 | |
Z5.0 | 4200 | 400 | |
Z5.4 | 5100 | 400 | |
Performance 100 | 3500 | 350 | |
Performance 300 | 3900 | 350 | |
Performance 800 | 4800 | 350 | |
950 | 6400 | 350 | |
3G | Lite Runner | 1200 | 300 |
80i | 1800 | 325 | |
Pro Runner | 1900 | 350 | |
Elite Runner | 3500 | 400 | |
Xterra | TR300 | 800 | 300 |
TR6.4 | 950 | 325 | |
TR6.6 | 1100 | 350 | |
TRX2500 | 900 | 300 | |
TRX3500 | 1000 | 350 | |
TRX4500 | 1200 | 350 | |
TRX5500 | 2000 | 350 | |
TR150 | 500 | 250 | |
TR200 | 550 | 250 | |
TRX1000 | 530 | 250 | |
Horizon Fitness | T101 | 700 | 300 |
T202 | 800 | 325 | |
T303 | 1000 | 325 | |
7.0AT | 1000 | 325 | |
7.4AT | 1600 | 350 | |
7.8AT | 2000 | 375 | |
Schwinn | 810 | 800 | 275 |
830 | 950 | 300 | |
870 | 1100 | 300 | |
BodyCraft | T800 | 3300-4300 | 425 |
T400 | 3800-4800 | 350 | |
T1000 | 4800-5800 | 475 | |
NordicTrack | EXP7i | 1100 | 300 |
EXP10i | 1600 | 300 | |
T6.5s | 800 | 300 | |
Sunny Health | SF-T7955 | 950 | 275 |
SF-T4400 | 430 | 220 | |
7750P | 890 | 220 | |
SF-T7917 | 810 | 265 | |
SF-T7857 | 600 | 295 |
Find which treadmill I recommend for home gyms here.
Favorite Cardio Machine Accessories
Check out these accessories that improve a home cardio workout:
- Equipment mat: All cardio equipment should be put on an equipment mat. The Rubber-Cal mat (Amazon) is an affordable yet very high quality choice.
- Interval timer: To time your intervals and workouts, there is no better choice than the GymNext Flex. It’s super easy to use and set up with a phone app.
- Tablet holder: Cardio can be boring. With this tablet holder (Amazon) you can follow along with on-demand workouts or just watch a movie on any cardio machine.
- Heart rate monitor: Monitoring your heart rate is very important while doing cardio. The Polar H10 (Amazon) connects to almost anything you can imagine and is very accurate.
To find which cardio machines I recommend for home gyms, click here.