13 Best Fitness and Workout Apps for 2026, Tested & Reviewed

Nike Training Club provides over 190 workouts covering multiple fitness categories with no cost barrier. The platform includes both follow-along video classes led by trainers and whiteboard-style workouts where you complete exercises at your own pace. You also get multi-week training programs that structure your sessions into progressive plans, plus detailed guidance on movement techniques, nutrition basics, and recovery strategies. This guide breaks down the 15 best home workout apps for 2025, covering both iOS and Android platforms. We tested each one to show you what makes them different, who they work best for, and what you actually get at each price point. Whether you need strength training programs, yoga classes, HIIT sessions, or personal coaching, you’ll find an app here that matches your specific goals and budget.

best app for home workouts

Apple Fitness+ App

The best workout app for you will vary depending on your fitness goals, budget, preferred training method, and the level of coaching you desire. Most people who regularly follow a strength training or running program are looking to make improvements over time, whether that’s hitting new PRs in the gym, building muscle, or shaving time off your next race. Some apps even have coaching check-ins or community boards for additional accountability. Because the programs we tested are 100% online, it’s important that the platform is easy to use and doesn’t take away from the workout experience. For an app to earn a 1-star rating, the interface is confusing, there are no filters for specific needs, and it generally feels chaotic. Nobody wants to pay for something they may not like, so fitness apps with free trials earn higher points than those without.

Fitbod focuses primarily on strength training while incorporating cardio, mobility, and endurance work. The AI scales difficulty automatically as you progress, adjusting weights and rep schemes based on your logged performance. You work with programs designed for home setups with minimal equipment or full gym environments with complete machine access. The app integrates with Apple Health, Strava, and Fitbit to pull your activity data and make smarter programming decisions. You receive easy-to-follow instructions and video demonstrations for every exercise, ensuring you understand proper form before lifting. Fitbod tracks your workout history and automatically adjusts future sessions based on muscle recovery, preventing overtraining of specific body parts.

Female Fitness – Fit at Home

  • This best home workout app works well if you want quality workouts without spending money or need efficient routines for tight spaces.
  • App One includes bodyweight-only workouts and routines with basic equipment like dumbbells and resistance bands.
  • But the reason I rate this as the best workout app for most people is that there’s a lot of variety.
  • It then creates a full workout schedule based on these factors and even considers recovery time for overworked muscle groups.
  • There’s a free trial period, but once it ends, it’ll cost you $2.99/month.
  • Nike is better than the average workout app in nearly every category, which is very rare for a free workout platform.

Some apps offer cardio sessions that can be done on any equipment, while others, like Peloton, connect with their own machines to provide more detailed metrics and insights. If you prefer workouts that require little to no equipment, make sure the app you choose is designed with that in mind. If you need guidance or motivation, consider apps that provide coaching features. These may include virtual personal trainers, live classes, or AI-driven feedback to ensure proper form and progress tracking. For those who prefer a more personalized touch, look for apps offering one-on-one coaching sessions or tailored workout plans. A little coaching can go a long way in keeping you dialed into your schedule and on top of your goals, though it makes sense that some folks may not be interested in the extra stress of keeping up with a coach.

In Print Journalism from Penn State University and is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. When not training, testing products, or writing content, Ben spends his time pursuing his other interests which include cooking, hunting, fishing, hiking, DIY projects, and intramural sports, among others. You probably can’t have Chris Hemsworth’s looks or success, but here’s the next best thing. Brought to you by the Aussie hunk and his team of seasoned trainers, Centr features meal plans, mindfulness programs, and workout routines. This isn’t a free app, but you can currently sign up for a complimentary six-week trial.

What is the best free workout app?

For anyone new to strength training or returning after a long break, Fitbod provides the structure and guidance you need without requiring a personal trainer or extensive fitness knowledge. We selected Muscle Booster as the best workout planner because it does that specific job better than almost anything else we tested. It is not the right tool for experienced lifters who want granular weight tracking, but for anyone who wants a structured, adaptable plan and the accountability to follow it, it delivers. Here at Fitness Drum, we believe in editorial integrity and providing genuine value to our readers. For this review, we used and tested over 40 popular fitness apps and programs over several months (details at the bottom of the article), and evaluated them on price, ease of use, effectiveness, enjoyment and purpose. To cut through the noise, we tested over 40 of the most popular fitness apps and programs over several months, evaluating each one on price, ease of use, workout quality, and enjoyment.

