Comparison

EXR | Virtual indoor rowing vs Staka

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

Head to head
About

EXR | Virtual indoor rowing

Connect your rowing machine to explore virtual worlds and boost your fitness. Engage in challenges, races, and minigames to achieve your goals and compete globally. Analyze your performance with detailed reports and sync your data with popular fitness platforms.

Highlights
  • Row in virtual worlds
  • Beat challenges and goals
  • Race against global users
  • Play minigames
  • Analyze performance reports
  • Sync with Strava and TrainingPeaks
  • Connect FTMS Bluetooth rowers
Features
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Connect your rowing machine to row in virtual worlds. Boost your motivation as you beat challenges, crush goals and race to become #1. Row more than ever before with EXR! ___ Download the virtual indoor rowing app created by the award-winning game development studio Salty Lemon Entertainment. BOOST YOUR WORKOUT MOTIVATION - Explore real rowing hotspots and new courses - Beat daily, weekly and monthly challenges - Create and crush custom goals - Unlock achievements - Level up to unlock gear for your avatar SPICE UP YOUR ROWING ROUTINE - Row alongside friends at your own pace in Just Row - Race against rowers from all across the globe - Compete against your PR with ghost boats - Play minigames and become #1 TRAIN LIKE A CHAMP - Find out your FTP score with the ramp test and the 20-minute test - 100+ workouts based on your fitness level and 3 difficulty levels - Workouts created by the trainer of ex-indoor rowing champion Ward Lemmelijn ANALYZE & SHARE YOUR PROGRESS - Analyze your performance with detailed reports - Sync to Concept2 logbook, TrainingPeaks and Strava. - Visit your EXR web profile to download your workout data as FIT files for manual uploads. EASILY CONNECT YOUR GEAR - Connect your FTMS Bluetooth rowing machine in a few clicks. - Add your heart rate monitor for extra data (compatible with Apple Health). - Use EXR cross-platform on your favorite Apple devices. JOIN ONE OF THE BIGGEST VIRTUAL ROWING COMMUNITIES - “Never rowed as much in a period as I have with EXR.” - “I really like the Buoy Blast minigame! Real motivator for sprint rowing.” - “Works great and excellent motivator, customer service is great also.” - “I love all of the data the app collects and how easy it is to use.” - “EXR is the best app I have used and I think I have tried most of them. Absolutely love it.” GET STARTED IN 3 QUICK STEPS 1. Download the EXR app now on your iPhone, iPad, MacBook and Apple TV. 2. Enjoy a risk-free 14-day free trial by creating your free EXR account. 3. Connect your rowing machine and heart rate monitor and you’re ready to start your virtual rowing journey! A subscription is required after the 14 day trial period EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Staka

This app allows you to ski real trails on your SkiErg machine. Compete for top ranks, explore at your own pace, and follow guided workouts designed for nordic skiers. Track your power, pace, and heart rate to improve your performance.

Highlights
  • Virtual trail skiing
  • Competitive racing
  • Guided nordic workouts
  • Performance tracking
  • FTP testing
  • Free to use
Features
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But someone else may be faster than you. Compete for KOMs. Free ski. Race to improve your rank. FREE SKI Explore the trail network at your own pace, or chase the segment records. WORKOUTS The sessions nordic skiers actually do. Intensity 1, threshold intervals and sprints, guided on screen with power targets based on your FTP. Find yours with a 20-minute test. TRAIN Every session ends with the numbers. Power, pace, heart rate zones and your peak efforts. RACE About ten minutes per race. Run them back to back like intervals to improve your rank. Races go off every 15 mins. Staka is free. WHAT YOU NEED A SkiErg, and an iPhone or iPad. A heart rate strap is optional.

Screenshots

EXR | Virtual indoor rowing4 screens
Staka4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Staka at 5.0 against EXR | Virtual indoor rowing's 4.5. Staka also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (100% vs 66%). EXR | Virtual indoor rowing's advantage is ratings volume (298 vs 6) and device support (5 vs 2). On price, update cadence and ads 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. EXR | Virtual indoor rowing sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $14.95 per month. Staka asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Staka holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: EXR | Virtual indoor rowing has 298 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of EXR | Virtual indoor rowing's written reviews are positive against 100% of Staka's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
EXR | Virtual indoor rowing versus Staka: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEXR | Virtual indoor rowingStaka
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (298 ratings)5.0 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.2% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings298 — better6
Update frequencyFortnightlyFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size921 MB256 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperSalty Lemon EntertainmentStaka, LLC

Customer experience

EXR | Virtual indoor rowing

All ratings298 ratings
Positive88.6%
Neutral3.0%
Negative8.4%
Written reviews222 reviews
Positive66.2%
Neutral8.6%
Negative25.2%

Staka

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

EXR | Virtual indoor rowing

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Account creation and login issues
  • Frequent crashes and freezes
  • Inaccurate data sync with Concept2
  • Incompatibility with certain devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Live multiplayer races
  • More training programs and maps
  • Customizable workout editor
  • Age-based leaderboards
  • 360-degree live footage

Staka

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

EXR | Virtual indoor rowing

Subscriptions3
  • EXR (1 Month)$14.951 Month
  • EXR (6 Months)$65.906 Months
  • EXR (1 Year)$119.991 Year
None

Staka

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is EXR | Virtual indoor rowing free?
EXR | Virtual indoor rowing is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Staka free?
Staka is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, EXR | Virtual indoor rowing or Staka?
Staka is rated higher. EXR | Virtual indoor rowing averages 4.5 out of 5 from 298 ratings, while Staka averages 5.0 from 6 ratings.
Do EXR | Virtual indoor rowing or Staka have ads?
Neither EXR | Virtual indoor rowing nor Staka shows ads.
Which is updated more often, EXR | Virtual indoor rowing or Staka?
EXR | Virtual indoor rowing ships an update fortnightly, and Staka fortnightly. Most recently, EXR | Virtual indoor rowing was updated on November 7, 2026 and Staka on November 5, 2026.

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