Comparison

asensei rowing vs Swelldone

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

Head to head
About

asensei rowing

Enhance your rowing performance with guided workouts from world-class athletes and AI coaching. Connect to compatible rowing machines for real-time analysis and personalized training programs designed to improve your technique and fitness.

Highlights
  • Personalized training programs
  • World-class athlete coaching
  • Real-time performance analysis
  • AI-driven technique correction
  • Hundreds of guided workouts
  • Compatibility with major rowing machines
Read full description

Workout with your Concept 2, Rogue Echo, WaterRower or FluidRower rowing machine. Be guided by world-class athletes and instructors. Follow structured training programs to improve yourself and your times or just choose your own workout. asensei customizes challenges to meet your capability and pushes you to your potential. asensei rowing guides and monitors your practice on and off your rowing machine. Hundreds of workouts, no need to plan - get a recommendation every time! Structured programs - build strength and fitness alongside skill and technique as you are guided, monitored and corrected by great coaches assisted by your personal AI coach, asensei. asensei rowing talks to the monitor on your rowing machine, analyzes your performance and uses that to inform your practice. Are you losing power at higher stroke rates? Are you losing length when you’re tired? Do you find it hard to hold lower stroke rates consistently? Are you rushing the recovery? Compensating for poor leg drive with over-use of your arms? asensei knows. And she’ll be sure to let you know. Practice. Perfected. FEATURES: PROGRAMS, PERSONALIZED: there's a program for you whether it's a 2km, 6km or 30min challenge you are looking for. Designed to challenge, improve and adapted for you. COACHING, UNPARALLELED: Some of the world´s best coaches. Olympic Gold Medalist Eric Murray, British Rowing, Johan Quie, Shane Farmer of Dark Horse Rowing. Watching, responding, adjusting, encouraging - just as they would live. ANALYSIS, DELIVERED: Row - record - watch - rewind - remember. asensei watches you move, as you move, responds in the moment and evaluates over time. PERFECT FOR: * Beginners - if you are new to rowing learn correct technique and be challenged as you workout. * Intermediate rowers - refresh your skills, learn new tips, get back into the groove and take things to the next level. * High-school or college athletes who wish to get win a seat in the boat, get recruited, or compete nationally and internationally. * Indoor Rowers or Crossfit (TM) athletes who wish to improve their indoor rowing technique and scores. * Getting fitter and stronger, the excitement of a studio fitness class and the attention of a personal trainer REQUIREMENTS: Requires a compatible rowing machine: * Concept 2 with a PM5 performance monitor * Rogue Echo Rower with Bluetooth * WaterRower with Bluetooth S4 monitor, S4+ComModule or NEW PowerPulley Performance Ergo * FluidRower with a Bluetooth console. We connect to the Health app to monitor heart rate on some workouts. WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING: “I was fortunate enough to have great coaches from the very beginning of my rowing career. This meant I wasn’t taking thousands of bad rowing strokes, ingraining bad habits. The potential for asensei to provide quality feedback before bad habits are formed is really exciting", Helen Glover, 2x Olympic Gold Medallist and World #1 Rower. "Just when you thought (sports) technology couldn't get any cooler, along comes asensei", CBS Television "... the next frontier in the fitness tech revolution ... a wildly ambitious goal ... able to guide you through everything from form and recovery to metrics and goals while improving your individual results ... future of personal training", Men's Health Here's what users had to say: "someone keeping an eye on you the whole time is really cool because ... it keeps you honest, keeps you on track in a way that I don't think a coach normally can unless you are doing a one on one session, so it was the benefit of a one on one, with the class dynamic, which I really like!" "It's a cool product. I've never ever seen anything like that. In 5 minutes I learned how to row, I thought I was doing it right, but I wasn't" "(asensei) said don't worry there's a bunch of exercises I'm going to give to you afterwards that are going to help you on that. ... that's amazing. ... this is not just about now, it's like building a relationship."

About

Swelldone

Experience an open-world paddling game with realistic wave physics and dynamic swells. Connect your erg for immersive training, race head-to-head in multiplayer, and explore iconic real-world venues. Choose from various paddlers, vessels, and workouts to enhance your fitness and enjoy virtual ocean adventures.

