Lap Swim vs SwimNow
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Lap Swim
This app automatically counts laps and tracks swim times on your Apple Watch. It detects stroke type and count, and graphs your performance on a paired iPhone. Enjoy a large font display for easy viewing during your workout.
- Automatic lap counting
- Stroke detection (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke)
- Kickboard lap detection
- Large font display
- Stopwatch function
- Workout graphing on iPhone
- Health and Activity app integration
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Automatic Lap Counter with Stopwatch and LARGE FONTS; Lap Swim is an Apple Watch (Series 2 and later) App that automatically detects, displays, records and graphs the lap count and elapsed time of a swim session. Detects and displays the type of stroke and stroke count during each lap. - Detects and displays the lap direction and lap count while swimming using the gyroscope in the Apple Watch - LARGE FONT display of time and lap count - Stopwatch function while swimming - Auto start/stop mode detects swimming and automatically starts (or stops) the stopwatch - Lap counter counts up from 0 or counts down from preset lap goal - Senses and displays freestyle strokes, backstrokes, and breaststrokes - Detects and counts kickboard laps - Records and graphs (on the paired iPhone) the following: ------ Date and time of a swim session ------ Time for each lap and of entire swim session ------ Number of laps ------ Average speed and speed for each lap ------ Stroke count and type of stroke (freestyle, back, breast or kick board) ------ Distance in meters or yards - Enters workout information into the Health and Activity apps Lap Swim uses the gyroscope and accelerometer in the Apple Watch to detect the type of stroke and the orientation of the swimmer. Using this information it displays the lap count of a swim session. Lap Swim also has a standard stopwatch function. The swim session information is transmitted to the paired iPhone and displayed on both a table and a graph. Lap Swim is free and fully functional for the first 250 laps. After that, Lap Swim continues to function but it requires a low cost IAP to display the lap count. Screenshots: -Apple Watch: 1) Large 2 line display - Swimming return half of 51st lap after 49:35 2) 3 line display - returning on lap 10 after 9:10; 11 breaststrokes taken this half lap 3) 3 line display - after turning and starting lap 11; showing last half lap stroke count (11) and elapsed time (34.6) 4) 3 line display - going out on lap 12; this lap you have taken 3 freestyle strokes, 2 backstrokes, 5 breaststrokes, and over 15 seconds using a kickboard 5) Starting a Workout Session in 2 second and turning on water lock. 6) Lap length set to 25 yards. 7) Settings options - 2 or 3 line display, split times half or full lap, automatic or manual start/stop, set lap length. -iPhone: 1) Home screen also showing the app on the Apple Watch 2) Graph of the average speed in over 200 swim sessions from 12/16 to 7/20. 3) Graph of the total times in over 200 swim sessions from 12/16 to 7/20. 4) Data collected in a single swim session available for editing. ----
SwimNow
This app analyzes and tracks swimming data from your Apple Watch and other synced devices. It offers detailed insights into your performance, advanced split views, and trend charts to help you improve your swimming efficiency and achieve your goals.
- Import structured workouts to Apple Watch
- Advanced splits views with more metrics
- Data analysis and trend charts
- Swimming achievement stickers
- Compare two swims
- Set personal goals
- Yearly and monthly summaries
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THE ULTIMATE APPLE WATCH SWIM TRACKER SwimNow is the essential swim app designed specifically for Apple Watch. It empowers you to seamlessly track, analyze, and optimize every swimming workout right from your wrist. By integrating directly with the Apple Health App, SwimNow transforms your standard pool and open water swims into professional-grade analytics—capturing everything from laps, pace, and distance to advanced metrics like SWOLF and stroke efficiency. Whether you are a beginner aiming for general fitness or a competitive swimmer chasing a new Personal Best, this app provides the deep data insights you need to train smarter. Discover the best alternative to the native Fitness app and make every meter count! ► Import Structured Workouts to Apple Watch Easily edit your swimming plan on your phone and seamlessly import it to Apple Watch.(Need iOS 18 & WatchOS 10) ► Data View swimming data recorded by your Apple Watch native app in various formats, including calendar and list views. ► Advanced splits views Compared to the native app, the splits view offers more metrics, including stroke count, stroke efficiency, SWOLF, heart rate, and more. Helps you understand the details of each swim lap better. ► Swimming Achievement Stickers Unlock a variety of fun achievement stickers. Place them freely to record your growth and show off your unique swimming style. ► Compare Two Swims Compare technical metrics between two swimming sessions to help you spot differences and continuously refine your technique. ► Data Analysis Provide comprehensive swimming statistics, including swim time, distance, pace, stroke count, stroke rate, calories burned, heart rate, and more, with detailed breakdowns for each interval and lap. ► Trend, Charts, Graph Select time periods, filter by swimming style, pool length, and distance. With comprehensive technical metrics and multidimensional statistics, generate detailed trend charts that help you easily track and analyze long-term swimming data, identify progress and areas for improvement, and enhance your performance. ► Set Goals Set personal goals and cultivate swimming habits to achieve your objectives. ► PB Personal best in different distances. like 100m, 200m, 1000m, 1500m... ► More Metrics Additional metrics such as METs and training impulse. ► Yearly Recap A cool yearly recap that highlights every bit of your persistence and progress throughout the year. ► Monthly & Weekly Summaries Crystal-clear summaries that make every bit of your progress easy to track. ► Distance Correction Fixed an issue where Apple Watch recorded incorrect distances during Open Water Swims (caused by breaststroke). You can edit stroke types and adjust distance for all laps at once, making it easier to correct missed laps or inaccurate swim data recorded by Apple Watch during pool workouts. ► Training Notes Add personalized notes to each training session to track progress and key details. ► AI Analysis Analyzes swimming data within your monthly summaries to optimize your training plans. ► Sharing Features Easily share your swim data with long screenshots, cards, or text. Download SwimNow now and start your swimming data analysis journey, making every meter count! SwimNow offers both a one-time payment option and an annual subscription. The subscription includes an auto-renewal feature. This means it will automatically renew unless you manage your subscription in your account settings. After purchase, you can manage your subscription and turn off auto-renewal in your account settings in the App Store. Email: swimnow@outlook.com
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: SwimNow at 4.9 against Lap Swim's 3.2. SwimNow also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 3 months) and review sentiment (76% vs 62%). Lap Swim's advantage is device support (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.2). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Lap Swim sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and SwimNow sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
SwimNow holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 3.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 31 and 44 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of Lap Swim's written reviews are positive against 76% of SwimNow's.
Lap Swim ships an update every 3 months, SwimNow weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Lap Swim | SwimNow |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.2 (31 ratings) | 4.9 (44 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 62.1% of reviews | 76.4% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 31 | 44 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 17.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 172 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Peter Kramer | 阳 邹 |
Customer experience
Lap Swim
SwimNow
In-app purchases
Lap Swim
- upgrade from 250 laps to unlimited laps$1.99
SwimNow
- Yearly7 Days trial$14.991 Year
- Lifetime$39.99









