Free Apps Like Liftoff: Ranked Gym Apps Compared

Liftoff made gym ranks popular: you log a set, the app turns it into a rank, and you climb a leaderboard. It's fun, and it's a real reason people keep going to the gym. But a lot of lifters open it, hit a subscription screen and go looking for something free.

We checked each app's own App Store and Google Play listing on November 1, 2026, so this guide sticks to what the stores actually say about what's free.

The short answer: Liftoff itself is free to download, and you can use it without paying. The closest free alternatives are Odyssey (free logging, exercise ranks and leaderboards; muscle ranks are Pro) and Liftly (free unlimited logging, PRs and estimated 1RM charts; muscle ranks from Newbie to GOAT are Pro). GymLevels looks similar but needs a subscription for everything. If you only want to log lifts, Hevy and Strong have solid free plans.

Apps like Liftoff, compared

Hevy's and Strong's free limits come from our best free gym apps check in October 2026 (Hevy: 4 routines, 3 months of graphs; Strong: 3 routines).

Is Liftoff free?

Yes, it's free to download and both store listings show it as free with in-app purchases. Its listing says you get feedback on 600+ exercises, can track progress, and compete with friends and on global leaderboards. It also has streaks, quests, a shop with in-app rewards, and an Apple Watch app.

What the listing doesn't do is spell out which features need Liftoff Pro. One reviewer describes a subscription screen at the start that you can close, and others say they pay for extras. So the honest answer to "is Liftoff free?" is: the core app is, and you'll only know exactly what's locked once you're in it.

If you're happy with Liftoff's free plan, you don't need an alternative. People usually switch for one of three reasons:

• They want ranks per muscle, not just per exercise, to see what's lagging.
• They want a calmer tracker without quests, a shop and daily deals.
• They hit a paywall on a feature they wanted.

The free alternatives, one by one

Odyssey: closest to Liftoff

Odyssey calls itself a ranked gym tracker and ranks your strength across 400+ exercises. Its listing is unusually clear about the split: logging, custom plans, an automatic rest timer, auto progressions and PR cards are free. The Body Graph, muscle ranks and unlimited rank history are Pro. It has global leaderboards for full-body and exercise ranks and a friend feed.

Good for: people who like Liftoff's competitive side but want a simpler app. The catch: per-muscle ranks are paid, and it's young (a few hundred ratings on each store).

Liftly: tracking first, with muscle ranks

Liftly is a workout tracker first. Logging is free and unlimited, works offline, and when you open an exercise it fills in last session's weight, shows last time's reps as hints, and flags a PR when you beat one. It estimates your 1RM from any set and charts it for every lift, so you can see progress without testing a max.

Liftly Pro adds a rank for every muscle (chest, back, legs, shoulders, arms and more), on an 11-step ladder from Newbie to GOAT, plus next-workout weight targets and deeper analytics. Free users see their ranks blurred. How gym ranks work shows the full math and every threshold.

Good for: lifters who want a proper log and use ranks to find their weak muscle. The catch: the free plan shows ads, and muscle ranks are Pro.

GymLevels: not free

GymLevels looks like a Liftoff alternative: XP, streaks, 17 muscle groups each ranked from Untrained to Legend. But its listing says every feature needs an active free trial or subscription. If free is the point, skip it.

Hevy and Strong: free trackers without the game

If the rank was never the main draw and you just want to log lifts fast, Hevy and Strong are two of the most popular trackers and both let you log unlimited workouts for free. Neither is built around a rank ladder like Liftoff. Compare their free limits in best free gym apps, or see free vs paid workout apps if you're deciding whether to pay.

What rank would your sets get?

Every ranking app has its own ladder, so a set that's "Gold" in one app is a different name in another. They're all built on the same idea though: estimate your one-rep max, divide it by your bodyweight, and look the ratio up on a ladder.

Here's what six common sets score on Liftly's ladder at four bodyweights. We ran each set through Liftly's own ranking code (estimated 1RM with the Epley formula, weight × (1 + reps ÷ 30), divided by bodyweight). Ratios are shown rounded down, so they never look higher than they are.