Highlights
  • Open-world ocean with realistic wave physics
  • Multiplayer virtual training and racing
  • Selectable paddlers, vessels, and real-world venues
  • Ergometer and trainer connectivity (FTMS)
  • Customizable and pre-set workout library
  • Sync with Apple Health, Strava, C2 Logbook
Features
Read full description

Swelldone is an open-world paddling training game. The concept is simple: choose your paddler, pick your vessel, and go find some virtual waves and have fun. Learn and experience surfing the open ocean. If you have an erg, connect to it and get fully immersed in your training! If you paddle, you get it. FEATURES: - Infinite ocean with accurate waves physics model, dynamic and adjustable swells - Multiplayer head-to-head gameplay for virtual training and racing - Choose your course from iconic, real-world venues - Choose your paddler from various avatars - Choose your vessel from various boats including SUPs, outrigger canoes, surfskis, Sprint C1, Sprint K1, rowing sculls, marathon canoes, and dragon boats - Connect to your paddle ergs, rowers, bike trainers that support FTMS protocol for immersive training. - Choose from a library of workouts directly from the app or create your own custom workout - Sync your workouts to Apple Health, Strava, C2 Logbook - Designed to work with the Concept2 PM5 console, KayakPro GenesisPort console, Whipr, and Wahoo sensors. OHANA MEMBERSHIP Subscription Enjoy unlimited access to everything when connected to erg for Virtual Training. Row or Paddle as much as you want with Swelldone's monthly subscription of $9.99. Prices may vary from country to country. Payment will be charged to your App Store Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage or turn off auto-renew in your Account settings at any time after purchase. Terms of Service: https://www.swelldoneapp.com/terms-of-service Privacy Policy: https://www.swelldoneapp.com/privacy-policy

Screenshots

asensei rowing4 screens
Swelldone4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: asensei rowing at 76% against Swelldone's 38%. asensei rowing also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and rating (4.8 vs 4.3). Swelldone's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price 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

Both are free to download. Swelldone sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. asensei rowing asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

asensei rowing holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: asensei rowing has 4.1K ratings behind it against 103, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of asensei rowing's written reviews are positive against 38% of Swelldone's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

asensei rowing ships an update every 2 months, Swelldone every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
asensei rowing versus Swelldone: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameterasensei rowingSwelldone
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (4.1K ratings) — better4.3 (103 ratings)
Positive reviews76.2% of reviews — better38.1% of reviews
Number of ratings4.1K — better103
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple TV
Requires iOS14.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size95 MB1.2 GB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperASensei IncSwell City

Customer experience

asensei rowing

All ratings4,030 ratings
Positive95.8%
Neutral1.7%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews206 reviews
Positive76.2%
Neutral9.7%
Negative14.1%

Swelldone

All ratings103 ratings
Positive81.6%
Neutral2.9%
Negative15.5%
Written reviews21 reviews
Positive38.1%
Neutral4.8%
Negative57.1%

Bugs and requests

asensei rowing

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Inconsistent pace and split time calculations
  • Workout history not saving properly
  • Bluetooth connectivity problems

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to select and customize workout programs
  • Integration with Apple Health and Strava
  • More detailed performance analytics and progress tracking
  • Live/virtual rowing classes and competitions
  • Support for more rowing machine models

Swelldone

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

asensei rowing

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Swelldone

Subscriptions3
  • Wiki Member (Weekly)$3.997 Days
  • Ohana Membership$9.991 Month
  • Hoku Membership (Annual)$99.991 Year

Questions

Is asensei rowing free?
asensei rowing is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Swelldone free?
Swelldone is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, asensei rowing or Swelldone?
asensei rowing is rated higher. asensei rowing averages 4.8 out of 5 from 4.1K ratings, while Swelldone averages 4.3 from 103 ratings.
Do asensei rowing or Swelldone have ads?
asensei rowing shows ads; Swelldone does not.
Which is updated more often, asensei rowing or Swelldone?
asensei rowing ships an update every 2 months, and Swelldone every 3 weeks. Most recently, asensei rowing was updated on November 2, 2026 and Swelldone on November 7, 2026.

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