The pulldown is still a great exercise with a lot of variation too, but it isn't on the same level. The pulldown is still worth doing, especially to build up to a pull-up, or to really overload your back afterwards too, but it just isn't on the same level as the pull-up.

Are pull down exercise effective?

While sitting down, start the exercise by pulling the bar downwards towards your chest. ... Training the lat muscles will give you more upper-body strength and is a great exercise for building a robust looking back. Second, doing pull-downs will also put a strain on your upper-arms (your biceps in particular).

Are rows better than pull-downs?

When subjects did seated cable rows, muscle activity of the lats was more than 40% greater than when they did wide-grip pulldowns. Rows appear to be a better exercise for stimulating more of the lat muscle fibers and, therefore, helping to build a bigger back.