A running app for progress, not posts

Strava was probably the first running app you downloaded. It was for us too. You finish a run, upload it, see your splits, get some kudos, maybe check if you hit a segment PR. It's great for that.

But after a while, we kept running into the same problem: Strava tells you what you did. It doesn't really help you figure out what to do next. If you've been looking for a Strava alternative that actually focuses on training, that's exactly what Milo is built for.

That's the gap Milo is trying to fill.

Strava is a social network. Milo is a coach.

Let's be honest about what Strava actually is: a social network for runners. It's really good at community, sharing routes, chasing leaderboards, joining challenges, collecting kudos. That's its core.

Milo starts from a completely different place. As a dedicated running training app, it asks a different question: given everything you've done lately, what should today's run actually look like? Are you ready to push or do you need an easy day? Is your fitness trending up or are you quietly accumulating fatigue? Those are harder questions, and they're the ones that actually move your training forward.

Your entire running history, instantly

One thing worth mentioning upfront: connect Milo to HealthKit and your entire running history is mapped out immediately, with all your stats, trends, and context already built in. Every run, automatically. No uploading individual activities.

Strava doesn't work that way. You have to upload each activity manually. For a social network that makes sense. For a serious running app, it's a real limitation.

Private by design

Milo is designed to be private. When you connect HealthKit, all of your health data stays on your device. Nothing is sent to our servers. But you still get full, immediate analysis of everything: your training load, sleep, recovery, readiness, VO2 Max trends, and more. Strava can't do that because it doesn't have access to your holistic health data in the same way.

The one thing to know: Milo does sync some things to our servers for cross-device use, specifically your routes, workouts, and activities recorded with the Milo app. But your HealthKit data never leaves your device.

Before the run, not just after

Most people open Strava after they run. It's a place to review and share.

Milo is more useful before you head out. It looks at your training load, sleep averages, time since your last run, current training stress balance, and more to build a picture of where you're actually at today, not just where you've been. Then it tells you what your body is ready for, whether that's a hard workout, an easy run, or a rest day, not just whatever's next on a generic plan. It'll even tell you the best time of day to run based on the weather.

That assessment isn't based on one or two data points. It's your holistic training state, pulling together everything Milo knows about you to give you a clear signal: time to push, or time to pause.

The watch app is a different experience

This is where the gap between Milo and Strava really opens up. If you're looking for the best running app for Apple Watch, this is where Milo separates itself.

Milo's Apple Watch app is built for serious runners. You get customizable stats views so you see the exact metrics you care about during a run.

Routes actually work the way they should: import one in seconds on your phone or the web and it automatically syncs to your watch. No file management, no fussing around. And what you see is a live view with real detail, not just a dot on a map.

See it in action: watch our import a route tutorial.

Starting a workout is just as simple. Pick a structured workout or create your own in a couple of taps and you're off. Your training paces are built in and adapt automatically as your fitness changes, so you're always running at the right intensity, not just guessing.

See how it works: watch our create a workout tutorial.

Strava's watch app gets the basics done. But it's not built around the kind of guided, structured experience that actually makes you a better runner.

And here's something most people don't even think about: start a run on Strava's Apple Watch app and your phone has no idea it's happening. No live map, no stats, no connection between the two devices at all. The watch and the phone are completely disconnected during the activity.

Start a run on Milo and your phone shows everything in real time. Your live map, your stats, your route progress. The watch and the phone work together as one system, not two separate apps that happen to share a logo.

Tracking data vs. understanding it

Strava shows you your numbers. Milo tries to make sense of them.

Things like acute load, chronic load, and training stress balance aren't just charts to stare at. They tell you whether you're absorbing your training or slowly grinding yourself down. Milo gives you detailed training load charts, analysis, and a drill-down view so you can actually understand what's happening, not just see that something happened.

Sleep data feeds into this too. Milo tracks your sleep averages and factors them into your readiness assessment. A hard week of training looks very different if you've been sleeping well versus running on five hours a night.

And your VO2 Max isn't just a number. You can see how it's developed over time inside the app, and even compare it against your weight to get a clearer picture of your aerobic fitness trajectory.

It's less about having data and more about knowing what to do with it.

How they compare

There's a lot more coming

We're just getting started. Deep run analysis, pace analysis, pace relative to temperature, pace relative to weight, and more are all in the works. The foundation Milo is built on as a running training app makes this kind of analysis possible in a way that a social-first app like Strava simply isn't designed for.

One app for sharing. One for improving.

If you love the community side of running, sharing routes, chasing leaderboards, joining challenges, Strava is genuinely great at that. We're not trying to replace it. We'll never stop using it.

Milo just isn't trying to do that. We’re more focused on helping you actually improve week over week, which isn't as flashy but definitely matters more in the long run.

Keep both, just remember: Strava is where you share your runs. Make sure they're worth sharing.