Best Free Running Apps for Android and iOS

Today we analyze the best running applications that you can install on your mobile phone. We have prepared the best apps that you can install to control your training and races for all those who prefer to carry their smartphone with them while training. Whether you wear an activity bracelet that sends the data to the app, or if you record your exercise sessions directly with your mobile, this article interests you. From the most famous app to start as a runner, you will find the most popular and downloaded best free running apps.

Best free running apps for android and iOS

5K RUNNER – THE APP FOR INEXPERT RUNNERS

The 5K Runner app has training plans for novice runners so that you can gradually condition your body and achieve the goal of running 5 kilometers in just 8 weeks.

The application will guide your routine through an audio-trainer, which consists of alternating walking and running, gradually increasing the intensity.

Being aimed at those who are starting in the running, the app has a motivational component. Through phrases and comments, it encourages the user to perform each activity. Also, he can get a medal if he has managed to reach the goal.

The application is functional and more fun if we use its social networks area since 5K Runner can share your results, achievements and medals achieved through your Facebook or Twitter.

Also, it allows you to record your progress and offers a forum for users where you can share your experience. The idea is to create a network of runners motivated during the 8 weeks that the training plan lasts. You can find it for free on Google Play and it is compatible with Android and iOS devices.

 RUNKEEPER – ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR RUNNING APPS

Runkeeper is one of the most used applications by runners. The community of runners that uses this application exceeds 50 million users.

It allows you to build a training routine according to a previously established goal, ranging from a simple way to lose weight to prepare for running a marathon.

And it is that with Runkeeper they can obtain different statistics such as distance, calories lost, the elevation of the terrain, speed and rhythm. All these thanks to the GPS of your mobile.

The platform also works with smartwatches and activity wristbands, which you can synchronize with the application.

Also, you have a coach to accompany you during exercise. To do this, you just have to connect your headphones to listen to your training’s evolution.

The app allows you to record the detailed history of your training to be aware of your progress. And if you have not been able to finish your activities, they are saved so that you can continue them at another time if you wish.

The application does not work specifically with goals, so the user must be honest with himself and consider achievements in the short, medium or long term.

Runkeeper offers an interactive space to share the progress of your workouts on social networks. Also, you can set your location and your friends will see it in real-time. This live tracking feature is activated by subscribing to the Runkeeper Elite version.

Finally, RunKeepper offers weather information so that you have all the necessary information when planning your routes. 

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RUNTASTIC – AN APPLICATION NOT JUST FOR RUNNERS

Runtastic allows you to track the most important data of a workout or race, such as pace, speed, calories burned during exercise, interval running time, as well as distance covered.

However, its main attraction is that it also offers coverage for other sports, such as aerobics, walks, cycling or even martial arts.

Runtastic also syncs with your smartphone’s music player so you can listen to music while you train.

Like most applications of this type, it has a web version where all user training data is stored and where you can consult your records in greater detail.

There is also a paid version called Runtastic Pro, which allows you to obtain more advanced metrics and personalized training plans and maps of your routes.

Other features in this version are weather information and the ability to create personal challenges. One of the complete applications, it is not surprising that it has positioned itself as one of the runner’s favorites. It is available to download for free on Android, Windows Phone, and iOS devices. 

STRAVA – THE MOST COMPLETE RUNNING APP

Strava is the most popular sports app in the world. The reason is that Strava is supported with most of the devices currently on the market, including the most advanced heart rate monitors.

And what is the point of using an extra application on the heart rate monitor if it is assumed that the watch already has everything I need? We explain it to you below.

Strava allows you to track speed, pace, distance traveled, gained positive slope and many more parameters. In the case of applying it for cycling, it incorporates even some more. However, its success is due to the level of reactions it offers its users. Strava is known as the sportsman’s social network par excellence, where you can join groups with the same interest.

Whether running or cycling, Strava users participate in clubs where they exchange experiences and knowledge. It is also possible to know the best times achieved for a specific area, measure the evolution of the training sessions, and establish the marks among the runners who carry out these routes.

Within the web, you can interact with other users as followers and motivate them to participate in group training. You can create training groups yourself among your friends, establish training routes in them, and configure weekly or monthly challenges.

ENDOMONDO – ONE OF THE MOST VETERAN RUNNING APPS

The Endomondo sports application was one of the pioneers in this group, although perhaps now it is no longer preferred by users.

Through the GPS of your smartphone, it shows your pace. Distance traveled, accumulated unevenness and training time. It also allows you to record your route and calculate the calories burned during the journey.

The interface is handled simply, being recommended for novice users or those who do not want to complicate much with the mobile.

You can share your results on your user profile on the official website in the social networks and community section. There is also a community of runners, where advice and experiences of each route are shared. Besides, Endomondo offers the possibility to create training plans for yourself or to challenge your friends.

Something innovative about this application is that it warns by voice every time necessary to hydrate, which is always appreciated. You have a version available to download on both iOS and Android.

MAP MY RUN – THE BEST APP TO DESIGN AND SAVE YOUR ROUTES

Sportswear and shoe manufacturer Under Armor creates map My Run. This application differs slightly from the ones we have seen so far since Map My Run is more focused on the cartographic part of running.

With this app, you can create your training routes, register them on your mobile, and check the most popular trails in the running community.

Map My Run generates the necessary information to monitor pace, distance, calories or unevenness during the run. In addition, it has a wide variety of sports modalities that you can select to record your progress. Some of them are Cross-Training, gym training, cycling or yoga.

This app offers two types of audio comments, depending on the version you have:

Voice Feedback: You will receive feedback on his pace, the distance he has covered and some additional information about his training.

Voice Coaching: In addition to the above, you receive motivational alerts when you are close to reaching your goals. It also suggests new training goals for you in a personalized way. These audio commentaries are only available in the paid Premium version.

Map my Run offers the possibility of sharing your routes and achievements with other users and setting group challenges through the Challenges option.

As a curiosity, this app promotes a healthy lifestyle and has a function to record your meals. In this way, it is intended that the user pay greater attention to their eating habits.

After reviewing the best running applications that you can download in 2020, it is your turn. Remember that the accuracy of the data recorded by this type of application is not as reliable, neither in the data collected from the GPS nor the heart rate, as if you obtain it from a sports heart rate monitor.