In the 80s, our parents were all about aerobics programs on TV, which promised increased flexibility and higher cardio endurance. Over the last decades, brands have innovated and brought to life sports machines that mimic the movement of actual outdoor sports. One of them, Hydrow Rower, was created to change in-home fitness by delivering the most real-like rowing experience directly at users’ homes. Featured in numerous media outlets, including USA Today, GQ, and Vogue, Hydrow Rower is taking the at-home fitness market by storm. But at a hefty $2,245 price tag (at the time of writing), plus a monthly membership fee, the main question is: is it worth it?
In this Hydrow Rower Review, we will take a close look at the brand’s machines and accessories, customer reviews, promotions and more, to help you decide if Hydrow Rower is really worth your time and money.
Hydrow Rower, the one and only Live Outdoor Reality rower, was created to “push the body and release the mind” while giving an authentic community experience even when exercising from home.
As the name suggests, the brand focuses on rowing, a complete cardio and strength training workout that engages 86% of the body’s muscles. Compared to 44% for cycling and running, this is nearly double the muscle engagement, which means that, in theory, you would need only half the time you’d spend on running or cycling to train when rowing on Hydrow Rower.
The brand has thought of every fitness level and age with a machine that is perfect for those who wish to start a low-impact yet complete sport. In their lives and recorded videos, Hydrow Rower features world-class athletes who compete for the US National Rowing Team to guide and motivate you through the workouts in real-time.
Every live row is recorded so you can have it in your on-demand library, plus there are unguided journeys through unexpected scenic waterways that allow users to come across sea creatures, boats, and other live encounters. Hydrow Rower can also get you out of your rower with an entire library of workouts to perform on the mat, including yoga, pilates, and strength training guided by elite trainers and coaches.
Founded in 2017 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, by former USA rowing national team coach Bruce Smith, the company promotes humanitarian qualities. Every one of your rows counts towards donations that Hydrow Rower makes to Water.org, an organization that works towards bringing clean and safe water to developing countries.
Hydrow Rower has been featured in Entrepreneur, Men’s Health, CBS News, Mercedes, and New York, and connects thousands of users of any age and any fitness level from the comfort of their home. Before we explore in detail the offer of the Hydrow Rower, let’s highlight the pros and cons of the brand:
The Hydrow x Mat Package retails for $2.245 and includes the Hydrow Rower along with a free Long Black Machine Mat that usually retails for a whopping $79.99.
You can try this package for 30 days with the risk-free trial, and if you don’t love it, the brand will refund your entire order. When you purchase the Hydrow x Mat Package, it comes with free standard shipping and a 1-year home use warranty. You can also add unlimited profiles to one membership.
The good news is that the Hydrow x Mat Package can be purchased with several installments as low as $63/month with Klarna to help you access great workouts at an affordable monthly fee.
The Hydrow Starter Package is made for rowers of all levels and ages and includes:
You can purchase the Hydrow Starter Package straight from the brand’s website for $2.520, and the company offers the possibility to pay in installments as low as $70 per month.
When you order the Hydrow Starter Package, you will enjoy Free Standard Shipping, and this package allows you to add unlimited profiles with one membership. If you are not completely satisfied with your Hydrow, it comes with a 30-day risk-free trial so that you can return it for a full refund.
Hydrow also offers a Hydrow Pro Package which includes:
The brand has also added many workout accessories to complement your rowing workouts with the yoga, strength training, and pilates training sessions they also offer.
In the Pro package, you can also find an “On The Mat” Kit which includes a performance foam roller, along with:
The Hydrow Pro Package retails for $2.705, and you can pay in installments as low as $76 per month with Klarna.
Before you purchase a Hydrow Rower, it’s a good idea to look at the rower’s specificities, including the type of resistance it uses, technical specifications, the capacity and comfort, and the monitor characteristic, to see if the machine is really worth your time and money.
Hydrow uses an electromagnetic resistance mechanism, which means that the Rower is very quiet, as well as smooth. Hydrow needs to be connected to power at all times and requires a standard US 120V electrical power outlet to function.
To help you in your purchase of the Hydrow Rower, we thought it would be interesting to share some technical specifications about the dimension, weight, and more, so you know if you have enough free space at your home.
Unpacked, the Hydrow Rower measures 86″L x 25″W x 47″H from the floor to the top of the screen, and the fact that you can store it vertically with the brand’s Upright Storage Kit makes it easier to live with such a big workout machine day in day out.
The Hydrow Rower weighs 145 Lbs and can withstand weight up to 375 lbs (170 kgs), making it a perfect rowing machine for a significant part of the population. This rower fits up to a 36” inseam (91 cm).
This review has found that all the Hydrow rowers are built in regards to commercial-grade quality standards. This means that they are designed to endure heavy use whether you use them at home or a gym, so you really do get a real return on investment.
Aside from the high quality of build, the Hydrow rowers’ components are water and sweat resistant and designed to be long-lasting.
Hydrow Rower comes with a big, bright monitor (1920 by 1080 resolution) that you attach to the rower with four screws, and on which you can follow instructors rowing live or on-demand workouts. You can adjust the monitor by pivoting its head up to 30° up and down and 50° left and right, to adjust it to your height perfectly.
Created with people of all ages and fitness levels in mind, the Hydrow Rower is great to ease yourself into the sport of rowing. The brand recommends using the rower whether you are a:
Since rowing is a low-impact sport that follows fluid movements and moves with you, it’s ideal both for beginners and experts. No pounding or jerking, no whirling, bouncing, or spinning furiously – the Hydrow Rower is a machine that matches your movement gently for ultimate comfort.
