ScanLift vs Pace Buddy
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
ScanLift
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ScanLift makes tracking your gym workouts effortless. Simply point your camera at any machine and ScanLift instantly recognizes it โ no more searching through lists or typing exercise names. Register your gym machines once with a photo. Next time you work out, just scan the machine and log your sets, weights and reps in seconds. Decimal weights like 80.5 kg are fully supported. Each machine can be tagged with one or more muscle groups โ such as chest, back and shoulders at once โ so your training overview always reflects how you actually train. Track weight, reps and volume for every exercise and follow your strength development over time with clear charts showing weight, volume and reps โ by week, month, year or all time. Personal records are highlighted automatically so you always know when you hit a new PR. ScanLift is a one-time purchase with no subscription required.
Pace Buddy
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Set a goal. Get a plan. Let your watch coach every run. Pace Buddy answers one question every day: why run today? You pick a goal โ a 5K, a 10K, a half, a marathon, or just the habit of running more โ and Pace Buddy turns it into a training plan where each day is the next step toward it. Your progress is always in front of you. Then your Apple Watch takes over. It runs each workout hands-free, guiding you by voice. Leave your phone at home. WHAT IT DOES โข Goal to plan. Choose a race or a habit and get a training plan built around it, laid out day by day. โข Your watch coaches you. Pace, heart rate, distance, and the current step on screen โ and in your ears. Pace Buddy speaks each step change, a heads-up before the next one, the halfway point, and every split with its pace. โข Pace nudges. On a pace-target run it tells you when you drift โ speed up, ease off โ and when you're back on. โข Fully offline on the watch. No phone, no signal needed. Cues play over the watch speaker, AirPods, or any Bluetooth headphones. โข Saved to Apple Health. Every run is saved as a workout with its route and an effort score, so it counts toward your rings. โข Paces that fit you. Your targets come from your recent 5K time โ type it in, pick a run from Health, or run the built-in 5K time trial. Run a faster 5K and Pace Buddy offers to update the rest of your plan. โข Just want to run? Quick Start gives you an easy run, a long run, a tempo, intervals, or a fartlek with no setup at all. โข Stays in step. Reminders on training days, a watch-face complication, the Smart Stack, and "ask Siri for today's run." Your plan lives in your own iCloud and reaches your watch automatically. NO LOCK-IN No account. No subscription. Your identity is your own iCloud, your health data stays in Apple Health, and a plan someone shares with you opens straight in the app. Pace Buddy is the coach โ the goal and the plan are yours. The run itself needs an Apple Watch: live GPS, heart rate, and voice coaching all happen on your wrist.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Pace Buddy at every 2 weeks against ScanLift's monthly. Pace Buddy also leads on device support (3 vs 1). ScanLift's advantage is iOS requirement (18 vs 26.6). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ScanLift ships an update monthly, Pace Buddy every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ScanLift | Pace Buddy |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 2 weeks โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch โ better |
| Requires iOS | 18 โ better | 26.6 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 7 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Christian Alfredsson | Marcello Mascia |
In-app purchases
ScanLift
No in-app purchases
Pace Buddy
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is ScanLift free?
Is Pace Buddy free?
Do ScanLift or Pace Buddy have ads?
Which is updated more often, ScanLift or Pace Buddy?
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