BANKED vs Hevy
Do you want to log your training, or be told what it is?
Hevy and BANKED are not really the same kind of thing, which is why the comparison is useful. One is a very good notebook. The other is the plan you would write in it.
The short version
As it presents itself publicly, Hevy is a workout tracker: you build or import routines, log sets and weights precisely, look back at your history, and, if you like, follow friends and share sessions. The programme is yours; Hevy records it.
BANKED is the programme. It decides Session A or B, fits it to your time and kit, logs your sets as you go, progresses the weights by rule, and counts two sessions a week as a banked week. There is no feed, no friends and no sharing, on purpose.
Side by side
| Hevy | BANKED | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the programme comes from | You: build routines or import them | BANKED: one fixed two-session programme, progressed for you |
| Logging | Detailed and flexible; a strength of the product | Built into the session; you tap reps and weight, it stores the rest |
| Progression | Yours to plan | Automatic: +≈ 2 kg when every set hits the top, or one rung up the bodyweight ladder |
| Social | Feed, friends, sharing | None |
| Unit of success | Whatever you set yourself | The week: two strength sessions banked |
| Equipment | Anything you can name in a routine | Bodyweight, dumbbells, bands, kettlebell, bar. No barbells |
| Nutrition | Not the focus, as far as we can tell | Calorie and protein targets alongside training; a nutrition tier is planned |
| Price | Free tier and a paid tier; see their site for what sits where | Training free, permanently |
Choose Hevy if
- You already have a programme you believe in and want to log it precisely.
- You lift with barbells and machines and want them in your history.
- Training with friends, or seeing what they did, is part of why you train.
- You enjoy the analysis: volume charts, personal records, history by exercise.
Choose BANKED if
- You do not want to write a programme. You want to be told the next useful thing.
- You want the app to decide when weights go up, and to be right about it.
- You want a clear “done for the week” instead of an open-ended log.
- You would rather nobody saw your training at all.
What this comparison is not
We have not run a head-to-head trial, and we have no access to Hevy's internals or roadmap. The description of Hevy here is a plain-language summary of how it presents itself publicly at the time of writing, kept deliberately general; details, prices and features change, so check their own site before deciding. Where we are unsure, we say so rather than guess.
Fair questions
- Can I log a BANKED session in Hevy?
- Nothing stops you typing it in, but there is no export or sync, and BANKED already keeps the log. If Hevy’s history and charts matter to you, Hevy plus a programme you own is the better setup.
- Is BANKED’s logging as detailed?
- No. It records reps and load per set for the exercises in your session, and uses them for progression and the “previous” line. It does not do volume analytics, personal-record celebrations or free-form notes. That is a limitation if you love the data and a relief if you do not.
- Why no social features at all?
- Because the people BANKED is for do not want another feed, and because a feed makes more training look like the goal. The unit of success is your week, and it is nobody else’s business.
The plan you would have written. Already written.
BANKED decides the session, logs it as you go and moves the weights when they should move. Two a week and the week is banked. Free.