Best Free Running Apps For Beginners

Running is not an easy task and takes a lot of effort to make and follow a training plan, especially for beginners. But the best free running apps for beginners make it simpler.

In this age of technology, we have apps for everything, and running apps are one of them. It includes features such as heart rate, distance, calorie burn calculator, and much more.

These apps gather all your workout stats and show you how much effort you put into your running routine. In addition, running apps are so much developed that there is no need to hire a personal trainer because some of these apps have an audio coach feature that tells you your following workout routine.

If you are a beginner, you need to have one of the running apps on your smartphone that are available for Android and iOS. So for a better training plan, here are some of the best free running apps for beginners that you may want to have on your smartphone or wearables.

With over a 1.7million downloads, Adidas Runtastic distance tracker is one of the most popular best free running apps for beginners. Runtastic offers a brilliant tracking feature for running, walking, and jogging in real-time with its built-in GPS.

In addition, this app offers features like workout challenges and virtual races to keep you motivated. For beginners before any workout, you need a warmup for which it is necessary to follow running stretches for beginners. So you can keep a log of your workout stats, monitor your fitness activities, and set fitness goals.

5K Runner is another of the free apps for beginners that has numerous features that will take beginner runner from couch potato to running 5K in weeks.

Its running interval training is guided by an audio coach that will assist your training plan of running for 30 minutes three times a week for 8 weeks. This app is available free for Android and iOS.

Nike Run Club is a popular running app for staying fit and losing weight by running a guided training plan. One of the best free running apps for Android and iOS, it offers training plans and guided runs and running challenges.

The best part is that this app tracks and records the speed of the pair of shoes you are running with. Indeed, you can achieve a better pace in the best running shoe for beginner runners.

It even gets better as you have access to the apple music playlists.

Runkeeper is a simple-to-use app for beginners. It has many training plans that beginner runners can benefit from and use the audio commands to achieve their workout goals. In addition, the GPS tracks your running distance shows your pace and how many calories you’ve burned. You can also compare your stats every month. 

Runkeeper is one of the best offline running app you can find, so if you don’t have access to data or wifi, you can still use the app and upload your data when online. This app is free for android and iOS users and offers premium features.

The C25K app for beginners aims to help you train the 5K in 8 weeks. Beginners can improve their pace and stamina by progressive running and walking.

It features an audio coach with alerts, mapping your run, music playlist access, social media, and running community access.

Map My Run by Under Armour is designed for beginner runners looking to achieve their fitness goals and want to find good running routes.

This app features workout routines, a training plan, and a healthy at the home challenge, which requires 12 workouts in a month. You can also track and map your workouts. In addition, this app has an extensive collection of 600 activities such as running, cycling, yoga, and many more.

The audio coaching comes in handy for beginners for their running pace, distance covered and running duration. If you are looking for new routes for running, this app has your back as it finds nearby places for running and saves them, which you can share with the community.

You can connect Map My Run with other apps and wearables such as the apple watch, android wear, and more.

Strava is another popular fitness activity tracker app for beginners. For example, the Strava running app tracks distance, pace, speed, and calories burned. You can add or use one of many running trails provided by this app, so don’t worry about getting lost or changing routes all the time.

The monthly training challenges are better for beginners dedicated to their workout routines. Strava also has an extra feature of a social fitness network where you can share maps and photos of the running or cycling trails with the online community; that’s why it is called the social network for runners.

The Strava tracking feature allows you to increase your pace so you can turn your phone or apple watch into a personal trainer. With premium plans, you can also get access to pre-planned running routines. Not only that, but this app also offers subscriptions that provide fitness goals, training plans, and live feedback to help you train better.

Charity Mile is one of the best free apps for android and iOS and is a running tracker. You can track your running, walking, cycling, or even moving throughout the day.

The best part of the Charity Mile app is that you can choose from over 40 Charities worldwide. And motivate you to run, walk or do any other activity that will start raising money for that charity.

So you are earning money for charity for every mile you walk or run. This motivation keeps you going to achieve your fitness goals and lose weight. So keep running to stay healthy and be part of the Charity Mile community and contribute to changing the world.

