The 30-second version
- ✓17 divisions from 105 lb to unlimited; the limit is a maximum, checked at the weigh-in the day before.
- ✓Many classes have two names: super lightweight = junior welterweight (140), super welterweight = junior middleweight (154), super featherweight = junior lightweight (130), minimumweight = strawweight (105).
- ✓The classic eight — fly, bantam, feather, light, welter, middle, light heavy, heavy — are the originals; the 'super/junior' classes were added to close dangerous gaps.
- ✓Cruiserweight tops out at 200 lb; everything above is heavyweight. The WBC's bridgerweight (200-224 lb) is a WBC-only division, not one of the 17.
- ✓At world level, a few pounds of frame is real power and durability — which is why the divisions are thin and the weight cut is its own discipline.
● The short answer
Professional boxing has 17 weight classes. In order, with the maximum weight for each: minimumweight 105 lb (47.6 kg), light flyweight 108 (49.0), flyweight 112 (50.8), super flyweight 115 (52.2), bantamweight 118 (53.5), super bantamweight 122 (55.3), featherweight 126 (57.2), super featherweight 130 (59.0), lightweight 135 (61.2), super lightweight 140 (63.5), welterweight 147 (66.7), super welterweight 154 (69.9), middleweight 160 (72.6), super middleweight 168 (76.2), light heavyweight 175 (79.4), cruiserweight 200 (90.7) and heavyweight, which has no upper limit above 200 lb. Fighters must be at or under the limit at the official weigh-in, usually held the day before the fight.
Seventeen divisions, some separated by three pounds, several with two different names. It looks absurd until you watch two elite fighters four pounds apart, and the four pounds are visible. Here is the complete map — every class, every limit, every name — and the logic underneath it.
All 17 weight classes, in order
The limit is the maximum weight allowed at the official weigh-in. Where a division has two names, both are given.
- —Minimumweight (also strawweight or mini flyweight) — 105 lb / 47.6 kg
- —Light flyweight (also junior flyweight) — 108 lb / 49.0 kg
- —Flyweight — 112 lb / 50.8 kg
- —Super flyweight (also junior bantamweight) — 115 lb / 52.2 kg
- —Bantamweight — 118 lb / 53.5 kg
- —Super bantamweight (also junior featherweight) — 122 lb / 55.3 kg
- —Featherweight — 126 lb / 57.2 kg
- —Super featherweight (also junior lightweight) — 130 lb / 59.0 kg
- —Lightweight — 135 lb / 61.2 kg
- —Super lightweight (also junior welterweight or light welterweight) — 140 lb / 63.5 kg
- —Welterweight — 147 lb / 66.7 kg
- —Super welterweight (also junior middleweight or light middleweight) — 154 lb / 69.9 kg
- —Middleweight — 160 lb / 72.6 kg
- —Super middleweight — 168 lb / 76.2 kg
- —Light heavyweight — 175 lb / 79.4 kg
- —Cruiserweight (historically junior heavyweight) — 200 lb / 90.7 kg
- —Heavyweight (no upper limit) — 200+ lb / 90.7+ kg
One WBC-only footnote: bridgerweight, a division the WBC sanctions between cruiserweight and heavyweight (200 to 224 lb). The other bodies don't recognise it, so it isn't counted among the 17.
● The fight week, in your inbox
Results, the fights that matter next, and the science behind them.
Why so many — the classic eight and the gaps between
Boxing's original continents were the classic eight: flyweight, bantamweight, featherweight, lightweight, welterweight, middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight. The spaces between them were once no-man's-land: a natural 122-pounder had to choose between giving away four pounds to featherweights or starving down to bantamweight. Over the twentieth century the "super" and "junior" classes were added to close those gaps, and the ladder grew to seventeen rungs. The names collided because the sanctioning bodies never agreed on a convention — the WBA and WBC call 140 lb super lightweight, the IBF and WBO call it junior welterweight, and the amateurs used light welterweight. Same limit, three names.
