Kettlebell Color Coding


Have seen you seen kettlebells with colors and wondered what those are about?

We have a lot of colored kettlebells and when we post them to social media, people frequently ask questions about the color designs so we thought we would tell you why.

There are a few explanations. The origins of the color coding is in competitive kettlebell lifting in which there are international standards for specific weights, but color coding kettlebells is also an easy way to designate specific weights in your gym. If you run a gym, color coding your kettlebells is a great way to tell clients which kettlebell they need to grab instead of having them sift through all the bells. Below, we will go over the international color code if you need ideas and want to follow the standard.

Some of the more popular traditional style kettlebells available today, including our Powder Coat Kettlebells, have colored bands on the handles to indicate the weight. However, if you have traditional black kettlebells you could use paint or electrical tape to create similar markings on the kettlebells.

Competition style bells are usually all one color (pictured below) indicating the weight. These bells are used in competitive lifting in which lifters compete in weight classes in three specific kettlebell lifts. You can read more about that style of lifting here.

LIKE WHAT YOU HAVE READ SO FAR? SIGN UP TO BE NOTIFIED ABOUT THIS SERIES BY ENTERING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN THE SIGN UP FORM ON IN THE RIGHT COLUMN.

See color coding below!


Color Codes by Weight:

  • 8 kg / 17.6 lbs – Pink
  • 12 kg / 26.4 lbs – Blue
  • 16 kg / 35.2 lbs – Yellow
  • 20 kg / 44.0 lbs – Purple
  • 24 kg / 52.8 lbs – Green
  • 28 kg / 61.6 lbs – Orange
  • 32 kg / 70.4 lbs – Red
  • 36 kg / 79.2 lbs – Grey
  • 40 kg / 88.0 lbs – White
  • 44 kg / 96.8 lbs – Silver
  • 48 kg / 105.6 lbs – Gold

All weights that are traditionally thought of as 'in between' weights like 10, 14, 18, 22, 26, 30, 34 are the same color as the weight 2 kilograms below them but are notated by black bands on the handle in competitive lifting. For example, a 10 Kg bell is pink with black bands on the handle and an 18 Kg bell is yellow with black bands on the handle.

LIKE WHAT YOU HAVE READ SO FAR? SIGN UP TO BE NOTIFIED ABOUT THIS SERIES BY ENTERING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN THE SIGN UP FORM ON IN THE RIGHT COLUMN.

You can have a look at our Powder Coat and Competition Kettlebell pages to decide which style you prefer, black with a stripe or kettlebells that are all one color.

Hope this is helpful!


What Is Next?

If this is your first time reading one of our posts, we create kettlebell workouts in collaboration with kettlebell experts designed to give you maximal results and not take up much of your time. We send these to your in box automatically every week! We recommend you read more about receiving a quick, free, dynamic kettlebell workout every week you can click below.

Also, we recommend you subscribe to our posts so you can be notified when we publish more in this series. Additionally, you can be notified when we publish new articles about specific kettlebell movements or techniques as well as niche pieces like this designed for specific training.

LIKE WHAT YOU HAVE READ SO FAR? SIGN UP TO BE NOTIFIED ABOUT THIS SERIES BY ENTERING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN THE SIGN UP FORM ON IN THE RIGHT COLUMN.