Product
Workout apps like Solo Leveling: five with a real System.
Five apps that give you a System: a daily quest, a level that climbs, a rank. Level Up is the closest in looks. Kovo is our pick for the training itself, and this post says where each one falls short. We make Kovo. We say so every time it comes up.
Key takeaways
- What people want from Solo Leveling is the System, not the push-ups: one quest for today, a level that only climbs when you do the work, a rank, and a price for skipping.
- Level Up (formerly Arise) is the closest match in looks: anime styling, E-Rank to SSS, daily quests. It is thinner on the training underneath.
- Kovo is our pick if you want the System built on real lifts: six classes, a character whose muscles level up from what you log, streaks that survive a missed day, and friends in your gym. It is our app, so weigh that.
- Workout Quest goes deepest on loot and quests if you train alone. GymLevels and Liftoff rank what you already do, but expect you to bring the program.
The thing people want from Solo Leveling is not the push-ups. It is the window. Sung Jin-Woo wakes up and a panel only he can read tells him what to do today, shows a level that climbs when he does it, and spells out what happens if he skips. The workout itself is 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats and a 10km run, and it stalls after a few weeks (we wrote about that in the daily quest post). The window is the part worth copying.
Five apps copy it, each in a different way. We make one of them, Kovo, and we say so every time it comes up. Below is what each app takes from the System, what it leaves out, and who should install which.
What the System does that an app can copy
Strip the show away and the System is four rules.
- One task for today. Not a plan to read, a quest to clear. You never decide what to train.
- A level that only climbs when you do the work. No level for opening the app. The number moves because you did.
- A rank you can compare. E-Rank means something because S-Rank exists.
- A price for skipping. The penalty zone is the part of the show everyone remembers.
Every app below copies at least two of those. None copies all four well, and the one you want depends on which two you care about.
Level Up (formerly Arise): the closest in looks
If the show is the reason you are here, start with Level Up. It is an anime, Solo Leveling style fitness RPG on iOS and Android, free with in-app purchases. You rank from E to SSS, the daily quests use the show’s framing, and the whole thing is built for someone who wants to feel like a hunter.
What it copies: the quest, the rank, and the look. What it leaves out: the training underneath is thinner than the planner apps, so you are mostly bringing your own idea of what a workout should be. It is also newer and smaller, and the art is a taste. People either love it or close it in a day.
Get it if the fantasy is the point. Keep reading if the lifting is.
Kovo: a System built on your real lifts
Kovo is our app, so here is the bias up front. We did not copy the anime look and we are not going to fake it. What we copied is the window: one workout for today, a character that levels off what you log, and a streak that costs you something to break.
You pick one of six classes: Builder, Warrior, Architect, Monk, Ranger or Healer. Each has its own programming and its own character, and the character’s muscles level up one by one from the sets you log. Squat heavy for a month and your legs rank up, not your whole body. We build the program from your goals, equipment and experience, so there is no plan to bring, and the weights move off what you lifted last time.
The social part is the piece nothing else on this list has: a gym with your friends in it, shared quests, and a leaderboard of people you know. The System in the show was solo. Most people are not.
Where it falls short: no hunter ranks, no anime, and a smaller user base than the older trackers. If you want the look, Level Up wins. If you want the leveling to come from the bar, this is the one. Free on iOS and Android, so it costs you one session to find out.
Workout Quest: the deepest solo game
Workout Quest is an AI trainer wrapped in a role-playing game: daily quests, levels, loot chests and cosmetics, on iOS and the web, free with upgrades. Of the five, it has the most committed loot and cosmetic system, and the trainer adapts your plan as you go, so it covers the “one task for today” rule and the “level that climbs” rule better than most.
It is solo. No friends, no shared gym, nobody to rank against. And the loot can pull you into training for the chest instead of the lift. If you want the deepest game and you train alone anyway, this is the better install over Kovo. We say that plainly.
GymLevels: a rank on every muscle group
GymLevels is a tracker with an RPG layer, from the people who make GymStreak. Every set earns XP, each muscle group ranks from Bronze to Mythic off what you lifted, and the streak has freezes for rest days. For the “rank you can compare” rule it is the sharpest of the five.
It does not plan anything. You bring the program and it scores it, which is fine if you have one and a hard ask on day one if you do not. It is also mostly solo. If you already know what you are doing and want the stats on top, pick this over Kovo.
Liftoff: ranks against a big crowd
Liftoff is the least Solo Leveling of the five and the most popular. It is a social tracker built on leaderboards and streaks, with a large user base, so the ranks have real people on them. No quests, no character, no AI, and you bring your own program.
It is here because ranking against a full field is the part of the System some people care about most, and a leaderboard is only fun when it is full. Liftoff’s is. If that is your thing, it beats us today, and we compared the two here.
Which one should you get?
- You want the hunter fantasy: Level Up. Built for you, and nobody else on this list is.
- You want the leveling to come from your lifts, and a plan written for you: Kovo. Our pick for most people who lift.
- You train alone and want the deepest loot: Workout Quest.
- You have a program and want ranks on it: GymLevels.
- You want a big crowd to rank against: Liftoff.
Install two and give each a week. A list you cannot check is worth nothing, and this one is easy to check.
If you want the daily quest itself
Do it. 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, a 10km run, for a few weeks. Then make it progress, because the frozen version stalls around week six and the daily volume starts to hurt. The full routine, what it does to your body, and how to train like a Player without stalling are in the Solo Leveling workout post.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a workout app like Solo Leveling?
Yes, several. Level Up (formerly Arise) copies the look most closely, with anime styling, hunter ranks from E to SSS, and daily quests. Kovo, Workout Quest, GymLevels and Liftoff each copy part of the System (a daily task, a level, a rank) and attach it to real training. None of them is an official Solo Leveling product.
Which Solo Leveling style app is best for getting stronger?
Kovo, in our view, because it builds the program for you and your character only levels off lifts you logged. We make Kovo, so check that claim yourself: it is free on iOS and Android. If you already have a program you like and want a rank layer on top, GymLevels is the sharper tool.
Which app looks the most like Solo Leveling?
Level Up (formerly Arise). It is built around the hunter fantasy: E-Rank to SSS progression, quests with the show's framing, anime art. If the show is the reason you want this at all, start there.
Is there an official Solo Leveling workout app?
No. Solo Leveling: Arise is the official game, and it is a game, not a fitness app. The fitness apps that use the Solo Leveling style are made by other companies.
What is the Solo Leveling daily quest workout?
100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats and a 10km run, every day, finished inside 24 hours. It builds conditioning for a few weeks and then stalls, because nothing in it ever progresses. We wrote up the full routine and how to make it progress in a separate post.
We build your program. You play through it.
Streaks, quests, levels, and friends in your gym. Free on iOS and Android.