Zombies Run is one of the best apps for beginners who want to make their running or workout more adventurous and less boring. This app combines a running app and a game set out in a post-apocalyptic world.

When you start using this app, every run becomes a new mission, and to keep you motivated, you have to collect certain supplies and avoid zombies. You can even get chased by zombies to pick up your pace. You can listen to audio stories while running outdoors or on a treadmill. If you are running on a treadmill, you may find the treadmill running tips for beginners very helpful.

Google Fit is an activity tracking app developed in collaboration with WHO (World Health Organization) and AHA (American Heart Association). This app is ideal for beginners and advanced runners who are concerned about their cardio.

You will get one heart point for walking and double when running. Walking or running for 30 minutes 5 days a week fulfills the WHO and AHA recommended physical activity that reduces the risk of heart diseases.

With this app from your smartphone or a smartwatch, you can track your workout to record your speed, distance covered, heart rate, and more. This app also allows users to set and achieve their workout goals.

In addition, Google Fit can connect with many apps and show your stats and progress. This app is also available for iOS users for free.

Pacer is another pedometer app that runs in the background to track your walking and running activities throughout the day. It uses your phone’s GPS tracking feature to gather your data.

Pacer is helpful in the sense that if you don’t have a running buddy or personal trainer, this app can be both of them. In addition, it tracks your fitness and weight loss journey and gives you particular challenges to compete.

Pacer enables you to connect with many real-time users within the running community. You can share your stats, running maps, and more with the community to get motivated. In addition, you can create a running community of your own by adding users with similar goals.

Although it’s a free app, you can also get the premium plan to unlock fitness plans, audio, and video exercises and sync it with other health and fitness apps.

If you are a total novice and are going out running for the first time or are in a new place, then Run Go is one of the best apps for you. You don’t have to spend time finding the best running trail or route or fear getting lost on a new track. Instead, Run Go is there to give you turn-by-turn navigation and gives you a heads up for the rest of the trail.

This app also features virtual races, voice navigation, allows custom routes, live tracking, and premium subscriptions. So whether you are a beginner or active runner in a new place, Run Go is your running companion.

If you are a beginner runner planning your weight loss exercise, then look no further than Running Workouts by VERV. It would help if you combined exercises and a nutritious diet plan to lose weight.

The best part about this app is that it provides you with exercise and a nutrition plan to achieve your weight loss goals.

There are various workout plans provided by this app ranging from walking for beginners to running marathons for pro-level runners. And if you don’t want to stick to any running plans, you can choose free run, and the GPS will track all your stats.

The meal plan is a 4-course meal menu, recipes, and shopping list for each meal. Another great feature is the hydro coach, which reminds you to hydrate properly.

Other features include body transformation, personal coach, workout music, detailed workout stats, and app synchronization.

To make your workout or outdoor activities funfilled and create a lasting memory out of it, then Relive is for you. Relive allows you to take photos and create a 3D video of your fitness activities to make incredible stories and share them with your friends on social media.

Relive also has a tracking feature that works in real-time. You can track your location, running, walking, or any other activity through it. Connecting with other apps is also made possible by Relive, and you can even make video stories of fitness activities on other apps.

If you want to upgrade your plan, the Relive club has tons of interesting extra features waiting to be explored.

If you are a beginner runner and want to enhance your running with new ideas, Pumatrac is the right app for you. You choose from over 120 workouts no matter what is your skill level.

You can also learn from video drills shared by PUMA athletes. From proper warmups to running exercises and many workouts, Pumatrack has it all.

You can access your Spotify and apple music workout playlists to increase your running rhythm and connect with many fitness apps. You can use this app on smartphones and wearables such as Android and Apple watch.

In addition, by integrating and sharing a training plan on social media, you can get motivated by your followers.

To achieve your fitness goals and customize your training plans, you might find many apps online. Here we gathered some of the best free running apps for beginners that you can download without scrolling through your app store.

The apps listed are free and are Android and iOS compatible. These apps will help you train from a novice to an experienced runner and help you maintain your health and fitness.

So what are you waiting for? Download your favourite app and begin your running journey today.