Comparison

BCAA vs Surge

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

BCAA

This AI-powered fitness coach creates personalized workout plans based on your goals, equipment, and experience. It adapts your training as you progress, offers guided workouts with timers, and includes a vast exercise library. Syncs with Apple Health for comprehensive recovery insights.

Highlights
  • AI-powered custom workout programs
  • Adaptive training plans
  • Guided workouts with rest timers
  • Extensive exercise library (800+)
  • Apple Health integration
  • Offline workout functionality
  • Progress tracking and charts
Features
Read full description

BCAA is an AI personal trainer app for strength training. Tell it your goal, experience level and the equipment you have, and it builds a workout plan for the gym or for home, then adapts the plan as you progress. AI Workout Planner • A personalized workout plan built around your goals, schedule and available equipment. • After every workout the AI coach reviews your sets and can raise or lower your working weights based on how they went. • Smart insights on recovery, intensity and training load, using sleep and heart rate data from Apple Health. Smart Workout Player • Follow your workout set by set with built-in rest timers. • Log weight and reps with a tap, and edit any set afterwards. • Swap exercises and fine-tune sets in the workout builder. • If the app is interrupted mid-workout, your session draft is waiting for you. 870+ Exercises with Instructions • Clear instructions and form tips, with pictures, for the exercises in the library. • Strength, bodyweight, cardio and flexibility exercises. Search and filter the library. • Exercise names and instructions in your language. Progress and History • Workout history with every set, plus charts that show your progress on each exercise. • Earn BCAA points for every set and level up from Newbie to Titan. • Retake the 30-day fitness test (push-ups, squats and plank) to see how far you have come and rebuild your plan. Built for Everyone • Beginner or experienced lifter: your plan matches your level. • Gym equipment, home workouts and bodyweight training. • The app is available in 11 languages, and you can pick the language of your AI coach separately. Subscription BCAA is free to download. A subscription (monthly or annual) is required to use the app, and the annual plan starts with a 2-week free trial for eligible new subscribers. Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. The subscription renews automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel any time in your Apple ID settings. Privacy Policy: https://amino-38b15.web.app/privacy-policy.html Terms Of Use: https://amino-38b15.web.app/terms-of-use.html

About

Surge

This interval timer app is designed for various circuit-style workouts like HIIT, Tabata, and boxing. It provides audio and haptic cues for each phase, allowing users to train without constantly watching the clock. All features are included with a single purchase, offering a complete, ad-free experience.

Highlights
  • Customizable work and rest intervals
  • Pre-set workout routines (Tabata, HIIT, Boxing)
  • Audio and haptic interval cues
  • Save up to 20 custom presets
  • Preparation countdown
  • Screen stays awake during workouts
Features
Read full description

Surge is a beautifully designed interval timer for HIIT, Tabata, boxing rounds, EMOM and any circuit-style workout — at home, in the gym or ringside. Pay once and it's yours forever. No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, no ads — every feature included. Set your work and rest, pick your rounds and press play — Surge calls every phase with beeps and haptics, so you train bell to bell without watching the clock. ROUNDS READY TO GO • Tabata — 20s work / 10s rest × 8 rounds • HIIT — 40s work / 20s rest × 10 rounds • Boxing — 3:00 rounds with 1:00 rest × 6 • EMOM — 60-second intervals × 10 • Stretch — 30s holds / 10s rest × 12 • Edit any built-in preset to match your training YOUR WORKOUT, YOUR RULES • Work from 5 seconds to 10 minutes, rest up to 5 minutes • 1–50 rounds, with an optional preparation countdown • Save up to 20 presets with custom names and icons • Skip a phase mid-workout; the screen stays awake to the final bell • A large, glanceable countdown with an animated progress ring BUILT RIGHT • Pay once, own it for life — the price you see is everything • No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, no upsells • No ads, ever • Megabytes, not gigabytes — no ad libraries, no analytics SDKs, nothing that isn't the app itself • No account and no data collection — your presets never leave your device • Designed for iPhone and iPad Download Surge and let every round run itself.

Screenshots

BCAA4 screens
Surge4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: BCAA at Free against Surge's $2.00. BCAA also leads on ratings volume (6 vs 1). Surge's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6). On rating, update cadence, ads and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

BCAA is free to download; Surge costs $2.00 up front. BCAA sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Surge asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for BCAA against 5.0 for Surge. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BCAA has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BCAA ships an update every 3 weeks, Surge fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
BCAA versus Surge: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBCAASurge
PriceFree — better$2.00
Rating5.0 (6 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews87.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings6 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size33 MB1 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPavel IlinMatthew Avery

Customer experience

BCAA

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%

Surge

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

6 purchases

BCAA

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Premium$3.991 Month
  • Annual Premium14 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time4
  • Small donate$0.99
  • Medium donate$1.99
  • Huge donate$2.99
Show 1 more
  • Lifetime Premium$99.99
None

Surge

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BCAA free?
BCAA is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Surge free?
Surge costs $2.00, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, BCAA or Surge?
BCAA and Surge are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 6 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do BCAA or Surge have ads?
Neither BCAA nor Surge shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BCAA or Surge?
BCAA ships an update every 3 weeks, and Surge fortnightly. Most recently, BCAA was updated on November 2, 2026 and Surge on November 9, 2026.

Other comparisons