For data-driven lifters, Strive’s analytics are a significant advantage. It generates powerful charts for workout volume, intensity, one-rep max (1RM) estimates, and even tracks effective reps, giving you a clear visual representation of your progress over time. This data is critical for making informed decisions about your training and knowing exactly when to increase weight or reps. This guide cuts through the noise to identify the best apps for building muscle, focusing on tools that facilitate scientifically-backed training. We’ll analyze each app’s ability to track key metrics, manage progressive overload, and provide actionable insights, distinguishing between mere digital novelties and genuine training partners. Beyond just logging reps, a holistic approach to real muscle growth requires understanding how to efficiently recover faster from workouts to ensure consistent progress.

Pull Workouts

For those focused on progressive overload, the advanced analytics (available on the Elite plan) provide weekly reports, PR tracking, and charts that visualize your volume and strength gains over time. If you crushed a set of squats last week, Fitbod will suggest increasing the weight or reps in your next session to ensure you’re applying progressive overload. If your chest is still sore from a previous workout, the AI will prioritize other body parts, a feature that aligns well with modern principles for managing recovery.

Overall Rating: 4/5

For this category, we aren’t just looking at the plan itself, but how much instruction the app provides. To earn 3 out of 5 stars, we want to see both visual and audio cues, though there may not be much guidance about how hard to push yourself or when to increase the weight you’re using. The best scores were given to apps that offered a large percentage of their workouts with minimal equipment, or ways to adjust your planned exercises to accommodate different equipment availability. Despite the easy setup, the app offers plenty of great features to help you stay motivated and make sure you’re continuing to make progress over time. Whether you’re looking for bodyweight workouts, strength training, mobility, or you like to rotate between workout styles, you’ll have plenty to choose from with Aaptiv. If you’re not a powerlifter looking to boost your big three lifts, you may want to consider an app service like Shred, which offers workouts for a variety of fitness goals.

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Our tester appreciated this, as the app pushes you to master your current workout before moving on. Muscle Booster is beginner-friendly because it pays close attention to the user. During the sign-up process, you’ll answer a quick quiz that includes questions about your goals, activity level, equipment access, and more.

Weight training don’ts

Nike is better than the average workout app in nearly every category, which is very rare for a free workout platform. Prior to 2020, the Nike Training Club app had both free and premium versions, but since the pandemic, Nike has made the entire workout library free to use. The app is also easy to download from the Apple App Store or Google Play, and we found it easy to set up and get started.

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For anyone in the market for a Peloton app alternative, iFIT should scratch the itch. This platform, which ranges from $15 to $39 per month, offers a library of 10,000-plus workouts streamed right to your phone/tablet or integrated cardio machine. The massive workout selection is led by more than 180 trainers, helping you find the right fit for your training style. BetterMe gets a 4 out of 5 in its initial setup, since you begin with a quiz on your fitness goals, mobility issues, sleep schedule, and more. “I like that the quiz will populate a workout plan based on your answers, but the quiz was a bit too long for my taste,” says GGR editorial member Nicole Davis, CPT, PN1-NC, who tested out the fitness app. While the pricing varies, the highest tier of Caliber starts at $200 per month, which is significantly more expensive than the average app.

• “You can swap in exercises each day or for an entire block based on what you have handy,” she explains.
• If you’re past the beginner stage and want a little more progressive overload in your strength training, we recommend a workout app such as Boostcamp.
• We tested the 7 best stretching apps for 2025 – from free options to premium solutions.
• It’s good, but it’s a little limiting for those who want to make their own training plan.
• Building muscle isn’t about guesswork; it’s a science rooted in progressive overload, meticulous tracking, and consistent effort.
• 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.

See Progress Faster

She reports working with her coach and using the app is easy, and she appreciates the fact that there are demonstration videos for every exercise assigned to your program. We also considered categories like instruction quality, workout variety, and equipment needed, all of which helped shape our overall score. After carefully rating each app we tested, we narrowed down our list to the top 13 options. Nearly 6,000 people found their ideal workout app with our help in 2025, and we’re ready to help you with the picks below. Lindsay Scheele is a certified personal trainer, ISSA-certified nutrition coach, Level 1 CrossFit coach, and lead reviewer on GGR Everything.

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BodBot operates as a highly adaptive AI personal trainer, making it one of the best apps for building muscle if you need a plan that adjusts to your real-life circumstances. It creates hypertrophy and strength-focused workouts that are dynamically personalized based on your performance, reported soreness, and even the equipment you have available that day. This makes it a strong contender for users whose schedules or gym access can be unpredictable, as the app can re-route your session on the fly. We give the app 5 out of 5 stars for both ease of use and equipment demands. The app’s core strength is its extensive database, which features over 1,400 exercises complete with animations and instructions, helping you master proper form. JEFIT also fosters a strong community aspect, offering a marketplace where you can download pre-made programs or share your own.

Strive Workout Log

CrossFit athletes looking to improve their mobility with personalized programs. Do you want to improve your flexibility, learn the splits, or simply relieve tension? With the right stretching app, you can optimize your stretching routine and make long-term progress. This means if you’re an Android user, you’ll be unable to use Ladder’s programming, which is a major flaw in terms of accommodations. This is fine if that’s what you’re looking for, but many competitors, like Peloton, now offer a variety of workout modalities, and we wish Zwift would expand its offerings. To be clear, there are no instructors or live workout classes in the Zwift app, but you’ll be able to join virtual races with other users.

While countless apps promise results, only a select few are engineered to support the core principles of hypertrophy effectively. A great app does more than count reps. It becomes your digital logbook, your progression planner, and your data analyst, ensuring every session builds upon the last. Before choosing an app, you should think about what you expect to get out of it.

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Once you sign up for a paid subscription, you get access to personalized fitness plans to meet those goals. Paid plans are around $14.99 per month, but don’t be surprised if you get a discount as a first-time user. In terms of cost, there’s the $15 monthly iFIT Train plan and the $39 monthly iFIT Pro plan. The biggest difference here is that the Train tier lets you create your home workout no equipment app review own workouts and is available on equipment touchscreens.