When you purchase the Hydrow Rower, you can usually order the in-home delivery and assembly service. However, due to the current sanitary conditions, the service cannot be added to any Hydrow order at the moment, which means that you have to set up the machine on your own.
Fortunately, the brand has covered its basis, and you can find a complete, step-by-step video about unboxing, assembling, and setting up your Hydrow Rower from the very moment you receive it.
To keep your Hydrow Rower efficient for as long as possible, the company recommends storing it in a dry, indoor, climate-controlled area away from damp or weathering elements. Bear in mind that storing Hydrow outdoors voids the 1-year home use warranty with which the rower comes.
You can safely store your Hydrow upright with the brand’s Upright Storage Kit, which retails for $69.99 and allows you to store your Hydrow in 30 seconds once you are done using it.
When you purchase the Hydrow Rower machine, it comes as a bare item. This means that you need to buy the membership separately, and no months of membership are included in the Starter or Pro package.
At the moment, Hydrow offers two memberships:
The prepaid membership period starts when you use the Activation code on Hydrow, making it easier to gift the membership to someone else.
Hydrow Rower may not be the first indoor rower on the market, but it is the one that offers the most complete and effortless experience this review has found.
Some of the Hydrow competitors include:
Although the price can be a deciding factor when purchasing a rowing machine, it is essential to look at all the added features, value, and overall return on investment.
Certain factors make Hydrow stand out from the rowing machine crowd:
A Hydrow Rower is certainly pricier than its competitors, but the good news is that we have come across many reviews that highlighted that their return on investment had been huge, with workouts that left them feeling positively exhausted and satisfied. The feeling of community was also a strong point for many customers.
A bare Hydrow Rower costs $2.245. However, you can also purchase it in three separate packages, which include:
Seeing just how many more useful accessories are included in the Pro Package, Bluetooth earphones, resistance bands, a mat, and many more, we would recommend purchasing the Hydrow Pro Package for a complete experience – if you’re serious about upping your fitness game, that is.
With almost 4500 reviews on Trustpilot that amount to an excellent 4.7-out-of-5 grade, this review has found that most Hydrow rowers’ users practically rave about its quality and ease of use.
“Hydrow has been a game-changer for me,” one review read. We’ve been through hundreds of customer reviews, which were all very recent (say, three weeks old at the earliest), and were surprised at just how many fans Hydrow Rower has amassed with their immersive rowing machines. Indeed, customers love the atmosphere created by the Hydrow workouts: “I love the guided workouts. The instructors are wonderful and make the workouts feel more like a party/social gathering than a workout!”. Another one reads: “I love our new Hydrow! I am returning to working out after many years of little to no exercise, and I am also new to rowing. The instructors do a great job of explaining how to row and all the different mechanics. The intro to rowing and fitness builder programs is just the right level for me.”
Coupled with proper nutrition, it seems like one could easily shed excess pounds without even noticing using Hydrow: “Awesome, I would highly recommend it! I have lost 5 pounds in a week, and I look forward to using it every day!” Another customer writes: “I’m really enjoying this machine! I was never a morning workout person before, and now I look forward to getting up early. It’s a balance of a hard workout, but also very relaxing. My first week in, I feel motivated and excited for my rowing journey!”.
However, we have also come across some reviews of customers who would like the possibility of adding their own music or being able to go through more detailed analytic data, so do keep that detail in mind. Some folks really enjoy listening to their music when exercising and that is not possible with this machine.
Overall though, a vast majority of customers seem super-pleased with their Hydrow exercise machine. In fact, one user writes: “I have a lot of gym equipment, but by far, this is the best. Great engagement and motivation from team Hydrow. Easy to use and one of the best workouts. Prior to getting I had been using a bike for about 11 miles a day for a few months and instantly felt a more complete workout the first week using Hydrow. “
The conclusion: customers seem to love their Hydrow Rower.
For this Hydrow Rower review, we have found that the company offers coupon codes from time to time, which we highly recommend taking advantage of. At the moment, you can use the code “ROW100” for $100 off your order. The company also offers a discount for military customers with the documentation to prove their status.
If you would like to purchase a Hydrow Rower, you can do so straight from the brand’s official website. Additionally, the company has retail partners, which include:
Shipping
At the moment of writing, Hydrow only ships their rowers within the continental United States. However, the brand has retail partners in Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
When you purchase a Hydrow Rower, you will enjoy free standard delivery on your order with delivery partner CEVA. An adult must be present to accept the delivery, and you will be able to schedule your delivery online or via phone.
Returns
If you are not satisfied with your Hydrow order for any reason, you can return your item under the 30-Day Risk-Free home trial policy of the company. If you are eligible for a return, you will receive a full return on the Hydrow Rower, the accessories, and the membership payment you have made during your trial month.
The 30-Day Risk-Free trial only applies to first-time orders of one Hydrow Rower purchased directly through the official website for home use.
If you do not qualify for the 30-Day Risk-Free home trial, you can return your Hydrow within 14 days of delivery for a replacement or a refund. However, because of the rower’s size and weight, any cancellation or return after shipment will be charged an additional return shipping fee of $250, deducted from the amount of your refund.
Hydrow does not accept returns on the following items if worn, used, or purchased as a sale item:
If you need to contact the Hydrow support team for any questions that have not been addressed in this Hydrow Rower review, you can do so via:
Offering immersive, full-body workouts with excellent and motivating classes and instructors, Hydrow Rower is absolutely worth it for folks who want to get in shape from the comfort of their home.
We really like the expertise of the instructors, scenic settings, smooth operation, and of course, a full-body workout that the Hydrow Rower offers. But if the high price is stopping you from trying it? With its 30-day risk-free trial and a 1-year home use warranty, we say give it a go, and if you end up not liking it, you can return it.
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