Ultimately, the right app for you is the one that inspires you to open it up and use it—all the apps we tested have free trials, free versions, or are entirely free, so you can try out a few to see what works best for you. I was surprised that I got a lot of notifications every time I finished a workout—all from random names with a message telling me they were proud of me for working out. You can customize your notifications to turn this feature off, but it seemed odd to me that this was the default. Good Housekeeping participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.
The time flew by in each video I tried, and I felt well-trained and accomplished for the rest of the day, even if the workout was shorter than ones I usually do. Some are free or offer free trials for a week or month, which lets you test out the app before officially committing to it. Others can cost less than $10, under $50 or as much as $100 a month, depending on how personalized the experience tends to be.
I used that method to plan my months-long marathon training (see above), paired with my Garmin watch, and it was highly effective. Personal training apps are pricier than general fitness apps and typically range between $15 to $200 a month. That said, many apps offer discounted memberships if you purchase an annual subscription. When you consider a single in-person session could easily cost $100-$200, the value is clear. You’ll also have access to video demonstrations, form support, in-ear coaching, and built-in pacing to keep you on track.
What is the best free workout app?
Many of the apps on this list play nicely together, too, with the likes of Fitbod and Fitbit Premium able to pull data from Google and Apple. With that in mind, we’d recommend testing out one that seems to cater to your chosen discipline, even if just for the length of the free trial, in their free iterations to check you’ve got the right app for your device. It’s a great resource to get into the social side of running, with ‘friendly’ competition from friends and other users, and it’s great to use for any outdoor pursuit. The design and user interface feature lots of handy elements, with AI always one tap away. There’s also a high degree of personalization, and you can use the chatbot to ask questions about lifting, form, nutrition, or anything else you need.
CUSTOM WORKOUTS CUSTOM MEAL PLANS EXPERT TUTORIALS DAILY MESSAGING WITH JONNY
She has several years of experience reading and writing about lifestyle and wellness topics, with her previous work appearing in Refinery 29, Insider, and The Daily Beast. Beachbody is a multi-level marketing business, or MLM, which means its products and services are sold by person-to-person sales (you’ve maybe seen some acquaintances shilling it on Facebook). I’m not evaluating that https://www.forbes.com/health/wellness/best-calorie-counting-apps/ aspect of Beachbody, only the effectiveness of the app itself, but it’s useful to know before getting into it. It also has good music playlists—full of real music by artists you’ve heard of, not the royalty-free tunes you sometimes get on apps.
Best Android apps: Great apps in every category
Usable on an iPad, iPhone, or smart TV, it interfaces with your Apple Watch so you can see your vital stats on the screen as you train. Runna offers more running metrics than you’ll know what to do with, with plenty of additional community features, too. Use our quick round-up below to immediately find an app that fits your needs – and you can read more about it by jumping to our full write-ups and explanations using the links. Build your virtual gym by earning experience points for workouts and progress. Websites like FitBudd are on the cutting edge of all of this, allowing fitness professionals to market scalable and personalized coaching services while still maintaining quality and interaction. If you know you respond well to upbeat instructors, a visible timetable, and the gentle pressure of seeing other people in class with you, the Peloton App can turn repeated sessions into a routine.
Daily Burn
If you’re traveling, heading to a location with limited service, or simply want to avoid interruptions, it’s a good idea to download a few favorite workouts in advance. That way, you’ll have options ready to go whether or not you have internet access, keeping your routine consistent no matter where you are. Sustainable improvement to your fitness doesn’t come from the latest fad or celebrity routine. Caliber helps you lose weight and build muscle through a unique combination of data-driven fitness & nutrition programming, one-on-one video coaching, and lifestyle optimizations tailored to you.
