7 Best Workout Apps Without a Subscription in 2026 (Ranked & Compared)
Quick answer: Seven workout trackers still let you avoid a monthly bill in 2026. Hevy Pro Lifetime costs $74.99, Strong PRO Forever $79.99, Gym Note Plus Lifetime $99.99, Liftosaur Lifetime $99.99 and Setgraph Lifetime Pro $199.99. FitNotes on Android is free outright, and Boostcamp's free tier includes its full program library.
Renting a place to write down that you benched 80 kg for five is an odd thing to do forever.
That is the deal almost every workout app offers now. Five dollars a month, indefinitely, for a database of numbers you generated. Skip a payment and your training history is still there, but the charts that made it useful are behind a paywall again.
The apps below all have a way out of that: a lifetime unlock, or a free tier that is genuinely usable rather than a three-day trial in disguise.
What counts as "no subscription" here
Three things had to be true for an app to make this list.
A one-time purchase, or a real free tier. Either you can buy the app outright and never pay again, or the free version is good enough to log and review your training indefinitely. A seven-day trial does not count.
Your data comes out. Export in some form, so a company decision three years from now is not the end of your history.
It is still being updated. Abandoned apps are cheap for the obvious reason.
Prices below are the US App Store listings as of August 2026. They shift, and regional pricing varies, so check the listing before you buy.
Which workout apps can you buy outright?
1. Hevy: best lifetime deal overall
Platform: iOS App Store and Android · Price: Free, Hevy Pro Lifetime $74.99 (monthly from $2.99)
The safe default. Hevy is the app most lifters end up on, and its lifetime unlock is the cheapest of the serious options. The free tier already covers unlimited workout logging and a handful of routines; Pro adds unlimited routines, advanced charts and custom exercises. At 4.9 stars across roughly 87,000 ratings, it is also the least risky purchase here.
The catch is that Hevy is built around a fixed logging flow. You pick an exercise, tap into a set, enter numbers. If your session was a mess of drop sets and improvised swaps, you will spend a while tidying it into the right shape.
2. Strong: best free tier
Platform: iOS App Store and Android · Price: Free, Strong PRO Forever $79.99 (monthly $4.99)
The old reliable. Strong has been around longer than almost anything else on this list, with about 108,000 ratings at 4.9 stars. Its free tier lets you log unlimited workouts and keep three routines, which is more than enough if you run one programme at a time. PRO Forever removes the routine cap and unlocks the body measurement tracking and extra charts.
Three routines sounds stingy until you realise most people run one split for months. If you are on push pull legs and nothing else, the free version may genuinely be the end of the conversation.
3. Gym Note Plus: best for people who log in plain text
Platform: iOS App Store · Price: Free, Lifetime $99.99 (monthly $4.99, annual $39.99)
The notes-app upgrade. Gym Note Plus starts from the opposite end: you type the session as a line of text, the way you already do in Apple Notes, and it parses that into exercises, sets, reps and weights. Bench Press 80kg - 8, 8, 6 becomes structured data with charts behind it. It also reads a photographed page of handwritten notes, which is the fastest route out of a paper logbook.
It is iPhone only, and it records rather than prescribes: there is no coach writing your programme. The free tier caps notes at 500 characters, which covers a short session but not a long one.
4. Liftosaur: best for programmable progression
Platform: iOS App Store and Android · Price: Free, Lifetime $99.99 (monthly $4.99, annual $39.99)
The spreadsheet replacement. Liftosaur lets you write your programme in a small scripting language, so progression rules run themselves. If your programme says "add 2.5 kg when you hit 3x5, drop 10% after two failures", you write that once and the app applies it every session. It ships with GZCL, 5/3/1 and the common Reddit programmes already built.
This is a niche pick and it knows it. If the phrase "scriptable workouts" made you lean in, you are the audience. If it made you tired, pick something else.
