Some warnings 5 users report a paywall with no way past it; 27 users report the basics being behind a paywall and 2 more reports. Nothing confirmed. Checked: 900 reviews, the store listing and the privacy label.
From our automated analysis, 26 Oct 2026. Every label links to its evidence in the full report below.
This analysis describes version 4.4.4 of the app, analyzed 2026-10-26 .
The store currently lists version 4.4.4, updated 2026-10-22.
This analysis describes version 4.4.2 of the app, analyzed 2026-10-25 .
The store currently lists version 4.4.2, updated 2026-10-16.
Store screenshots supplied by the developer.
Get stronger with the world’s simplest, most proven barbell program: the 5×5 workout. No guesswork. Just follow along and see real results, in just 3 workouts a week.
StrongLifts is made for lifters starting or returning to barbell strength training. The app removes all confusion and complexity by guiding you through every 5×5 workout. It plans every exercise, set, and weight so you always know exactly what to do. The time-tested 5×5 workout gets you stronger, week after week. No experience needed.
▸ Proven 3×/week strength program: Structured workouts, all planned for you.
▸ No guesswork: Fully automated progression for consistent strength gains.
▸ Just follow along: Simple interface with timers. Focus on lifting, not fiddling.
▸ Stay motivated. See your strength go up every week with clear progress charts.
▸ Easy to stick with. Simple, guided 3×/week program.…
From the developer’s store description.
For developers and the curious
The evidence, sources, measurements and versions behind every label above.
Facts that add context without being a charge.
In-app purchases run from USD 4.99 to USD 239.99 — a 48x spread across 10 items
The disclosed in-app purchases span an unusually wide price range. Published as context: the cheapest and priciest items may be different kinds of product entirely, so the spread alone deducts nothing.
Specific evidence of a useful property, within the stated scope.
The developer's store data-safety disclosure states that data deletion can be requested; we have not seen a deletion control in the app's own text
The developer's data-safety disclosure on the store states that users can request deletion of their data, or the app's own text offers a way to delete the account. This restates what the developer declares; it is not a test of whether deletion works. Apple publishes no equivalent disclosure, so on an Apple-only listing only the app's own text can support it.
Open observations that have not cleared the evidence bar.
Paywall with no way past it: raised by 5 distinct reviewers (about 1 in 100 reviews we read)
This observation has not cleared the required evidence standard.
A paywall screen ships with no dismiss, skip or 'maybe later' affordance anywhere in the package, so the app's own text offers no way in without paying.
Misleading advertising: raised by 15 distinct reviewers (about 1 in 33 reviews we read)
This observation has not cleared the required evidence standard.
Reviewers repeatedly report that the app is not what its advertising showed. We never see the ad creative itself, so nothing we collect can corroborate or refute this — it is published as an attributed user report: what reviewers say, and how many of them said it.
Paywall blocks the basics: raised by 19 distinct reviewers (about 1 in 26 reviews we read)
This observation has not cleared the required evidence standard.
The core of the app — not extras — sits behind payment, or previously-free function moved behind a paywall.
Constant upsell pressure: raised by 13 distinct reviewers (about 1 in 38 reviews we read)
This observation has not cleared the required evidence standard.
Declining an upgrade is written as a loss ('No thanks, I don't want to improve'), or users report being repeatedly pushed to subscribe during normal use.
The store privacy disclosure (4 entries) links no contact details or identifiers to the user — consistent with an app that does not require an account. Self-reported by the developer.
This observation has not cleared the required evidence standard.
The app's own screens offer a way past sign-up — guest access, skipping, or browsing before registering — rather than gating the product behind an account. The store's privacy disclosure is checked alongside it: that disclosure is self-reported, so it corroborates this credit rather than establishing it.
Nothing was published as a thing to watch for in this assessment. That is not a finding that nothing is wrong with the app.
900 reviews read for this analysis. Each observation keeps the sample and store it was based on.
Bait and Switch — Bought this app and now I can’t use it without paying every month. Pathetic. Will NEVER recommend again.
