Maybe the best free workout apps aren’t for you. Maybe you want to drop hundreds a month on a swanky gym membership, personal trainer, boutique fitness classes, or the fancy at-home exercise equipment that killed Carrie’s husband. Well, have fun with that. But a lot of us are just looking for a no-cost, simple way to move our bodies and gain a little bit of strength without it becoming a whole thing. Thankfully, there are a ton of free workout apps that make it easy to do exactly that.
We can’t promise that you’ll be as fit and flexible as an Olympic gymnast (though there is an app specifically dedicated to helping you master the splits). But if you’re willing to set aside just a little time each day and focus on realistic goals, there’s no reason you can’t make exercise a pleasant, healthy part of your life. Out with the gym rats, in with intuitive movement! And the best part? Working out on your own means there’s no such thing as “falling behind” or getting embarrassed because you can’t do the moves. If you set the pace, you’re always at the head of the pack.
The sheer number of free fitness apps that allow you to exercise at home is pretty awesome—but also kinda overwhelming. From HIIT-centric programs and running-themed apps to at-home bodyweight workouts and yoga and meditation sessions, we did the sifting for you to find the best free workout apps (before virtual reality workouts take over, that is), organized by type of exercise so you can pick what’s right for you.
Remember, not everyone has to love running, and just because you want to get stronger doesn’t mean you need to do a million push-ups. The best exercise is the one you do, so choose a home workout plan that's based first on what looks the most fun, and then find a way to use it to meet your goals. These 41 best fitness apps will help you add more activity and wellness to your life—no credit card debt required.
Best for no-equipment workouts
This Nike-branded app bills itself as your “ultimate personal trainer,” and with a library of more than 185 free workouts—from strength- and endurance-based routines to mobility and yoga sessions, all featuring virtual guidance from Nike Master Trainers—its tagline is pretty damn convincing. Overwhelmed by all the options? The app provides daily recommendations, and the more workouts you log, the more personalized these picks become. If you don’t have weights at home, no worries—there are plenty of equipment-free workouts that will still leave you sore the next day.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
You don’t need much time—or any equipment—to break a sweat with Adidas. This app offers 7- to 45-minute-long workouts, 180-plus stand-alone exercises (high side plank, anyone?), and a Workout Creator that generates custom sweat sessions designed to fit your specific fitness goals.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
In the fitness world, burpees are a pretty divisive move. People seem to either really love this total-body exercise—or absolutely hate it. If you’re pro-burpee, it's your lucky day! There's an entire app dedicated to them. As the name would suggest, Burpee Be Stronger is entirely centered on the classic bodyweight move, offering burpee challenges of varying length and difficulty. And if you’re in the “burpees are terrible” camp? Well, just keep scrolling for more no equipment home workouts, please.
Available on iOs and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Ideal for exercise introverts who prefer a home workout routine, this app leads users through 100-plus simple exercises you can do sans gym, like tap-out planks, donkey kicks, and bicycle crunches. You can pick from 10 different 5-to-10-minute targeted workouts, or if you’re feeling it, opt for a 10-to-30-minute randomized full-body workout at home.
Available on iOS and Android; free
If you're curious about coaching and in-app trainers, Freeletics is the perfect app to check out without having to put your credit card down. The app is free to download, giving you access to a library of guided single exercises, full workout routines, and guided runs. If you're into the vibe, Freeletics offers a paid option that pairs you with a trainer who will do the mental work for you and load your app with personalized routines.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Best for running & hiking
Training for your first 5K? Hoping to smash your half-marathon PR? Whatever your running goals, take ’em to the next level with Nike Run Club. The app offers features that are both v. cool and v. useful, like GPS tracking, distance challenges, customized coaching plans, and auditory encouragement in the form of runs narrated by Nike trainers, athletes, and entertainers (think Olympic gold medalist Mo Farah and actor Kevin Hart).
