Runked vs Strava
Strava is the running (and cycling, and swimming, and hiking) social network: segments, routes, heatmaps and a huge feed of other people's activities, on iPhone, Android and the web. Runked is a rank and training layer for iPhone: your Runk climbs or falls with real training load, weekly leagues are scored on effort so a beginner's honest week can beat a faster runner's easy one, and training plans ship inside every PRO tier instead of being sold separately. If you want a running community, pick Strava. If you want to know how good you're actually getting, pick Runked. A lot of runners use both.
Runked vs Strava at a glance
| Runked | Strava | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, or PRO $59.99/yr (7-day trial) · $11.99/wk | Free, or Premium $79.99/yr (30-day trial) · $11.99/mo |
| Free tier | GPS tracking, running rank, weekly leagues, streaks, device sync | Unlimited activity tracking, social feed, clubs, basic routes, top-10 segment leaderboard |
| Platforms | iPhone only (iOS 17+) | iOS, Android, web |
| Tracking | GPS running tracking, plus Garmin/Apple Health import | GPS tracking across many sports — running, cycling, swimming, hiking and more |
| Training plans | Personalized 5K–marathon plans, included in PRO | Structured running & cycling plans, Premium only |
| Race predictions | Included in PRO | Performance predictions, Premium only |
| Ranking/progression | Skill rank, Bronze→Olympian across 20 tiers; can fall | No overall skill rank — per-route segment leaderboards and kudos |
| Leagues/competition | Weekly leagues scored on effort, fair to beginners | Segments and challenges reward raw pace or distance, not adjusted for fitness |
| Social | League leaderboards only; no public activity feed | Large athlete network: feed, kudos, comments, clubs, following |
| Device sync | Garmin Connect, Apple Health | Syncs from nearly every GPS watch and platform |
| Languages | English only | 24+ languages |
Where Strava wins
Strava's biggest advantage is scale: a huge base of athletes, so segments, clubs and the feed actually have people in them. Its segment leaderboards turn any stretch of road into a leaderboard, which Runked has no equivalent for. It covers multi-sport activity beyond running — cycling, swimming, hiking, and more — in a single log, and it runs on iPhone, Android and the web, so it doesn't lock out anyone's platform. Route building and heatmaps, built from the aggregate of everyone's runs in an area, are genuinely useful for finding new routes, and that's a Premium feature Runked doesn't have at all. Strava has also had over a decade to build all of this out; Runked is a young app by comparison, still building its feature set.
Where Runked wins
Runked replaces Strava's kudos and segment times with a skill rank that moves with your actual training, not with who happened to run the same road as you. Its weekly leagues are scored on effort adjusted for personal fitness, so a beginner's disciplined week can outrank a faster runner's coasting week — something segment leaderboards can't do, since they reward pace alone. Training plans, race predictions and load analytics ship inside Runked PRO at one price; Strava sells its plans and insights as part of a separate Premium subscription with no running-specific tier. And Runked has no public feed to keep up with — no pressure to post, no scrolling past everyone else's runs.
Which should you pick
- Pick Strava if you want a running community, ride or swim too, need Android or web, or want segment leaderboards and route heatmaps.
- Pick Runked if you're on iPhone, want a rank that reflects real effort instead of kudos, want weekly competition that's fair to beginners, or want training plans and race predictions bundled into one subscription.
- Use both if you want Strava's social feed and Runked's rank and leagues — both can read the same Garmin or Apple Health data, so there's no double-tracking.
Find out where you stand
Runked is free on the App Store. Connect your watch or track 3 runs, and meet your Runk.
Download on App StoreFrequently asked questions
Is Runked a Strava replacement?
Not really. Strava is a social network for logging and sharing every kind of activity, with segments, routes and a huge following graph. Runked is a rank and training layer focused on running, with effort-scored leagues and included training plans. Most people who switch to Runked keep Strava too, or just stop needing it for running specifically.
Can I use both?
Yes. Runked syncs from Garmin Connect and Apple Health, both of which Strava can also read from, so the same run posts to your Strava feed and updates your Runked rank without double-tracking.
Which is better for beginners?
Depends what's discouraging. If it's not knowing anyone to compete with, Strava's segments and clubs give instant community. If it's competing against people already fast, Runked's leagues score effort adjusted for personal fitness, so a beginner's honest week can outscore a faster runner's easy one.
Which is free?
Both have real free tiers. Strava's covers unlimited tracking, the social feed, clubs and a top-10 segment leaderboard. Runked's covers GPS tracking, running rank, weekly leagues, streaks and device sync. Training plans and race predictions need Strava Premium or Runked PRO.