Zwift and TrainerRoad are two indoor cycling apps which take very different approaches to improving your cycling performance.
Zwift offers you a virtual world in which to ride and the option to interact with other riders on the platform.
TrainerRoad is purely focused on your own objectives and scheduling the workouts to achieve them. Its user interface is graph-based and will suit those focused on the data and process.
Just this week, Zwift launched a new premium subscription tier called Zwift Plus. The package costs around $10 more and adds adaptive AI coaching and real-world video.
The two apps are likely to appeal to very different riders and mental outlooks. Which is right for you? We’ll help you understand what Zwift and TrainerRoad offer and choose the platform that suits you best.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: Approach
Zwift may have retired its “fun is fast” mantra, but it still aims to provide a varied approach to training, offering freeriding and racing, as well as more structured training plans and workouts.
TrainerRoad is much more objective-focused, claiming it will “make you faster with science-based, goal-driven training”. That goal-driven approach is key to the app’s appeal. If you’re training for a race or a challenge, TrainerRoad will set out a plan of workouts that’s claimed to help you to prepare. There's no in-game or social element; it's all about the training.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: Adaptive training
TrainerRoad’s selling point is its adaptive training. It offers both targeted training and a Train Now option.
While targeted Custom Plans are structured and power-based, Train Now is more flexible and proposes workouts based on your fitness level. Train Now also lets you flex your schedule if you’re time-pressed, or just want to add in some unstructured indoor or outdoor riding.
There’s a large library of workouts and TrainerRoad will suggest an appropriate next workout based on your objectives, fitness and recovery status. Based on your performance during a workout, the app will assess your “Progression Level” and fine-tune your schedule.
Zwift too has a large library of structured training plans, focused on different aspects of performance, such as boosting your FTP or increasing your endurance. Its plans don’t include any flexibility – miss a workout, and it won’t be rescheduled for you. There are short-duration workouts for the time-pressed as well as longer options.
Zwift also has a partnership with TrainerRoad, which allows you to add in a structured schedule and annual plan that you can ride in Zwift. This does mean paying for two separate subscriptions, though.
The new Zwift Plus coaching offering builds on what the platform already offers. The new Zwift Coach promises to set a goal, analyse performance and adapt over time.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: Objective setting
Progression Levels in TrainerRoad are assessed across seven aspects, from sprint power to endurance capacity. TrainerRoad suggests that your performance across these dimensions can change without a change in your FTP, so this will again feed into its future workout recommendations.
TrainerRoad also offers a large amount of sports science-based advice to help you to understand the scientific basis of performance and how to improve.
Zwift’s workouts tend to focus on one aspect of your fitness. It’s up to you to decide what this is and choose a training plan to match, and there’s limited feedback. Its workouts are based around your FTP, which you can either measure via an FTP test there are a few options to choose from or input directly if you know it, or rely on Zwift’s assessment based on your previous riding.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: Competition
Zwift’s offer is geared around riding with others. With over a million active users worldwide, you can find others riding in its worlds day and night, and there are events scheduled both by Zwift and its user base, allowing you to ride with or race against other riders.
You can also add “Robopacers” to set a tempo to encourage you to keep up. The gamified aspect is epitomised by Zwift’s PowerUps, which allow you to increase your in-game performance briefly.
TrainerRoad is much more straight-laced and just focuses on your training. There’s no interactivity with other users and little visual stimulation. If you don't want or need to interact with other riders, and want to jump on to complete a structured session, TrainerRoad may suit you more.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: User interface
Zwift’s training is based in its virtual worlds, with the app showing you an imaginary road complete with volcanoes, banners, other riders and more. It will interact with your smart trainer to increase resistance when the virtual road’s gradient increases and ease off when you’re on the flat or descending.
TrainerRoad, meanwhile, takes a more traditional training approach, displaying a series of graph-like ramps where ride intensity increases and decreases. You can follow this on a non-smart trainer as well as with automatic resistance changes using a smart trainer. It’s probably less engaging for most riders, but it allows you to focus more on what’s coming up and meeting the power demands of your workout or to watch or listen to something of your choice.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: Hardware
While you can run Zwift on pretty much any hardware, the brand works with smart trainer makers to sell Zwift Ready equipment, designed to make setup faster, as well as its own brand Zwift Ride 2 indoor bike with or without a Wahoo Kickr Core 2 trainer.
There’s an increasing range of Zwift Ready trainers that come ready-fitted with Zwift’s orange single sprocket Cog and are packaged with its Click bar-mounted shifters. These do tie you into using Zwift or Rouvy, which Zwift also owns.
In contrast, TrainerRoad is trainer-agnostic and doesn’t sell branded hardware. It has detailed information on compatible non-smart and smart trainers and online and in-person help to get set up.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: Price
Zwift is priced at £17.99 a month, although an annual subscription reduces that to £15 equivalent. There’s a 30-day money-back period for annual subscribers, whereas monthly subscribers get a 14-day free trial period before they’re billed.
The new Zwit Plus package costs £26.99 / €29.99 / $29.99 per month. There are also yearly discounts to take advantage of if you want to pay in one go.
TrainerRoad bills exclusively in US dollars, with an annual membership costing $209.99 or $17.45 monthly equivalent, while paying monthly raises this to $21.99 per month. In both cases, there’s a 30-day money-back period.
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: Which should you choose?
Zwift and TrainerRoad’s very different user experiences will appeal to different riders and different motivations.
If you’re very goal-focused and like to plan out your training in advance, maybe targeting a specific event or schedule of events during your riding year, TrainerRoad will support you. It's all about the work, but it still offers some flexibility and will adapt to your schedule and progression, and assesses your progress across a range of aspects of your fitness, not just FTP.
If, on the other hand, you like the element of competition when training, value the visual stimulation of its virtual world and its gamified, more engaging user interface, Zwift is more likely to keep your interest level up and help you achieve your goals. Plus, there’s the option to use Zwift to support your structured training on TrainerRoad.
