The 12 Best Free Workout Apps Tested by Experts 2026

We’ve tested the best workout apps 2025 for at-home training

Nike Training Club offers a variety of classes, whereas an app like Strava is ideal if you’d like to keep metrics on your outdoor adventures. A good place to start is by searching your App Store and seeing what free workout apps it has to offer. Some are completely free or offer a free trial, and some require a monthly subscription.

  • Streamlined interactions encourage consistent usage, which leads to better health outcomes.
  • Starting to Exercise answers many important questions about physical activity.
  • The app includes access to 480 different workouts and 14 different training programs.
  • It also shows the bar path so that you can address any technical issues.
  • With so many food choices, fitness routines, and conflicting advice out there, staying on track can feel overwhelming.
  • When we talk about moving more, we are not asking you and your kids to train like athletes.

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For most people, the best approach is to start with a free trial, complete at least three workouts, and check whether the app removes friction from your routine. Look at how quickly you can find a workout, whether the difficulty feels right, and whether the plan tells you what to do next. A paid app is easier to justify when it replaces a gym class, personal training session, or mulle disconnected tools for tracking, programming, and recovery. Each app was tested through mulle workout sessions, including at least one beginner-friendly session, one intermediate or advanced session where available, and one workout using limited equipment. For apps focused on running, cycling, or walking, we assessed GPS accuracy, pace feedback, audio coaching, route history, and compatibility with wearables. SWEAT’s app is clean and easy to navigate, with the ability to save workouts for later and browse ‘On Demand’ workouts from other trainers outside of your plan.

Alo Wellness Club

There are many running apps out there, but Runkeeper is a long-time favorite! You can create goals, develop running plans, and track your progress along the way. It helps measure your run and results, and keeps you on track to meet specific goals (like 5k or marathon training!). Here are some of our favorite healthy living apps that can help you achieve your fitness, nutrition and lifestyle goals.

Can you do personal training through workout apps?

Whether you are new to meditation, intermediate or advanced, Headspace is your magic wand to putting you in a calmer, happier place. GH testers can’t rave enough about these easy-to-follow guided meditations. Start with 3-minute meditations and build up to some of the longer practices if that’s your goal. Developed and maintained by registered dietitians, tracking walk more app couldn’t be easier thanks to the voice control feature that allows users to log daily food intake and exercise. Users can easily share food logs with their health care provider or coach by using the Track Pro Coach portal. Yes, there are fully free apps and platforms, and many paid apps have free tiers with limited features.

FITNESS

The best fitness app for you is not always the one with the biggest exercise library or the most polished videos. It is the one you will actually open three to five times per week. Before subscribing, match the app to your current fitness level, available equipment, schedule, injury history, and preferred coaching style. A lifter with a full garage gym needs different tools than a beginner doing 20-minute bodyweight sessions in a small apartment.

We enjoyed that Reverse Health offered inclusive imagery for all body types, so the program felt supportive, according to Paige. “My only comment is that the pictures in the beginning while registering were clearly AI generated, and it would’ve been more encouraging to see real photos,” she said. That being said, Paige liked that she didn’t feel anything about the app was pressuring or shame-inducing.

SleepCycle

Gymverse basically takes the place of a personal trainer—so if you need a lot of guidance, it could be well worth the price. The app supports freestyling your workout too, which is a nice touch; I was able to start a blank workout and add exercise types and reps/sets as I went. Hevy also worked nicely with my Apple Watch, which meant I didn’t have to hold—or keep checking—my phone the whole time. If you like to decide whether it’s leg day based on how you felt when you rolled out of bed, you probably won’t like this fitness tracker. But when paired with a Fitbit device, you get a lot more from the Fitbit app—including much more accurate activity tracking. I was able to pick up a used wearable device on Facebook Marketplace for about $40, though a brand-new one can cost significantly more.

It also collects and shows you your speed, distance, and calories burned. Receive audio updates on how you are doing while you walk, and use the website to see your history, make friends, join groups, and see how your friends are doing. 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. Lloyd Coombes is a freelance contributor from Essex, UK, with a passion for fitness and tech. He can be seen at TechRadar, iMore, Live Science and more on a regular basis, and enjoys weightlifting and middle-distance running. We’ve reviewed these apps and plenty that didn’t make the cut to bring you our recommendations, bringing years of tech and software experience to the table.

These can be anything from insufficient motivation to lack of knowledge of how to exercise effectively. “Our research shows that the more barriers people have, the more likely they are to benefit from exercise apps.” This self-management app allows you to track your moods to cope with mental health conditions like insomnia, depression, anxiety, and eating disorders. Users get insights and summaries on symptoms and behaviors to discover patterns and find the best resources to deal with them.

Weight Watchers

Mindfulness and meditation apps play a crucial role in promoting mental wellness. Users can select guided sessions based on personal preferences, creating a calming environment that suits their needs. Moreover, sleep monitoring apps track patterns and provide insights for improving sleep quality. Improved sleep leads to enhanced overall health and productivity. Find exactly what you’re looking for in the catalog of over 100 workouts, including bodyweight routines, strength training with weights, HIIT, yoga, meditation, dance cardio, and barre.

What is the best fitness app out there?

This app pairs with wearable devices, monitoring daily activity levels and workouts. Users find real-time feedback invaluable for maintaining motivation. Community features enable challenges among friends, enhancing accountability. Fitbit also tracks sleep patterns, providing data to improve sleep quality.

What is the best fitness app for most people in 2026?

Get the experience of having your own coach for a fraction of the cost with Fitplan. The app offers step-by-step video training sessions, ranging from 20 to 90 minutes, from professional trainers and athletes. Users can choose from dozens of programs designed by some of their favorites like A-Rod, Ryan Lochte and Rob Gronkowski. Choose your plan based on goals, like weight loss, or by trainer. Integration with wearable devices offers enhanced tracking capabilities.

These are our 12 favorite fitness, health, and nutrition apps we recommend for crushing your 2026 resolutions

(For recommendations on best bottles, take a look at our picks for the best water bottles of 2023.) Follow the app to chart your progress in meeting your daily hydration goals. After testing dozens of health apps IRL, our registered dietitians and fitness experts in the Good Housekeeping Institute are sharing their favorites for 2023. Weight Watchers Coaches are experts specially trained in our nutrition and behavior change science.

“If I did upper body yesterday, I can choose a ‘custom’ workout and pick a different body part, and it creates a new session. Each exercise shows full instructions and videos.” “I find it hard to come up with routines myself, so having coached sessions made it easy and comfortable for me to try new things like boxing that I wouldn’t have sought out on my own,” another tester noted. Gym-goers will also appreciate the self-guided option, which lets you move through exercises at your own pace. Based on which you choose, the app will put together a running program for you. If I were new to running, this is exactly the kind of experience I would hope for. Runkeeper makes running feel attainable, no matter what progress looks like to you.

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