Method vs Boostcamp: following a published program versus writing your own
Boostcamp is a free tracker built around a library of published programs with auto-progression. Method is a planner and logger for programs you write yourself, with a web editor and cardio in the same record. This page sets out where they differ.
ComparisonUpdated 5 min readMarkdown version
Checked against Boostcamp on the App Store on and Boostcamp website and Pro page on . Third-party facts can change after that date. Method facts are checked against the shipped product.
The short version of each app
Boostcamp describes itself as the app with the world's most popular strength training programs built in. You pick a program such as nSuns, GZCLP, 5/3/1, or a community routine, and follow it; auto-progressions fill in your weights. The tracker logs sets, reps, weight, RPE and RIR, tracks PRs and estimated 1RM, supports supersets, drop sets, and warm-up templates, includes a rest timer and plate calculator, and works offline. A custom program builder with multi-week periodisation is free with no cap, and the site describes AI assistance for building. Boostcamp Pro adds exclusive coach programs, a strength score, a per-muscle volume heatmap, personalised programs, and advanced exercise analytics.
Method is a workout planner and tracker for athletes who write their own training. Programs are built on the web with blocks, weeks, and sessions; sessions hold strength exercises and cardio activities with full prescriptions and land on dates. The iPhone app logs against the plan. Method has no program library and does not fill in weights for you beyond a suggested load derived from your own last set.
Side by side
Facts about Boostcamp come from its App Store listing and website on the date shown at the top of this page. Facts about Method come from the shipped product.
| Method | Boostcamp | |
|---|---|---|
| Where programs come from | You write them | 130+ coach programs, thousands of community programs, or your own builder |
| Progression | You write it; suggested loads from your own last set when enabled | Auto-progression fills in weights from the program's rules |
| Where you plan | Web app (full editor) and iPhone | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Web or desktop app | Yes | Not mentioned |
| Where you log | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Apple Watch | Cardio only | None, per Boostcamp's site |
| Android | No | Yes |
| RPE and RIR | Both, with decimals, stored as one value | Both |
| Supersets | Yes | Yes |
| Cardio | 20 activity types, native, Apple Watch, and Apple Health import | Not described |
| Apple Health | Imports workouts, writes Method cardio back | Syncs bodyweight and workouts, per the listing |
| Export | CSV and PDF (Pro) | Not mentioned |
| Offline | Yes | Yes |
| Free tier | 6 weeks of programming, 30 days of history, 4 saved sessions, 25 custom exercises | Full tracker, program library, custom builder with no cap |
| Paid tier (USD, date checked) | $3.99 per month, $24.99 per year, $74.99 lifetime on the web | $14.99 per month, $59.99 per year, 7-day trial on annual, no lifetime |
| Minimum iOS | iOS 26 | iOS 15.1 |
Where Method is stronger
A real editor on a big screen. Method's web app is where programs are built and revised. Duplicate a week with a chosen number of copies, reorder days and apply the order across weeks, bulk edit a prescription field across any scope, swap an exercise across the whole program including strength for cardio, and save sessions to a Library. Boostcamp's listing and site describe phone and tablet apps only.
Cardio in the same record. Method logs twenty cardio activity types on iPhone or Apple Watch, imports Apple Watch and Apple Fitness workouts from Apple Health with route and heart rate series, and writes Method cardio back. Boostcamp's materials describe a lifting tracker.
Dated sessions and planned versus completed. Method schedules every session to a date and stores the prescription with every completed workout, so a partial or moved session is visible as such and editing the plan never changes the past.
Export. Method Pro exports every logged set as CSV and produces PDFs of history, programs, and analytics. Boostcamp's site and listing do not mention export.
Price. On the date checked, Method Pro's yearly price was $24.99 against Boostcamp Pro's $59.99, and Method offers a lifetime purchase. Boostcamp's free tier is broader, which matters more if you never intend to pay.
Where Boostcamp is stronger
The program library. This is the whole point of Boostcamp. If you want to run a known program with its progression built in and your weights filled in automatically, Boostcamp does that and Method does not. Method has no library and no auto-progression.
Free tier breadth. Boostcamp's free tier includes the full tracker, the library, RPE and RIR, PRs and e1RM, supersets, and the custom builder with no cap. Method's free tier caps total programming at 6 weeks and history at 30 days.
Android and iPad. Boostcamp runs on both. Method is iPhone plus web.
Plate calculator. Boostcamp has one; Method does not.
Pricing, read carefully
Boostcamp is free for most of what it does; Pro is $14.99 monthly or $59.99 yearly with a 7-day trial on the annual plan and no lifetime option, and its App Store listing shows several Pro price points. Method is free with limits; Pro is $3.99 monthly, $24.99 yearly, or $74.99 lifetime on the web in USD, with no trial. Method's web prices are set in your region's currency and shown on the pricing page. App Store prices for either app follow Apple's tiers.
Who should pick which
Pick Boostcamp if you want to follow a published program with progression handled for you, you are on Android or iPad, or you want the broadest free tier.
Pick Method if you write your own programs and want a web editor to do it in, you want cardio and Apple Health workouts beside your lifting, you want dated sessions with planned and completed kept apart, and you want your data out as CSV and PDF.
What Method does not do
Method has no program library, no auto-progression, no Android app, no iPad app, no plate calculator, and no lifting on Apple Watch. The web app does not log workouts.
Common questions
- Is Method a Boostcamp alternative?
- For people who write their own programs and want a web editor, dated sessions, cardio, and Apple Health in one history, yes. If you want to run nSuns, GZCLP, 5/3/1, or another published program with weights filled in for you, Boostcamp is built for exactly that and Method is not.
- Does Boostcamp have a web app?
- Boostcamp's website and App Store listing describe iOS and Android apps; neither mentions a web or desktop app. Method's program editor, history, and analytics run in the browser.
- Does Boostcamp have an Apple Watch app?
- No. Boostcamp's site states it does not currently have an Apple Watch or Wear OS app. Method's Apple Watch app records cardio only; neither logs lifting on the wrist.
- Which is cheaper, Method or Boostcamp?
- On the date checked, Boostcamp Pro was $14.99 per month or $59.99 per year with a 7-day trial on the annual plan and no lifetime option; its free tier includes the full tracker and the program library. Method Pro is $3.99 per month, $24.99 per year, or $74.99 lifetime on the web in USD, with a free tier limited by programming weeks and history.
Try Method
Write your program on the web, log every set on iPhone, and keep the whole history in one place. Free to start.
Related reading
Method vs Hevy: a workout tracker comparison for people who plan their training
Hevy is a social gym logger built around routines. Method is a program-first planner and logger. This page lays out exactly where they differ so you can pick the one that fits how you train.
Method vs Strong: a workout tracker comparison for program-first training
Strong is a long-running, simple gym logger with a full Apple Watch app and CSV export. Method is a planner and logger built around multi-week programs. This page sets out the differences plainly.
How to program workouts in advance and log against the plan
Programming in advance means deciding the work before the day arrives so the gym is execution, not decision-making. This guide covers what to write down, how far ahead to plan, and how Method keeps the plan and the log connected.
How Method suggests a load: the calculation, the inputs, and when it stays quiet
A suggested load is a calculation from your own log, not a recommendation engine. This guide shows the two-step formula, which set Method reads, how it rounds, and every reason a set might show no suggestion.
Method writes and maintains this page. Every statement about Method is checked against the shipped product. If something here is out of date, email contact@methodapp.net. For general references, link to the Method homepage.