How to Develop an App Like Runkeeper?

Runkeeper is one of the best fitness apps preferred by more than 45 million users across the globe. Acquired by ASICS in 2016, the app is more than an average fitness app as it targets professional runners and offers features specific to professional athletes.

The success that this app has seen over the years is inspiring. That is because there are several competitors in the market including two of the biggest giants in the sports industry, Nike & Adidas. The impact is real as several entrepreneurs have decided to take the same route to recreate an app like Runkeeper.

Creating a similar running app can open a lot of opportunities for growth and revenue. That is because the generation today is all about staying healthy and fit. You may be shocked to know that more than a billion people across the globe use a type of fitness application.

One of the core reasons why these applications are successful is that the users who download these tend to use them regularly, enhancing the daily active user stats, which is a direct metric to monetize the application but more on that later!

If the above information has got you excited about launching a running app and want to know more about the steps to build it, then make sure you read this blog till the end.

Global Fitness App Market Statistics

If we talk about the potential of the fitness application industry, the scope is massive. The global fitness apps market revenue is expected to grow with a CAGR of 18% between 2023-2033, taking the current estimated value of $4.9 Billion to a whopping $25.9 Billion by 2033.

Understanding the Running App Market

Running Apps Market size was valued at USD 0.5 Billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 1.856 Billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 14.2% from 2024 to 2033.

The Runkeeper app alone has 46+ million users. As per reports, the average per-user revenue in the fitness app market is estimated to be somewhere around $20.79.

These numbers indicate that if you have cracked the code of designing a personal running tracking app or can even simply create a Runkeeper app replica, the success is yours!

How Does the Runkeeper App Work?

As you may be aware, the Runkeeper app is a running tracking app that uses your device’s GPS to track your outdoor activities such as running, walking, and other physical exercises.

This tracking allows the app to record details such as distance, speed, time taken to finish the run, route taken through the run, and more.

These factors when put together with the intelligent processing of the application can help in providing helpful insights to the users.

The application offers some of the best features and insights making it more and more user friendly.

The app also offers several syncing options that make it compatible with iOS, Android, and smartwatch operating systems. To understand the course of usage, check out the following steps:

• Step 1: A user first logs in to the app by creating an account using your email address, Facebook, or Gmail account.
• Step 2: Agree to the usage terms and allow all the required permissions. The app needs access to your GPS location and other internal resources.
• Step 3: Once you are in the app, you can access all the features available.
• Step 4: Choose the activity you want to track, for instance an indoor or outdoor workout.
• Step 5: You can pause-play the ongoing exercise and do a lot more to save those analytics that are generated.

The app uses GPS and other sensors available on your device to identify your location and trace the physical activities you want to log into the application.

These steps give quite an easy understanding of how the application works. More importantly, the functionality of any application can be identified by learning about the features that are available in the app. Let’s take a look at them in the next section!

Key Features to Include in an App Like Runkeeper

For any fitness application to succeed, it must balance usability, personalization, and practicality. Runkeeper app is a perfect example of one such application as it provides a robust application that has a decent user experience and is full of features that users love.

If you are planning to develop a running app similar to Runkeeper, here are the features that you should consider including in your application:

♦ User Profile

This is the section of your application that allows users to manage the information that they have shared. It also helps them keep track of their personal details and how they plan to appear on your platform.

It is completely personalized and offers functionalities to update a profile picture, Add/Change availability status, username, etc.

♦ Activity Tracking

To track the intensity of activities there is a dedicated section that has different activities that a user can initiate. This section holds activities such as Indoor Workout, Running, Walking, Outdoor Workout, etc.

Active training is one of the key features of any fitness platform. If you plan to make an app like Runkeeper, these features are a must-have.

♦ Maps

To help a user navigate their runs and give them accurate information about their course, integrating a map is crucial.

This map is not a traditional navigation map, but it helps in tracking the activity in a more detailed, more efficient way.

An integrated map allows the app to accurately analyze things like the time taken to finish the run, the route, where a runner stopped, took a break, etc.

♦ Goal Setting

A running application like Runkeeper is incomplete without a goal-setting feature. It allows a user to analyze their present situation and accordingly set a goal they want to achieve.

It could be anything from a desired body type, weight, stamina, running capacity, or anything else. Let the user choose what they want to achieve. Goal setting is a part of gamification in fitness apps that usually helps a user interact better with the application.

♦ Training Programs

Adding different exercises, diet routines, and training programs can be a beneficial step. While building an app like Runkeeper, integrating tutorials and regimes can allow you to monetize the application better.

Not to mention, people who want to train at their own pace in the comfort of their own homes will surely be more inclined to use this feature in your application.

♦ Wearable Integration

For any fitness enthusiast, an app that is compatible with their favorite fitness band, smartwatch, or any other wearable device automatically becomes their first choice.

The entire point of using a fitness app is to track a user’s vital signs and activities. With the integration of a wearable, you can access more sensors, making the readings more accurate and real-time.