Pricing, free trial and platforms

That’s because it connects you with a real personal training coach, which includes virtual calls and a custom fitness plan. For each workout, the app presents you with an exercise overview, complete with instructional videos for how to perform each move. While primarily known for its calorie tracking capabilities, MyFitnessPal has expanded its features to offer home workout routines as well.

Overall, Amanda gives Nike Training Club a 3.5-star rating for accountability. If you want a bit of added motivation, without hiring a trainer, it’s hard to think of a better option than joining a virtual race and competing against real users. As you train, Fitbod tracks your progress and even shows a heat map of your recent training, allowing you to see which muscles have been trained. The app will not reward progress until you have logged your previous sessions, which allows for both accountability and progressive overload. Even though BetterMe received above-average scores for categories like ease of use and equipment demands, it doesn’t have too many interactive features and only received average scores for pricing and value. If you want something with a greater focus on traditional strength training, you may want to consider something like Boostcamp instead.

Combine your run with one of their workout plans to meet your specific needs. Peleton offers way more than just spin classes on their at-home fitness app. From HIIT classes to meditations, you can find the workout that best fits your lifestyle. Nike + Training Club is the ultimate app for fitness enthusiasts who want to experience an intense sweat session with a variety of options for their workout—so you never get bored. Choose from drills and audio guides from a professional Nike trainer, athletes like Serena Williams, or even stars like Ellie Goulding. Do you only want to keep track of your regular jogs and ensure you’re improving gradually all the time?

How do I choose the right fitness app for me?

For those needing a solid program for strength training, we highly recommend Boostcamp. This online portal provides you with hundreds of training programs from top fitness professionals and experts—folks like Dr. Eric Helms, Dr. Swole, or Jim Wendler, creator of the 5/3/1 workout. Zwift releases a monthly calendar with classes and courses in each of its 11 virtual worlds, but you can also schedule races against friends by using the Zwift companion app (included in your monthly subscription). Zwift Companion also lets you send messages to your friends and join clubs based on your fitness level and preferences. At $199/month, this is still significantly more affordable than hiring a personal trainer on a monthly basis at your local gym, but it’s going to cost a lot more than most apps on our list. Kate Meier, NASM-CPT, USAW-L1, CF-L1, says her coach is fantastic about daily check-ins and gathering feedback.

Ladder Strength Training

Start by identifying your fitness goals, as they will guide your app selection. Whether you’re aiming to lose weight, gain muscle, improve flexibility, or train for a specific event, choose an app that specializes in the type of workouts and progress tracking aligned with your objectives. Clear goals can also help you stay motivated and measure your success over time. Some of the apps we’ve tested are excellent for goal-setting, while others are optimized for community or learning. So even if you don’t have serious goals but just want to find a way to stay more fit and find some encouraging workout friends, there is an app for that. If you’re curious about coaching and in-app trainers, Freeletics is the perfect app to check out without having to put your credit card down.

The Best Workout Apps to Kickstart Your Health Goals in 2026

best app for home workouts

If you like to run outdoors, for example, you’d likely want an app that offers location tracking. Similarly, when looking into a specific app, figure out whether its classes require you to have certain equipment on-hand, like dumbbells or a yoga mat. The workouts are easy to follow because there are video demonstrations of each exercise, along with the allotted time you should spend on each one.

Best for yoga & meditation

In addition to using the app on your iPhone, you can stream the content on your computer or smart TV. As the world’s foremost athletic brand, it’s safe to say Nike knows a thing or two about fitness. Proving as much is Nike Training Club, which respectively straddles yoga, unimeal reviews bodybuilding, and a slew of additional categories by way of various routines. Certain sections of the workout app feature big-name cameos from athletes such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Serena Williams.

Do I need equipment to use workout apps?

Choose a workout app based on your needs and goals, not based on the pricing. Apps can “gamify” workouts, too, through checking in and earning achievements and badges for breaking milestones. A survey study from determined that apps with achievement-oriented motivations were one of the best ways to keep app users accountable and driven toward progress.

Cassey Ho, the creator of the wellness-driven blog Blogilates and one of the top female fitness channel hosts on YouTube, knows how to make sure you blow off some steam. Download PIIT Pocket, and you’ll have free access to the Blogilates workout video library featuring over 400 different kinds of exercises. You know that kettlebell sitting in your garage, back of your closet, maybe underneath your bed hiding in fear of the fact you don’t know what to do with it? This app takes in a count of your skill level with the circular weight and gives you a bunch of quick video exercises to use with said weight. The largest muscle in your body, good ol’ gluteus maximus, deserves some major TLC every now and then.