Available on iOS and Android; free
If you're on team Under Armour, the fitness brand offers a similar app stacked with training plans (from 5Ks to marathons), workouts, and the ability to start challenges with friends or tap into the motivation of the entire MapMyRun community. As an additional bonus, the MapMyRun section of the app features a massive library of running routes around the world, so you can explore new trails in your neighborhood, or discover a new city while working up a sweat.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Strava is beloved by runners, cyclists, and hikers around the world for its top-notch tracking capabilities, turning your smartphone or watch (or really any fitness wearable) into a treasure trove of performance stats and data. Like many other apps of its kind, Strava gives you access to a community of fellow athletes—and offers a cool new way to compete with a library of established routes complete with leaderboards so you can test yourself against those who have come before you. But perhaps the best feature is one that looks out for your running safety: The app's beacon function allows you to share your real-time workout whereabouts with someone who can have your back.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Newbie runners can ease into the sport and train for a 5K (that’s 3.1 miles) with this app’s gentle eight-week program. You’ll start with a mix of running and walking, then gradually build your fitness. Curated music from top DJs will entertain and motivate you with every step.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
For folks who prefer to get their sweat on in the Great Outdoors, AllTrails provides serious inspo. The app offers more than 100,000 (!!) hiking, mountain biking, and trail-running maps alongside reviews and photos crowdsourced from millions of users. You can search for raved-about trails near you using nifty filters like “dog-friendly,” “kid-friendly,” and “wheelchair-friendly.”
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Yes, seriously, zombies. Award-winning novelist Naomi Alderman cocreated this fitness-meets-gaming app that allows users to live out their “very own zombie adventure story” while also completing a run or walk. As you log steps, you’ll hear a zombie-themed audio drama (imagine guttural breathing, rattling groans) that miiiight just inspire you to pick up the pace.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Best for a quick workout
This app is a solution to the classic “I want to work out, but I feel like I just don’t have the time” conundrum. With seven-minute no-equipment sweat sessions designed to deliver maximum benefit in the shortest time possible, you can quickly and effectively break a sweat and get a full-body workout at home—and then get on with the rest of your day.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Perhaps surprisingly, Johnson & Johnson (yup, the one-shot vax company) created a home-workout-plan fitness app, and it’s well-reviewed (current rating in the Apple store: 4.7 stars out of 5). Designed by Chris Jordan, director of exercise physiology at J&J’s Human Performance Institute, the app boasts 72 different exercises and 22 workouts, with options varying in both duration (7 to 32 minutes) and intensity.
Available on iOS and Android; free
Best for butt workouts
Your butt is the largest muscle in your body and a major source of power for many of your movements. With Daily Butt Workout, you can strengthen this mighty muscle through 5- to 10-minute daily workouts that target your lower half. Another big perk? All of the moves (like donkey kicks, single-leg glute bridges, and plank heel lifts) can be done pretty much anywhere, for an easy at-home workout.
Available on iOS and Android; free
All hail the squat! This app offers a simple monthlong exercise plan centered on the classic bodyweight move. Users will tackle a certain number of squat variations every day (the app includes 13 total squat variations incorporated into six different workouts) with rest days interspersed throughout. Along the way, the intensity gradually increases with day 30 promising to “test anyone.” Intriguing, right? If you’re not a runner, this could be a great way to do leg workouts at home.
Available on iOS; free
Best for core workouts
Your core is essentially the powerhouse of your body, and with this core-centric app, you can show your midsection the love it deserves. Pick from among three different workout types, each with a slightly different focus (back, abs, and overall core), and follow along as personal trainers give video demos of each move.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Best for yoga & meditation
Yoga is the ultimate home workout with no equipment, since half of it takes place in your mind anyway. Newbies, advanced practitioners, and everyone in between can find their flow with Daily Yoga. The app offers an impressive volume of content—50-plus class plans and workouts, more than 500 poses, and over 200 classes with HD video—that span all fitness levels. Another plus of the free app: the flexibility of workout length: Options range from 5-minute quickies to 70-minute sessions.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Your mind is a muscle that deserves just as much (and, TBH, probably more) care as the rest of your body. Give it the TLC it warrants with Shine’s personalized programs that deliver daily messages of affirmation, self-care advice, and a podcast meets meditation that tackles a new wellness topic every day. On top of that, you can also access sleep-inducing bedtime stories, soothing music, gratitude exercises, and more than 500 guided meditations.
