The Best Apple Watch Fitness Apps

Since its launch in 2015, the Apple Watch has become widespread among fitness enthusiasts, seen on the wrists of everyone from Sunday joggers to Olympic athletes. The smartwatch market has flourished in the ensuing years, with brands like Garmin, Samsung and Suunto releasing devices that track heart rates, measure blood oxygen levels, map trails, and even tell the time.  

Apple Watches have one crucial proprietary advantage: the App Store. The world's largest inventory of smartwatch apps offers thousands of ways to augment the Apple Watch’s abilities. 

While other smartwatches can be paired with an iPhone, only Apple Watches can use the vast range of Apple Watch-specific apps on the app store. Below, we explore the best Apple Watch apps for running, hiking and overall fitness, as well as exploring how to make the most of a cellular Apple Watch when exercising.

The Best Apple Watch Apps for Runners

Even without add-ons, the Apple Watch is packed with running services designed for everyone from beginners to ultramarathoners. The multicoloured Activity Rings let users set specific exercise goals, such as a number of steps in a day, and track their progress on the watch face. 

Like its predecessor the Series 8, the Apple Watch Series 9 is marketed directly at fitness fans. The latest Nike+Apple collaboration includes a series of interchangeable watch bands aimed squarely at runners, while the improved health function closely monitors heart rate, rhythm and blood oxygen levels. Developers are now racing to produce apps and services aimed at the millions of people who take their Apple Watches on a run. Below are some of the best smartwatch apps for runners.

Nike Run Club

Nike Run Club is the latest in a long line of Apple collaborations that started back in 2006 with the launch of the Nike+iPod. This was an Apple-designed receiver, inserted into a Nike shoe and wirelessly connected to a nearby iPod Nano. The partnership is still going strong in 2024 with the Nike+Apple Watch range – a series of Apple Watch software and hardware accessories including watch bands, apps and custom watch faces. the Nike Run Club Apple Watch App is the flagship product of this partnership.

Nike Run Club continues the same idea as Nike+iPod in a much sleeker package. The free app harnesses the Apple Watch’s heart-rate monitoring and step-counting abilities to create a virtual coaching program, complete with in-depth data for every run, synced with the user's iPhone. Where it really shines, however, is with a cellular Apple Watch. These models can access the Internet and utilise every feature of the app without the need for a connected iPhone. Apple Watches set up in Apple Watch For Your Kids mode can use the app even if the user doesn’t have their own iPhone. 

Runna

Runna is the single most in-depth and feature-rich running app on the market. Its price point reflects this: subscriptions start at $110 a year. Runna justify this cost by positioning their app as an alternative to a running coach. While it can never get close to replacing a human, the service offers a relatively wide range of training plans for new and experienced runners, designed to build up ability over time.

The Watch app means that users don’t have to remember specific timings, laps or rest times, as they are all recorded and measured by the device. While the real-time audio cues and instructions may be disconcerting for some, it’s hard to deny the technological prowess behind it. Runna also puts on live events, community runs, and workout classes for those in large cities.

Zombies, Run!

Sometimes you just need that extra bit of motivation to go on a run. This might be the virtual coach in the Apple Fitness app, or the social competition of Strava. And sometimes, it's a zombie apocalypse simulator that makes you race to avoid being eaten alive. This is the premise behind Zombies, Run!, an Apple Watch app that, through sound prompts and on-screen messages, puts the user in the middle of a horror film and guides them through 23 missions that require them to sprint and jog at certain speeds. Drop the pace, get eaten.

A welcome break from the number-crunching of other running apps, Zombies, Run! expertly makes use of the Apple Watch’s cellular capabilities to provide an immersive and exciting way to get off the sofa.  

Runance

Runance is an intriguing new app that was developed in response to a very particular issue: the lack of privacy and overreaching data collection in sports apps like Strava, Komoot or AllTrails. Some position-tracking apps will use customer account details to send marketing emails, as well as harvest significant volumes of location and health data.  

Runance counters this by offering many of the same features as traditional fitness apps, such as route tracking, tempo and heart rate monitoring, balanced with a new approach to customer privacy. No email is required to log in or make an account, no health data is shared with third parties, and no email or fitness data is shared or sold for marketing purposes. The free app fills an important niche in the data-hungry world of fitness trackers and provides more peace of mind than some of its larger competitors.

The Best Apple Watch Apps for Hikers

AllTrails

Aimed at trail runners, hikers and ramblers rather than park joggers or cyclists, AllTrails provides a more outdoorsy alternative to Strava. With millions of downloads, it's found an appreciative audience and active community. AllTrails provides access to thousands of user-uploaded trails across the world. Hikers select a path, and the app guides them through it.

