Best Bowflex Machines 2026: Every Current Model Ranked (SelectTech 552, T9, Xtreme 2 SE & More)

Quick Answer: The best Bowflex machine in 2026 is the SelectTech Results Series 552 ($399 on sale, $479 list per bowflex.com) — one dial-adjustable pair covers 5–52.5 lb per hand and replaces roughly 15 pairs of fixed dumbbells, per BarBend, and it’s the redesigned post-recall version with metal locking tabs. For cardio, the T9 treadmill ($1,499 sale/$1,799 list) is the pick: a 3.5 HP motor, 22” x 60” deck, and a lifetime frame and motor warranty with no subscription required. The Xtreme 2 SE home gym ($999 sale) and Max Trainer M6 ($999 sale) round out the value tier. One thing to know before buying: Bowflex has been owned by Johnson Health Tech (parent of Matrix and Horizon) since April 2024, and the original 552/1090 dumbbells were recalled in June 2025 — buy the current Results Series, not old stock.

Last updated July 16, 2026 — prices verified against bowflex.com’s current store pricing; ownership, recall, and test facts sourced from SEC filings, the CPSC, BarBend, Garage Gym Reviews, and TreadmillReviewGuru.

“Bowflex” means something different in 2026 than it did three years ago. The company behind it — BowFlex Inc., formerly Nautilus — filed for Chapter 11 in March 2024, and Johnson Health Tech, the Taiwanese giant behind Matrix and Horizon Fitness, bought the brand for $37.5 million in a sale that closed that April. The result is a slimmer, better-engineered lineup: the recalled SelectTech dumbbells were redesigned as the Results Series, and the new T-series treadmills borrow Horizon’s drivetrain know-how. This guide ranks every machine Bowflex currently sells — dumbbells, treadmills, the Max Trainer, home gyms, and bikes — and flags exactly which older products to avoid on the used market.

By the numbers: Johnson Health Tech paid $37.5 million for Bowflex’s assets in a bankruptcy sale that closed April 22, 2024, per SEC filings. In June 2025, the CPSC recalled about 3,844,200 original SelectTech 552 and 1090 dumbbells sold since 2004, after 350+ plate-dislodgement reports and 111 injuries — the current Results Series sets are the redesigned replacements. The 552 still makes the strongest case in the lineup: one pair replaces roughly 15 pairs of fixed dumbbells, per BarBend. And the new T9 treadmill carries a lifetime frame and motor warranty, per TreadmillReviewGuru — coverage the old Bowflex never offered at $1,499.

The 2026 Bowflex lineup at a glance

1. SelectTech Results Series 552 — Best Bowflex Overall

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The 552 has been the default adjustable dumbbell for two decades, and the Results Series is the best version of it yet — mostly because it had to be. After the CPSC recalled about 3.84 million original 552s and 1090s in June 2025 (350+ reports of plates dislodging mid-rep, 111 injuries), Johnson Health Tech redesigned the locking mechanism around metal tabs, and the new set is what you’ll find sold new today. The fundamentals that made it a best-seller are intact: twist each dial to your weight, and the plates you don’t need stay in the tray. The 2.5-pound increments up to 25 lb are ideal for progressive overload on presses and raises, and per BarBend, one pair genuinely replaces about 15 pairs of fixed bells — the single most space-efficient strength purchase in our best adjustable dumbbells rankings. Buying used? Check the serial against bowflex.com/recalls first, and read our Bowflex vs PowerBlock comparison if garage-floor durability is the priority.

2. SelectTech Results Series 1090 — Best for Heavy Lifters

The 1090 answers the one long-term criticism of the 552: fifty-two and a half pounds stops being heavy sooner than you’d think, especially for rows and lunges. With a 10–90 lb range per hand, the 1090 is the version you never outgrow — 90-pound dumbbells cover heavy pressing for all but advanced lifters, and the dial system works exactly like the 552’s. The trade-offs are price and bulk: each dumbbell is longer and boxier at light settings, which makes curls at 15 lb feel slightly awkward. If you’re choosing between buying the 552 now and upgrading later versus buying the 1090 once, the math favors the 1090 for anyone already rowing 50s — Bowflex sets aren’t expandable the way PowerBlocks are, so you’d be rebuying, not adding. Pair either with a proper adjustable bench to unlock the full exercise menu.

3. Bowflex T9 Treadmill — Best Bowflex Treadmill

The T9 is the clearest evidence that Johnson Health Tech ownership changed Bowflex for the better — it’s the first treadmill developed after the acquisition, built on the drivetrain expertise of sibling brand Horizon, and it deliberately zigs where the industry zags: no touchscreen at all. Instead you get a 3.5 HP motor, a full 22-by-60-inch running surface, turn-dial speed and incline controls, and open Bluetooth that syncs with Apple Watch, Peloton, Zwift, or JRNY — your choice, no monthly fee required for any function. The lifetime frame and motor warranty puts it in Sole territory on coverage, and FIT PROF gave it a Best Treadmill Under $2,000 award for 2026. If you want the big built-in screen anyway, the step-up T16 ($1,999 sale/$2,299 list) adds a 16-inch HD touchscreen with app streaming. See how the T9 stacks against the segment in our best treadmill and best budget treadmill guides — or against the subscription-first alternative in our best NordicTrack treadmill roundup.

