Active Experience vs Race Ascend
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Active Experience
Follow live event progress, view real-time leaderboards, and get participant alerts. Discover event landmarks, share photos, and stay updated on races like marathons and triathlons. Integrates with HealthKit for heart rate and workout data.
- Real-time leaderboards
- Participant GPS tracking
- Course map with landmarks
- Progress alerts and updates
- Event photo sharing
- HealthKit integration
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One app for all of your events. Track participants on an events course map, view real-time leaderboards, receive participant progress alerts and important updates from events. • View & share results and rankings. • Find event landmarks with the course map. • Track participants via GPS. • Accept or decline tracking notifications. • Receive push notifications for followed participants. • Take and share event photos with all other spectators and participants using the app. • Easily follow and stay up-to-date with Marathons, 5Ks, 10Ks and Triathlons near you. In the Watch app, Apple’s HealthKit is used to collect heart rate and exercise data, and at the end of a run, the workout is saved to Healthkit. Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.
Race Ascend
This app consolidates all your race results, finish-line photos, and performance statistics in one place. Easily search for any race to view detailed results, find your photos instantly, and track your running progress over time. It also offers live results and runner tools to help you plan and improve your performance.
- Searchable race results
- Instant photo finder
- Track running history
- Live race results
- Grand Prix standings
- Pace predictor
- Age-grade calculator
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Race Ascend brings your running life together — every result, every finish-line photo, and the stats that tell your story. Search any race and pull up complete results in seconds. See finish times, pace, overall and division placement, and how you measured up against the field. Look yourself up, or find friends and teammates by name. FIND YOUR RACE PHOTOS Every event's photo gallery in your pocket. Find your shots instantly by searching your bib number or your name — no endless scrolling to spot yourself. TRACK YOUR PROGRESS Your full running history in one view. Watch your finishes add up, see your best times by distance, and follow your placement across a season of racing. LIVE RESULTS ON RACE DAY Follow results as they happen. Track specific runners and get their finish the moment they cross the line. GRAND PRIX STANDINGS Follow season-long series standings, your age-group points, and where you rank as the season unfolds. RUNNER TOOLS A full toolkit to plan and improve: pace predictor, finish forecast, age-grade calculator using official WMA standards, plus splits, distance converter, heart-rate zones, hydration, and treadmill pace tools. Whether you're chasing a podium or finishing your first 5K, Race Ascend is for everyone who toes the line. Run it, walk it, roll it. No account required — open the app and start exploring.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Race Ascend at 100% against Active Experience's 6%. Race Ascend also leads on rating (5.0 vs 1.5) and update cadence (daily vs every 6 weeks). Active Experience's advantage is ratings volume (148 vs 1) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Race Ascend holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 1.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Active Experience has 148 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 6% of Active Experience's written reviews are positive against 100% of Race Ascend's.
Active Experience ships an update every 6 weeks, Race Ascend daily. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Active Experience | Race Ascend |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.5 (148 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 6.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 148 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Daily — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 41 MB | 31 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Active Network, LLC | Race Ascend LLC |
Customer experience
Active Experience
Race Ascend
Bugs and requests
Active Experience
Reported bugs
3 issues- Cannot enter date of birth to create account
- Tracking stops working mid-race
- Inconsistent and inaccurate runner locations
Requested features
3 requests- Improve runner tracking accuracy and reliability
- Provide course maps and mile markers
- Allow easy spectator tracking without complex setup
Race Ascend
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Active Experience
No in-app purchases
Race Ascend
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Active Experience free?
Is Race Ascend free?
Which has better reviews, Active Experience or Race Ascend?
Do Active Experience or Race Ascend have ads?
Which is updated more often, Active Experience or Race Ascend?
Other comparisons
