Start Rowing vs Ergatta
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Start Rowing
This app offers structured rowing workout plans for all experience levels, helping users build strength, burn calories, and improve rowing technique. It provides guidance on intensity and rest, with features like an audio coach and metronome for effective training sessions.
- Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced training plans
- Session-based Challenger workouts
- Audio coach guidance
- Rowing metronome
- Workout logging and progress tracking
- Apple Health integration
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Start Rowing without any previous experience needed. Get in shape, build strength and burn calories. Our rowing app's workout plans will train you for the next stage in your rowing journey. Never rowed before? Start with our beginner plan. In 8 weeks you’ll be comfortable rowing 2000 meters with correct technique. Experienced erger? Use our intermediate and advanced plans to improve your overall fitness while increasing your rowing capacity. Start Rowing will guide you step by step, letting you know when to change rowing intensity and when to rest. Each plan is designed to slowly become more challenging so your body can adapt and gain endurance while minimising any risk of injury. Spend just 10-30 minutes a day, 2-5 days a week. You’ll be fitter, stronger and a much better rower! Features - Choose from Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced training plans. - Session based Challenger workouts to exercise your whole body. - Audio coach to guide your through your rowing workout. - Rowing metronome to help you keep in time. - Log your workouts and keep track of your overall progress. - Share your progress. - APPLE HEALTH INTEGRATION: Connect your workouts to Health App to track your daily activity. Legal Disclaimer This app and any information given by it are for educational purposes only. They are not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. You should always consult your healthcare provider before beginning any fitness program. If you upgrade to a premium Start Rowing subscription, payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. There is no increase in cost when renewing. Subscriptions can be managed and auto-renewal turned off in Account Settings in iTunes after purchase. Once purchased, the current period cannot be cancelled. Any unused portion of a free trial period is forfeited if you choose to purchase a premium subscription. Find the full terms and conditions at https://www.vigour.fitness/terms, and our privacy policy at https://www.vigour.fitness/privacy.
Ergatta
Plan workouts, track performance, and view detailed historical data. Monitor your progress, rankings, and challenges, even without your rower. Sync data with Apple Health for a comprehensive view of your fitness.
- Workout history and breakdown
- Workout library browsing and filtering
- Detailed stats and personal records
- Community and group rankings
- Challenge progress tracking
- Apple Health integration
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Enhance your workout and race performance by planning ahead and staying on top of the results. Keep up with the Rankings and see where you stand, browse your workout libraries, see your history, highlights, and progress, even if your Ergatta rower is stored away. The Ergatta Companion App Includes: APPLE HEALTH INTEGRATION Sync your Ergatta workouts to the Apple Health App, where they will appear as part of your daily activity. YOUR WORKOUT HISTORY • View all our your completed workouts • Get a granular breakdown of each workout • See your monthly distance, time, and calorie totals • Favorite workouts YOUR WORKOUT LIBRARY • Browse through the workout libraries and filter by time, distance, type, and more • See each workout’s details and your projected performance • Favorite workouts for later YOUR STATS • View your dashboard • Personal Records • Monthly, weekly, and daily breakdowns of your stats • Your personal records and highlights RANKINGS • Your full rankings report • Monthly breakdowns of the full community, your age group, gender, and weight group • Sort by distance rowed, best split, and average split CHALLENGES Check in on challenges and track your progress This app is frequently updated with new features and enhancements, just as the Ergatta Experience evolves. Have an input? Email support@ergatta.com and share with the team.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Start Rowing at 4.7 against Ergatta's 4.1. Start Rowing also leads on review sentiment (73% vs 58%) and ratings volume (682 vs 80). Ergatta's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8). On price, 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
Both are free to download. Start Rowing sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Ergatta asks for nothing beyond the download.
Start Rowing holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Start Rowing has 682 ratings behind it against 80, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of Start Rowing's written reviews are positive against 58% of Ergatta's.
Start Rowing ships an update every 3 weeks, Ergatta monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Start Rowing | Ergatta |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (682 ratings) — better | 4.1 (80 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 73.2% of reviews — better | 58.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 682 — better | 80 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 55 MB | 70 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Vigour Group Ltd | Ergatta |
Customer experience
Start Rowing
Ergatta
User reviews
Start Rowing
From 682 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Helpful for beginners
- 🚀 Structured workout plans
- 👍 Easy to follow
- 👍 Enjoyable and motivating
- 🚀 Useful metronome and pacing features
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues (blank screen, spinning circle)
- 🔋 High battery drain
- 💰 Misleading about free access, requires subscription
- 👎 Limited customization and flexibility
- 👎 Inconsistent performance (stroke rate changes, screen shutoff)
Ergatta
From 80 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Motivates workouts and goal setting
- 👍 Great companion app for rower
- 👍 Tracks progress and stats
- 👍 Syncs with Apple Health/Fitness
- 👍 Easy to use interface
Room to improve
- 💰 High subscription price
- 👎 Difficult to cancel subscription
- 👎 No way to cancel via app
- 👎 Customer service issues
- 👎 Price increases without justification
Bugs and requests
Start Rowing
Reported bugs
3 issues- Blank screen during workouts
- Inconsistent stroke rate changes
- Automatic screen shutoff during workouts
Requested features
5 requests- Allow custom workout creation
- Improve volume control for metronome and audio
- Add more advanced workout options
- Enhance user interface and navigation
- Improve sync and data tracking across devices
Ergatta
Reported bugs
7 issues- Unable to sign up/sign in
- Login screen unresponsive
- App does nothing after entering credentials
- Workout dates sync incorrectly to Apple Health
- Sometimes won't connect
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- Does not set active calories in Fitness app
- Exercise minutes sync, but not calories in Move section
Requested features
10 requests- Export data for external analysis (e.g., VO2max)
- Watch complications for Apple Watch
- Shortcuts for Apple Watch Ultra action button
- Option to pay monthly or on-the-go
- Add challenges to the app
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- Fix active calorie sync to Apple Fitness
- Add Heart Rate data within the app
- Include Heart Rate history in Apple Fitness transfer
- Update workout history without killing the app
- Apple Watch integration for heart rate monitoring
In-app purchases
Start Rowing
- Start Rowing Weekly$4.997 Days
- Premium Monthly$9.991 Month
- Premium Monthly2 variants$14.991 Month
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- Premium Yearly$79.991 Year
- Premium Yearly7 Days trial$79.991 Year
- Yearly Premium7 Days trial$99.991 Year
- Lifetime Access$179.99
Ergatta
No in-app purchases







