Fitbod vs Strong vs Jefit vs Hevy: Which Workout Tracker Is Best in 2026?
Fitbod builds every session for you, Strong is the fastest plain log, Hevy is the cheapest upgrade with the strongest social feed, and Jefit pairs an algorithm-built 12-week plan with the deepest progress analysis. Every price and limit below was verified against each app's official pages on September 15–16, 2026.
Top picks at a glance
- Most automated: Fitbod — no free tier; $95.99/yr after a 7-day trial.
- Best minimalist logger: Strong — unlimited saved workouts and CSV export on the free tier.
- Best for plan generation plus analysis: Jefit — a 12-week periodized plan and per-muscle analysis, under Fitbod's price.
- Best value and social feed: Hevy — $23.99/yr or $74.99 lifetime, plus a free community feed.
Quick picks by use case
- Best if you don't want to plan anything: Fitbod — it picks each session's exercises around your equipment and recovery.
- Best if you want to try before paying: Strong, Jefit or Hevy — Fitbod is the only one of the four with no free tier.
- Best if you already run a barbell program: Strong — "optimized for a progressive barbell routine such as Starting Strength or StrongLifts 5x5" (App Store).
- Best if you want a plan built for you: Jefit Elite — three four-week blocks ending in a Deload, at $69.99/yr against Fitbod's $79.99–$95.99.
- Best if you want to know which muscles you're under-training: Jefit — sets per muscle group, movement balance, and per-muscle recovery.
- Best if you want weights raised for you at the lowest price: Hevy Pro — Hevy Trainer, from $2.99/mo.
- Best if you train with friends: Hevy — a feed, comments, and leaderboards among people you follow.
- Best if you want your full training history kept free: Jefit or Strong — neither caps how far back you can look.
How we verified
- Scope: 4 apps — exactly the four this query names; all 4 qualified, none excluded (why no others).
- Method: documentation-based, not hands-on. Competitor facts come only from each app's own website, help center, and App Store / Google Play listing; Jefit's come from Jefit's product documentation.
- Axes: thirteen, and they are the table's rows — free tier, what the paid tier adds, exercise library, plan library, automatic session generation, multi-week structure, recovery tracking, progress analysis, customization, community, platforms, store ratings, and paid price. In the table, bold marks the app that leads that row; rows where the evidence doesn't separate them are left unbolded.
- Why programming counts: the ACSM 2009 position stand calls progressive protocols "necessary" for further adaptation. Periodized training produced greater 1RM gains than non-periodized at equal volume, effect size 0.31, but not more muscle (Moesgaard 2022).
- Why analysis counts: weekly sets per muscle show a graded dose-response with growth (Schoenfeld 2017).
- Date: competitor facts verified 2026-09-15; Jefit facts 2026-09-16; store ratings pulled 2026-09-15.
- Limitations: prices are US storefront, several apps list more than one SKU per tier, and a few tier details aren't stated officially — each is marked in the table.
- Disclosure: Jefit publishes this comparison and appears in it.
How they compare, row by row
Each app leads on something different: Fitbod on automation and recovery, Strong on customization, Jefit on plans and analysis, Hevy on price, community and store ratings.
| Dimension | Fitbod | Strong | Jefit | Hevy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Trial only (7 days) | Unlimited workouts, 3 routines | Full logging, full history, full library | Unlimited workouts, 4 routines, 3 months of stats |
| What the paid tier adds | The app itself — nothing works after the trial | Charts, measurements, plate and warm-up calculators, unlimited templates | Adaptive Plan, Periodization on your own plan, NSPI scores | Hevy Trainer, all-time graphs, unlimited routines, warm-up calculator |
| Exercise library | 1,000+ or 1,600+ (official pages disagree) | 200+ (2021 help page) | 1,400+ across 8 training types | 400+ |
| Plan library | None — it generates instead | None stated | 700+ JEFIT-built, 20,000+ community-built | 26 programs |
| Automatic session generation | Every session, from recovery | None | Adaptive Plan (Elite) | Hevy Trainer (Pro) |
| Multi-week structure | "No built-in weekly planner yet" | You build it | 12 weeks: 3 four-week blocks, ends in Deload | Trainer program |
| Recovery tracking | 0–100% per muscle + heat map | None | Muscle Recovery chart (free) | Not stated |
| Progress analysis | Strength Score, Estimated Strength (paid) | Records free; charts PRO | 1RM, PRs, volume, sets per muscle, recovery — free | 3 months free; all-time on Pro |
| Customization | Swap or exclude; custom exercises can't be edited | Any program you build; unlimited templates on PRO | 7 custom exercises free | 7 custom exercises free |
| Community | Off-app: Facebook 4,000+, subreddit 11,000+ | Share sheet only | In-app feed, groups, leaderboards (opt-in) | In-app feed, comments, leaderboards |
| Platforms | iOS, Mac, Android; both watches; web onboarding only | iOS, Android; Apple Watch; no web | iOS, Android, web; both watches | iOS, Android, web; both watches |
| Store ratings | 4.8 (284K) / 4.5 (31.1K) | 4.9 (109K) / 4.3 (42.7K) | 4.8 (46.9K) / 4.4 (89.8K) | 4.9 (92K) / 4.9 (265K) |
| Paid tier | $15.99/mo · $95.99/yr (App Store: $12.99 · $79.99) | $4.99/mo · $29.99/yr · $99.99 forever | $12.99/mo · $69.99/yr | $2.99/mo · $23.99/yr · $74.99 lifetime |
Bold = leads that row. App Store / Google Play ratings shown as iOS (count) / Android (count), pulled 2026-09-15. Prices are US storefront; Strong and Fitbod also list additional SKUs (see each app below).
