Tonal vs Sunlighten
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Tonal
This app offers a smart home gym and personal trainer experience with adaptive digital weight and expert coaching. It provides structured programs, progress tracking, and a variety of on-the-go workouts, allowing users to customize their fitness routines and connect with a supportive community.
- Adaptive digital weight workouts
- Expert coach-led programs
- Progress tracking by muscle group
- Hundreds of on-the-go workouts
- Customizable workout creation
- Community motivation features
- HealthKit integration
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With the Tonal mobile app you can be your strongest—from home, on your own schedule. Tonal is the smartest home gym and personal trainer. Unlike traditional dumbbells, barbells, and exercise equipment Tonal uses advanced digital weight that continually adapts workouts so they’re most effective for you—all led by our expert coaches. Loved by beginners, exercise enthusiasts, and professional athletes alike, Tonal is reimagining the landscape of at-home fitness. Get stronger, faster with the Tonal app - Join a program: No matter where you are in your fitness journey, Tonal has individual workouts and multi-week programs to help you reach your goals. - Track your progress: See your strength grow. Tonal’s A.I. keeps track of your workouts, measuring your progress and breaking it down by muscle group and workout type. - Work out on-the-go: From high-intensity, to restorative yoga flows, Tonal has hundreds of workouts for you to try. Filter by focus, trainer, or time. - Create your own workout: Work out your way with Custom Workouts. Choose your favorite movements, reps, sets, and advanced weight modes, like Burnout and Eccentric to maximize your results, then save for later. - Get stronger, together: Connect with friends and stay motivated to get stronger while cheering on other members in the Tonal community. Tonal uses HealthKit to export your Tonal workouts into the Health app and to sync your weight and height.
Sunlighten
Optimize your well-being with this app, designed to enhance your light therapy and sauna experiences. Create personalized wellness programs, track sessions in real-time, and control your devices remotely for a seamless health journey.
- Science-based wellness programs
- Personalized program creation
- Real-time session tracking
- Remote sauna control (Wi-Fi)
- Audio and lighting management
- Red light therapy panel programs
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Take your wellness journey to the next level with the Sunlighten app, designed to enhance your Sunlighten sauna and Sunlighten RED Light Therapy Panel experience and optimize your well-being. Stay in control, feel your best, and enjoy the full potential of Sunlighten products. Key Features: • Science-based wellness programs designed to help you reach your health goals. • Create your own personalized programs. • Real-time session tracking. • Schedule your sauna sessions to build a routine. • Remote sauna control for compatible connected saunas • Manage your sauna's audio and lighting settings. • Get the most of our your RED Light Therapy Panel with over 20 scientifically optimized programs and guidance from the leaders in light therapy. Owners of mPulse saunas and RED Light Therapy Panels can enjoy full access to all app features, while owners of Amplify, Signature, and Solo Rise models can take advantage of convenient audio control. Stay connected for exciting updates as we continue to enhance your Sunlighten experience!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Tonal at 71% against Sunlighten's 20%. Tonal also leads on rating (4.9 vs 2.7) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 4 months). Sunlighten's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). 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.
Tonal holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 2.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Tonal has 11K ratings behind it against 88, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 71% of Tonal's written reviews are positive against 20% of Sunlighten's.
Tonal ships an update every 3 weeks, Sunlighten every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Tonal | Sunlighten |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (11K ratings) — better | 2.7 (88 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 70.9% of reviews — better | 19.8% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 11K — better | 88 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 197 MB | 53 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Tonal Systems, Inc. | Sunlighten Inc |
Customer experience
Tonal
Sunlighten
User reviews
Tonal
From 11K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Efficient and effective workouts
- 👍 Variety of workouts and programs
- 🚀 Convenient home gym experience
- 👍 Motivating and engaging coaches
- 👍 Comprehensive fitness tracking
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity and syncing issues
- 💡 Lack of personalization options
- 💡 Limited custom workout capabilities
- 💡 Lack of language and accessibility options
- 🔒 Facebook integration required for profile photo
Sunlighten
From 88 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Convenient remote control
- 👍 Customizable programs
- 🚀 Easy to use app
- 👍 Enhances sauna experience
Room to improve
- 🐛 Unreliable app connectivity
- 🔒 Privacy concerns with data collection
- 🐛 Inconsistent scheduling and remote start
- 🐛 Buggy and glitchy app
- 👎 Limited remote functionality
Bugs and requests
Tonal
Reported bugs
3 issues- Membership activation and login issues
- Inconsistent performance and app crashes
- Syncing problems with Apple Health and other devices
Requested features
5 requests- Calendar function to plan workouts
- Ability to track and filter custom workouts
- Customizable movement options and exercise libraries
- Injury/condition-specific workout recommendations
- Ability to use without subscription or disable features
Sunlighten
Reported bugs
4 issues- App fails to connect to sauna
- Scheduled programs not running as expected
- Inconsistent lighting controls
- Tablet frequently restarts or loses connection
Requested features
4 requests- Remote start and preheat capability
- Improved app stability and reliability
- Better integration between app and sauna
- More customization options
In-app purchases
Tonal
No in-app purchases
Sunlighten
No in-app purchases