Can't even see my old PRs without paying — See title. Not to mention dev invalidating one time subs. Take this one star
Subscription only — Pretty disappointing that they switched to subscription only. You cannot use the app any longer without paying for a subscription. you cannot even access your data from your previous exercises. I think that’s pretty…
Bait and switch operation — The creator of this app doesn’t honor his memberships. I bought a “lifetime” membership in 2018 for $10. I opened the app today and he put a note that said “doesn’t mean lifetime anymore because I need more…
DONT PAY — Bait and switch to 100% paywall. Just download a different 5x5 app
Bait and Switch — Bought this app and now I can’t use it without paying every month. Pathetic. Will NEVER recommend again.
Very Disappointed. Mehdi, you lied. When I bought the Power Pack, you said it was a lifetime purchase. Now you’ve taken that away, locked it behind a subscription, and gone back on your word. You promised this would never happen, yet here…
Used to be the best powerlifting app for tracking sets and now everything is behind a massive paywall. Even for old accounts and people who've bought lifetime plans
I used this years ago when it was free. just tried it again and now you have to pay 👎👎
Doesn’t honor agreements — Purchased a lifetime subscription after using the app for free for years because I wanted to support. Then they started nagging about subscribing for bonus features, which was annoying but manageable. Last night…
Functional but greedy — Love this workout and the app works, but I’ve been a user for years and bought a lifetime membership which is hidden and useless with each update. I’m tired of the constant nagging for for money (even after…
Locked out after paying for app almost 9 years ago — I purchased this app almost 9 years ago and have been using it on and off since then. I noticed an increase in ad harassment (“subscribe to X plan”) even though I owned the app. I have…
A sampled review illustrates one person’s experience. It does not establish a finding on its own.
“Not assessed” means we could not measure it. It is never a zero and never a pass.
No package has been scanned for this app, so nothing is published about what it ships. That is an absence of evidence, not a finding.
Supporting measurements: not a complete list of possible harms or positives. Measurement vocabulary 1.4 · how these are measured
This analysis describes version 4.4.4 of the app, analyzed 2026-10-26 .
The store currently lists version 4.4.4, updated 2026-10-22.
This analysis describes version 4.4.2 of the app, analyzed 2026-10-25 .
The store currently lists version 4.4.2, updated 2026-10-16.
Each store’s release notes, as the developer wrote them. They are the developer’s words, not ours.
Thanks for using StrongLifts! In this update: • FIX: various small fixes and optimizations. ## Support • Workout guide - https://stronglifts.com/5x5/ • FAQ - https://support.stronglifts.com/ • Contact us: [email protected] ## Like StrongLifts? • Please rate the app 5 stars so more people find it
No release notes were provided for this version.
Appworthy
stronglifts-5x5-workout-planAssessed 2026-10-26 from 900 user reviews, the store listing and its privacy label. We have not scanned the app's package, so nothing on this page was read from inside the app itself.
What the stores publish. Store ratings are the stores’ numbers, not Appworthy’s, and are never averaged across stores.
From the store listing. Billing terms are read from each purchase’s name — the stores don’t publish them — so treat them as a strong hint, not a disclosure.
These are really on sale; we just can’t tell from the name whether they recur.
This assessment is produced automatically. Three independent signals are read — user reviews, the store listing and the store privacy disclosure — and each candidate finding is filed under the sources that support it.
No charge stands on one kind of evidence — with one published exception. A finding is either a measured fact that anyone can reproduce (an ad SDK is in the package; every subscription bills weekly; the privacy label omits a tracker we can see), or it is an interpretation — and an interpretation needs independent sources to agree before it reaches the catch list. The exception is a harm only users can see: a charge may publish from reviews alone, as “Reported by N users”, once enough reviewers raise it to clear that charge’s own published bar. That agreement rule is what replaced the human reviewer, not a model’s confidence.
There is no overall score, on purpose. A 0–99 number was published here until 2026-09-15. It was withdrawn because it discriminated too weakly to be the instrument — 44.7% of every pair of apps tied — and because a single number is a verdict where a count is an observation. What publishes instead is a row of measurements, each of which says what was counted and, where we could not look, says that instead.
Findings under One source only are real reports we do not stand behind as findings. They are shown because withholding them entirely would hide a genuine complaint, and labelled because publishing them as charges would be an accusation off a single source.
Write to [email protected], or use the form. Name the finding, the app version and the evidence that needs correcting. Factual corrections are free and never depend on buying anything.