Best Squat Variations

This article focuses on bilateral squat-family patterns and guided squat/press machine variations. Split squats, Bulgarian split squats, and step-ups are valuable exercises, but they are better treated as their own movement families because they are unilateral patterns with different balance, pelvic-control, and programming demands. That separation helps this page stay focused on the variations that are most useful when you want to choose the best squat for a specific goal.

What You’ll Learn in This Article

• Which squat variations are best for general lower-body hypertrophy
• Which ones are best for maximal loading and barbell strength
• Which squat variations tend to bias glutes vs quads
• Which machine squats are most useful inside the Booty Builder lineup
• How to choose without overlapping your split squat and step-up content

The Best Squat Variation Depends on Which Joint You Want to Challenge Most

A squat becomes more quad-dominant when the knee demand rises, and more glute/hip-extensor dominant when the hip demand rises.

That is the simplest way to choose a variation. A recent biomechanical review of the squat shows that trunk angle, tibia angle, bar position, stance, and depth all change the balance between knee flexion moment and hip flexion moment.

In practice, that means a more upright squat with more forward knee travel usually shifts the lift toward the quads, while a more forward trunk with relatively less forward tibia usually shifts the lift toward the glutes and other hip extensors.

Free-Weight Squat Variations Worth Using

High-Bar Back Squat

For many lifters, the high-bar back squat is the best all-around free-weight squat because it sits in the middle of the squat family: heavy enough to build serious strength, upright enough to train the legs hard, and flexible enough to work in both strength and hypertrophy blocks.

A review comparing high-bar and low-bar squats reported that the high-bar version is generally characterized by greater knee flexion, less hip flexion, a more upright torso, and deeper squatting than the low-bar version. That is why high-bar back squats often feel more balanced between glutes and quads, rather than strongly biased toward one end.

Best for

• A balanced glute + quad squat
• General strength and hypertrophy
• Lifters who want one main barbell squat that fits most phases

Low-Bar Back Squat

If the goal is to lift the heaviest absolute load possible with a barbell squat, low-bar usually has the best case.

Open-access work comparing safety-bar, high-bar, and low-bar squats found that participants lifted the greatest loads with the low-bar squat, and the same paper notes that low-bar squatting involves greater forward trunk inclination and larger hip moments than the more upright alternatives. That makes low-bar a strong option when barbell strength is the priority and when a more hip-driven squat is acceptable.

Best for

• Maximal barbell loading
• Powerlifting-oriented squat training
• Lifters who want a more hip-extensor-heavy back squat

Watch-out
Low-bar is not automatically the best hypertrophy squat for everyone. It is best when the goal is moving the most weight and the setup is repeatable.

Front Squat

The front squat is usually the best barbell option when you want a more upright squat with a strong quad emphasis and lower absolute loading than a back squat.

A 2024 trial comparing back squat and front squat training found that the front squat produced similar overall muscle recruitment to the back squat, while the back squat showed higher compressive forces and higher knee extensor moments in that protocol. More recent longitudinal data in trained women also found that back squat and front squat training produced similar lateral-thigh hypertrophy, even though back squat training improved a nonspecific lower-body strength test more. That makes front squats a very good variation when you want a cleaner, more upright squat pattern without needing the highest possible load.

Best for

• Upright barbell squatting
• Quad-focused squat blocks
• Lifters who prefer a front-loaded pattern over a back-loaded one

Machine Squat Variations Worth Using

Belt Squat

The belt squat is one of the best squat variations when you want to train the lower body hard without placing a bar on the upper back.

An open-access comparison between parallel back squats and belt squats found that belt squats produced similar muscular demands for the quadriceps, hamstrings, and plantar flexors, while being less demanding on trunk stabilizers and gluteal muscles in that setup. That is the honest way to position the exercise: it is not a perfect 1:1 replacement for every barbell squat demand, but it is an excellent tool when upper-back loading, shoulder positioning, or trunk fatigue are the limiting factors. In the Booty Builder squat/press lineup, the Belt Squat fills exactly that role.

Best for

• Hard bilateral squat volume with less upper-body loading
• Lifters who want deep, repeatable squats without bar placement being the limiter
• Lower-body hypertrophy blocks where setup efficiency matters

V Squat

For many lifters, the V Squat is the best default machine squat because it gives you a guided bilateral squat pattern that still feels like a squat, not like a seated press.

