Planning routes, tracking fitness and analysing our activity has never been easier. With everyone’s wrists now bedecked with smart watches and all our bikes decorated with cycling computers, data is at our fingertips at all times. But running, cycling and hiking apps have become about much more than just fitness tracking – they’ve become social networking apps too. As the old adage goes, “If it’s not on Strava, it didn’t happen.”
But Strava is far from the only such app on the now crowded market. Each with a slightly different focus, there are now a whole host of fitness apps to try. Whether you want to develop a rigorous training plan for an Ironman, map out complex routes for a weekend ultramarathon, participate in challenges, connect with friends or just create a log of your countryside adventures or outdoor workouts, there’s an app for you.
We’ve rounded up some of the best fitness apps out there, with a few free alternatives if you don’t fancy taking out a pricey subscription.
Best fitness apps for tracking, training and exploring the British countryside
Strava
Strava is arguably the leader in the field, the first to develop advanced tracking and an incorporated social networking element. Distance, speed, elevation and route information is provided using GPS technology, and users are able to see others’ workouts, give kudos, leave comments, and share their own workouts.
The app uses gamification to keep the spirit of competition alive, with segment leaderboards and the chance to beat others on routes.
In 2020, Strava implemented major changes to its subscription model, with many of its features moved behind the subscription paywall. There is still a free version of it with fewer of the features available, but with the paid version of Strava, you can access performance predictions, progress comparison and get AI-powered insights.
Route planning is more difficult on the free-to-access version of Strava, allowing you to view and follow existing routes, but not create new routes from scratch, which is only possible with a subscription.
Discover some of the best Strava artworks here.
- Great for: Runners, cyclists and hikers
- Been around since: 2009
- Price: £8.99 per month or £54.99 per year
- Free version available? Yes
Runna
For runners looking for more robust training plans and have a bit of cash to spend, Runna might be a good option. Acquired by Strava in April 2025, this seems to be the app to watch. By inputting your goal distance and any modifications needed – injuries or postnatal return to running, for example – the app will create a custom plan for you, with the training intensity modified according to your schedule.
It will recommend workouts for you based on your goals and metrics, with advice on pacing and scheduling, and will adapt your plan based on your performance.
- Great for: runners on a training programme
- Been around since: 2021
- Price: £15.99 per month or £99.99 per year
- Free version available? No
Nike Run Club
Nike Run Club is one of the most commonly used running apps, and was one of the earliest. As it’s essentially free marketing for a massive global brand, all its features are free, with guided runs, audio coaching, basic training plans and activity tracking included.
It’s certainly not the most elegant of apps, with a more basic user interface than the likes of Strava, but it gives you top-line information with splits, elevation and records. There’s also a leaderboard to see your friends’ progress.
- Great for: Runners
- Been around since: 2010
- Price: Free
Couch to 5K
Designed for people who are new to running and want to aim for the 5k mark, the Couch to 5K app is an evolution of the original Couch to 5K running plan, created by Josh Clark in 1996. It aims to get the user working out a few days a week, with walking and running intervals gradually building up to a non-stop 5k run – and eventually getting a good 5k time.
This training programme is structured with gradual progression, to help build endurance and confidence, with voice coaching for each workout. There are a few different options of Couch to 5K apps, with the NHS even launching a successful offering in 2016 as an alternative for people unable to afford gym or sports memberships.
For those wanting to nail their 5k time, try attending your local Parkrun. We've rounded up some of the hardest Parkrun routes, fastest Parkruns, most beautiful Parkruns and best Parkruns in and around London.
- Great for: new runners
- Been around since: 2016
- Price: Free
Komoot
Komoot and Strava are similar fitness apps with different focuses. Strava is more centred around performance, while Komoot is more about the experience. It’s got more functionality in route planning and mapping, made easier through the phone and web apps.
The app will suggest rides and hikes and places to explore, closer to home and further afield, and is particularly good for bikepacking and bike touring or longer hikes. Essentially, it's interested in any active ways to enjoy the great outdoors. You can plot rides, runs or hikes with points of interest and user-generated highlights. Like Strava, you can use it as a navigation tool with turn-by-turn navigation and offline maps.
Komoot is also focused on the social and community sides, so you can follow fellow outdoor lovers and see what routes they have both planned and undertaken, with specific highlights along the way.
With Komoot Premium, you can plan multi-day routes, share your real-time location and check route weather conditions. The free version gives you complete access to your home region for free (or packages for other regions at a one-off cost), while Premium allows you to explore the entire world at your leisure as part of the World Pack.
- Great for: Explorers and outdoor lovers
- Been around since: 2010
- Price: £4.99 per week or £59.99 per year
- Free version available? Yes
Zwift
Combining fitness with virtual reality (VR), Zwift offers an immersive cycling experience where users can ride, race and interact with other cyclists – something above and beyond the other fitness tracking apps. You can either use your own road bike on a compatible turbo trainer or use a dedicated Zwift smart bike. The app integrates with smart trainers to develop resistance control in the virtual cycling experience.
Although Zwift was designed for indoor cycling, it has been opened up to treadmill users as well so runners can get a taste of the action.
- Great for: Indoor cyclists
- Been around since: 2014
- Price: £17.99 per month or £179.99 per year
- Free version available?
AllTrails
Designed for trail lovers, AllTrails has a massive database with over 450,000 trails with trail information, maps, reviews and photos curated by millions of hikers. Like Komoot, it’s great to use on both desktop and mobile app for route planning. Each trail is graded for difficulty and includes distance, elevation gain, map and a trail overview.
Free users can save trails and create lists of planned trails, with in-built navigation. Its lower-level subscription, Plus, offers offline maps and trail previews, while its Peak subscription offers users the opportunity to build their own routes, customise existing AllTrails routes, explore community heatmaps and plan for on-trail conditions.
- Great for: Hikers, campers and runners
- Been around since: 2010
- Price: £6.67 per month or £79.99 per year
- Free version available? Yes, plus a lower-level subscription
Garmin Connect
Garmin Connect is primarily designed as a central hub for use with Garmin fitness trackers, such as watches and cycling computers, which can all be synced to the app.
In 2025, Garmin announced the release of its new paid-for version of the Connect app, called Connect+. While its free version with key activity data and metrics won’t be going anywhere, the premium offering includes AI-powered training insights, challenges and a newly expanded livetracking functionality – very similar to the offerings available on Strava.
- Great for: Garmin owners
- Been around since: 2013
- Price: £8.99 per month or £54.99 per year
- Free version available? Yes
In-built phone health apps
In-built first-party apps like Google Fit, Samsung Health and Apple Health track daily steps, sleep and calories burnt, with additional tracking for the menstrual cycle, medications, move goals and emotions and moods.
