I make SwimSet, so I'm biased. I've tried to be fair anyway, and to say where each of the others beats it. Below is what each app costs and how it gets a set onto your watch.
I checked prices and features on each app's own site in October 2026. If anything here is out of date, email hello@swimset.app and I'll fix it.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| Cost | How sets get onto a Garmin | Build your own sets | Account | Strava | Other watches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SwimSet | Free. No paid tier. | Its own Connect IQ watch app, sent from the phone over Bluetooth. Or a .FIT file for the watch's built-in workout mode. | Yes, set by set, or paste whiteboard shorthand like "8x50 kick @1:00" | None | Optional. Names the swim after your set. | Garmin only |
| MySwimPro | Free download with a 7-day trial. Paid is $19 a month or $99 a year. | Through Garmin Connect into the watch's Pool Swim mode | Yes | Yes | Yes | Apple Watch, Wear OS |
| Swim.com | Core app free, with 1,000+ workouts. Premium pricing isn't clear on their site. | Imports finished swims from Garmin Connect. I couldn't confirm it sends workouts to the watch. | Yes | Needed to link Garmin | Couldn't confirm | Apple Watch, Suunto, Samsung, Wear OS |
| AquaPlan | Free builder, but only 1 Garmin export to try it. Premium is €9 a month or €72 a year. | A .FIT file you download and copy across | Yes, drag-and-drop builder | Yes, to save and export | Not mentioned | Garmin (FIT files) |
| Garmin Connect | Free with any Garmin | Built in. Make a Pool Swim workout in the app and send it to the watch. | Yes, step by step | Garmin account | Through Garmin's own Strava sync | Garmin only |
Prices are the apps' published rates in October 2026 and can differ by country and app store.
It has training plans, an AI coach and dryland workouts, and it runs on Apple Watch. It's the most complete of the lot, and it's priced like it.
Leaderboards and clubs, and it's the official platform of US Masters Swimming. It works with most watches, not just Garmin.
It has more than 130 of them and prints PDFs for the pool deck. On the free tier you get one Garmin export, so for regular use you need Premium.
You already have it, and there's nothing extra to install. Building a long set step by step in the app takes a while, but you only do it once per set.
It's free and needs no sign-up. You build the set (or paste it), tap Send to watch, and the SwimSet watch app runs it rep by rep with a buzz on each send-off. It counts your lengths, or lets you tap them in yourself. A coach can share a session as a link, and everyone in the squad can load it.
Build a setIt's Garmin only, so no Apple Watch. Apart from the Zero to 1K beginner plan and a session generator, there are no coaching plans and no drill videos. It's also new and made by one person, so it hasn't had years of polish.
Yes, in two ways. Garmin Connect has a workout builder: make a Pool Swim workout and send it to your watch. Or build the set in SwimSet and send it to the free SwimSet watch app, or download it as a Garmin file that runs in your watch's own workout mode.
Yes. It records a normal pool swim, so it shows up in Garmin Connect like any other swim, and on Strava if your Garmin account syncs there.
No, only Garmin. If you're on Apple Watch, MySwimPro and Swim.com both support it.
MySwimPro pricing · MySwimPro watches · MySwimPro and Strava · Swim.com · AquaPlan and pricing · AquaPlan Garmin export · Garmin pool swim workouts