On Booty Builder’s squat/press category page, the V Squat is positioned as a guided angled squat pattern that emphasizes quads and glutes while making depth and technique easier to standardize. That combination is what makes it such a strong variation in practice: you can usually push hard without spending the set solving balance or bar placement first. If the machine setup allows it, the reverse-facing version can also work as a more glute-leaning option than the standard orientation.

Best for

• A stable machine squat that still feels like a true squat pattern
• Glute + quad hypertrophy work
• Lifters who want heavy, repeatable bilateral squatting

Selectorized Pendulum Hip Press

The Selectorized Pendulum Hip Press is the strongest choice in the lineup when you want a guided squat/press pattern with a more glute-leaning feel than a typical upright quad machine.

The Pendulum Hip Press is built around a guided pendulum arm and is positioned as a way to maximize hip and glute activation while reducing spinal compression. Practically, that makes it a strong option when you want the stability and repeatability of a machine, but you still want the hips to stay meaningfully involved instead of turning the movement into a pure knee-dominant press.

Best for

• Glute-focused squat/press work
• Stable hypertrophy volume
• Lifters who want a guided machine that still feels hip-driven

Multi Leg Press/Hack Squat

The Multi Leg Press/Hack Squat is the best choice when you want a more quad-forward stable squat/press option with easy foot-placement adjustments.

Booty Builder’s new Multi Leg Press/Hack Squat is built around an adjustable leg plate, adjustable back pad, and auto-engaging shoulder pads for alignment and stability. More broadly, the leg press literature consistently shows that the quadriceps are the dominant muscular contributors across many leg press variants, while higher foot placement can increase gluteus maximus activity at higher intensities. That makes this machine especially useful when you want a stable quad builder, but still want some room to shift the feel slightly with setup.

Best for

• Quad and glute-focused hypertrophy
• Stable hard sets when barbell squats are too fatiguing
• Lifters who want foot-placement flexibility inside a machine pattern

Multi-Angle Glute Press

The Multi-Angle Glute Press is the most specialized option here. It is the choice when you want the movement family to stay in the squat/press lane, but you want the setup to be pushed more deliberately toward glute emphasis.

Booty Builder’s new Multi-Angle Glute Press is built to target the glutes from multiple angles, with adjustable pads and height settings to improve alignment and comfort. That makes it less of a “general squat” and more of a targeted machine variation for glute-focused lower-body work, especially useful when you want a stable bilateral pattern without drifting into lunge or step-up territory.

Best for

• Glute-priority lower-body sessions
• Lifters who want a stable bilateral machine with more direct glute intent
• Adding variation without leaving the squat/press family

Differentiating Squats from Unilateral Patterns

While highly effective for lower-body development, single-leg exercises require distinct stabilization mechanics that separate them from true squat variations.

Movements like Bulgarian split squats, lunges, and step-ups are essential for lower-body programming, but they function as independent unilateral patterns. Unlike bilateral squats, which are optimized for maximum force production, unilateral exercises introduce entirely different demands on the central nervous system. They require the active management of frontal plane stability, pelvic control, and gait-related mechanics. Because they solve distinctly different biomechanical problems, they are categorized and programmed separately from the primary squat family.

Application Guide: Selecting the Optimal Squat Variation

Squat selection should be dictated by the athlete’s structural mobility, fatigue constraints, and specific hypertrophy or strength goals. The classifications below outline the optimal use cases for primary barbell and guided machine variations.

Free-Weight Barbell Variations

• High-Bar Back Squat: The standard variation for balancing systemic load, maximum depth, and overall lower-body development.
• Low-Bar Back Squat: The optimal variation for maximizing absolute load and prioritizing posterior chain recruitment.
• Front Squat: The premier barbell choice for maintaining an upright torso to maximize anterior (quadricep) bias.

Machine-Guided & Booty Builder Variations

• Belt Squat: The ideal solution when axial loading, upper-back fatigue, or shoulder mobility limits lower-body output.
• V Squat: A highly stable, all-around machine squat designed for standardized, heavy hypertrophy training.
• Selectorized Pendulum Hip Press: The optimal guided squat/press pattern for prioritizing a glute-biased movement arc.
• Multi Leg Press/Hack Squat: The primary machine option for strict, highly stabilized quad dominance.
• Multi-Angle Glute Press: The most specialized guided option for isolating and maximizing gluteal force production.