The Best 15 Biceps Workouts You Can Do At Home

Building strong, defined biceps isn’t just about how they look in a tank top—it’s about improving overall upper-body strength and functionality for everyday tasks. This study, performed in 2023, found low upper limb strength to correlate with a higher mortality risk in older adults.¹ The biceps muscles are involved in a variety of daily movements such as lifting groceries, pushing yourself out of bed, pulling heavy doors open, or picking your kids up off the floor. Strengthening your biceps enhances your ability to perform these tasks efficiently while reducing your risk of injury and supporting good posture. While many people associate building biceps with heavy, expensive gym equipment like dumbbells and barbells, you don’t need a fancy gym membership or exhausting HIIT classes to achieve impressive results. With the right techniques and a few simple tools, you can effectively train your biceps from the comfort of your home.

This article will guide you through the best at-home biceps workouts, combining bodyweight exercises, resistance band movements, and creative uses of household items for added weight. You’ll find a variety of exercises to target your biceps and other muscles of your upper body to incorporate into your weekly strength-training program. If you’re a beginner, looking to switch up your routine, or just too busy to go to the gym during the day, then these workouts are perfect for helping you build strength and tone without stepping foot in a gym.  Ready to curl your way to stronger arms? Let’s get started!

15 Biceps Exercises

You can effectively target your biceps anywhere with a mix of bodyweight exercises, added weights, and a little creativity with household items. Try these 15 versatile and beginner-friendly bicep exercises that will help you strengthen and tone your arms no matter your fitness level. For a full bicep-burning workout, start with 2-3 sets of 8-10 repetitions, choosing about 4-6 different exercises for a single session. 

1. Diamond Push-up: Start in a plank position and position your hands close together on the floor so your thumbs and index fingers form a diamond shape. Lower your chest toward the ground while keeping your elbows tucked in. This variation of push-ups primarily targets the triceps but also engages the biceps and stabilizing muscles in your arms. Feel free to perform these from your knees to start, as this is a very challenging form of push-ups. 
2. Regular Biceps Curls: Using dumbbells, resistance bands, or even household items like water bottles, hold a weight in each hand with palms facing forward. Keep your elbows close to your torso and curl your hands toward your shoulders. Slowly lower them back down for one rep. Focus on controlling the movement for maximum engagement.
3. Hammer Curls: A variation of a regular bicep curl, hold a weight in each hand with your palms facing each other. Keeping your elbows close to your body, curl the weights up toward your shoulders as if bringing your thumb towards your elbow. This exercise targets the brachialis, a key muscle that assists the biceps in lifting.
4. Reverse Curl: Hold weights or a resistance band with palms facing downward for yet another bicep curl variation. Slowly curl the weights toward your elbows, keeping your palms downward the entire time. This grip focuses more on the muscles of your forearm and biceps.
5. Reverse Hand Push-ups: Begin in a plank position with your hands positioned slightly behind your shoulders and fingers pointing toward your feet (by rotating your arms outward). Then, lower your body to the floor. This position emphasizes the biceps and forearm muscles more than a traditional push-up, but be mindful of the wrist position and extra strain on the shoulders. If you are a beginner, start with a regular push-up to build strength and stability before trying reverse hand push-ups. 
6. Side Plank Bicep Curls: In a side plank position, hold a light dumbbell, water bottle, or other heavy household object in your top hand. Perform small curls while maintaining your plank. You’ll feel the challenge in both arms as your core works hard to stabilize your entire body. 
7. Pull-ups: Using a pull-up bar - such as the ones hanging in the door frame -  grip the bar with palms facing you (chin-up grip). Pull your body up until your chin is above the bar. This compound movement works the biceps, back, and shoulders. If you need assistance, wrap a band around the bar so that it forms a giant loop. Place your feet on the bottom of the loop and perform the pull-up as you would normally. You’ll feel the band helps pull you up just slightly so you can perform the entire range of motion. The heavier the band, the easier the exercise will feel. 
8. Wall Angels with Bicep Focus: Stand with your back against a wall, arms bent at 90 degrees, and fingers pointing up. Press your arms into the wall as you raise and lower them, engaging your biceps and shoulders. You can hold on to dumbbells or heavy water bottles for an extra challenge.
9. Single-Arm Rows: Using a resistance band or weight, bend at the waist and support yourself with one hand on a chair. Pull the weight toward your torso, keeping your elbow close to your body. This exercise works the biceps while targeting the back muscles as well. You can also simultaneously perform this exercise with both arms, making sure to engage your core as you stand in a bent-over position.
10. Inverted Rows: Set up a sturdy bar or use a low surface you can safely pull on. Lie underneath and grip the bar/surface with palms facing you. Pull your chest toward the bar while keeping your body straight like a reverse plank. This engages the biceps, upper back, and core.
11. Incline Push-ups with Bicep Focus: Place your hands on a raised surface (like a table) with palms facing inward. Perform a push-up while keeping your elbows close to your body. The inward hand position shifts some of the focus to the biceps.
12. Concentration Curls: Sit on a chair and hold a dumbbell or weight in one hand. Rest your elbow against the inside of your thigh and slowly curl the weight toward your shoulder. This isolates the bicep for maximum activation and strength building.
13. Zottman Curls: Stand upright with a weight in each hand, arms fully extended by your sides, and palms facing forward. Curl the weights upward toward your shoulders. At the top of the movement, rotate your wrists so your palms face downward, transitioning into a reverse grip. Slowly lower the dumbbells back to the starting position while maintaining the reverse grip, engaging your forearms during the descent. Rotate your wrists back to the original position (palms forward) and repeat.
14. Renegade Rows: Start in a high plank position, gripping dumbbells, water bottles, or other sturdy objects like canned goods. Keeping your core tight and hips level, bend your elbow and pull one weight toward your ribcage while supporting your body with the opposite hand. Lower the weight back to the floor with control, then repeat on the other side.
15. Plank Pull Through: Begin in a high plank position with your hands directly under your shoulders and your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart for stability. Place a weighted object, like a dumbbell, water bottle, or basket with heavy items in it, just outside one hand on the floor. Keeping your body in a straight line and your core engaged, reach across with the opposite hand and pull the weight underneath your torso to the other side. Return your hand to the plank position and repeat with the other side. 