♦ Reminders

Keeping your users engaged is important. Including reminders that keep the user engaged and keep them returning to the app can be a vital feature.

Fitness apps usually integrate reminders to stand, drink water, start their exercises, and remind a user about their goal completion status. These reminders can work as a motivation for a user and hence keep them interested in your application.

The list of features can go on and on, depending on what type of application you want to build. However, having the above-shared features can surely kick-start the journey of your Runkeeper-like application.

Steps to Develop an App Like Runkeeper

Now that you are familiar with the features and how they work, let’s take a deeper dive into the steps required to build an app like Runkeeper.

Here are the basic steps involved in the development process:

Step 1: Market Research & Analysis

Knowing the market is one of the fundamental steps. Since you are planning to invest in a fitness application, you should identify the opportunities and gaps in the market. This analysis works as the roadmap for your entire development.

Step 2: App Design & Planning

After you have gone through the market research, you have an idea of what people are looking for. Based on those insights, you should start planning your app design.

This design lays the foundation for how your application would look and what type of features it will have.

Step 3: Choosing the Tech Stack

Based on what you have decided in terms of designing the application, choose the tech stack to power your application.

Choosing the technology is probably the most crucial step of them all as you need to ensure that your application is both cutting-edge, easy to implement, and scalable in the future.

Here are the technologies that are usually chosen as a tech stack to build a fitness app like Runkeeper.

Step 4: Development Process

By now you have understood the needs of the market, designed a solution you want to implement, and chosen the right technologies.

In this step, the development team will consider all your requirements and start working on the development of your application. Different teams work on different technologies to bring together the final view of your Runkeeper-like application.

Step 5: Testing

Once the application is ready, it is shared with a bunch of qualified quality analysts who test it for different scenarios.

All the functionalities designed are put to the test with different test cases in mind to understand if the application is working properly or requires further development.

Step 6: Deployment

After the testing is over, it is time to deploy the final product. With an app like Runkeeper, several things need to be in place before it can be deployed. That is because the application feeds on the personal data of users.

There are several types of compliance and app store guidelines that you have to follow. Once those are managed, the app is published in the stores and made available for users.

Other than these things, you also need to pay attention to maintaining the way the app is intended to function when multiple users are using it simultaneously. All these steps must be performed diligently.

Hence, you need to have a proper development team with you. You can either hire the experts and keep them on payroll or simply outsource the development job to professionals for a much more affordable price.

Advanced Technologies for Developing an App Like Runkeeper

To ensure that every feature works properly in the app, you need to deploy relative technologies. Several advanced technologies come into play when creating a running-tracker app like Runkeeper. These technologies include:

► AI (Artificial Intelligence)

Artificial Intelligence is becoming increasingly popular in bringing applications to life. AI in fitness offers a unique way of using the generated data.

To develop an app like Runkeeper, you can use AI to create a personalized experience and recommend workouts specific to your user’s needs.

► ML (Machine Learning

Machine Learning allows you to implement intelligent algorithms that help the application recognize user preferences and usage patterns.

This allows the application to detect inconsistencies in usage patterns and allows you to troubleshoot them to improve your application’s user experience.

► IoT

The Internet of Things is another key technology that enables an application like Runkeeper to be used on different devices while staying connected. The integration of this technology allows you to make your application more usable with different devices.

It also simplifies data sharing between your wearable device and your smartphone, making the entire experience appear more swift and seamless.

► AR/VR

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality are concepts that have not been completely explored in the fitness industry yet but are still being used across the globe.

Allowing a user to create an experience while working out at home, AR/VR in fitness allows an app to be more immersive, making the user engage more.:

These technologies can help you develop a running-tracking application that offers innovative ways to record user data and give them insights into their health and performance.

These can help you implement advanced features that always allow you to be the best in the business and supersede apps like Runkeeper.

How Much Does it Cost to Build a Run-Tracker App Like Runkeeper?

Well, on average the cost to develop a running app like Runkeeper typically ranges anywhere from $20,000 to $150,000. However, the cost is impacted and varies based on different factors. Factors such as:

• Types of Technologies Implemented

If you go for an advanced tech stack that includes added technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning, etc. It might cost you slightly more than what a basic tech stack would cost.

• Location of the Development Team

The location of the development team defines what it would cost to develop a run-tracker app like Runkeeper. How? Well, generally developers are hired on a per-hour basis. Now, these rates may vary depending on the location as a developer from Asia might cost you less than someone from Europe would.

• Features Introduced in the App

Advanced features are difficult to implement and require more time to be implemented. The overall cost of building an app like Runkeeper can significantly increase if more and more advanced features are introduced in the application.

Other than these 3, some other factors that define the cost of development include integrations & third-party data-sharing abilities and the platform of development chosen by you.

All these factors along with the goal that you plan to achieve with the development of the app define the cost to build a fitness app that is ready to capture the market.

