The scope of the question is assumed to be what you prefer, in that if you were buying a home set would you get free's or machine's? Most cant afford both! Thus, free weights or machine? Both have pro's and con's. But if you were buying a home set...Free or machine? Thats why i dont have a both option. Sure, if we go to a gym we have access to everything you can imagine. i prefer machine for my legs and free for upper body. My knee's are all but shattered out. So machines help take some stress off of them. So at a gym I use both, but if I was buying a home set I'd go free weights and cut the weight down for leg workouts.