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Climber seated on a box, pulling a hold strapped to a plate under the feet while reading the force on a phone

How to Test Finger Strength

Testing • • Félix Bourassa-Moreau • Updated

You can test finger strength with three tests: maximum force, critical force and rate of force development. Run them on the same edge, grip and device each time so results are comparable. You do not need all three to start.

Finger strength is the main physical predictor of climbing ability. In a 2025 study of 307 climbers, maximal finger strength accounted for about two thirds of the variance in climbing grade that the strength and endurance tests explained (68% in men, 64% in women). Testing it tells you where you stand, whether your training works, and when you are ready to push harder after a break or an injury.

This guide covers three tests: maximum force, critical force and rate of force development. Each measures something different, and you do not need all three to start.

Before you test: make it repeatable

A test is only useful if next month’s result is comparable with today’s. A 2025 systematic review of 15 studies found that maximal finger strength tests are highly reliable, with intraclass correlations mostly between 0.85 and 0.99, and recommended standardizing on edges of about 20 to 23 mm. Keep these the same every time:

Test 1: Maximum finger force

What it measures: the most force your fingers can produce on the edge. In the research, it accounts for the largest share of the differences in grade.

How to run it with a force sensor:

  1. Warm up, then do two submaximal pulls at about 50% and 80% effort.
  2. Pull as hard as you can for about 5 seconds, one or both hands depending on your setup.
  3. Rest 3 minutes. Repeat for three attempts and keep the best.
  4. Record the result in newtons or kilograms, and as a percentage of bodyweight.

How to run it with weights: find the heaviest load you can hang for 7 seconds on the same edge, adding weight in small steps with full rest between attempts. Add the added weight to your bodyweight to get your total. This is the method used in the 2024 Crimpd study.

Reading it: compare yourself with yourself first. When normalized to body mass, the 2025 study found no significant difference between male and female climbers in finger strength or endurance, so percentage of bodyweight is a fair common scale.

Test 2: Critical force

What it measures: the highest intensity you can keep up in repeated hangs without eventually failing. It reflects forearm endurance and aerobic capacity, and it averages about 41% of maximum force in trained climbers.

The 4-minute all-out test is the most common version:

  1. One hand on a 20 mm edge, half crimp.
  2. Pull as hard as you can for 7 seconds, rest 3 seconds.
  3. Repeat 24 times, all-out every time, even as your force drops.
  4. Critical force is the average force of your last few pulls: the Entralpi app uses the last sixth of them. Peak force is your best single pull.

Illustration of a 4-minute all-out test: force per pull falls from the peak to a plateau, the critical force

In the all-out test, force falls pull after pull until it levels off. That plateau is your critical force.

A 2023 study found this test very repeatable for peak force (ICC 0.94) and good for end-test force (ICC 0.85), although end-test force varied more from day to day (about 21%), because pacing and motivation matter when you are that tired.

An important caution from 2026. A study comparing the all-out test with the slower method of several constant-load tests to exhaustion found the all-out test very reliable (ICC 0.97) but consistently higher: 122 N on average against 98 N. The authors concluded it is potentially useful for tracking change over time but likely unsuitable for setting training loads. In practice: use the all-out test to see whether your endurance is improving, and set endurance training intensities a bit below what it reports.

Test 3: Rate of force development

What it measures: how quickly you reach high force. It matters on dynamic moves and when you catch a hold.

How to run it: start relaxed on the edge, then pull as hard and as fast as you can. The device records how steeply force rises in the first fraction of a second.

Illustration of the force curve of one maximal pull, with peak force and the slope of the rise marked

One pull: peak force is the height of the curve, rate of force development the steepness of the rise.

Why it matters: in an isometric pull-up test on a 23 mm rung, elite climbers produced about 75% higher rate of force development than advanced climbers, a bigger gap than in peak force. It also responds quickly to training: four weeks of hangs on small holds improved early rate of force development in elite climbers by 27.5 to 32%.

What you need: this test only works with a device that samples quickly and shows the force curve. Research setups typically record at 200 samples per second or more.

Which tools can run which test?

ToolMax forceCritical forceRate of force development
Weights and a timerYes (heaviest 7-second hang)NoNo
Crane scalePeak onlyHard to runNo
Inline load cell (e.g. Tindeq)YesYesYes, within its sample rate
Ground force plate (e.g. Entralpi)YesYesYes, within its sample rate

For a detailed comparison of devices, see our crane scale, load cell and force plate comparison and the smart hangboard guide.

How often should you test?

Every 4 to 8 weeks is enough, ideally at the end of a training block and after a rest day. Testing more often mostly measures day-to-day variation. Keep a log of the date, edge, grip, bodyweight and device alongside each result.

More on testing: crane scale vs force plate, the critical force test and rate of force development.

Do this in Entralpi

The app has three tests, each with its own page: The max strength test, The endurance test and The finger strength test. How to start one is on Take a test, and What each test measures explains each number, including the speed of a pull (RFD), which comes with the max strength test.

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