GPS Running Tracker vs StartRunning
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
GPS Running Tracker
This app offers private and accurate GPS tracking for runs, jogs, and walks. It focuses on core running metrics and training features without social feeds or mandatory subscriptions. Enjoy detailed stats, personalized coaching, and a clean interface designed for runners of all levels.
- Accurate GPS distance, pace, and route mapping
- Live voice pace coaching
- Run/walk interval training
- Full run history with detailed analytics
- Personal best tracking
- Privacy-focused with on-device data storage
- HealthKit sync
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RunArc is the private, honest running tracker. Track every run, jog, walk, and trail with accurate GPS, live pace, and clean maps without subscriptions that cost more than your shoes. Built for real runners who want to log miles, not social feeds. Whether you're starting Couch to 5K, training for a marathon, or just jogging around the block, RunArc keeps your runs fast, private, and beautiful. GPS RUN TRACKING - Accurate GPS distance, pace, and route mapping - Live splits, stride, and elevation - Kalman-filter smoothing so pace stays stable - Treadmill support with step-based estimation - Real-time map view of your route TRAINING AND COACHING - Live voice pace coaching during runs - Run/walk interval training - Weekly challenges to push you further - Goal tracking for distance, pace, frequency - Badges for real milestones STATS AND HISTORY - Full run history with maps, splits, and pace charts - Weekly, monthly, yearly totals - Personal bests for 1K, 5K, 10K, half, and full marathon - Streak tracker - Detailed analytics per workout PRIVACY FIRST - Runs stay on your device by default - No social feed, no leaderboard pressure, no bloat - Optional private cloud sync, your backup, your choice - No route data shared with anyone HONEST PRICING - Free: full GPS tracking, stats, badges, challenges, history - Premium: streak freeze, cloud sync, GPX export, no ads - Monthly, annual, and lifetime plans available EVERY KIND OF RUN Jog in the park, walk the dog, hike a trail, run the treadmill, train for your first 5K, or prep for marathon. RunArc tracks them all with the same clean interface. APPLE ECOSYSTEM - HealthKit sync for runs, distance, calories - Live Activities on Lock Screen during runs - Home screen widgets for weekly stats - Dark-first design for day and night WHY RUNARC Most running apps are either bloated with social features you'll never use, or charge expensive subscriptions. RunArc is the opposite. Clean, fast, private, affordable. Just the run. Download RunArc and start tracking. Your runs, your data, your pace. --- Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://runningtracker-dbbf3.web.app/privacy.html
StartRunning
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From the couch to thirty minutes of continuous running in nine weeks. No experience needed, no gear, and no prior idea of what "interval training" means. StartRunning takes you through 27 workouts, three a week. Each one opens with five minutes of brisk walking and ends with five minutes of cooling down. In between, running and walking alternate โ at first one minute of running, ninety seconds of walking. By week nine you run for half an hour without stopping. WHAT GUIDES YOU โข Spoken coaching tells you when to run and when to walk. You never have to look at your phone. โข Tones and vibration for every change โ even with music in your ears and the phone in your pocket. โข A screen you can read in one second: one huge number, two buttons, nothing else. โข GPS records your route and works out distance, pace and kilometre splits. โข Your history shows every run with its map; the progress grid shows the whole plan at a glance. THREE LEVELS OF COACHING Voice and tones, vibration only, or nothing at all. Switchable mid-run โ for the day you run with someone and still want to feel the interval change. YOU SET THE PACE All 27 workouts can be started and repeated at any time. Nothing is locked, nothing pushes you. If a week feels too fast, run it again. If you end a workout early, the time you ran still counts โ only the plan doesn't move on. CUSTOM WORKOUTS You set total duration, run interval and walk break; the app works out the rest. For after the plan, or for the day you have something else in mind. WHAT THIS APP DOES NOT DO No ads. No subscription. No sign-up. No account. No tracking, no analytics, nothing shared with anyone. Your data stays on your device. What you export, you export yourself โ as a backup file or as GPX. If you want, the app writes your workouts to Apple Health; that is off by default. Training and all your data work completely offline. Only the map view loads tiles from the network. ACCESSIBILITY Every interval type is signalled by word, icon, colour and vibration pattern โ never by colour alone. The app holds up at triple system text size and respects the reduce-motion setting. WHAT IT COSTS The first 9 workouts are free โ about three weeks of training, with everything included. After that you unlock everything once: all three plans, custom workouts, for good. No subscription, no follow-up costs. Your history stays open either way, unlocked or not.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: GPS Running Tracker at weekly against StartRunning's fortnightly. StartRunning's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. GPS Running Tracker sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and StartRunning sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
GPS Running Tracker ships an update weekly, StartRunning fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | GPS Running Tracker | StartRunning |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Weekly โ better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | โ |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch โ better |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 15.0 โ better |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 42 MB | 29 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cengiz Darian Hanci | Patrick Engels-Kolodziej |
In-app purchases
GPS Running Tracker
- RunArc Premium โ Monthly$1.991 Month
- RunArc Premium โ 3 Months$4.693 Months
- RunArc Premium โ Annual7 Days trial$13.991 Year
- RunArc Premium - Lifetime$29.99
StartRunning
- StartRunning Lifetime$6.99
Questions
Is GPS Running Tracker free?
Is StartRunning free?
Do GPS Running Tracker or StartRunning have ads?
Which is updated more often, GPS Running Tracker or StartRunning?
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