Comparison

Get Running vs Start Running For Beginners

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

Head to head
About

Get Running

This app guides users from a sedentary lifestyle to running a 5k in nine weeks with structured workouts. It offers human-like coaching, community support, and progress tracking to help users achieve their fitness goals.

Highlights
  • Couch to 5k running plan
  • Human voice coaching
  • Community forum support
  • Workout planning and scheduling
  • Run Clock for visibility
  • Music/podcast integration
  • Progress logging
Features
Read full description

Want to get fit and feel fantastic? Want to add some fresh air to your exercise? Then Get Running with the best Couch to 5k App! With three enjoyable workouts a week, in nine weeks you will be running continuously for half an hour, even if getting off the couch is a struggle today! Get Running breaks through the “beginning barrier” with its enormously popular Couch to 5k running plan. In week one’s workouts you'll alternate one minute of running with 90 seconds of walking. With each new week, Get Running’s human voice coach gradually builds up your pace, until you’re running for a whole half-hour! Get Running is the only Couch to 5K App that: • Coaches like a human – with hundreds of studio-recorded progress and encouragement prompts. • Supports and encourages you – talk with fellow running rookies on the Get Running forum. • Lets you share (NEW!) – share Get Running with up to three other runners: you all get your own log and settings! • Helps you plan – rest days help you recover, and Get Running knows the best day for your next run. • Displays your next move – the unique Run Clock, customised for each workout, gives complete visibility and understanding. In addition, Get Running: • Works with or without music. Or listen to podcasts and audio books. • Fits your schedule – just three workouts a week of 20 to 30 minutes. • Logs your achievements – with an illuminating visual record of your progress. Thousands of people have changed their lives with Get Running and you will too! Whether you’re running for your health, training for a 5K, or building to conquer a marathon — Get Running! Get Running's users say: • Just finished week 9 run 3 and all I can say is this app changed my life. Great job. • I LOVE your app. I have tried several but Yours is the BEST for me. I am 60 years young this year & a cancer survivor. I have set the goal to run 5 K races. I use your program as my trainer, it is SUPER. Thank You. – Vickie Wheeler by email • I tried the top selling "Couch to 5k" App before I purchased this one, and this one is much nicer to use. The voice reminders are very helpful. I like how it pauses your music instead of talking over it. I highly recommend it over the others. • Thank you so much for this little gem of an app. I had a look at others like it but this wins hands down. It is so brilliantly simple with a great interface. • Thank you! This app has changed my life. I was unfit and didn't do any regular exercise. I always blamed my asthma for being the reason I couldn't run for longer than a minute, but now I know it's because I was unfit! I have signed up for a 5k race too! – @amyriddett on Twitter • Really great app. I'm actually looking forward to running. I listen to podcasts and this app is terrific at pausing the show to make it's announcements. I don't miss anything that was said. Outstanding.

About

Start Running For Beginners

This app guides beginners into running with a structured plan designed to increase jogging time gradually. It offers personalized coaching, detailed tracking, and voice feedback to help users achieve their fitness goals, including weight loss.

Highlights
  • Personal running coach
  • Couch to 5K training plan
  • Distance, speed, and pace tracker
  • GPS route tracking
  • Calorie counter
  • Voice feedback
Features
Read full description

Taking up running? What could be easier! Don’t worry about distance, pace, or speed. Let's think about all this later. Listen to the instructions and run as you like. Don't focus on your running technique. The most important thing now is to get out and start running. Your goal is to increase the jogging time. Nothing else matters right now. Features: + Personal running coach + Couch to 5K (c25k) alternative training plan + Detailed statistics of each training + Distance, speed and pace tracker + GPS-route of every session + Built-in pedometer + Calorie counter + Custom workouts + Voice feedback + Sync with Apple Health The workout plan is split into 4 levels. Each level has a specific goal for jogging duration: • Level 1 goal is 20 minutes. • Level 2 goal is 30 minutes. • Level 3 goal is 40 minutes. • Level 4 goal is 60 minutes of running. Each level has a 4-weeks duration, and 3 workouts per week. Join us running! Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Get Running3 screens
Start Running For Beginners4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Start Running For Beginners at Free against Get Running's $2.99. Get Running's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 5) and rating (4.9 vs 4.7). On review sentiment, ratings volume, 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

Start Running For Beginners is free to download; Get Running costs $2.99 up front. Start Running For Beginners sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Get Running asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Get Running holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.2K and 2.1K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 96% of Get Running's written reviews are positive against 97% of Start Running For Beginners's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Get Running ships an update every 2 months, Start Running For Beginners every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Get Running versus Start Running For Beginners: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGet RunningStart Running For Beginners
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating4.9 (2.2K ratings) — better4.7 (2.1K ratings)
Positive reviews95.8% of reviews96.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2.2K — better2.1K
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, Apple Watch
Requires iOS9.3 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBenjohn BarnesAxiom Mobile LLC

Customer experience

Get Running

All ratings2,165 ratings
Positive98.3%
Neutral1.0%
Negative0.7%
Written reviews311 reviews
Positive95.8%
Neutral1.9%
Negative2.3%

Start Running For Beginners

All ratings2,063 ratings
Positive95.7%
Neutral2.9%
Negative1.4%
Written reviews1,330 reviews
Positive96.8%
Neutral2.1%
Negative1.1%

User reviews

Get Running

From 2.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Effective program
  • 💪 Helped get me running
  • 🙌 Motivational and encouraging
  • 🎉 Transformed me into a runner

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes or won't open
  • 🔍 Lacks Apple Watch compatibility
  • 🔢 No history or progress tracking

Start Running For Beginners

From 2.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Gradual progression
  • 💪 Helps build endurance
  • 🎧 Allows listening to music
  • 📈 Tracks progress

Room to improve

  • 🔊 Audio prompts can be difficult to hear
  • 🔒 Requires payment to unlock full features
  • 🧭 No treadmill mode
  • 🔄 Inability to repeat previous workouts

Bugs and requests

Get Running

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App crashes on launch
  • Freezes when switching music apps

Requested features

3 requests
  • Add 10K or half marathon training program
  • Integrate with fitness tracking apps/devices
  • Add GPS tracking and mapping

Start Running For Beginners

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Sync issues when changing devices
  • App crashes or freezes occasionally

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more customization options
  • Provide more detailed workout statistics
  • Integrate with fitness trackers
  • Offer more advanced training plans

In-app purchases

None

Get Running

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

Start Running For Beginners

Subscriptions2
  • Full Version$1.991 Month
  • Full Version$9.996 Months
One-time3
  • Full Version$1.99
  • Full version$4.99
  • Full version$19.99

Questions

Is Get Running free?
Get Running costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Start Running For Beginners free?
Start Running For Beginners is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Get Running or Start Running For Beginners?
Get Running is rated higher. Get Running averages 4.9 out of 5 from 2.2K ratings, while Start Running For Beginners averages 4.7 from 2.1K ratings.
Do Get Running or Start Running For Beginners have ads?
Neither Get Running nor Start Running For Beginners shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Get Running or Start Running For Beginners?
Get Running ships an update every 2 months, and Start Running For Beginners every 3 months. Most recently, Get Running was updated on October 19, 2026 and Start Running For Beginners on October 20, 2026.

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