How to choose the best workout log app

There are dozens of apps for logging your workouts, and most of them will tell you they're the best. I've been building one since 2013, so take my advice with the appropriate pinch of salt. But that also means I've seen what actually makes people stick with a tracker versus abandon it after two weeks, and it's rarely the thing the app store screenshots are selling.

Here are the questions worth asking before you commit your training history to an app.

The short version

Choosing a workout log app comes down to two things: whether you'll actually keep using it, and whether it will still be here in a few years. Fast logging and last-session numbers decide the first. Active maintenance and access to your own data decide the second. Everything else is preference.

The seven questions worth asking, in order of how much they matter:

1. Is logging fast enough to do between sets?
2. Does it show you last session's numbers?
3. Is it actively maintained?
4. Does it work on both iOS and Android?
5. Is the free tier actually usable, or just a trial?
6. Does it track the right things without the clutter?
7. Can you get to your data?

Is logging fast enough to do between sets?

Download a few and log a fake set in each, then count the taps. If logging takes more than two or three, you'll quietly stop doing it.

This is the one that decides everything, and almost nobody checks it before downloading. You're going to open this app dozens of times per session, standing at a rack with 60 seconds of rest. If logging a set takes more than a couple of taps, you'll stop doing it. Not on day one, but by week three.

Download a few and actually log a fake set in each. Count the taps. The app that feels fastest in your hand is the one you'll still be using next year, regardless of what else it does.

Does it show you last session's numbers?

Last session's weight and reps should be on screen before your first set, not buried in a history view. Progressive overload means doing slightly more than last time, which requires knowing what last time was without going to look for it.

The whole point of tracking is to do a little more than last time. That only works if the app puts last session's weight and reps in front of you before you start the set, not buried three screens deep in a history view.

This is the feature I built RepCount around: open an exercise and you see exactly what you lifted last time, so the decision to add a rep or 2.5 kg is always right there. If an app makes you go hunting for that number, it's making the most important part of training harder than it needs to be.

Is it actively maintained?

Check the app store update history before you commit years of training history to it. An app nobody is maintaining will break as phones move on, and your data goes with it.

Check the update history in the app store. An app that ships regular updates has someone behind it who's still invested. One that hasn't been touched in a year or two will slowly break as phones and operating systems move on, and your data goes with it.

RepCount has been updated steadily since 2013. That longevity matters more than any single feature, because a workout log is only useful if it's still around in five years holding your history.

Does it work on both iOS and Android?

It matters if you might switch phones, or share routines with a training partner on the other platform. RepCount is native on both and syncs between them; many trackers are one platform only.

Few workout trackers are fully native on both platforms, and the ones built on cross-platform frameworks often feel slightly off on one of them. It matters if you might switch phones down the line, or if you want to share a routine with a training partner who's on the other platform.

RepCount is built natively on each, Swift on iOS and Kotlin on Android, and syncs your history between them, so your data isn't locked to the phone you happened to start on.

Is the free tier actually usable, or just a trial?

Check what the free version actually gives you before you invest months of history in it. Strong caps free users at 3 routines and Hevy at 4 routines and 7 custom exercises; RepCount's free tier has no cap on workouts, routines or custom exercises.

A lot of apps advertise a free version that turns out to be a demo, with a hard limit on routines or exercises you hit within a week. There's nothing wrong with paying for a good app, but check what the free tier actually gives you before you invest months of history in it.

For comparison: Strong's free tier caps you at 3 routines, and Hevy's at 4 routines and 7 custom exercises. RepCount's free tier has unlimited workouts, routines, and custom exercises with no ads, because I'd rather the free version stand on its own than nag you into upgrading.

Does it track the right things without the clutter?

A workout log needs exercise, weight, sets, reps, personal records and volume over time. Everything beyond that is a preference, and some of it actively slows down the job you downloaded the app for.

You need exercise, weight, sets, reps, and ideally your personal records and volume over time. That's most of what matters. Some apps pile on body-measurement trackers, macro counters, social feeds, and AI coaches until the core job of logging a set gets slow and fiddly.

Decide whether you want a focused logger or an everything-app, and pick accordingly. I built RepCount to do the logging job well and stay out of your way, but if you want the all-in-one, that's a legitimate choice too.

Can you get to your data?

Your history should be synced off your phone, shown back to you as charts, and portable if you ever leave. A log you can't get out of is a log you don't really own.

Your training history is yours, and it's valuable. A good app keeps it accessible: synced to the cloud so it isn't trapped on a single phone, and shown back to you in charts and trends so it's actually useful, not just stored. Before you commit years to any app, it's worth checking how easily your history moves with you.

RepCount keeps your full history synced across your devices and turns it into progress charts. It exports to CSV too, so your data comes with you if you go.

Which one should you pick?

Whichever one you're still opening in six months. No feature list survives contact with a busy Tuesday evening, so test the shortlist against the questions above rather than against the screenshots.

I'm biased, obviously. But if you download a few and test them against these questions, you'll end up with the right one for you, and if that's RepCount, great. It's free on iOS and Android.

Frequently asked questions

What should a workout log track?

At minimum: exercise name, weight, sets, and reps. A good app also tracks volume trends over time and highlights personal records. RepCount logs all of this automatically and shows your previous session's numbers before each set, so you always know what to beat.

Is a digital workout log better than a paper notebook?

A notebook works fine, and it beats not tracking at all. But a digital log gives you searchable history, automatic volume and PR tracking, and years of data you can actually review. The main advantage is that a good app shows you last session's numbers instantly, which a notebook can't do while you're mid-workout.

What is the best free workout log app?

Look for a free tier you won't outgrow. RepCount's free tier includes unlimited workouts, routines, and custom exercises with no ads. For comparison, Strong caps free users at 3 routines and Hevy at 4 routines and 7 custom exercises, so you can hit those walls once you've been training a while.

Does my workout log app need to work on both iPhone and Android?

It matters if you might switch phones or share a plan with a training partner on the other platform. If you're certain you'll stay on one, it's less important. RepCount syncs your history across iOS and Android, so your data follows you either way.