Related: App Development Cost : Complete Breakdown

Challenges in Developing an App Like Runkeeper

When we say you need professional assistance to develop an app like Runkeeper, we say it because of all the challenges in developing fitness apps that one might face during the process. There are several things that you have to pay attention to. These challenges include:

Challenge 1: Maintaining Accuracy

One of the key aspects of any fitness application is the accuracy of the data it shows. If your application is unable to churn out accurate readings of how many steps you have taken or how much distance you have covered during your walk, you might not be interested in using the same.

Ensuring that accuracy is maintained can be a challenge. That is because, unlike a device, an application has to be compatible with different devices that have different quality of sensors. Maintaining a similar accuracy is a significant challenge.

Challenge 2: App Optimization

Every application should be optimized enough so that it does not directly take up a lot of space or battery usage of a device.

However, this has become a massive challenge for fitness app developers. That is because a fitness application has to be always active in the background of the device to capture real-time location data.

If an application is sucking on the battery while working in the background, a user might not be interested in using the same.

The same goes for hogging processing power or storage. Designing an application that stays active all the time and still does not become a burden on the user’s device is a challenge people often fail to manage.

Challenge 3: Synchronization

As mentioned earlier, a fitness application has to work with different sensors and different types of devices such as your smartphone, smartwatch, smart rings, health bands, etc.

Creating a single solution that can sync with popular wearable devices and deliver proper results with both a mid-range and a flagship device is a big challenge.

Challenge 4: Maintaining Data Privacy

A lot of user data is collected through a fitness application like Runkeeper. From basic information such as the name and gender to advanced insights about the user such as their weight, location, routine, route of walking, pulse rate, etc. are all collected, and maintaining all of that without it being subjected to leaks is a huge challenge for young startups.

Sure, if you are a legacy brand that is hosting another application, you have the resources to manage the data, however, young businesses struggle to maintain the discreet nature of fitness app security, which can lead to trouble..

Challenge 5: Regular Updates

Knowing how to develop an application is not enough as you should also have experience in dealing with the challenges that come your way.

Pushing regular updates to make things more efficient without putting the user’s experience to a halt is itself a big challenge. Since fitness apps have a lot of things to manage, losing data is never an option.

Managing regular updates, maintenance, and introduction of new features is a big challenge as you need a dedicated team that is available 24/7. Implementing new features might not be easy.

How Does the Runkeeper App Make Money?

The Runkeeper app makes money by implementing a few fitness app monetization strategies. It can often be difficult for fitness applications to make money as you cannot decide which features to monetize fitness apps and which ones to offer for free. Sometimes, apps even face issues related to deploying a strategy.

➤ Subscription

A fitness app can create a subscription to offer advanced features and join the fitness services. It can include an ad-free experience, added exercises, advanced AI-enabled features, etc.

➤ Affiliate Marketing

The fitness industry is a huge market. There are several other fitness businesses such as equipment, supplements, healthcare products, etc. that you can collaborate with and use the affiliate market to earn commissions.

➤ Advertising

Placing interstitial ads is another option to make money using your fitness application like the Runner. You can choose relevant industries and pitch your space to them. You can even charge a fee on every conversion that the ad fetches.

➤ Freemium

A freemium model is one in which joining the platform, installing the application, and accessing the basic features are free for a user, but a few advanced features are locked. These locked features are unlocked for a subscription fee. This is the most commonly used monetization strategy.

There are other ways to monetize your Runner-like fitness app. It depends on your approach and how you plan to earn money through your application.

If you have hired a professional mobile app development company to help you build the app, you can surely ask for suggestions from them as well

Also Read: A Guide To Mobile App Monetization Strategies

How Can We Help You in Creating a Running Tracking App Development?

In all the steps, and all the sections you read so far, you might have understood that you need a team to create an app like Runkeeper. Without proper assistance by professionals, replicating the success of Runkeeper might not be possible. And that is where we at Nimble AppGenie come into the picture.

With years of experience as a fitness app development company, our professional developers can guide you through the entire development process. Not only can we help you in building your fitness app, but we can also provide insights on what features to keep, what to avoid, and where you can innovate.

Having experts like ours on your side can help you develop an app like Runkeeper, or even better than that in terms of functionalities, features, and user experience. Reach out today to discuss your vision as we can surely develop a customized Runkeeper-like app for you!

Conclusion

Developing an application that resonates with Runkeeper can be a great decision, looking at the growing market and need for running tracking applications. These apps can help you open new opportunities to reach a wider audience and open a new revenue stream.

If you are thinking about whether it is a good idea to replicate an already successful app like Runkeeper, then you should know that the majority of fitness apps are similar, serving the same purpose.

Hence, you can definitely plan to recreate the application, provided you let a professional development team help you with the process.

With that said, we have reached the end of this post. Hope this blog gives you all the necessary information you need to build a running app like Runkeeper successfully.

Thanks for reading, good luck!

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Niketan Sharma

Niketan Sharma is the CTO of Nimble AppGenie, a prominent website and mobile app development company in the USA that is delivering excellence with a commitment to boosting business growth & maximizing customer satisfaction. He is a highly motivated individual who helps SMEs and startups grow in this dynamic market with the latest technology and innovation.