IntervalForge vs SumCha
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
IntervalForge
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Giant 72pt digits you can read from across the gym. Live countdown on your Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. Pay once, keep it forever — no subscription. Built for HIIT, Tabata, circuits and strength training. The whole screen turns red for work and green for rest, so one glance tells you what to do next. READY IN ONE TAP Three presets are included: Tabata (20s/10s × 8), HIIT 30/15 and a 3-exercise Circuit. Pick one and go. QUICK REST TIMER FOR LIFTING — NEW Between sets, one tap starts a 60, 90, 120 or 180-second rest. No setup needed. SIRI, SHORTCUTS & CONTROL CENTER — NEW Start a workout or a rest timer with Siri, a Shortcut or a Control Center button. The new Home Screen widget quick-starts your favorite workouts or a rest timer. LOCK SCREEN & DYNAMIC ISLAND Live Activity shows the running countdown without opening the app — free for everyone. KEEPS RUNNING IN THE BACKGROUND Lock your phone or switch apps: the timer keeps going and notifications mark every interval change. Your music is lowered, not stopped. BUILD YOUR OWN WORKOUT Set work and rest times, sets, rest between sets and an exercise name for each interval. Total time remaining is always on screen. Workout history and a weekly summary keep you consistent. PRO — ONE-TIME PURCHASE No monthly fees, ever. Pro is a single purchase that unlocks: - Unlimited custom workouts - Editable presets - Voice guidance: hear each exercise, set and a 10-second warning without looking at your phone (NEW) The free version includes all 3 presets and 1 custom workout. FEATURES - No subscription — buy Pro once - 72pt full-screen display, color-coded work/rest - Live Activity on Lock Screen & Dynamic Island (free) - Quick rest timer: 60/90/120/180s (free) - Siri, Shortcuts & Control Center (free) - Home Screen widget: quick-start favorites or a rest timer (free) - Reliable background timer with notifications - Plays nicely with your music - 3-second countdown and haptics - Exercise names per interval - Workout history & weekly summary - Screen stays awake during workouts Questions or ideas? Leave a review or contact us from the support page.
SumCha
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Pick, tap, run. A simple, clean interval running app. · Choose a program like 2 min run / 1 min walk and just tap start · The running screen puts the current interval and time left up front, big and clear · Voice, haptics, and a 3-2-1 countdown tell you when intervals change · Apple Watch: wrist haptics and voice cues for every interval, and race your last run (Pro, 3 free runs) · Pacemaker to run alongside your past runs, and a leaderboard that calls out new records · Build your own: warm-up, run, walk, repeats, cool-down · When a set ends you keep going as a free run, or add one more set · Start, pause, and end from the Lock Screen, Dynamic Island, widgets, and Control Center · Auto-pause when you stop, resume when you run · Distance, pace, and calories (uphill included), weekly/monthly/yearly summaries, and your route on a map · Findings and detailed analysis show how your running is trending (Pro) · Save your runs to Apple Health as running workouts · Sync your history across your devices through your own iCloud (the developer can't see it) Free to use, with no ads on the running screen. One purchase removes ads, or go Pro for Apple Watch and Insights too.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: IntervalForge at none against SumCha's shown. SumCha's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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
Both are free to download. IntervalForge sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and SumCha sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
IntervalForge ships an update every 3 weeks, SumCha weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | IntervalForge | SumCha |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 2 MB | 10 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Shuto Nishiyama | Iksang Hwang |
In-app purchases
IntervalForge
- IntervalForge Pro$2.99
SumCha
- Remove Ads$1.99
- SumCha Pro$3.99
- SumCha Pro$5.99
Questions
Is IntervalForge free?
Is SumCha free?
Do IntervalForge or SumCha have ads?
Which is updated more often, IntervalForge or SumCha?
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