Iron Loft Chart
What degree each iron is, how lofts differ by set category, and why the same club number can vary by six degrees between brands.
There is no single standard iron loft. A modern 7-iron runs from about 34°–35° in blades and traditional sets down to 28°–31° in distance-oriented game improvement sets. Lofts have been strengthened steadily since the 1980s, which is why comparing sets by club number alone is misleading — and why every chart in this archive records the year the set was introduced.
- Blade 7-iron
- ~34°
- Players 7-iron
- 32°–34°
- Game improvement 7-iron
- 28°–31°
- Set pitching wedge
- 41°–48°
- Loft gap between clubs
- 3°–4°
Typical iron lofts by club
| Club | Traditional (pre-1990s) | Modern players | Modern game improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-iron | 20°–21° | 19°–21° | 18°–19° |
| 4-iron | 23°–24° | 22°–24° | 20.5°–22° |
| 5-iron | 26°–28° | 25°–27° | 23°–25° |
| 6-iron | 30°–31° | 28°–30° | 26°–28° |
| 7-iron | 34°–35° | 32°–34° | 28°–31° |
| 8-iron | 38°–39° | 36°–38° | 32°–35.5° |
| 9-iron | 42°–43° | 40°–42° | 37°–40.5° |
| PW | 46°–48° | 44°–46° | 41°–45° |
Bands, not standards: no governing body defines iron lofts, and individual sets sit outside these ranges. Look up the exact chart for any set via the brand index or by year.
7-iron loft by category
| Category | Sets on file | Current median | Current range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blade / Muscleback | 95 | 34° | 33°–35° |
| Players Irons | 252 | 33° | 30°–35° |
| Players Distance Irons | 129 | 30.8° | 28°–34° |
| Game Improvement Irons | 276 | 29° | 27°–34° |
| Super Game Improvement Irons | 94 | 29.5° | 25°–32° |
The category link opens every set on file, current and discontinued. The category guide explains what separates a blade from a players iron.
Why iron lofts got stronger
Perimeter weighting, thin fast faces and low centres of gravity launch the ball higher from the same loft. Manufacturers spent that extra height on distance by taking loft off each head — roughly a degree per decade in the game improvement category — while the numbers stamped on the soles stayed put. The result: a 1985 game improvement 7-iron at 36° and a 2025 one at 28° are, by loft, two different clubs.
Neither is wrong. The strong-lofted head still flies high because the design launches it; the traditional head still carries its distance on spin and control. What matters when switching sets is the loft and carry of each slot, not the number — and that the gap to your wedges stays even, which is where the wedge loft chart takes over.
Recently released iron sets on file
The archive holds 846 iron sets across 36 brands, from current lines to 1960s vintage sets whose spec sheets have left the manufacturer sites. Browse the brand index, by year or by category.
Frequently asked questions
What loft is a 7-iron?
Between about 28° and 35° depending on the set. Traditional and blade irons sit at 34°–35°, modern players irons around 32°–34°, and distance-oriented game improvement sets as low as 28°. That spread is why two golfers' 7-irons can fly a club and a half apart.
Why do iron lofts vary so much between sets?
Lofts have been strengthened steadily since the 1980s. Perimeter weighting and thin faces launch the ball higher from the same loft, so manufacturers took loft off each head to turn the extra height into distance — and the club numbers stayed where they were.
Are stronger lofts actually longer?
Only when the head design restores the launch the loft took away. A 28° game improvement 7-iron with a low centre of gravity flies like a well-struck traditional 6-iron; the same loft on a blade would launch too low to hold a green. Compare sets by loft and carry, not number.
What loft is a pitching wedge?
Between 41° and 48°, matched to the set it comes with: strong-lofted distance sets ship 41°–44° pitching wedges, traditional sets 46°–48°. The full breakdown is on the wedge loft chart.
- Loft bands are drawn from the archive itself and from accepted club-fitting conventions, given as ranges because no governing body defines iron lofts.
- Brand and model figures come from the LoftChart spec archive — the per-model pages linked above, each compiled from the manufacturer’s own spec sheets and source-attributed — last verified in 24 October 2026.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Spot an error? info@loftchart.com