PRE SZN vs Strong
Strong is one of the longest-running gym loggers on the iPhone, and it earned that by staying out of the way. Fast set entry, templates, supersets, RPE, charts, a 1RM estimate and clean Apple Health sync. No ads. Your data stays yours, and it exports to CSV.
PRE SZN starts where a logger stops. It takes the set you just logged and tells you whether it beat your own average.
14 days free, no card. Then A$12.99 / £7.99 a month.
The real difference
In PRE SZN a hard set is any working set at one to three reps in reserve. Each one is scored live against your trailing four-week average for that exercise, the mean estimated 1RM of your hard sets. Beat it and you take the point. A record always pays, whatever the line says. You see a live scoreline as you train and a full-time report when you finish.
Strong gives you the history and the charts and leaves the judgement to you. PRE SZN makes the judgement on every set, runs the program, and adds what a logger does not try to do: overnight HRV, resting heart rate and sleep against your own normal, velocity from the watch, and live matches against friends.
Where Strong is strong
- —A free account forever, with up to 3 workout templates and unlimited logged workouts.
- —iPhone, Android and Apple Watch.
- —Per-set RPE on a 6–10 scale, and a 1RM estimate from the Brzycki formula.
- —Supersets, warm-up and plate calculators (plate calculator on PRO), body-part measurements and Siri Shortcuts.
- —Full Apple Health sync and CSV export of your workout data.
- —No ads, ever.
Feature by feature
| Feature | PRE SZN | Strong |
|---|---|---|
| Workout logging | Yes | Yes |
| Each hard set scored against your own average | Yes. Every hard set (RIR 1–3) scored live against your own four-week average | Not listed |
| Structured programs | Yes. Strength, running and speed, hybrid race and rugby programs, plus build your own | Workout templates (3 free, unlimited on PRO) and scheduling |
| Post-session report | Yes. Score, set points, hard sets, records and your average after every session | Records and advanced charts |
| RPE / RIR per set | Effort (RIR) read on every set; RIR 1–3 defines a hard set | RPE 6–10 per set |
| 1RM estimate | Estimated 1RM from every hard set | Yes, Brzycki formula |
| Apple Watch | Yes. Log sets from the wrist, live heart rate, end the session on the watch | Yes |
| Velocity from the watch | Yes. Wrist trace finds reps, tempo, rest and an estimated max from the watch's motion sensors | Not listed |
| HRV, resting HR and sleep | Yes. HRV, resting heart rate and sleep read overnight against your own normal | Not listed |
| Training with friends | Rivals, a weekly league and live matches with friends, in the same gym or from anywhere | Share workouts and templates by link |
| AI | AI coach chat that reads your training; connect your own AI by API key (Pro) | Not listed |
| Platforms | iPhone and Apple Watch; program designer on landscape iPad | iPhone, Android, Apple Watch |
| Price | A$12.99 or £7.99 a month | Free account; Strong PRO US$4.99 a month or US$29.99 a year (US App Store) |
Pricing
Strong's US App Store listing gives Strong PRO at US$4.99 a month and US$29.99 a year, and its in-app purchase list also shows a six-month plan and a one-off PRO Forever option at more than one price. PRO adds unlimited templates, measurements, all charts and the plate and warm-up calculators. Strong's help centre says prices vary between regions. PRE SZN is A$12.99 a month in Australia and £7.99 a month in the UK.
Choose Strong if
- —You want a fast, ad-free logger and plan your own training.
- —You train on Android.
- —You want a one-off payment rather than a subscription.
Choose PRE SZN if
- —You want each hard set scored against your own average, live.
- —You want a program run for you, with loads prescribed from your numbers.
- —You want your Apple Watch logging sets, tracking velocity and reading your overnight recovery.
- —You train harder against someone: rivals, a weekly league and live matches.
See how it scores
Start with a program, read how RIR decides a hard set, or put a set through the RPE calculator. Want your own AI on your training data? Connect your AI.
Download on the App Store14 days free, no card. Then A$12.99 / £7.99 a month.
Questions
Is PRE SZN a good Strong app alternative?
If you want your sets scored rather than just stored, yes. Strong is an excellent logger. PRE SZN logs too, then scores every hard set against your own four-week average and runs the program.
Does PRE SZN use RPE like Strong?
PRE SZN rates sets by reps in reserve, the same scale counted the other way: RPE 8 is 2 in reserve. A set at RIR 1–3 is a hard set and counts towards your line. The RIR and RPE guide has the full chart.
Can I move my Strong history to PRE SZN?
Not today. Your line in PRE SZN starts from the hard sets you log in it. The first hard set on an exercise debuts: it takes the point and sets your line, and the four-week average builds from there.
Is Strong free?
Strong accounts are free, with up to 3 workout templates. Strong PRO removes the template limit and adds charts, measurements and calculators.
Sources, checked November 2026
- Strong App Store listing (US)
- Strong home page
- Strong help: templates
- Strong help: Strong PRO
- Strong help: 1RM
- Strong help: RPE
- Strong help: plate calculator
- Strong help: export data
- Strong help: Apple Health
- Strong help: what is Strong
Strong is a trademark of its owner. This page is PRE SZN's comparison, not Strong's. Spot something out of date? Tell us via support.