Bottom line: The Concept2 RowErg is $990 and a magnetic rower is $179.99. That gap is unusually easy to justify, which is not something we say often here. The Concept2 is the machine competitive rowers, CrossFit gyms and research labs actually use, it holds resale value better than any other cardio equipment, and its monitor produces numbers that mean the same thing on every unit in the world. But if you are not certain you will row twice a week for years, the $180 machine answers that question for a fifth of the price. Prices checked 27 August 2026.
Check Concept2 Price → Check Budget Rower Price →
Why This One Is Different From Our Usual Answer
On most of this site the honest conclusion is that the cheap version does the same job. Walking pads, sauna blankets, massage guns, compression boots. The premium usually buys build quality and a brand rather than a different outcome.
Rowing is the exception, and the reason is resistance type. The Concept2 uses a flywheel spun by air, so resistance scales with how hard you pull. Pull harder and the resistance rises to meet you, which means the machine never runs out of difficulty and the effort curve matches actual rowing. Magnetic rowers use a fixed resistance level you set with a dial. Level 16 feels the same whether you pull gently or explosively, so the harder you get, the less the machine can challenge you.
That difference decides who each machine suits. For steady low-intensity work, magnetic resistance is perfectly adequate and considerably quieter. For intervals, for anything approaching a hard effort, and for training that has to stay hard as you improve, air resistance is doing something a dial cannot.
The Numbers
| Concept2 RowErg | Merach Q1S | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $990.00 | $179.99 |
| Resistance | Air, scales with effort | Magnetic, 16 fixed levels |
| Monitor | PM5, Bluetooth + ANT+ | LCD + app |
| Weight capacity | 500 lb | 350 lb |
| Noise | Louder, fan sound | Quiet |
| Resale value | Exceptional | Minimal |
The noise row is not a footnote. An air rower sounds like a fan at full speed, and in a flat with thin walls or a shared house that is a genuine constraint on when you can train. The magnetic machine is close to silent, which for some people is the deciding factor regardless of everything else.
The Resale Argument Nobody Runs
This is the part that changes the maths, and almost no review does the arithmetic.
Concept2 machines hold value unusually well. Used units routinely sell for a substantial fraction of new, because the design barely changes between generations, parts remain available for decades, and demand from rowers and CrossFit gyms is steady. A budget magnetic rower, by contrast, is worth very little secondhand and is often not worth the effort of selling at all.
So the real cost of the Concept2 is not $990. It is $990 minus whatever you recover if you sell it in three years, and that number is meaningfully smaller. The real cost of the $180 machine is close to $180, because you will likely not resell it. That narrows a five-fold price gap considerably, and it is the strongest financial argument for buying the good one first.
It also means buying used is a genuinely sensible route into this brand. A secondhand RowErg with a working PM5 monitor does everything the new one does, since there is very little to wear out on a machine with one moving chain and a fan.
What the PM5 Monitor Actually Gives You
The performance monitor is a larger part of the price than the frame is, and it is worth understanding why.
The PM5 reports pace as split time per 500 metres, calculated from flywheel speed rather than estimated from a resistance setting. Because every Concept2 measures the same way, a 2:00 split on your machine is a 2:00 split on any other machine anywhere. That comparability is why the brand dominates competitive indoor rowing and why coaches prescribe workouts in Concept2 numbers.
It also connects over Bluetooth and ANT+ to heart rate straps and to more than forty apps. That matters because the one accuracy problem it cannot solve is heart rate, and a chest strap is the fix. Wrist optical sensors degrade exactly where rowing lives, at high intensity with the wrists gripping and moving, which our accuracy guide covers and our heart rate monitor roundup solves for about $100.
The budget machine reports distance, time, calories and speed on an LCD and through an app. Those numbers are internally consistent enough to track your own progress, which is most of what a beginner needs. They are not comparable to anyone else’s, and the calorie figure in particular should be treated as a rough estimate rather than a measurement.
Rowing Is Also the Easiest Machine to Do Badly
Worth saying before anyone spends $990, because technique matters more here than on any other piece of cardio equipment.
The stroke is legs, then hips, then arms, and reversing that order is the near-universal beginner error. Pulling with the arms first turns a full-body movement into a weak upper-body one and puts the load through a rounded lower back. Rowing does not have an inherent back-injury problem. Rowing with a rounded spine and arms leading does.
The other frequent mistake is cranking the damper to 10 and treating it as a difficulty dial. On an air rower the damper controls how much air enters the flywheel housing, which changes the feel rather than the intensity. Most experienced rowers sit between 3 and 5, closer to the drag of a boat on water. Intensity comes from how hard you pull, not from the lever.
Neither of those problems is fixed by spending more. Ten minutes of technique video before your first session is worth more than the entire price difference between these two machines, and it is free.
How We Evaluate
We do not own either machine and we will not imply we do. Specifications and prices come from the manufacturers’ own Amazon listings, checked on 27 August 2026, including the RowErg’s PM5 monitor with Bluetooth and ANT+, 500 pound capacity and 14 inch seat height, and the Merach Q1S’s 16 magnetic resistance levels, 350 pound capacity and app connectivity. The explanation of how air and magnetic resistance differ reflects established mechanics rather than marketing copy. Resale characteristics are described qualitatively because we have no verified transaction data, and that is labelled editorial judgment rather than a figure.
Who Should Buy Which
Buy the Concept2 RowErg if you already know you like rowing, if you want intervals rather than only steady work, or if comparable data matters to you. It is the rare case on this site where the expensive option is genuinely better long-term value, helped considerably by resale. This is our pick for anyone reasonably confident they will stick with it.
Buy the Merach Q1S at $179.99 if you have never rowed, if noise is a real constraint, or if you mainly want low-intensity cardio while watching something. It is genuinely adequate for that at less than a fifth of the price.
Buy used if you want the Concept2 and price is the obstacle. There is very little to wear out on a chain and a fan, and a secondhand unit with a functioning PM5 does everything a new one does.
Buy neither yet if you have not rowed at a gym first. Twenty minutes on a rower you do not own tells you more than any review can, including ours. Our home gym equipment guide covers why that test predicts abandonment better than any specification, our recovery gear guide covers what else the same budget buys, and if you are weighing cardio options generally our running watch roundup and weighted vest guide cover cheaper ways to add training load.
Check Concept2 Price → Check Budget Rower Price →
FAQ
Is the Concept2 RowErg worth $990?
For committed rowers, yes, which is unusual for us to say. Air resistance scales with effort so the machine never becomes too easy, the PM5 produces globally comparable data, and resale recovers a meaningful part of the purchase price. For someone unsure they will use it, a $180 magnetic rower answers that question far more cheaply.
What is the difference between air and magnetic rowing machines?
Air resistance rises as you pull harder, so intensity is governed by your effort. Magnetic resistance is fixed at whichever level you select, so a hard pull and a gentle pull meet the same resistance. Air suits intervals and progression; magnetic is quieter and fine for steady work.
Are cheap rowing machines any good?
For low-intensity cardio, yes. A magnetic rower around $180 gives you the movement pattern and consistent enough data to track your own progress. The limits appear at high intensity and as you get fitter.
What damper setting should I use on a Concept2?
Most experienced rowers use 3 to 5. The damper controls airflow and therefore feel, not intensity. Setting it to 10 makes each stroke heavier without making the workout harder in any useful way.
Is rowing bad for your back?
Not inherently. Poor technique is. The stroke sequence is legs, then hips, then arms, and pulling with the arms first while rounding the lower back is the error behind most rowing back complaints.