OpenHIIT vs Surge
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- Customizable interval timing
- Precise and user-friendly controls
- Auditory and visual alerts
- Open-source community collaboration
- Ad-free experience
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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.
Surge
This interval timer app supports various workout styles like HIIT, Tabata, and boxing rounds. It offers customizable work/rest periods, round counts, and presets, with clear audio and haptic cues to guide your training without needing to watch the clock.
- Customizable work and rest periods
- Adjustable round counts
- Pre-set workout modes (HIIT, Tabata, Boxing)
- Audio and haptic cues
- Save custom workout presets
- Glanceable countdown timer
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Surge is a beautifully designed interval timer for HIIT, Tabata, boxing rounds, EMOM and any circuit-style workout — at home, in the gym or ringside. Pay once and it's yours forever. No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, no ads — every feature included. Set your work and rest, pick your rounds and press play — Surge calls every phase with beeps and haptics, so you train bell to bell without watching the clock. ROUNDS READY TO GO • Tabata — 20s work / 10s rest × 8 rounds • HIIT — 40s work / 20s rest × 10 rounds • Boxing — 3:00 rounds with 1:00 rest × 6 • EMOM — 60-second intervals × 10 • Stretch — 30s holds / 10s rest × 12 • Edit any built-in preset to match your training YOUR WORKOUT, YOUR RULES • Work from 5 seconds to 10 minutes, rest up to 5 minutes • 1–50 rounds, with an optional preparation countdown • Save up to 20 presets with custom names and icons • Skip a phase mid-workout; the screen stays awake to the final bell • A large, glanceable countdown with an animated progress ring BUILT RIGHT • Pay once, own it for life — the price you see is everything • No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, no upsells • No ads, ever • Megabytes, not gigabytes — no ad libraries, no analytics SDKs, nothing that isn't the app itself • No account and no data collection — your presets never leave your device • Designed for iPhone and iPad Download Surge and let every round run itself.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: OpenHIIT at Free against Surge's $2.99. OpenHIIT also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (9 vs 1). On rating, 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
OpenHIIT is free to download; Surge costs $2.99 up front. Surge sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. OpenHIIT asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for OpenHIIT against 5.0 for Surge. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: OpenHIIT has 9 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
OpenHIIT ships an update monthly, Surge fortnightly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | OpenHIIT | Surge |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $2.99 |
| Rating | 5.0 (9 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 9 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 26 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Abigail Mabe | Matthew Avery |
Customer experience
OpenHIIT
Surge
In-app purchases
OpenHIIT
No in-app purchases
Surge
- Surge Pro$0.99









