Concept2 vs WaterRower vs Hydrow: Which to Buy in the UK

Short answer: the Concept2 RowErg for most people, the WaterRower Original if the machine is in your living room, Hydrow only if classes are the thing that makes you row.

The three brands are the common shortlist for premium home rowers in the UK. They are within about £525 of each other up front, but the Hydrow is the only one with a monthly fee, so its cost keeps growing after you buy it. This guide is based on manufacturer specs, retailer listings and rowing knowledge, not hands-on testing. See the about page.

At a glance

What each machine is

Concept2 RowErg. An air rower. A fan flywheel gives resistance that rises as you pull harder. The monitor is the PM5. It is around £990 with standard legs and around £1,149 with tall legs. Read the RowErg review for more.

WaterRower Original. A water-tank rower in wood. You pull against paddles turning in water. It stands on its end. The range is now Original, Performance, Hybrid, Lite and Metallic, so older guides using other model names are out of date.

Hydrow Wave and Origin. Electromagnetic rowers with built-in screens and a membership of classes and on-water footage. The Origin is what was once sold as the Pro. See the Hydrow rowing machine review.

The money

Here is what gets lost in the headline prices. Hydrow’s membership is sold separately and needed for full access.

Machine	Upfront	Monthly fee
Concept2 RowErg	Around £990	None
WaterRower Original (from)	Around £1,199	None
Hydrow Wave	Around £1,435	Membership needed
Hydrow Origin	Around £1,515	Membership needed

A Hydrow Wave costs £445 more than a RowErg up front, and an Origin £525 more. The RowErg’s cost stops there, while a Hydrow’s keeps growing every month. If that buys you classes you would not otherwise have rowed, fine. If your membership lapses after six months, it is an expensive way to own a rower.

Two caveats. The WaterRower price is “from”, and other finishes run up to around £1,599 for the Original. And older guides quote different Hydrow membership fees, so confirm the current one before you buy.

Feel and noise

I haven’t rowed these for this article, so this is reasoning from how they work.

• Concept2: the resistance comes from air, so it rises with effort and it gets noisy at high effort. Concept2 gives you a damper that changes the airflow. The drag factor guide shows what that setting means.
• WaterRower: resistance comes from water, which gives a smoother, boat-like feel. The sound is a swish of water. It is the machine most people think of as best for living rooms.
• Hydrow: electromagnetic resistance should be quiet at the flywheel. The screen audio and the class instructor are the noise.

For more on this, see air vs water vs magnetic.

The bigger difference is what the resistance does when you are not exerting yourself. Electromagnetic resistance can be set by the class, while air and water respond to you. That is a feature when a class tells you to hold a level, and a nuisance if you want to row your own plan.

Monitor and data

• Concept2: PM5, ErgData app included. Scores are comparable with other Concept2 users, clubs and 2k tests.
• WaterRower: S4 Bluetooth monitor on the Original. The Performance series swaps it for a built-in PowerPulley, from around £1,449 (checked 30 Oct 2026). The S4 is simple and not a Concept2 ranking tool.
• Hydrow: a 16-inch screen on the Wave and a 22-inch pivoting screen on the Origin.

If you want to follow structured training, a monitor you can trust is more useful than a big screen. The site’s training plans are written around standard erg metrics.

Storage and space

	Footprint	Stored
Concept2 RowErg	244 x 61 cm	Splits in two: 63.5 x 83.8 x 137.2 cm
WaterRower Original	209 x 57 cm	Upright, 209 cm tall
Hydrow Wave	203 x 48 cm	Upright with an anchor, sold separately
Hydrow Origin	218 x 64 cm	Upright with a kit, sold separately

The Hydrow Origin weighs 66 kg and the Wave 46 kg, the Original about 30.5 kg before water, and the Concept2 26 kg. If you will move it often, that matters. A WaterRower is heavier once the tank is filled, so check how the maker says to move it.

Look at ceiling height too. A WaterRower standing upright is 209 cm. Your ceiling needs to clear that, and any sloping loft will not work.

Warranty

• Concept2: 2 years on moving parts and monitor, 5 years on the frame.
• WaterRower Original: 5 years on the frame, 3 years on parts.
• Hydrow: Fitshop lists 5 years on the frame and 12 months on components, but its Wave listing also shows a 12-month manufacturer warranty, so ask before buying.

The Hydrow warranty matters more because the machine depends on software, a screen and a connection, which are the parts most likely to age.

User weight

• Concept2: 135 kg per the EN standard (Concept2 tested to 227 kg).
• WaterRower Original: 315 kg at Fitshop, 200 kg at John Lewis, so confirm it.
• Hydrow: 170 kg, with a fit for inseams up to 91 cm.

If you are heavier than 135 kg, the WaterRower Original is the one with the most margin. If you are tall, the Hydrow’s inseam limit is worth checking.

Who should buy which

Who should not buy which

• Not the Concept2: shared walls, no room for 244 cm, or a need for a screen with content.
• Not the WaterRower: people who want to race or test against clubs, or who have no upright storage height.
• Not the Hydrow: anyone who would resent five years of monthly fees, or who wants to row to their own plan.

Three buyers, three answers

Specs only go so far. Here is how I would think through three typical situations.

The club rower training at home. You already know your 2k time and want to keep improving between sessions. The RowErg is the obvious answer, because the monitor and the resistance are what you use at the club. A WaterRower would feel different and give numbers that don’t map onto your club scores. A Hydrow would mean paying monthly for classes you don’t need.

The couple with a shared living room. The machine is visible every day and one of you cares about how the room looks. A wooden WaterRower Original from around £1,199 or the Hybrid from around £899 earns its keep by standing on its end in a corner. The Concept2 would live in a cupboard in two halves and come out for each session, which many people won’t keep doing. This is the one case where I would pay more for the WaterRower.

The person who keeps buying fitness kit and not using it. Be honest about it. If a coach on a screen is what has worked for you before, the Hydrow Wave may be the one that actually gets used, and its cost is the price of that. But the costs are stark: around £1,435 up front, then a monthly fee for as long as you use it. If you can get yourself to row with a free plan, the money is better spent elsewhere. The 12-week beginner to fit programme is one way to test that cheaply before you commit.

Resale and longevity

I have no resale data, so this is reasoning, not a statistic. A Concept2 is a well-known standard and rowing clubs use the same machine, so it is the one I would expect buyers to look for second-hand. A WaterRower is also well known. A Hydrow depends on a membership and a screen, and a buyer would need to pay the monthly fee, which narrows the market. If long-term value matters to you, that is another point in favour of the two machines without a subscription.

On the other side, a Hydrow’s software can be improved over time without you buying anything, while an air rower or a water rower stays as it was built. Whether that is a benefit depends on whether you value new content.

Cheaper routes to the same idea

If the price of the premium three is too high, there are cheaper air, water and magnetic rowers. For water, the WaterRower Hybrid is from around £899. For air, the Xterra ERG780 is around £449 to £499. For classes, the Echelon Row is from around £599, with an optional membership. The under £1,000 guide and the under £500 guide have the details.

If you want the full ranking, read the best rowing machine guide. If you are new, start with the beginners guide. Whichever you buy, work through the first month on the erg and use the stroke rate guide to avoid the commonest early mistakes. You can also see the rowing machines hub.

You can look up the Concept2 RowErg or the Hydrow Wave at Fitshop. The WaterRower Original is sold at WaterRower.