Best AI Workout Tools (January
If you’re not a fully converted Peloton junkie, the Peloton app One is a good stepping stone to see what the hype is about and whether you enjoy the classes. AI aside, Fitbit benefits from syncing with cheap Fitbit trackers, so the app can track stats like resting heart rate, blood oxygen, skin temperature, sleep zones, and HRV. The new app shows “Insight” cards with trend data for these stats, so you can see how your health is improving as you try to get fitter or lose weight. Andi Breitowich is a Chicago-based writer and graduate student at Northwestern Medill. She’s a mass consumer of social media and cares about women’s rights, holistic wellness, and non-stigmatizing reproductive care.
Best workout app for running
- If your subscription expires, you’ll lose access to premium content, but your account data and workout history remain saved.
- The classes play as videos led by trainers, all of which are between 5 and 45 minutes long and can be accessed on any (Apple) screen of your choosing.
- PUSH is an absolutely brilliant app targeted exclusively at strength training and building muscle.
- The developer, Argent Companies, Inc., indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below.
- I think almost all of them provide a way to adopt a healthier lifestyle if you’re willing to commit to them, so there’s really no way to go “wrong”—but some have features that make them better suited for most people.
- The app aims to optimize muscle recovery and strength gains by intelligently varying exercise selection, intensity, and volume between sessions.
Courses include “How To Lose Fat Without Calorie Tracking” and “Fool unimeal review accessnewswire Proof Mindset And Goal Setting For Nutrition”. He’s an expert in all things Apple as well as Computer and Gaming tech, with previous works published on TopTenReviews, Space.com, and Live Science. You’ll find him regularly testing the latest MacBook or iPhone, but he spends most of his time writing about video games at Dexerto.
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It can even watch you while you work out to give you adjustments on form, as well as perform flexibility tests. It costs around 20 bucks a month, or there’s a cheaper annual plan if you commit to a full year. With a huge variety of guided workouts, Apple Fitness Plus is a great place to start something new – whether that’s yoga, or training towards a specific running distance. All workouts include in-depth instructions including warmup, weight selection, equipment modifications, and workout walkthrough. Studies on this approach – including research using PUSH-compatible sensors – suggest that tracking bar speed is a reliable way to judge how heavy a set really was, and when you should stop before your form falls apart. You plug in your goal – from a first 5K to a marathon personal best – plus your current fitness and how many days a week you can realistically train, and it builds a personalised plan that slots into your schedule.
The 7 Best Workout Apps of 2026 for Exercising From the Comfort of Your Home
This AI-powered coaching feature gives you the support and motivation you need, whenever you need it. Chat to get a quick warm-up plan, ask a question about your progress, or get a little extra push to crush your workout. Tell us your main fitness goal—whether it’s building muscle or improving mobility—and your daily activity level. Our app uses this info to create a customized workout and nutrition plan that fits seamlessly into your life. IPhones have many fan favorite workout apps to pick from, which include many on this list like Peloton, Nike Training Club and Strava.
FEATURES
Aside from the obvious nightly stats about sleep quality or heart health, Oura tries to analyze long-term trends and provide more context on your body’s ability to handle stress. That’s why, when it comes to New Year’s resolutions or making a workout calendar, a simple document or spreadsheet works better than trying to find the perfect, all-in-one app! From all-inclusive AI plans to real workout coaches, gym exercise logs to marathon guidance, these are our hand-picked app recommendations. In other words, weight loss is extremely individualized and working with a personal trainer (IRL or through an app) can help zero in on your goals, needs, and a holistic approach for results.
In most of them, the instructions tell you to do things like squats, push-ups, and burpees, with a looping video that shows you proper form, and you click an arrow to tell the app when you’re ready to move on to the next set. I didn’t mind this—it meant I could take my time and work on my form—but someone who likes a more straightforward video format and doesn’t want to keep tapping their phone during the workout might have an issue with it. At $25 a month or $170 a year, Obé is one of the more expensive apps we tested. Finally, many of the classes are dance-focused, and it could be difficult to keep up with the instructors based on audio instruction and occasionally glancing at the screen—particularly if you, like me, are very much not a dancer. Over the last few years, Oura has packed its app with a comprehensive list of health metrics, with the AI Oura Advisor as the flashy topper to make everything more accessible.