Amrap vs Ray

How your plan is built and adapted

Ray asks about injuries and sensitive areas at setup, then builds a schedule you can move or skip. In my test, setup felt like a survey you answer by voice: a voice replies with a bit of context, but it isn't a back-and-forth conversation. Before each workout you can say you're tired or sore, and it adjusts the session before you start.

Amrap builds your program from a natural conversation about your goals, gym, injuries and what you like to train, by voice or text. After that, you keep talking to it the way you would with a trainer. Say "the machine I need is taken" or "I need to leave in 15", and your coach works out the change:

• It finds an alternative that works the same muscles with the same movement

• It shortens the session by removing an exercise

• It pushes back when a change you ask for could hurt your progress, and explains why

What happens during the workout

Ray coaches out loud, counts reps and times your rest, and its audio plays alongside your own music. In my test, I had to touch the phone to log, and talking to Ray mostly changed the workout. The session felt like a follow-along workout, and its cues seemed premade.

With Amrap, every reply is generated for you in real time, never prerecorded. Your coach speaks up at the right moments, like when you start an exercise or your rest is up, and answers whenever you ask something mid-set. In Hands-Free mode you just speak, with no tapping to talk, so your phone stays on the bench or the floor, even locked. If you'd rather not talk at the gym, Manual mode lets you tap to talk or type.

How your progress is tracked

Ray can count reps with your phone's camera on supported exercises. The feature is optional, and the video is processed on the phone. Ray says it learns from your feedback and performance over time.

With Amrap, you track workouts hands-free by saying your reps out loud, and your coach keeps the history for you. It uses that history for every change: it applies progressive overload within each session and from week to week, and tells you when to go heavier or do more reps. It adjusts your weights and plan as you progress.

Price

Amrap has a 7-day, 100% free trial, no credit card needed. After that it costs $99.99/yr, $59.99/6 mo or $19.99/mo, with unlimited coaching on every plan. You can get it on the App Store.

Ray's first week is free, and it sends a reminder before you're charged. After that it costs $19.99/mo, $39.99/3 mo or $119.99/yr.

US prices from the App Store. They may vary by region and change over time.

Platforms & integrations

Both apps run on iPhone. Android is coming soon for Amrap and in the works for Ray. Ray also has an Apple Watch app and connects to Apple Health.

Amrap's coach learns from your conversations: how each set felt, how you're recovering, what changed in your week. Not everyone wears a watch, but anyone can tell their coach they slept badly. Wearable integrations are coming soon.

When Ray might be a better fit

Ray works with whatever you have, from bodyweight only to a full gym, and builds cardio and mobility around strength training. It also has an Apple Watch app. If you want follow-along workouts that you steer by telling the app what to change, Ray is built for that.

Switching from Ray: what to expect

There's no import from Ray. Your first conversation with your Amrap coach covers your goals, gym setup, injuries and what you've been training, and it builds your program from there. Your weights settle over the first sessions as the coach learns what you can lift. Ray is billed through the App Store, so you cancel it in your iPhone Settings under Subscriptions.