Overview
Hevy is one of the fastest-growing gym tracking apps, beloved for its clean design, fast logging experience, and social features. You can follow friends, share workouts, and compare progress - bringing a social fitness layer to strength training. Its routine system and exercise library are well-designed, and it's gained a strong following among Reddit fitness communities.
Beacon approaches gym tracking as one input to a larger AI coaching system. Voice logging means you never type a set during a session. The AI generates your workout from yesterday's Sleep and Exercise scores, your sleep data and your training history - so you arrive at the gym knowing exactly what to do and at what intensity. Beyond the gym, Beacon covers nutrition, recovery, meditation, and cycle tracking.
Both apps log workouts well. The difference is whether you want a focused tracker (Hevy) or AI-generated workouts alongside recovery, nutrition, and mindfulness tools (Beacon).
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Beacon | Hevy |
|---|---|---|
| AI-Generated Workout Plans | ✓ | ✗ |
| Voice Workout Logging | ✓ | ✗ |
| Manual Workout Logging | ✓ | ✓ |
| Social Feed & Following | ✓ | ✓ |
| Routine Management | ✓ | ✓ |
| Progressive Overload (automatic) | ✓ | Manual |
| Recovery-Adapted Workouts | ✓ | ✗ |
| Apple Watch App | ✓ | ✗ |
| Nutrition Tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Recovery / HRV Tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sleep Analysis | ✓ | ✗ |
| Breathwork & Meditation Timers | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cycle Tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| AI Daily Planning | ✓ | ✗ |
| Direct Integrations | 8, plus Apple Health | Limited |
Pricing Comparison
Beacon
All-in-one AI health coach
Subscription only - no free tier and no trial
Beacon Premium: $19.99/month
Annual: $119.99/year ($10/mo)
Includes workouts, nutrition, recovery, meditation, voice coaching, cycle tracking, and all AI features.
Hevy
Modern gym workout tracker with social features
Free
Pro: ~$7.99/month
Annual: ~$59.99/year
Full logging, basic features
Advanced analytics, custom themes, unlimited routines
Best value
Who Should Choose Which?
Choose Hevy if…
- ✓You want a dedicated lightweight gym tracker without full health coaching features
- ✓You want a clean, modern logging UI without the complexity of AI coaching
- ✓You program your own training and only need an efficient log
- ✓Free tier with no feature restrictions is important to you
- ✓Hevy's community and Reddit following means your training partners already use it
Choose Beacon if…
- ✓You want AI to write your program and adapt it week to week
- ✓Voice logging between sets beats typing every single set
- ✓Your workout intensity should change based on how you slept and your HRV
- ✓One app for training, nutrition, sleep, and recovery is more efficient
- ✓Apple Watch integration for wrist-based logging is important
- ✓Progressive overload that happens without manual intervention is more sustainable
The Bottom Line
Hevy is a genuinely well-made gym tracker with great design and a generous free tier. Its clean, focused interface appeals to lifters who want a lightweight logging experience without broader health coaching features.
Beacon's strength is that it makes the training decisions for you. By connecting your sleep data, HRV, and previous session performance, the AI writes today's workout and adjusts as the session unfolds. Voice logging removes the cognitive burden of tracking mid-session.
If you have your own program and want a social tracking experience, Hevy is a strong choice. If you want an AI training system that evolves with your body - and covers nutrition and recovery too - Beacon is the more complete solution.
What is Beacon?
Beacon is an AI health coach for iPhone and Apple Watch. It logs food from a photo, barcode, or voice description, generates workouts, reads sleep and HRV from connected sources, and shows five category scores - Sleep, Exercise, Diet, Focus, and Mindfulness - alongside a daily plan. It also carries breathwork and meditation timers, cycle tracking, a friends timeline, and a coach you can talk to in one of three tones: warm, stoic or drill sergeant. Beacon is subscription-only at $19.99/month or $119.99/year, with no free tier and no trial, and there is no Android version.
FAQ
Is Beacon a good alternative to Hevy for gym tracking?
Yes. Beacon includes workout logging with sets, reps, weight, and exercise history. It can also generate workouts, while Hevy focuses on recording the training you choose.
Does Beacon have social features like Hevy?
Beacon has a friends timeline: workouts and meals your friends log, with kudos and comments. Hevy's social layer is the more mature of the two - it is built around following people and sharing routines, where Beacon's is built around the people you already added as friends.
Is Hevy free?
Hevy has a solid free tier with unlimited workout logging. Hevy Pro (~$7.99/month or $59.99/year) adds advanced analytics, custom themes, and additional features.
Related
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