Comparison

Session vs Round Timer

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

Head to head
About

Session

This minimalist timer is designed for focused interval training. Quickly set work, rest, and round durations for boxing, HIIT, and circuit workouts. Stay on track with clear countdowns and audio cues.

Highlights
  • Simple round timer interface
  • Adjustable work, rest, and rounds
  • Optional warm-up timer
  • Audio bells for round cues
  • Clear countdown display
  • Distraction-free design
Features
Read full description

SESSION is a minimalist interval timer designed for real training. No clutter. No complicated setup. Just start your rounds and focus on the workout. Perfect for: • Boxing • Muay Thai • HIIT • Circuit training • Strength intervals • Home workouts SESSION lets you quickly set work time, rest time, and rounds so you can stay focused inside the round. FEATURES • Simple round timer interface • Adjustable work, rest, and rounds • Optional warm-up timer • Audio cues for work and rest intervals • Clear countdown display • Clean, distraction-free design Whether you're training in the gym, garage, or at home, SESSION keeps your workout structured and focused. Start the round. Stay in the round.

About

Round Timer

Features
Read full description

Stop fumbling with complicated timers and start your workout in seconds. Get clear interval cues, a big easy-to-read countdown, and a round timer that keeps pace without breaking your flow. Round Timer: HIIT & Tabata helps you start, run, and track interval workouts on iPhone. Built for people who want to drop the phone, glance once, and keep moving, this HIIT timer focuses on quick starts and clear feedback. The GO card always launches your most recent workout, so your usual Tabata timer or interval timer is never more than one tap away. When a workout is running, the Live Activity and Lock Screen card keep the current phase, time left, and controls in view, and you can pause, skip, or stop from there. If you train with music, voice cues speak over your audio and then your music returns to normal volume. That makes it handy for Tabata abs while watching TV, sprint repeats at the track, or boxing rounds in the gym. • Start your last workout instantly from the GO card on Quick Start. • Pick from built-in presets including Classic Tabata, Beginner HIIT, EMOM 10, AMRAP 20, Boxing Rounds, and Sprint Intervals. • Build custom workouts with your own work, rest, rounds, get ready, and cooldown times. • Choose a protocol like Tabata, HIIT, EMOM, AMRAP, Circuit, Rounds, Sprint, or Custom. • Add per-round labels so voice cues can say Burpees or Push-ups instead of a generic work prompt. • See a giant full-screen countdown with color changes for work, rest, prep, cooldown, and finish. • Keep the next step in view with the UP NEXT preview and the round counter. • Control a session with large Restart, Play or Pause, and Skip buttons. • Let a saved workout start a playlist from your music library automatically and stop it when the workout ends. • Keep cues going when the screen locks, with optional haptics on every phase change. • Check History for this week, total time, streak, and session details, then share or delete a session. • Start from Home Screen, Lock Screen, Control Center, or a shortcut for even faster access. It fits real training moments. Start Classic Tabata for a quick core set, throw together a Circuit for class, run EMOM 10 in a garage gym, use Sprint Intervals for repeats, or keep Boxing Rounds visible from across the room. If you want one clean workout record instead of a pile of tiny entries, Pro can save each completed session to Apple Health as a single workout. The free version lets you save up to 3 custom workouts. Pro removes that limit and adds Apple Health saving for completed sessions. Music access is only needed if you want to play a playlist from your library, and Health access is only needed if you choose to save workouts there. Pick a preset, tap GO, and turn your iPhone into a clear, dependable HIIT timer for Tabata, EMOM, AMRAP, boxing rounds, and more. Terms of Use (EULA) - http://www.apple.com/legal/itunes/appstore/dev/stdeula

Screenshots

Session4 screens
Round Timer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Session at none against Round Timer's 3. Session also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 26.0). On price, update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Round Timer sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Session asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Session versus Round Timer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSessionRound Timer
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (8 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings8 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size37 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperShane LandrySandeep Bhandari

In-app purchases

None

Session

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Round Timer

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Weekly$4.997 Days
  • Pro Annual7 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Forever Pro$99.99

Questions

Is Session free?
Session is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Round Timer free?
Round Timer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Session or Round Timer have ads?
Round Timer shows ads; Session does not.
Which is updated more often, Session or Round Timer?
Session ships an update every 2 months, and Round Timer every 2 months. Most recently, Session was updated on October 11, 2026 and Round Timer on October 19, 2026.

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