4 Cooldown Exercises

Cooling down after a bicep workout - and any workout - is essential for promoting recovery, preventing excessive stiffness, and reducing the risk of injury. Stretching the biceps and surrounding arm muscles helps release tension while improving your range of motion after intense contractions performed during exercise. Incorporating these 4 stretches at the end of your session will support long-term joint and muscle health.² Aim to perform 2–3 sets of each cooldown stretch, holding each position for at least 30-60 seconds on both sides. 

1. Stretching Your Arms Back: Stand tall with your feet shoulder-width apart. Clasp your hands behind your back and straighten your arms. Slowly lift your clasped hands upward while pulling your shoulders back and down. Hold the stretch for 20–30 seconds, feeling the stretch across your biceps, forearms, and chest.
2. Extending Your Arms: Extend one arm straight in front of you at shoulder height with your palm facing upward. Use your opposite hand to gently pull your fingers down and back, stretching mostly the forearm and some of the bicep. 
3. Overhead Triceps and Biceps Stretch: Reach one arm overhead and bend it at the elbow so your hand is behind your neck. Use your opposite hand to gently pull the elbow toward the back of your head, stretching the triceps, rotator cuff, and lat muscles.
4. Wall Stretch for Biceps: Stand next to a wall—ideally within a doorway—and place your palm against the wall at shoulder height with your arm fully straight. Slowly step forward and turn your body away from the wall until you feel a stretch in your biceps and shoulder. You can adjust the height of your arm on the wall to target the chest and arm muscles.

6 Extra Tips For Your Bicep Workout At Home

Optimizing your bicep workout at home requires more than just choosing appropriate exercises—it’s about adopting safe and holistic strategies to maximize your results. Maintaining proper form, balancing your routine with complementary exercises, and staying consistent will help you make the most of your time and effort. Make sure to incorporate these easy tips for stronger, more defined biceps while promoting overall upper-body strength and functional ability.

1. Be Consistent: To see progress, stick to a regular workout schedule. Specifically, aim to strength train your upper body for 20-30 minutes at least 2–3 times a week, giving your muscles about 48-72 hours to recover between sessions.
2. Incorporate Triceps Exercises: To build balanced and well-defined arms, don’t neglect the biceps opposing muscle! Including triceps exercises, such as dips or overhead extensions, helps complement bicep workouts, promotes balanced arm strength, and reduces the risk of injury.
3. Focus on Proper Form: Always prioritize form over lifting heavier weights or performing more reps. Controlled, full-range-of-motion movements engage the biceps more effectively while reducing the risk of injury.
4. Gradually Increase Resistance: Progress is key to muscle growth, but there is a science to increase resistance safely. Add small amounts of weight over 3-4 weeks of consistent workouts by using heavier weights, thicker resistance bands, or increasing the number of reps and sets as your strength improves. If you can do more high-quality repetitions by the end of 3 sets of 10, you are likely ready for a bump in resistance.
5. Stick to a Healthy Diet: Fuel your body with a balanced diet rich in protein, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates to support muscle growth and recovery while encouraging more fat loss. Proper nutrition ensures your biceps have the resources they need to grow stronger and more defined.
6. Prioritize Rest and Recovery: Allow your muscles adequate time to recover by taking rest days and getting quality sleep. Proper recovery supports sufficient muscle repair and growth, helping you achieve better results.

The Bottom Line

Building stronger biceps at home is achievable with consistency, proper form, and a mix of creative exercises that target the muscles effectively. Remember to prioritize recovery, incorporate stretches as part of a warm-up and cool-down routine, and balance your arm training by including exercises that target the remaining upper body and core muscles. With these tips and workouts, you can make meaningful progress without ever stepping into a gym. 

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