Marvel-ous: After 7 years, Chris Hemsworth's Centr app has quietly transformed into one of the best fitness platforms on mobile

3 hours ago 3

An all-encompassing app for fitness, nutrition, and even mindfulness, Centr is worthy of Thor star Chris Hemsworth’s name and branding, and one of the best fitness apps around.

Pros

  • +

    Ideal for fitness newcomers

  • +

    Recipes are appreciated

  • +

    Plenty of workout types

Cons

  • -

    Pretty pricey compared to some rivals

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Centr: One minute review

Not many fitness apps have the name of a bona fide Hollywood star on them. Chris Hemsworth, the actor who plays Thor, puts his money where his muscles are with Centr, a holistic workout app that manages just about every aspect of your fitness journey. The app packs content on food to helping you plan rest days, and, of course, the exercise sessions themselves, and it does a pretty great job across all aspects.

There are daily workout classes accessible within the app, as well as self-guided workout plans that incorporate both strength training and cardio, with ratios based on your chosen goal. I was impressed with is the diversity of workouts on offer; while I’ve primarily used Fitbod over the last couple of years, that particular app essentially just keeps rotating exercises and workouts forever, with no real plan outside of the user setting a goal.

That made Centr’s way of working, with exercise plans spanning days and weeks, much easier for me to stick to, especially as it does a great job of layering in rest days or active recovery. Centr can work with the equipment you have, whether that’s bodyweight-only exercises, a full gym, or anywhere in between, and the whole app feels thoughtfully designed so that it’s easy to switch out exercises or substitute in different weight amounts.

Aside from workouts, there’s a really impressive recipe section that made me want to invest more in meal plans, and mindfulness tools for winding down after a hard day’s work. One of my favorite features is that your plan is viewable online via the Centr website, making it easier to plot your progress or prepare included recipes on your laptop.

The rub is that all of this comes at a high price, at least if you’re paying monthly. $30 a month will be a tough pill to swallow for many more casual users, but you can save a ton by going for the $139.99 / £114.99 / AU$360 annual plan. There is a free trial, but you can only enjoy that for a week, so be sure to make the most out of it.

For those looking for a holistic fitness and wellbeing tool, Centr will tick a lot of boxes. Not only is it packed with features, but the app is much easier to navigate than some rivals that do less.

Chris Hemsworth exercising in Centr gear

(Image credit: Centr)

Centr: Price and availability

  • Monthly cost is high at $29.99 / £19.66 / $29.99 per month
  • Annual plan considerably lowers costs to $11.67 / £9.58 / AU$13.33 per month
  • iOS and Android

Centr is available worldwide on the App Store and Play Store, meaning it’s ideal for both iOS and Android users.

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It works out to $29.99 / £19.66 / $29.99 per month, which is more than many of its rivals like Fitbod or PUSH, but paying for a year brings that down to $11.67 / £9.58 / AU$13.33 per month, a sizeable drop.

Centr: Scorecard

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Category

Comment

Score

Value

Pricey per month, meaning annual membership is the only real way to go.

4/5

Design

The initial quiz is handy for setting things up, and the app is easy to use.

5/5

Features

Wide variety of programs (including equipment-free options), mindfulness and even recipes.

5/5

Performance

No body scan workouts, but very detailed instructions and very easy to follow as a result.

4.5/5

Centr: Should I buy?

Mjolnir toy near phone with Centr app

(Image credit: Future)

Buy it if...

You want more than just workouts

Centr incorporates mindfulness tools and recipes, meaning there’s more than just planning and tracking workouts included.

You want to build muscle sustainably

Because it factors in rest days and longer-tail workout regimens, Centr is an ideal choice for anyone looking to build sustainable muscle.

Don't buy it if...

You want to focus on workouts alone

There are cheaper alternatives that don’t have meal plans and other optional inclusions, meaning you can focus your budget elsewhere.

You want a cheap workout app

Even with all of those features, Centr is expensive, costing twice what you can get from the likes of PUSH or Fitbod.

Also consider

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Row 0 - Cell 0

Centr

Fitbod

Push

Platforms

iOS/Android

iOS/Android

iOS/Android

Price

$29.99 per month, $120 annually

$15.99 per month, $95.99 annually

$15.49 per month, $89.99 annually

Devices

iPhone, Android phone, Apple Watch

iPhone, Android phone, Apple Watch

iPhone, Android phone

Guided Content

No

No

Yes

Video Content

Yes

Yes

Tes

Fitbod

Fitbod is more squarely focused on tracking weight exercises, but has an easy-to-use interface with great video tutorials for each one.

Read our full Fitbod review

PUSH

PUSH is all about building muscle, and leans on the tried and true progressive overload technique to keep you pushing ever further.

Read our full PUSH review

How I tested

I took Centr to the gym over the course of three weeks, working out with the app installed on my iPhone 15 Pro Max and then an iPhone 17 Pro Max. I also used the web interface to more easily read the recipe guides.

Lloyd Coombes

Lloyd Coombes is a freelance tech and fitness writer for TechRadar. He's an expert in all things Apple as well as Computer and Gaming tech, with previous works published on TopTenReviews, Space.com, and Live Science. You'll find him regularly testing the latest MacBook or iPhone, but he spends most of his time writing about video games at Dexerto.

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