Hevy vs Strong: Which Workout Tracker Wins?

Ask any group of lifters which workout tracker to use and two names dominate: Hevy and Strong. Both are minimalist set-and-rep loggers with genuinely useful free tiers, huge loyal user bases, and constant recommendations on Reddit and in app-store reviews. But “minimalist” does a lot of work — the two apps take very different approaches to logging, history, and whether a tracker should be a tool or a community.

This guide covers pricing, free-tier limits, platforms, social features, and data export, plus the migration path that actually matters: moving years of history from one app to the other. New to app-based logging? Our guide to how mobile fitness apps make training more accessible is worth a read first.

Quick verdict

Both apps are excellent, and neither is a trap. Strong is the better pick if you want the fastest, least-distracting logging experience in existence — especially with an Apple Watch — and don’t care about a social feed. Hevy is the better pick for social accountability, native Wear OS support, a free tier that costs you almost nothing, and an app that ships new features regularly.

The honest note up front: neither is a bad app — the choice comes down to workflow, not quality, and if you’re happy with either, there’s no compelling reason to switch. If you’re choosing fresh, this breakdown tells you which workflow fits yours.

At a glance: how Strong and Hevy compare

Prices are US list prices at the time of writing; they vary by region and promotion, so check the in-app checkout before committing.

The case for Strong

Strong is the closest thing the app store has to a pure workout logger. It does sets, reps, and weights with minimal ceremony, and it’s been doing it for over a decade.

Minimalist and fast

Strong’s interface is famously uncluttered: your routine loads, you tap through exercises, and the app keeps a rest timer running in the background. There’s no feed, no achievements, no AI coach, no gamification — just a fast, reliable log. For lifters who find extra layers distracting, that restraint is the whole point. If you already follow a written program — say, a proven upper/lower split or a 5x5 — Strong is the tool that gets out of your way.

Built for powerlifters

The powerlifter crowd has adopted Strong for good reasons. The PRO tier adds a plate calculator that tells you exactly which plates to load, and the logging flow handles top sets, back-off sets, and assistance work cleanly. The Apple Watch app is its crown jewel: it’s been around for years and can log a full session independently of your phone, which is rare even among premium trackers.

The trade-offs: the free tier caps you at 3 saved routines, and advanced statistics and CSV export sit behind PRO (roughly $4.99/month, $29.99/year, or a ~$99.99 lifetime purchase). There’s no native Wear OS app, and no social layer at all. Strong is a tool, not a community — either perfect or a dealbreaker.

The case for Hevy

Hevy is often described as “Strong, but modern” — and the description fits. It borrows the minimalist logging core and builds a more generous free tier and a social layer on top of it.

A genuinely generous free tier

Hevy’s free version is one of the best in the category: unlimited workout logging, no forced paywall, and caps that are high enough to matter — 4 saved routines, 7 custom exercises, and 3 months of workout history. Most lifters with a standard 3- or 4-day split can use it indefinitely without paying a cent. Upgrading to Pro (around $2.99/month, $23.99/year, or a $74.99 lifetime option) unlocks unlimited routines and exercises, all-time history and statistics, a warm-up calculator, and the Hevy Trainer, which suggests weight adjustments based on your past performance.

Social accountability and active development

The social layer is what sets Hevy apart: you can follow friends, like and comment on their logged workouts, and share your own sessions. For lifters who respond to peer accountability, that’s a real motivator — and it’s the same psychological lever behind gamified fitness apps, just without the game dressing. Hevy also supports Wear OS natively (Strong doesn’t), and the team ships features regularly — rep counting from your camera, new analytics, frequent UI refinements. It’s still being built, which cuts both ways: more features, but more change than Strong’s quiet stability.

Migrating between Strong and Hevy

If you’ve logged years in Strong and want to move to Hevy, the path is officially supported. Strong can export your workout history to a CSV file from its settings, and Hevy’s built-in “Import Strong CSV” option lives under Profile → Settings → Export & Import Data. Hevy matches exercise names against its own database and creates custom exercises for anything unrecognized, so your logs migrate mostly losslessly — though saved routines and templates don’t transfer, and you’ll need to recreate them.

Two practical tips: set Strong to English before exporting (imports can fail on non-English files), and if weights arrive in the wrong unit, export with Strong set to metric and switch back in Hevy afterward. Going the other direction — Hevy to Strong — is more manual: Strong has no built-in importer, so you’d export from Hevy and rebuild your routine library by hand.

If your history matters to you, this asymmetry is worth noting: Hevy treats your data as portable, Strong treats it as staying put.

Which should you pick?

• Pick Strong if you want the fastest possible logging, own an Apple Watch and want to log from your wrist, follow a program you’ve already written, and have zero interest in a social feed.
• Pick Hevy if you want the best free tier, train with friends who also use it, own a Wear OS watch, like seeing new features land, or want the option of a lifetime purchase at a lower price.
• Either way, if you only need a simple 3-day routine, both free tiers will serve you for years — this is a luxury problem.

Also consider

Neither app is the only game in town. Jefit has one of the deepest exercise libraries with form animations, Fitbod generates AI-programmed sessions from your gym’s equipment, and Boostcamp gives you free access to proven coach-written programs. If gamification, quests, and streaks sound more motivating than a plain log, Workout Quest turns every gym session into an RPG — free to start, with optional premium features — and you can download Workout Quest to see the difference. Our roundups of the best free workout apps and the best gamified fitness apps cover the wider field; the workout tracker app alternatives guide fills in the rest.

Whichever you choose, the logging habit matters more than the logger — consistent tracking is what drives progressive overload and long-term progress.