Two things jump out:

• Bodyweight matters a lot. The same 135 × 10 bench is Semi-Pro II at 140 lb and Lifter I at 200 lb. That's why every ranking app asks for your weight, and why your rank can change when you cut or bulk.
• The muscle score is a blend. In Liftly, a muscle's rank uses all its logged exercises (with 3 or more, it's the top-3 average × 0.7 plus the all-exercise average × 0.3). We left deadlifts out of this table because your back rank blends them with rows and pull-downs; a deadlift on its own reads much higher than your back score will.

Worked example: from Lifter III to Semi-Pro

Say you weigh 160 lb and bench 135 × 10. That's an estimated 180 lb max, a 1.12× ratio, and Lifter III. Semi-Pro I starts at 1.13×, which at 160 lb means an estimated max of 180.8 lb. You're less than 1 lb short.

Two ways to get there next session:

1. One more rep: 135 × 11 = 1.15× → Semi-Pro I.
2. Five more pounds: 140 × 10 = 1.16× → Semi-Pro I.

This is the part of rank apps that actually helps you get stronger: they turn "do more than last time" into a target you can see. It's progressive overload with a scoreboard.

How to rank your lifts for free, without any app

If you'd rather not install anything, you can do the same math in a spreadsheet. Our free workout log template already has an estimated 1RM column. Add your bodyweight, a rank ladder and two formulas.

First, copy the ladder for the lift you're ranking into two spare columns: the numbers in K1:K11 and the rank names in L1:L11. These are the ratios where each of Liftly's ranks starts (tier I).

Then, in any sheet with weight in column B, reps in C, and your bodyweight in cell H1:

• Estimated 1RM (D2): =B2*(1+C2/30)
• Ratio (E2): =D2/$H$1
• Rank (F2): =IFERROR(LOOKUP(E2, $K$1:$K$11, $L$1:$L$11), "Newbie")

Units don't matter as long as your lift and bodyweight use the same one.

The spreadsheet gives you the base rank. What it can't do easily is the rest: tiers, blending several exercises per muscle, updating as your bodyweight changes, and showing every muscle side by side. That's what a ranking app automates.

How to pick

• You love Liftoff's game side (streaks, quests, leaderboards): stay on Liftoff's free plan, or try Odyssey for a lighter version.
• You want to see which muscle is behind: that needs per-muscle ranks, which are Pro in both Odyssey and Liftly. Start free, log a couple of weeks, then decide.
• You care most about the log itself: Liftly, Hevy or Strong. See which one fills in your last session fastest.
• You want $0 and no ads: Hevy's free plan has no ads; Liftly's and Jefit's do.

Whatever you choose, log real workouts for a week before judging. For targets on the big lifts, see how strong am I for my weight.

FAQ

Is there a free app like Liftoff?

Yes. Odyssey and Liftly both rank your lifts and let you log unlimited workouts for free. Odyssey's per-muscle ranks and Liftly's muscle ranks (Newbie to GOAT) are part of their Pro plans. Liftoff itself is also free to download and use.

Is Liftoff free or paid?

Liftoff is free to download with in-app purchases. Its App Store and Google Play listings don't say which features need Liftoff Pro, so check inside the app. One reviewer describes closing the subscription screen to keep using it for free.

Is Liftoff on Android?

Yes. Liftoff, Odyssey, Liftly, Hevy and Strong are all on both iPhone and Android. GymLevels is iPhone only.

Which gym app ranks each muscle?

Liftly (with Pro), Odyssey (with Pro) and GymLevels (subscription) rank individual muscles. Liftoff ranks your exercises and shows a body graph of your progress.

Why is my rank different in each app?

Each app uses its own ladder and its own way of combining exercises. Most estimate your one-rep max from your set and divide by your bodyweight, but the cut-offs and rank names differ, so a rank only means something inside the app that gave it.

Do I need to test my one-rep max to get ranked?

No. Ranking apps estimate your max from normal sets. In Liftly, a set of 135 × 10 counts as an estimated 180 lb max. As a rule of thumb, sets of about 3–10 reps give the most reliable estimate.