5. Setgraph: best charts
Platform: iOS App Store · Price: Free, Lifetime Pro $199.99 (monthly $4.99, annual $29.99)
The data nerd's pick. Setgraph's whole personality is the graph. Per-exercise progression, a muscle map showing what you trained recently and what has recovered, always-on Lock Screen rest timers. It sits at 4.7 stars over roughly 6,000 ratings.
The lifetime price is the outlier here. At $199.99 it costs more than twice Hevy's, and you would need roughly three and a half years of the annual plan to break even. Worth it only if the charts are the reason you are choosing an app at all.
6. FitNotes: best genuinely free option
Platform: Google Play (Android only) · Price: Free, with no in-app purchases or ads listed
The one with no business model. FitNotes has been quietly free for years, with no Pro tier to upsell you into. Around 28,000 Play Store reviews. The interface looks like Android from 2015 and that is roughly the point: it opens, you log, it saves to a local database you can export.
Android only, and it will not sync between devices without you handling the backup file yourself. If you are on iPhone this one is simply not available.
7. Boostcamp: best free program library
Platform: iOS App Store and Android · Price: Free tier includes the program library; Boostcamp Pro is subscription only
The programme finder. Boostcamp's free tier gives you the whole catalogue of established programmes, 5/3/1, GZCL, nSuns and the rest, written up by the coaches who made them, with the tracker attached. 4.8 stars over roughly 9,700 ratings.
It is on the list for its free tier, not a lifetime unlock, because there isn't one: Pro is subscription only. If you want a proven programme handed to you and you will not pay monthly, the free tier is still a lot of app.
How the no-subscription options compare
| Hevy | Strong | Gym Note Plus | Liftosaur | Setgraph | FitNotes | Boostcamp | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standout feature | Cheapest lifetime | Longest track record | Plain-text logging | Scripted progression | Charts and muscle map | Free with no upsell | Free program library |
| Lifetime price | $74.99 | $79.99 | $99.99 | $99.99 | $199.99 | Free | None |
| Platforms | iOS, Android | iOS, Android | iOS | iOS, Android | iOS | Android | iOS, Android |
| Usable free tier | Yes | Yes | Limited | Yes | Limited | Yes | Yes |
| Data export | Yes | Yes | CSV, TXT | Yes | Yes | Local backup | Yes |
Prices and features shift over time, so check the current listings before you buy anything.
Which should you pick?
- Pick Hevy if you want the standard experience at the lowest lifetime cost and you are happy tapping through a structured logging flow.
- Pick Strong if you run one programme and want to spend nothing. Three routines on the free tier covers most people.
- Pick Gym Note Plus if you already log in Apple Notes or on paper and want to keep typing rather than tapping.
- Pick Liftosaur if your programme has rules you currently run in a spreadsheet.
- Pick Setgraph if the charts are the product for you, and the $199.99 is not a problem.
- Pick FitNotes if you are on Android and want zero payments, ever.
- Pick Boostcamp if you want a coach-written programme more than you want a logging tool.
If you are still weighing subscription apps too, our best workout tracking apps roundup covers the wider field, and Hevy vs Strong goes deeper on the two biggest names here.
Is a lifetime unlock actually worth it?
Do the arithmetic before the emotion.
Hevy's lifetime at $74.99 against $23.99 a year pays for itself in a bit over three years. Strong's $79.99 against $23.99 is similar. Setgraph's $199.99 against $29.99 a year takes closer to seven. Gym Note Plus and Liftosaur both sit at $99.99 against $39.99 a year, so about two and a half.
Two things break that maths.
Apps get sold or shut down. A lifetime purchase is a bet on the developer, not a guarantee. Small independent apps have gone dark before.
"Lifetime" usually means the app's lifetime, not yours. Nobody promises the app exists in 2040.
Neither of those is a reason not to buy. They are a reason to care about export. If your history comes out as a CSV, the worst case is an afternoon of moving it somewhere else rather than starting from zero.
