Accuracy of running apps

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emmab0902
emmab0902 Posts: 2,337 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I am wanting to stick to one app for my runs. Really keen to know which is the most accurate in gps tracking. And for the ones you've found less accurate have they over or underestimated distance??

Thanks!!
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Replies

  • HWeatherholt
    HWeatherholt Posts: 283 Member
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    In my experience Nike running/+ is pretty accurate. Haven't tried any others, but I would assume that if the app is GPS based it should be pretty accurate and/or their should be a way to calibrate it with a known distance -- you can do this with old school pedometers and the Nike app.
  • SassyDingo
    SassyDingo Posts: 19 Member
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    I use runkeeper. I just checked on google maps (I take the same route everytime, I just use runkeeper for the speed) and it was very accurate. A little different but I would assume that was more error with me trying to map the route in google maps.
  • boehle
    boehle Posts: 5,062 Member
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    I use mapmyrun and I pretty much do the same everytime.
    I think its pretty accurate and its free.
  • gobonas99
    gobonas99 Posts: 1,049 Member
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    I use cardiotrainer, and it is pretty accurate. The handful of times I've had issues were when my phone was acting up....a reboot solved the issue. :smile:
  • links_slayer
    links_slayer Posts: 1,151 Member
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    I use MapMyRun. Earlier this year I ran a 5k, an 8k, and a 10k and it was +/- 0.05km off at worst (assuming the start/finish lines were 100% accurate). Close enough for me.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    Strava, here.
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
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    The accuracy is more dependent on the accuracy of the GPS receiver in the phone than the app itself.

    If you want improved accuracy you need something along the lines of a Garmin Forerunner, if you don't want to spend more money on gadgets your phone and whichever app you decide to use is probably accurate enough.
  • Jacahu
    Jacahu Posts: 3 Member
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    I use the digift app with a gps and a heart rate monitor and its been very accurate so far.
  • KristiRTT
    KristiRTT Posts: 346 Member
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    During my first 13.1 I used map my run, because it would auto load to Facebook every 5k so my family had an idea of when I would be finishing. It ended hi saying the course was 13.3, pretty accurate! During my training for my most recent 13.1 I have been using run keeper which I believe is more accurate. However I raced with map my run again, but his time it said the course was 13.5, still pretty accurate, but a bummer when I thought I had a min pr until I reached the finish line! I ended up with a 2 second pr! I asked for a garmin watch for Christmas!
  • TammyW18
    TammyW18 Posts: 244 Member
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    I use runkeeper, has been accurate for me
  • johnwhitent
    johnwhitent Posts: 648 Member
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    The accuracy is more dependent on the accuracy of the GPS receiver in the phone than the app itself.

    If you want improved accuracy you need something along the lines of a Garmin Forerunner, if you don't want to spend more money on gadgets your phone and whichever app you decide to use is probably accurate enough.

    This.

    I have used most all of the apps and have run several concurrently. None stands out as more accurate than the others over time. I trail run and mountain bike which is very challenging to gps due to tree coverage. The GPS/Hrm watches are most accurate, but even they fail due to heavy clouds or foliage. Nothing is going to be perfect, but it is fair to say you get what you pay for. Only you can determine where to draw the line. For me the free apps don't provide sufficient accuracy for my use.
  • froeschli
    froeschli Posts: 1,292 Member
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    The accuracy is more dependent on the accuracy of the GPS receiver in the phone than the app itself.

    If you want improved accuracy you need something along the lines of a Garmin Forerunner, if you don't want to spend more money on gadgets your phone and whichever app you decide to use is probably accurate enough.
    This,
    I find there's a big difference on whether i use my old iphone 3 vs my husbands 5 (running on gps alone).
    for added accuracy, I've gotten myself the Nike+ shoe sensor - yes, it's basically a pedometer, but it stops the annoying gps spikes, where runkeeper for example tells you you just did 120km/h, hopping a few miles back and forth...
    still, i found there is up to a 10% difference between the two phones.
  • leanme28
    leanme28 Posts: 53
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    Endomondo all the way!
  • HWeatherholt
    HWeatherholt Posts: 283 Member
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    I've gotten myself the Nike+ shoe sensor - yes, it's basically a pedometer, but it stops the annoying gps spikes, where runkeeper for example tells you you just did 120km/h, hopping a few miles back and forth...
    still, i found there is up to a 10% difference between the two phones.