Available on iOS and Android; seven-day free trial; monthly membership costs $11.99
Want to get into yoga but feeling intimidated or otherwise overwhelmed? Consider this beginner-friendly app, which is specifically designed for newbies—no crazy flexibility required. Learn basic poses and stretch yourself (both literally and figuratively) with quick and simple yoga workouts.
Available on iOS and Android; free
Strengthen your bod and your mind with Glo’s guided yoga, Pilates, and meditation sessions, all led by “globally renowned” teachers. Class options run the wellness gamut, from stress-reducing breath work and guided meditation to yoga flow, cardio fusion workouts, and more.
Available on iOS and Android; free trial, monthly subscription for $22.99
Down Dog’s tagline is “Never get the same class twice,” and with more than 30,000 different workout configurations offered through the app, the developers are not exaggerating. Customization is a key component: Users can choose between yoga practice types (like vinyasa, hatha, restorative, yin, ashtanga, and more), and six-plus different instructor voices.
Available on iOS and Android; free trial, monthly subscription for $7.99
Lotus lets yoga enthusiasts browse more than 450 yoga poses, each with an accompanying illustration, safety notes, and description of its benefits. Creative types can combine poses to create their own flow, or if you’d really rather just follow someone else’s lead, you can do just that with 100-plus guided yoga workouts and meditation sessions.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Work toward all of your wellness goals with one app: Asana offers do-anywhere workouts (from yoga to HIIT), sleep assistance, moving meditation, and playlists designed to boost your productivity. Win-win-win-win!
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
It’s the Yoga With Adriene app! Everyone’s favorite quarantine yogi (and her dog), who rose to fame with some of the best YouTube workouts we’ve ever seen, expands her empire,offering videos, guided meditations, a calendar, accountability support, subscriber-only vlogs, and so much more in this holistic app designed to inspire a daily practice you actually want to keep up.
Available on iOS and Android; seven-day free trial; in-app purchases start at $12.99
Not technically a yoga app, but it’ll increase your flexibility, even if you never make it to a full 180-degree turnout. While the meditative kind of stretching works for many people, some of us need a goal to work toward, and there’s no better challenging than doing a full split. These floor stretches are designed to help you do just that.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
If you are one of those people who can never stick to a workout schedule (hi, hello, it's me), this app will literally wake you up with yoga. Part alarm, part meditation, part yoga flow, Yoga Wake Up bills itself as an app for “audio-guided bed yoga.” Set your alarm and choose from a library of 5-to-15-minute flows (which, it bears repeating, can be done from bed!) or a guided meditation. If nothing else, it sounds like a much more enjoyable way to wake up than to a screeching alarm followed by checking emails or social media doomscrolling, no?
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Fitness trainers love to talk about how moving your body for even five minutes is better than getting no movement at all. Which is true. But figuring out what to do with those five minutes can be surprisingly overwhelming. Take the guesswork out of it with a beginner-friendly yoga flow. Each of 5 Minute Yoga's sessions comes with detailed images and instructions so you can check your form. You can even track your progress in the app.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Best all-around workouts
Stuck in a fitness rut? Aaptiv is your new boredom-buster BFF. The audio-based app offers 2,500 trainer-led, music-based workouts in a variety of categories, like running, elliptical, rowing, strength training, stretching, yoga, and more. Oh, and if that weren’t enough, 30 new workouts are added each week. Later, stale gym routine!
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases.
Famous personal trainers aren’t just for famous people. At least that’s the concept behind FitOn, which promises regular folks access to workouts from some of today’s top trainers, including Jeanette Jenkins (who’s worked with Pink, Alicia Keys, and Mindy Kaling), Cassey Ho of Blogilates, and Katie Dunlop of Love Sweat Fitness. Pick your workout du jour from categories like cardio, strength, HIIT, dance, yoga, Pilates, and barre workouts.
Available on iOS and Android; free.