What a notebook and a notes app still do better
Most people reading this are not choosing between seven apps. They are logging in their phone's notes app, or a paper notebook, and wondering whether an app is worth any money at all.
| Physical Notebook | Notes App | Traditional Gym App | Gym Note Plus | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logging speed | Fast | Fast | Slow, form-based | Fast, type a line |
| Data visualization | None | None | Charts | Charts from plain text |
| Flexibility | Total | Total | Limited to presets | Total |
| Searchability | None | Text search only | Structured | Structured |
| Ongoing cost | Cost of a notebook | Free | Usually monthly | Free tier, or $99.99 once |
The notebook and the notes app win on the two things that matter most in the gym: speed and freedom. They lose on everything that happens afterwards. You cannot ask a paper page what your incline press did over six months.
The version where you keep the habit and lose the retyping
If your log currently lives in Apple Notes, the annoying part of switching is not learning a new app. It is that every app on this list wants you to log differently than you already do.
Gym Note Plus exists to skip that step.
- Type the session the way you always have, in plain text, in any language
- It parses that into exercises, sets, reps and weights automatically
- Photograph a page of your paper logbook and it reads that too
- Estimated 1RM, per-muscle volume and automatic PR detection come from the same text
- CSV and TXT export, so the history is portable
- Lifetime at $99.99 if you would rather not pay monthly
Before installing anything, paste one of your old sessions into the free notes to workout translator and see what comes back. It runs in the browser and costs nothing.
Buying an app outright is a bet on the developer. Exporting your data is how you hedge it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which workout app has the cheapest lifetime purchase?
Hevy has the cheapest lifetime unlock of the major workout trackers at $74.99 for Hevy Pro Lifetime on the US App Store, ahead of Strong PRO Forever at $79.99. Gym Note Plus and Liftosaur both charge $99.99, and Setgraph Lifetime Pro is $199.99. Prices vary by region.
Is there a completely free workout tracker with no in-app purchases?
FitNotes on Android is free with no in-app purchases or ads listed on Google Play. On iPhone there is no equivalent, but Strong and Hevy both offer free tiers that allow unlimited workout logging, and Boostcamp's free tier includes its full library of coach-written training programmes.
Do lifetime workout app purchases actually last forever?
A lifetime purchase covers the app's lifetime, not yours. It removes recurring payments while the developer keeps shipping, but it is not a guarantee the app exists in ten years. Pick an app with working CSV or backup export so your training history survives if the app does not.
Can I move my workout history between apps?
Usually yes, but not cleanly. Most trackers export CSV, and most import a CSV in some form, though exercise names and set types often need fixing by hand. Gym Note Plus exports CSV and TXT. Check the export feature before you commit rather than after.
Is Strong's free tier good enough without PRO?
For most lifters, yes. Strong's free tier allows unlimited workout logging and up to three saved routines, which covers anyone running a single split. PRO Forever at $79.99 removes the routine cap and adds body measurement tracking and extra charts.
What is the best no-subscription workout app for iPhone?
Hevy is the best all-round choice on iPhone at $74.99 for lifetime access. Gym Note Plus at $99.99 suits lifters who already log in Apple Notes or on paper, since it parses plain text instead of requiring a form. FitNotes, the free option, is Android only.
Final Takeaways
- A lifetime unlock exists on most major trackers. Hevy $74.99, Strong $79.99, Gym Note Plus $99.99, Liftosaur $99.99, Setgraph $199.99.
- Free tiers have got good. Strong's three routines and Boostcamp's full program library are genuinely enough for a lot of people.
- Break-even is two to seven years. Run the numbers against the annual plan before you buy, not against the monthly one.
- Export matters more than price. It is the only thing that protects you if the app disappears.
- The app is not the habit. If you are already logging in notes or on paper, pick the tool that lets you keep doing that.
Josh Ibbotson
Josh is the creator of Gym Note Plus, building tools that make workout tracking as simple as taking notes.
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