    I used the shoe sensor when I had/used the iPod 3rd gen. But switched just to the Nike Running app on iPhone 5, when I upgraded my phone last year. I find it pretty accurate using both gps and non gps. If I step on my street off my driveway and walk the loop of my neighborhood it is .7 miles according to my car and google maps and Nike Running with gps gives me .7. If I use it in indoor mode on the treadmill it will be within .02 of the distance the treadmill says. It's not that different, but I will adjust the distance and split the difference.
  • Shannonpurple
    Shannonpurple Posts: 268 Member
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    I use runkeeper it is accurate I have compared my routes on google maps and walkjogrun only off between them by +/- .02 miles. Plus runkeeper syncs with MFP.
  • spearfox
    spearfox Posts: 276 Member
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    I have a Droid phone.
    For my runs I run Sports Tracker and Endomondo at the same time for various reasons.
    There has always been a discrepancy between the two readings. The difference is .03 miles in a 5k race but it increases with distance.
    Endomondo was the closest in accuracy to the sanctioned race distance.
    In the end I don't sweat the inaccuracies. I'm moving, running, burning calories, keeping my cardio conditioning.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    I am wanting to stick to one app for my runs. Really keen to know which is the most accurate in gps tracking. And for the ones you've found less accurate have they over or underestimated distance?

    On an iPhone 4S I use Runkeeper and Endomondo, both pretty good. RK struggles in heavy rain, but that's more a function of GPS propagation rather than the tracking.

    I have found MapMyRun and associated products both unreliable from a tracking perspective and frequently fails to sync,so no longer use it.
  • RunBrew
    RunBrew Posts: 220 Member
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    The accuracy is more dependent on the accuracy of the GPS receiver in the phone than the app itself.

    To my understanding, every smartphone app on the market uses pretty much the same method of coding/algorithm to utilize the GPS receiver in the device.

    No one yet has worked out a way to distinguish 'bad' data points from the good ones and improve the accuracy of tracking. It's all about your signal strength.
    Some are using a workaround, like I do with Endomondo. I go to the website and create a route within my profile that uses google earth measurements, then when I leave on the run I just set my workout to 'Follow Route' and that seems to minimize the effects because I've told the phone where I'll be running beforehand. It still comes back with a 0.1-0.2 mile error over a 10-12 mile run but that can be corrected as well.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    It gets even more fun for those of who run/ride on trails instead of roads, because the elevation data is often complete crap. I have a gorgeous 25% grade hill I use for hill days, and it registers as flat, because it's flat on Google Maps, and pretty much all the apps correlate their GPS readings to Google's maps.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
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    The accuracy is more dependent on the accuracy of the GPS receiver in the phone than the app itself.

    If you want improved accuracy you need something along the lines of a Garmin Forerunner, if you don't want to spend more money on gadgets your phone and whichever app you decide to use is probably accurate enough.

    This.

    I have used most all of the apps and have run several concurrently. None stands out as more accurate than the others over time. I trail run and mountain bike which is very challenging to gps due to tree coverage. The GPS/Hrm watches are most accurate, but even they fail due to heavy clouds or foliage. Nothing is going to be perfect, but it is fair to say you get what you pay for. Only you can determine where to draw the line. For me the free apps don't provide sufficient accuracy for my use.

    This and this.

    To add - even Garmin Forerunners and other dedicated GPS are not 100% accurate. There is a degree of error involved, plus other factors that can affect accuracy. I still prefer the Garmin (but I did use Mapmyrun before I had my garmin). I just have to throw that out there as a race coordinator who often deals with issues of people complaining of distance based on their garmin. The marathon that I volunteer with is Boston certified, it is as close to accurate as you can get and several runners had it register as long on their Garmin

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