4. Bowflex Xtreme 2 SE — Best Bowflex Home Gym

The Xtreme 2 SE is the machine the word “Bowflex” still conjures — bending Power Rods instead of iron plates — and in 2026 it remains the best expression of that idea. The current sale price is the story: at $999 (against a $1,499 list), you get 210 pounds of rod resistance upgradeable to 410, more than 70 exercises, and the no-change pulley setup that lets you move from squats to chest presses to lat pulldowns without re-rigging a single cable — the feature BarBend’s reviewers consistently single out. The rods carry a lifetime warranty and the frame seven years. The honest limitation hasn’t changed either: rod resistance is lightest at the bottom of each rep, so experienced barbell lifters will outgrow the strength curve. For beginners, apartments, and quiet, plate-free training it punches above its price — see where it lands among cable and plate machines in our best all-in-one home gym rankings. The premium Revolution ($2,299 sale/$2,999 list) swaps rods for SpiraFlex plates — the resistance tech developed for astronauts on the ISS — if you want a flatter, freeweight-like curve.

5. Bowflex Max Trainer M6 — Best Compact Cardio

The Max Trainer is Bowflex’s most original machine: pedals move in a steep, stair-climb-like arc while your arms drive handles, producing a low-impact motion that Garage Gym Reviews’ testers found hits the quads, glutes, and calves noticeably harder than a conventional elliptical. The programming leans into it — most built-in workouts are HIIT sessions under 15 minutes, and Bowflex’s long-running claim is up to 2.5 more calories per minute than a treadmill, elliptical, or stepper at the same pace and intensity. At the current $999 sale price with 16 resistance levels, the M6 is the value pick; the Max Total 16 ($1,999 sale/$2,499 list) adds a 16-inch touchscreen and 20 levels. The catch is feel: the motion is genuinely different from an elliptical, and people who want long, steady-state sessions usually prefer a traditional stride — compare the field in our best elliptical and best cardio machine guides.

6. Bowflex C6 Bike — Best Bowflex Exercise Bike

The C6 is quietly one of the best-value spin bikes on the market for one reason: it’s the anti-Peloton that runs Peloton. The belt-driven magnetic flywheel adjusts across 100 micro-levels, the pedals take both SPD cleats and sneakers, and the console broadcasts standard Bluetooth — so you can prop a tablet on the shelf and ride to the Peloton app, Zwift, or JRNY without buying into any single ecosystem. At $899 on sale it costs roughly a third of a Peloton Bike+ setup, and the hardware (330 lb capacity, included 3 lb dumbbells) gives up little. Riders who want the immersive built-in screen and Bowflex’s party trick — a frame that leans side to side for out-of-saddle work — can step up to the VeloCore 16 ($1,799) or VeloCore 22 ($1,299 on current deep sale, list $2,199, per bowflex.com); everyone else keeps the $900 and brings a tablet. More alternatives in our best stationary bike guide.

7. Bowflex 840 Adjustable Kettlebell — Best Accessory

The 840 applies the SelectTech dial to a kettlebell shell, packing 8-to-40-pound coverage into one unit for $149. Six settings span the weights most people actually swing — 8 and 12 lb for learning, 20–25 for goblet squats and carries, 35–40 for two-handed swings — and the unused plates stay in the tray, so the bell you lift is exactly as heavy as the dial says. Purists will note the shape is blockier than a cast-iron bell and the handle window is tighter for two-handed grips; that’s the honest trade for replacing a whole rack’s footprint. As a first kettlebell for a small space, it’s an easy recommendation — see how it compares with fixed cast-iron options in our best kettlebell guide.

How to choose a Bowflex in 2026

• Buy the Results Series, not old SelectTech stock. The current 552 and 1090 (metal locking tabs) are redesigns shipped after the June 2025 recall of about 3.84 million original units, per the CPSC. New-in-box from a major retailer is safe; on the used market, check the serial at bowflex.com/recalls before paying anything.
• Anchor on sale prices, not list. Bowflex discounts continuously under Johnson Health Tech — the Xtreme 2 SE at $999 against a $1,499 list and the M6 at $999 against $1,299 are typical July 2026 store prices, not events. Never pay list.
• You don't need JRNY. Every current machine works fully without a subscription, and the T9 and C6 deliberately pair with third-party apps (Peloton, Zwift, Apple Watch). Treat JRNY as an optional trial, not a cost of ownership.
• Strength first, cardio second. If you're building a gym from zero, the 552 plus a bench delivers more training per dollar than any cardio machine — our home gym equipment guide walks the full build order.
• Know what Bowflex isn't. There's no barbell, rack, or plate ecosystem here — serious strength buyers comparing rod gyms against a power rack and iron should read our best power rack guide before committing to the Xtreme 2 SE.

Is Bowflex worth it in 2026?

Yes — with more confidence than at any point since the bankruptcy. The Johnson Health Tech acquisition ($37.5 million, closed April 22, 2024, per SEC filings) put Bowflex inside the same engineering family as Matrix and Horizon, and the products released since — the T9’s lifetime-warranted drivetrain, the redesigned Results Series dumbbells — are stronger than what the old Nautilus shipped in its final years. The recall saga is the caveat that keeps this from being unqualified: 3.84 million original dumbbells, 111 injuries, and remedies that are notably thinner for pre-2024 purchases, so the used-market bargain 552 is the one Bowflex deal to walk past. Buy current-generation, buy on sale, and the brand’s core promise — a lot of gym in very little space — holds up. Start with the best adjustable dumbbells field to see the 552’s competition, weigh the Bowflex vs PowerBlock question directly, or zoom out to the full best home gym equipment pillar for the complete build.