Strong App Alternatives for Lifters Who Just Want to Log and Progress
An honest look at Strong app alternatives — Hevy, Fitbod, spreadsheets, and Misura — and which fits if you already have a program and want to progress.
Strong is a good app. That's the honest place to start, because most "alternatives" articles open by pretending the incumbent is terrible, and Strong isn't — it's been around for years, it has 109,000+ ratings at 4.9 stars, and it logs a lifting session about as cleanly as anything on the App Store.
People still go looking for something else, usually for one of three reasons: they hit the free tier's routine cap, they don't want another subscription, or the app does more than they need and they want something quieter. Below is what's actually out there, what each one is for, and how to pick without downloading six apps and re-entering your training history five times.
First, what you're actually leaving
Worth knowing exactly what Strong gives you, so you can tell whether a replacement is a real upgrade or just a different color scheme.
Free Strong saves unlimited workouts but caps you at 3 custom routines. That's the wall most people hit — a four-day upper/lower split needs four. Strong PRO removes the cap, and also offers a one-time "PRO Forever" purchase if you hate subscriptions (current prices in the table below). PRO includes an Apple Watch app, supersets, warm-up and plate calculators, CSV export, and graphs for volume and estimated 1RM.
So Strong already shows you volume. Any alternative that pitches itself purely on "we track volume!" isn't offering you something new.
The four questions that actually decide this
Before comparing feature lists, answer these:
- Do you have a program? If yes, you need a logbook. If no, you need something that writes sessions for you. These are different products and mixing them up is why people churn through apps.
- How many routines do you run? This is the number that determines whether a free tier works for you.
- Do you want a social feed? Some people train harder with one. Some find it noise.
- What number do you check after a session? Best set? Estimated 1RM? Total volume? Whatever you actually look at should be the thing the app puts in front of you.
The alternatives, honestly
Hevy — the closest like-for-like swap, and cheaper. Free with no ads, clean logging, volume and best-weight graphs, Apple Watch, supersets, drop sets, a large exercise library with videos. Hevy Pro costs meaningfully less than Strong PRO at every billing period, and offers a lifetime purchase too. It also has a social feed where you follow friends and copy their routines, plus Hevy Trainer, which generates programs for you. If the feed and the trainer appeal to you, that's a plus. If you want a silent logbook, that's the trade-off you're accepting.
Fitbod — a different product entirely. Fitbod's AI builds each session for you based on your equipment, recovery, and goals; it's an Apple Editors' Choice app with 282,000+ ratings. It's also the most expensive of the group by a wide margin — several times the cost of Strong or Hevy, and it has raised prices recently, so check the listing before you commit. Worth it if you genuinely don't want to program for yourself. Wrong tool if you already have a plan you like, because you'll spend your gym time overriding its suggestions.
A spreadsheet — still undefeated on flexibility and cost. You can compute anything you want, and nobody's changing the pricing on you. The catch is that you're the one building and maintaining it, and typing on a phone between sets is genuinely annoying. Great for lifters who like their own systems, rough for everyone else.
Paper — I'm not being cute. A notebook is fast, reliable, and free, and plenty of strong people use one. What it can't do is add the numbers up for you or compare this session to the same session six weeks ago without a lot of page-flipping.
Misura — the one I built, so read this with that in mind. It's the minimal, volume-first option: you bring your own program, log the sets, and it totals your session volume and puts it next to the last time you ran that same workout, plus this 7-day window against the previous one. That's the whole app. No prescribed programs, no AI coach, no exercise videos, no feed, no streaks. If you want any of those things, one of the apps above is a better buy — I'd genuinely rather you use Hevy than pay me for something that doesn't fit.
Side by side
| Best for | Free tier | Paid | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strong | Polished logging, Apple Watch | Unlimited workouts, 3 routines | $4.99/mo · $29.99/yr · $99.99 once |
| Hevy | Same job, cheaper, plus a feed | Generous; caps routines & history | $2.99/mo · $23.99/yr · $74.99 once |
| Fitbod | Not having to program yourself | Trial only | Highest of the group — check listing |
| Spreadsheet | Total control | Free | Your time |
| Misura | One number: did you beat last session? | In open beta | TBD at launch |
Prices checked August 2026 (US App Store). App pricing changes — treat this table as a starting point and confirm on the App Store before you buy.
How to pick in about a minute
If you left Strong over the 3-routine cap and want the same experience for less, go to Hevy. If you left because you don't actually have a program, go to Fitbod and let it do the thinking. If you left because the app kept showing you things you never asked for, and the only question you care about is whether today beat last time — that's the narrow lane Misura sits in.
The uncomfortable truth underneath all of this: the app matters far less than whether you record every set honestly and compare it to the last one. That's the entire mechanism behind progressive overload. Any of these tools can do it. Most people just never look at the comparison.
Misura is in open beta right now — bring your own program, get your total volume every session, and see this run against your last. [Grab early access.]
FAQ
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