# Surf Athlete vs Surf Blackball

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Surf Blackball at none against Surf Athlete's 13. Surf Blackball also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 91%). Surf Athlete's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (403 vs 8). On price, rating, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Surf Athlete sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $18.99 per month. Surf Blackball asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Surf Athlete against 5.0 for Surf Blackball. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Surf Athlete has 403 ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 91% of Surf Athlete's written reviews are positive against 100% of Surf Blackball's.

Surf Athlete ships an update every 3 weeks, Surf Blackball every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Surf Athlete | Surf Blackball |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.9 (403 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/surf-athlete-surf-training/id1473672898/reviews) | **[5.0 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/surf-blackball/id6748482152/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **403** | 8 |
| Positive reviews | 90.8% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Size | 236 MB | 90 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Nautilus Surf Performance LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1473672897) | [The Progression Lab LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1825951997) |

## What reviewers say

### Surf Athlete

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/surf-athlete-surf-training/id1473672898)

This app provides surf-specific training programs designed to enhance strength, endurance, and mobility. It offers workouts, stretching routines, and breath training to improve performance in the ocean and prevent injuries. Users can join a community and track progress.

**Highlights:** Surf-specific workouts, Strength, endurance, and mobility training, Stretch routines, Breath training, Technique tutorials, Global surfer community

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ocean Sports Academy (1 month) | $18.99 | per month |
| SURF ATHLETE PRO (1 month) | $29.99 | per month |
| Surf Athlete Academy (3 month) | $83.99 | per 3 months |
| Surf Athlete Academy (6 month) | $144.99 | per 6 months |
| SURF ATHLETE PRO (1 year) | $155.99 | per year |
| Stretches for Surfers | $27.99 | one-time |
| The Perfect Pop Up | $79.99 | one-time |
| Bodyweight | $119.99 | one-time |
| Surf Athlete | $129.99 | one-time |
| Cardboard Surfer | $129.99 | one-time |
| Surf Skate | $139.99 | one-time |
| Stretches for Surfers 2.0 | $139.99 | one-time |
| Surf Training Foundations | $159.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Solid app
- 👍 Detailed instructions and programs
- 👍 Comprehensive surf-specific fitness
- 👍 Improves flexibility, strength, and mobility
- 👍 Helps with pop-up and technique

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Registration/login issues
- 🐛 Occasional app crashes
- 🔇 Lack of audio cues during workouts
- 🔇 Music playback issues
- 💰 Expensive for some users

**Reported bugs**

- Registration not working
- App crashing on launch
- Music playback interruptions

**Requested features**

- Dark mode option
- Offline workout mode
- Better music integration
- More free content
- Expanded exercise library


### Surf Blackball

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/surf-blackball/id6748482152)

This app offers a land-based training system designed to improve surfing performance by focusing on strength, mobility, and endurance. It targets the specific mechanics of paddling, pop-ups, and breath control, making elite training accessible to all levels.

**Highlights:** Land-based surf training system, Improves strength, mobility, endurance, Targets paddling, pop-up, breath control, Bodyweight movements, Fusion of conditioning and recovery

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Surf Athlete free?

Surf Athlete is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Surf Blackball free?

Surf Blackball is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Surf Athlete or Surf Blackball?

Surf Blackball is rated higher. Surf Athlete averages 4.9 out of 5 from 403 ratings, while Surf Blackball averages 5.0 from 8 ratings.

### Do Surf Athlete or Surf Blackball have ads?

Surf Blackball shows ads; Surf Athlete does not.

### Which is updated more often, Surf Athlete or Surf Blackball?

Surf Athlete ships an update every 3 weeks, and Surf Blackball every 2 months. Most recently, Surf Athlete was updated on October 26, 2026 and Surf Blackball on October 24, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*