Why a few pounds matter this much
At hobby level, skill gaps dwarf size gaps. At world level everyone is skilled, so the physics come back out of hiding: a few pounds of lean frame is measurably more force delivered and absorbed, and a longer reach to deliver it from. The divisions are thin because at the top the margins are. It's also why the greatest résumés are built by moving up: power doesn't automatically travel to a heavier class, skill does, and the fighters who win titles across several divisions — Teofimo Lopez added a third this summer — are boxing's aristocracy for a reason.
The number on the poster isn't the fighting weight
Weigh-ins are held the day before the fight, which created the sport's shadow discipline: the cut. Fighters drain to make the limit, then rehydrate — often stepping into the ring well above the division's number. That gap is why contracts carry rehydration clauses and why the IBF weighs its champions again on fight morning. The whole system, including exactly what happens when a fighter misses weight, is in boxing weigh-ins explained. Claressa Shields' return to 160 — a cut of more than fifteen pounds followed by a sixth-round stoppage — shows what a disciplined one buys.
Where the glamour lives
Heavyweight, welterweight, middleweight and lightweight are the glamour divisions — the classes whose champions have historically driven the sport's biggest eras. Today's deepest talent pools sit at lightweight and welterweight, which is why a single Saturday can carry two lightweight world titles without a pay-per-view.
What comes next
The division tells you the limit. Three other things decide the fight: the rules of the ring, how the judges score it, and what the belts on the line mean.
The scale is just another opponent, and it fights every camp.
Every class, its names and its styles, mapped: the divisions hub.
FAQ
What are the boxing weight classes in order?+
From lightest to heaviest: minimumweight (105 lb), light flyweight (108), flyweight (112), super flyweight (115), bantamweight (118), super bantamweight (122), featherweight (126), super featherweight (130), lightweight (135), super lightweight (140), welterweight (147), super welterweight (154), middleweight (160), super middleweight (168), light heavyweight (175), cruiserweight (200) and heavyweight (over 200, no limit).
How many weight classes are there in boxing?+
Seventeen recognised by the major sanctioning bodies. The WBC also sanctions a bridgerweight division between cruiserweight and heavyweight (200 to 224 lb), but it isn't recognised as one of the 17 by the other bodies.
What is the heavyweight weight limit in boxing?+
There isn't one. Heavyweight is everything above the cruiserweight limit of 200 lb (90.7 kg), with no maximum.
Why do some divisions have two names?+
Different sanctioning bodies use different naming conventions. The WBA and WBC say 'super' (super lightweight); the IBF and WBO say 'junior' of the class above (junior welterweight). Both mean the same 140 lb limit. The same applies to super/junior featherweight (130), super/junior welterweight (154) and others.
What are the weight classes in kilograms?+
105 lb = 47.6 kg, 108 = 49.0, 112 = 50.8, 115 = 52.2, 118 = 53.5, 122 = 55.3, 126 = 57.2, 130 = 59.0, 135 = 61.2, 140 = 63.5, 147 = 66.7, 154 = 69.9, 160 = 72.6, 168 = 76.2, 175 = 79.4, 200 = 90.7, and heavyweight above 90.7 kg.
Do fighters actually fight at the division weight?+
Rarely. The limit is checked at the weigh-in the day before, and fighters typically rehydrate well above it by fight night — which is why rehydration clauses and the IBF's second-day weigh-in exist.
What is a glamour division?+
A weight class with the deepest history and biggest stars — heavyweight, welterweight, middleweight and lightweight above all. The sport's biggest eras have usually been built there.
BoxingFinesse · Partner
The Vault: rare, by invitation.
Rare and vintage fight pieces, private auctions, limited drops and collections made with pro fighters. The key is free — members see everything first.
- Rare pieces
- Auctions
- Drops & merch
- Fighter collabs
- Tickets & events
- Tools & programs
800+ in the Finesse Club · 500+ vintage magazines