Fitbod — best if you want every session decided for you
Verdict: Fitbod is the most automated of the four, and the only one with no free tier.
Fitbod's pitch is "LESS PLANNING. MORE PROGRESS." — it builds the workout before you arrive, selecting exercises "that fit your goal and your available equipment" and working "around muscle groups that haven't recovered yet" (Fitbod help). The App Store subtitle is "AI Personal Trainer & Workouts", and the site says Fitbod is "built exclusively for resistance and strength training."
Recovery drives the engine: Fitbod scores each muscle from 0% to 100% recovered, shows a heat map of what you've worked, and routes the next session toward what's ready. On top of that sit Strength Score, Estimated Strength and Benchmark Lifts, plus Weekly Set Targets. You can swap or exclude an exercise and set a session from 15 to 90 minutes.
What it doesn't do is plan a block. Fitbod's own help center states it "doesn't have a built-in weekly planner yet" (Fitbod help), even though the store listing claims "non-linear periodization" — it adapts day to day rather than running a fixed multi-week program. Custom exercises exist, but "cannot be edited after creation" and "will not appear in automatic workout recommendations."
Pricing: a 7-day trial, then $15.99/mo or $95.99/yr on fitbod.me; the App Store also lists $12.99/mo and $79.99/yr. After the trial you can still view past workouts, but logging new ones requires a subscription. Platforms: iOS, Mac, Android, Apple Watch and Wear OS; the web is "for on-boarding purposes only". Apple Health, Health Connect, Strava and Fitbit all sync.
Pros: the most hands-off programming of the four; a real recovery model feeding exercise selection; the largest library by its own count; automatic superset grouping; broad wearable support.
Cons: no free tier at all; no multi-week plan; custom exercises can't be edited or used by the generator; no data export documented; its own pages disagree on library size (1,000+ vs 1,600+).
Strong — best if you already know your program
Verdict: Strong is the fastest plain log here, and the least opinionated about your training.
Strong's tagline is "Think less. Lift more.", and it calls itself "the simplest, most intuitive workout tracking experience" (strong.app). The App Store listing says it's "optimized for a progressive barbell routine such as Starting Strength or StrongLifts 5x5". Nothing in the app proposes what to lift: you bring the program, Strong records it.
The free tier is unusually generous where data is concerned. Strong saves unlimited workouts, keeps a Records tab with personal records and an estimated 1RM using the Brzycki formula, and lets you export everything to CSV without paying. The cap is structural instead: three custom routines.
Strong PRO adds "Unlimited Workout Templates, Record Body Part Measurements, Access to all Charts, Plate Calculator, Warm Up Calculator, Custom Icons (iPhone) and Themes" (Strong help). That means progress charts are a paid feature, while the raw records stay free. The exercise library is the smallest of the four — "over 200 built in exercises" on a help page last updated in 2021 — though you can add your own.
Pricing: PRO is $4.99/mo, $29.99/yr or $99.99 forever, with additional $3.99, $19.99 (6 months), $23.99 and $79.99 SKUs listed in the App Store. Platforms: iOS, Android and an Apple Watch app (watchOS 10+); there is no web app, and "Strong Cloud" is sync only. Apple Health and Health Connect sync; no Strava integration is documented.
Pros: the least friction between you and the next set; unlimited saved workouts free; CSV export free; plate and warm-up calculators; a one-time lifetime option.
Cons: three routines on free; charts and body measurements are paid; smallest documented library; no web app; no programming or progression help of any kind; no Strava.
Jefit — best if you want a generated plan plus deep analysis
Verdict: Jefit undercuts Fitbod while doing the same job — an algorithm writes your plan and tells you what to lift — and adds the periodized structure and per-muscle analysis that Strong and Hevy don't carry.
Jefit Elite, at $12.99/mo or $69.99/yr, is built around the Adaptive Plan: an algorithm writes a 12-week program as three four-week blocks — On-Ramp, Accumulation, Intensification, Deload — built on Jefit users' training data and adjusting from every set you log. You keep control: override any suggestion, or apply Periodization to a plan you built yourself.