Looking to crush a specific goal? As a fitness- and nutrition-focused app, 8fit allows you to first enter an objective and measure your current fitness level; then it gives you a customized plan to get from point A to B. The workouts, which can be tackled at home sans fancy equipment, are relatively short (15 to 20 minutes) but vary in focus—from endurance training and HIIT to strength training and bodyweight exercises.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Australian fitness influencer Kayla Itsines built a wildly popular exercise program—and a community of devout followers—with a series of 28-minute high-intensity workouts. Access several iterations of Itsines’s much beloved BBG program, plus workouts from other fitness influences, like Kelsey Wells, Stephanie Stanzo, and Chontel Duncan, on this app. Other perks of downloading include meal-planning help and the option to participate in exercise challenges with women around the globe.
Available on iOS and Android; seven-day free trial; in-app purchases start at $12.99
The kettlebell can be a great strength training tool, but to reap its benefits (and stay safe in the process), you need to know how to wield it correctly. This app offers 45-plus kettlebell exercises and five workout programs with a voice coach and high-def video demos to guide you along the way.
Available on iOS and Android; free
If variety is what motivates you, check out Shred’s impressive content library of thousands of workouts covering a range of styles and duration. Pick between circuit-based gym workouts, bodyweight sessions, cardio and weight-training combos, HIIT offerings, kettlebell and dumbbell-centric routines, and frankly, too many other workouts to list in this article.
Available on iOS; seven-day free trial; monthly subscription for $12.99
As its name might suggest, this app offers a variety of suspension training workouts led by virtual coaches. But that’s just the start—users can also access sessions centered on running, functional training, yoga, cycling and more, plus personalized workout programs.
Available on iOS and Android; 14-day free trial; in-app purchases start at $1.99
Yes, Peloton is a fancy at-home bike trainer, but Peloton the app is much more than that. It’s an online portal allowing virtual access to thousands of classes taught by dozens of instructors, including workouts that are livestreamed from Peloton’s NYC and London studios (think treadmill running, indoor cycling, HIIT, meditation, yoga, walking, and more). You can also work toward specific fitness goals with the help of guided 4-to-18-week-long programs (examples: Crush Your Core and Road to Your 26.2). No stationary bikes required!
Available on iOS and Android; 30-day free trial; monthly membership costs $12.99
Volt aims to overhaul boring gym routines with AI-driven workout plans that evolve week to week. One especially cool feature: the app’s structured workout plans designed for more than 40 different sports and activities—from cycling and half marathons to tennis, soccer, snowboarding, swimming, and more.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
Maybe the best workout apps don’t involve working out at all…. Wellness is about taking care of your body—and your mind. Focus on the latter with this AI-driven journal app that uses positive psychology, mindfulness, and cognitive behavioral therapy to help you sort through negative emotions, understand how you’re feeling, and channel feel-good vibes (in the form of empathy, kindness, and gratitude) toward all areas of your life.
Available on iOS and Android; seven-day free trial; monthly membership starts at $3.99
By evaluating your past workouts, current strength-training abilities, and available gym equipment, FitBod develops a custom fitness plan that can help you work toward—and eventually crush—your goals. Strength-focused workouts come in a variety of formats, from general conditioning to bodybuilding, powerlifting, Olympic weightlifting, and more.
Available on iOS; free with option for in-app purchases
Based on the popular boutique fitness class in NYC, this dance-based program includes options for pre- and postnatal bodies, long and short durations, different goals and different body parts. All designed by celebrity trainer Megan Roup, this is the workout for lengthening and strengthening.
Available on iOS and Android; free trial; in-app purchases start at $19.99
Jefit is designed for those who love going to the gym but need a little extra inspiration and accountability. The app features a free library of over 1,400 exercises with videos and instructions that break down how to do it, the equipment you'll need, and tips to improve your form. (With a paid plan, you can also access full workout plans designed by pros.) Track your progress in the app via free gym logs and body stats.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
ClassPass rose to fame in the world of fitness apps by offering an easy way to book classes at your favorite fitness studios. You can still do that with a variety of paid plans, but the app now also offers a library of more than 4,000 classes you can stream at home any time—for free. Free yoga. Free barre. Free HIIT. Free cardio. Choose your workout style, length, and level and get sweating.
Available on iOS and Android; free with option for in-app purchases
