Comparison

OpenHIIT vs Ares

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

Head to head
About

OpenHIIT

This open-source interval timer app helps optimize various activities like workouts, work sprints, and study sessions. It offers customizable timing, precise controls, and clear auditory and visual alerts to keep you motivated and on track. Users can also join a collaborative community to contribute to its development.

Highlights
  • Customizable interval timing
  • Precise and user-friendly controls
  • Auditory and visual alerts
  • Open-source community collaboration
  • Ad-free experience
Features
Read full description

Enhance your daily routines with OpenHIIT, the versatile open-source interval timer app. Tailored for various activities, including but not limited to High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), OpenHIIT is a dynamic tool designed to optimize your tasks and foster a collaborative environment. OpenHIIT is free of ads and committed to providing an experience without in-app purchases or premium versions. Customizable Timing: Set intervals tailored to your preferences, whether it's for focused workouts, work sprints, or study sessions. Adapt OpenHIIT to your needs and make the most of your time. Precise Timing and User-Friendly Controls: Enjoy seamless sessions with accurate timing and intuitive controls. OpenHIIT ensures precision in intervals, allowing you to concentrate on your activities without disruptions. Stay in sync and maintain a steady pace throughout your tasks. Auditory and Visual Alerts: Stay informed and motivated with clear audio and visual alerts. OpenHIIT provides signals and indicators, keeping you aware of time changes without the need to glance at your device constantly. Keep your momentum going and stay on track. Open Source Collaboration: Join the collaborative spirit and become part of the OpenHIIT open-source community. Contribute to the app's development, suggest improvements, and share your ideas with users from various backgrounds. Together, we can shape the evolution of interval timers for diverse activities. Download OpenHIIT now to experience the flexibility and efficiency of an open-source interval timer. Take charge of your sessions, boost your productivity, and explore the full potential of OpenHIIT in various aspects of your daily life. Note: OpenHIIT is a project led by one individual with contributions from the community. Committed to quality and alignment with platform policies, OpenHIIT respects intellectual property rights.

About

Ares

This app provides a customizable interval timer for various workouts like HIIT, Tabata, yoga, and stretching. It features real-time heart rate zone tracking with Apple Watch integration and allows users to create and save unlimited training sessions and workout sets. Voice cues guide users through workouts, ensuring focus remains on exercise.

Highlights
  • Customizable interval timer
  • HIIT, Tabata, Yoga, Stretch modes
  • Apple Watch control and heart rate zones
  • Unlimited training session saving
  • Workout set creation
  • Voice and sound cues
  • Training history tracking
Features
Read full description

An interval timer that does the counting for you. Set rounds, work and rest in seconds, and Ares guides you by voice through the whole workout: HIIT, Tabata, EMOM, AMRAP, circuits, yoga, stretching and mobility. Heart rate from Apple Watch or earbuds, your workout on the Lock Screen, no ads. INTERVAL TIMER • Work time, rest time and number of rounds, down to the second • Left/Right mode times each side for you. Perfect for stretching, yoga and exercises done one side at a time • Countdown before you start, the option to begin with a warmup and an optional final rest • Pin favorite workouts to the Home Screen and repeat your last one with a single tap WORKOUTS, SETS AND EXERCISES • Save as many workouts as you like, each with its own name and icon, and edit or duplicate them anytime • Workout sets: rounds, custom rests between workouts, edit straight from the list • Exercise library, expanded regularly • Exercise names read aloud during your workout HEART RATE: APPLE WATCH AND EARBUDS • Control your workout from your wrist: pause, skip, resume • Live heart rate and heart rate zones on Apple Watch and iPhone • Heart rate from earbuds too, no watch needed, even on iPad: AirPods Pro 3, Powerbeats Pro 2 or newer (iOS and iPadOS 26 or later) • Train with just your watch: put a workout on Apple Watch and leave your iPhone at home • Calories tracked in every workout • Automatic sync with Apple Health ALWAYS AT HAND • Your workout on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island, with a timer and a pause button, no unlocking needed • Widgets for the Home Screen and the Lock Screen • Keeps running with the screen locked and never stops your music, it just turns it down for voice cues • A big, clear timer on iPad that you can read from across the room PROGRESS AND HISTORY • Heart rate chart for every workout: work and rest with the average heart rate of each phase • Weekly trends for number of workouts and training time • Calendar, list and details of every workout • Weekly streak: one workout a week keeps it alive • A reminder when your streak is at risk, at most once a week Privacy Policy: https://ares.eris.one/privacy-policy/ License Agreement (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

OpenHIIT2 screens
Ares4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: OpenHIIT at none against Ares's 3. OpenHIIT also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.6). Ares's advantage is ratings volume (25 vs 8). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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. Ares sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. OpenHIIT asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for OpenHIIT against 5.0 for Ares. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 25 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OpenHIIT ships an update monthly, Ares fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
OpenHIIT versus Ares: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOpenHIITAres
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (8 ratings)5.0 (25 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings825 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS13.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB112 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAbigail MabeKrzysztof Orlowski

Customer experience

OpenHIIT

All ratings7 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Ares

All ratings25 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

OpenHIIT

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Ares

Subscriptions2
  • Ares Plus$1.991 Month
  • Ares Plus$9.991 Year
One-time1
  • Ares Plus Forever$24.99

Questions

Is OpenHIIT free?
OpenHIIT is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Ares free?
Ares is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, OpenHIIT or Ares?
OpenHIIT and Ares are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 8 and 25 ratings respectively.
Do OpenHIIT or Ares have ads?
Neither OpenHIIT nor Ares shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OpenHIIT or Ares?
OpenHIIT ships an update monthly, and Ares fortnightly. Most recently, OpenHIIT was updated on October 7, 2026 and Ares on October 14, 2026.

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