The analysis layer is what the plan reads, and what you read when programming yourself: estimated 1RM, personal records, training volume, sets per muscle group and a Muscle Recovery chart, all free, with NSPI's Strength Score, Weekly Set Targets and Movement Balance on Elite — built to answer "what should I train next" rather than only record what you did.
Underneath is the same fast log the others offer, plus full history for every exercise, a 1,400+ exercise library across eight training types with video and written guidance, and the largest plan library here — 700+ built by JEFIT plus 20,000+ by the community.
Platforms: iOS, Android and web, plus Apple Watch and Wear OS; Apple Health, Health Connect and two-way Strava sync. Community: an opt-in feed, groups and leaderboards across 13M+ users, plus the user-run r/jefit.
How the paid tiers compare:
- Against Fitbod: both hand programming to an algorithm, and Elite costs less — $69.99/yr against $79.99–$95.99 — planning a 12-week block where Fitbod regenerates one session.
- Against Strong: Strong PRO is cheaper at $29.99/yr, but nothing in it generates a plan or progresses your load.
- Against Hevy: Hevy Pro is cheaper at $23.99/yr with a stronger feed, but its stats stop at all-time graphs and set count per muscle group.
Pros: the only 12-week periodized structure of the four; algorithmic programming for less than Fitbod; the deepest progress analysis; the largest plan library; web plus both watch platforms; two-way Strava.
Cons: the Adaptive Plan and NSPI scores need Elite; Elite is subscription-only, with no lifetime purchase; it costs more than Strong PRO or Hevy Pro; the free tier caps custom exercises at seven; no plate calculator; a 4.4 Google Play rating, below Fitbod's 4.5 and Hevy's 4.9.
Hevy — best if you want social training and the lowest price
Verdict: Hevy is the cheapest way to pay for auto-progression, and the most social free tier.
Hevy describes itself as "the most intuitive workout tracker & planner in the world. No ads and free" (App Store), and names its three pillars as "workout logging, progress tracking, and socializing". The social half is the differentiator: a feed with likes and comments, following, a Compare view, and leaderboards ranked among the people you follow.
Since February 2026, Pro subscribers also get Hevy Trainer, "an adaptive strength programming system based on a sophisticated algorithm" that builds a program from your goal, experience, equipment and schedule, then raises your working weights once you hit the top of the rep range on every prescribed set. Hevy is explicit that this is not AI: "our programs are generated using an algorithm and do not rely on AI."
The free tier is capped rather than crippled: unlimited workouts, but 4 routines, 7 custom exercises and 3 months of data history. Pro lifts all three, adds all-time graphs, set count per muscle group, advanced body measurements, a warm-up calculator and the public API. The library is 400+ exercises with 26 ready-made programs.
Pricing: $2.99/mo, $23.99/yr or $74.99 lifetime — the lowest of the four on all three. There's no Pro free trial; Hevy instead runs a 50%-off first-year promo "a few times per year". Platforms: iOS, iPad, Android, web, Apple Watch and Wear OS. Apple Health and Health Connect sync, Strava is one-way, Garmin is unsupported, and a September 2026 release added sending workouts to ChatGPT and Claude.
Pros: cheapest subscription and cheapest lifetime; the strongest free social layer; algorithmic programming on a $23.99/yr tier; 26 ready-made programs; the highest store ratings of the four.
Cons: free history stops at 3 months; only 4 free routines; 400+ exercises is second-smallest; Strava sync runs one way only; no Garmin support; no free trial for Pro.
Feature comparison
- Algorithm-generated programming: Jefit (Elite), Fitbod (subscription), Hevy (Pro). Strong has none.
- Permanent free tier: Strong, Jefit, Hevy. Fitbod is trial-only.
- Ready-made plan library: Jefit (700+ JEFIT-built, 20,000+ community-built), Hevy (26 programs).
- A program that raises your weights for you: Jefit (Elite), Hevy (Pro); Fitbod regenerates each session instead.
- Per-muscle volume analysis on the free tier: Jefit.
- CSV export on the free tier: Strong.
- Web app as well as phone: Jefit, Hevy.
- Lifetime purchase instead of a subscription: Strong ($99.99), Hevy ($74.99).
Excluded — and why
No app was excluded: this page compares exactly the four apps the query names. For a wider field, see Best Workout Apps 2026, or the head-to-heads Jefit vs. Fitbod, Jefit vs. Strong, and Jefit vs. Caliber.
Bottom line
- Choose Fitbod if you want to open the app and lift without deciding anything — it picks the session.
- Choose Strong if you already run a barbell program and want the fastest way to record it.
- Choose Jefit if you want the app to write your plan and tell you what to train next — for less than Fitbod charges.
- Choose Hevy if you want the lowest price, or a feed where friends see your PRs.
Still unsure? Start on a free tier — Strong, Jefit and Hevy all have one, so the cost of being wrong is zero.
Prices and caps verified 2026-09-15 (Jefit facts 2026-09-16); recheck before committing.