Rowing Machines vs Elliptical Trainers

Rowing machines suit you better than elliptical trainers if you want your back and arms to work hard and want progress you can measure. Elliptical trainers are the better pick if you want to step on and go, or you find sitting on a low seat awkward.

Both avoid the impact of running, but they feel and train very differently.

Side by side

	Rowing machine	Elliptical
Position	Seated, feet strapped	Standing, feet on pedals
Main muscles	Legs, back, core, arms	Quads, glutes, hamstrings, with some arms and core
Learning curve	Moderate, a few sessions	Very low
Strength element	Higher, especially legs and back	Lower
Balance needed	Little	Some
Getting on	Low seat	Step up, standing height
Feel	Rhythmic push and pull	Smooth glide
Comparable scores	Yes, on the same monitor	Rarely

How the two machines work

Rowing machine. You sit on a sliding seat, push with your legs, swing your body back and pull the handle. Poor posture can irritate the lower back, so you need to spend time learning the sequence. How rowing machines work covers the resistance types.

Elliptical trainer. Your feet follow a fixed oval path, with handles moving in step. Resistance and incline settings change the load, and many machines have preset programmes. Some let you pedal backwards to shift the emphasis.

Calories and effort

Published tables don’t agree, because each one is defined by a loose effort label.

Source	Rowing	Elliptical
Harvard Health, 30 minutes, 155 lb (about 70 kg)	252 calories, moderate	324 calories, general
Compendium of Physical Activities	7.0 METs at 100 watts, 8.5 at 150 watts	5.0 METs moderate, 9.0 vigorous

One table puts the elliptical ahead and the other puts rowing at 100 watts ahead of a moderate elliptical session. The honest reading is that effort decides it, not the machine. Machine calorie counters are estimates too, so use them only to compare your own sessions.

Joints and comfort

Both are gentler than running. A smooth elliptical motion suits some knees, and it keeps you upright if getting up from a low seat is hard. But it’s a standing, weight-bearing exercise, and a fixed path can feel awkward if your stride length doesn’t match the machine.

Rowing takes your bodyweight off your feet, but it asks for a supple back and hips, and your knees bend deeply at the catch. If you have a knee, hip or back condition, speak to a GP or physio first. See rowing with bad knees for general information.

Measuring progress

On a rower, the monitor gives split, stroke rate and power, which makes sessions easy to compare. A test such as the 2k test means the same thing from month to month. For example, 5,000 m at a 2:30 split takes 25:00, and it’s a number you can try to beat.

Ellipticals usually show resistance level, speed and distance, but these vary between machines, so a result in one gym doesn’t map to another. That matters if you like to measure. Compare your own sessions on the same machine, at the same level, and watch your heart rate at that level instead.

Sessions for either machine

Session	On the rower	On the elliptical
Steady	30 minutes, rate 18 to 22	30 minutes at a level where you can talk
Intervals	8 x 1 minute firm, 1 minute easy	8 x 1 minute at a higher resistance, 1 minute easy
Recovery	15 to 20 minutes, very light	15 to 20 minutes, very light

Cost and space

Our price data covers rowers only. Examples include around £200 for the Domyos Initial Rower 100, around £699 for the Fluid Rower Neon Plus and around £990 for the Concept2 RowErg (all checked 30 Oct 2026). Footprints are 184 x 40 cm, 216 x 52 cm and 244 x 61 cm. See the best rowing machine guide for more options.

Ellipticals are bulky and often heavy, so they’re harder to move. Measure your floor and your ceiling before you buy, because you’ll be standing on raised pedals. Rowers are long, but many fold or stand upright.

Common mistakes

1. Leaning on the elliptical handles. It takes weight off your legs. Hold them lightly and stand tall.
2. Pulling with the arms first on the rower. Push with your legs before anything else.
3. Using a very light resistance for the whole session. Your heart rate stays low, so raise it until talking in full sentences takes some effort.
4. Never varying the work. Mix steady sessions with intervals on either machine, about 1 hard session in every 3.

Which to choose

• Choose the elliptical if you want an easy-to-learn, upright machine for steady cardio.
• Choose the rower if you want upper-body work, room to progress and scores you can test yourself against.
• Unsure? Try 20 minutes on each at a gym, then choose the one you’d happily repeat 3 times a week.

Our rowing machines hub has further guidance, and how to use a rowing machine gets you going if you pick the rower.