The route is shown directly on the Apple Watch face, harnessing the Apple Watch’s haptic feedback technology to vibrate and notify the user if they stray off trail – an intuitive and genuinely useful feature that enhances the safety of any hike. Note that Alltrails currently has no specific app for standalone Apple Watches, and will require a nearby paired iPhone to function.  

Night Sky

Night Sky is the only app on this list that’s not tailored specifically to sportspeople. It is, however, a great example of how an Apple Watch can bring something new and interesting to outdoor pursuits. The stargazing app lets users angle their watch screen at the night sky and see the names and patterns of the constellations above them mapped out on their Apple Watch. It’s meditative , educational, and a great addition to any hike or camping trip.

Waterful

Waterful is a simple but effective app that does what it sets out to do: remind the user to drink more water when needed. This can be particularly useful on hot days or situations where the water supply is limited. The simple layout on the watch face is unobtrusive but effective at getting the user's attention when it matters. 

The Best Apple Watch Apps for Cyclists

Strava

Strava is closer to a traditional social media platform than a sports app. It lets runners, cyclists, and more record and share their routes and lap times with other users in an Instagram-like feed. The friendly competition this provides may be a motivating factor for many, and the dopamine-inducing UI mimics other large social networks’ ability to compel users to share their activities online. This is reflected in the platform's booming popularity, with 120 million users and counting. 

Strava for the Apple Watch allows cellular watch owners to leave their phones at home and use the watch display to map their cycle, run, swim or workout, stay connected to friends while they're out, and browse the social feed via the watch screen. While the free version has more than enough features for casual athletes, the paid premium version offers an exhaustive list of analysis options for serious data heads. 

Komoot

Komoot is a wildly popular outdoor mapping app that’s built a dedicated fanbase among hikers, campers, trail runners and more. The Apple Watch companion app may be of most use to cyclists, especially bikepackers, gravel riders and mountain bikers. The bright-green interface draws on a database of thousands of mapped trails across the world to show interactive routes with live location tracking.

Cyclists can choose between off-road or tarmac routes, then head out. The obvious advantage is the ability to navigate by glancing at a watch, with no need for a mounted cycle computer or phone holder – especially practical on bumpier trails or situations where a fall or handlebar impact is more likely. An optional social feature, similar to Strava, allows Komoot users to share their routes with friends.

The Best Apple Watch Apps for General Fitness

Apple Watch Fitness+

Fitness+ is Apple’s paid version of their fitness app, providing a detailed coaching and data analysis platform for 11 different disciplines, from HIIT workouts and core exercises to rowing, meditation and dance. Its broad focus makes it ideal for gym regulars or those curious to try a new sport – runners, swimmers or cyclists may find their time better spent on a more specialist app like Nike Run Club or Komoot.  

Apple’s free Fitness app comes preinstalled on iPhones and Apple Watches and provides a wealth of suggested workouts and motivating on-screen messaging (including the Apple Watch’s signature Activity Rings) to help most people train. For those seeking extra motivation, or looking to trial a different sport, the paid Apple Fitness+ service provides detailed metrics through the Apple Watch, as well as online classes with personal trainers. All Apple Watch owners receive a free 3-month trial of Fitness+, making it one of the best smartwatch fitness apps.

Swingvision

Swingvision is one of those ingenious apps that leverages the technology of the Apple Watch to its full potential. Using the Watch’s in-built accelerometer, Swingvision is a racket sports coaching app that provides pinpoint data and personal recommendations based on the user's own tennis, padel or badminton swing. The Watch app can be used in combination with the iPhone camera to film and dissect every single stroke. The result is a professional-level analysis tool that’s used by tennis academies and university teams.

Alternatives for Non-Apple Users

While other brands of fitness smartwatches can be paired to an iPhone, they may not always provide the same seamless sharing of health data between phone and watch, nor will they be able to access some of the Apple Watch-specific apps and app features.  

The sheer fact that the Apple Watch is the most dominant smartwatch on the market means many developers are prioritising smartwatch apps for Apple devices first. Some of the listed apps, such as Swingvision, Night Sky or Fitness+ are currently only available on the App Store. Nevertheless, the fitness watch space is a growing market. Most leading fitness apps, including Strava and Komoot, are also available for Android devices, while Garmin has an entire suite of sports coaching apps specifically designed for their own range of smartwatches.

Apple Watch Cellular Plans

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Apple Watch Data Plans

If you are already an iPhone user, then an Apple Watch is an ideal choice of sports watch, as it syncs your health data across all your Apple devices and provides an immediate and intuitive entry point into the world of fitness watches, bolstered by an unbeatable range of apps to choose from. A cellular Apple Watch, coupled with an Apple Watch eSIM data plan also allows users to leave their phone behind and head out on a short jog, triathlon or multi-day hike while staying in contact at all times. Learn more about using a cellular sports watch and discover how to use an Apple Watch eSIM plan to get out there while staying connected.