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Are you on the hunt for a fitness app ideal for building strength, cultivating relaxation, and utilizing a minimal home workout setup? We’ve got you covered. In our best workout apps roundup, the Down Dog yoga app was our top pick for yoga workouts. We think it’s both beginner-friendly and challenging for experienced yogis.
In this Down Dog app review, we’ll dive into what you can expect from this app and cover everything we liked and some aspects we’d like to see improved. Let’s get started—namaste.
Yogis and Fitness Professionals at Your Service
Garage Gym Reviews is staffed with fitness industry experts ranging from certified personal trainers to certified nutrition coaches (and everything in between). For this Down Dog app review, GGR editor, expert product tester, and yoga enthusiast Frieda Johnson put the app to the test.
Frieda is also a NASM-certified nutrition coach and an ISSA-certified specialist in exercise therapy. At the time of writing this review, Frieda practiced yoga with Down Dog for four months. She used our in-depth testing methodology to score and review the price, setup, ease of use, workout variety, and more.
Down Dog App
Down Dog
Product Highlights
- Over 60,000 configurations for a personalized yoga practice
- Beginner-friendly with a Beginner 1 Level in Vinyasa, Hatha, and Restorative
- Multiple practice types, including Vinyasa, Cardio Flow, Hatha, Gentle, Restorative, Yin, Ashtanga, Chair, Yoga Nidra, Hot 26, and Sun Salutation
- Available in multiple languages, including six different English-speaking voices and nine other languages.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Auto-generated workouts so it is a different workout every time
- Fits all experience and fitness levels
- Download classes to use offline
- Configuration of poses and practices is immense
- Clear instructions
Cons
- Some reports of the app freezing
- Music is reported to be mediocre
- Pricing is not listed on their website
Bottom Line
For those who prioritize variety in their yoga practice, Down Dog offers over 60,000 ways to personalize your yoga practice, beginner-friendly options and various practice types. The pricing on their website is unclear.
A Quick Look at the Down Dog App
The Down Dog brand has more than one app to explore. In this review, we’ll dive into our experience with the yoga app only. But if you’re feeling adventurous, your login and membership on the Down Dog yoga app will give you access to the brand’s HIIT, Meditation, Barre, and Prenatal Yoga apps. Each discipline has its own downloadable app and platform, but you’ll have access to everything.
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Before You Buy
- There is no free trial with the Down Dog app—your subscription starts immediately.
- The Down Dog website offers the most current membership rates and promotions and may be slightly less than what you see in the App Store or Google Play.
- You’ll have voiceover options with different languages to choose from, including English, French, German, Spanish, and more.
Is the Down Dog App Worth It?
Based on our experience, the Down Dog app is worth it for anyone who wants to practice yoga. The app offers tons of beginner level sessions and multiple ways to filter and sort your yoga workouts to customize your practice or make it more challenging.
The app is priced at $9.99 monthly or $59.99 with an annual recurring subscription. You’ll find these subscription rates on both Google Play and the Apple App Store. However, the Down Dog website typically offers a discounted rate of $7.99 per month or $39.99 per year if you sign up directly through the website and not the app.
Compared to many other top-rated yoga apps on the market, Down Dog offers affordable pricing and quality instruction. Our tester Frieda Johnson scored the app 5 out of 5 stars for price and value.
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Great for:
- Beginners and experienced yogis
- Folks who want to make customizations
- Multicultural or bilingual speakers
Not recommended for:
- People who prefer live yoga studio-style classes
- Folks looking for hybrid cardio and yoga sessions
- Anyone looking for the best weightlifting apps
Down Dog App Specs
| Pricing | $9.99/month or $59.99/year |
| Trial period | No |
| Subscription options | Monthly or annually |
| Type of training | Yoga, barre, pilates, HIIT, mediation |
| Equipment demands | Yoga mat; optional to have yoga accessories like blocks, straps, etc. |
| Available on | iOS and Android |
Workout Experience with the Down Dog Yoga App
Our tester, Frieda, downloaded the Down Dog app with the intention of testing, using, and eventually deleting it. However, she enjoyed it so much during testing that she still uses it regularly. “I really enjoy Down Dog and it may be the best yoga app I’ve used,” she says.
Frieda notes the app allows you to filter and select yoga workouts from an impressive number of categories, including music, instructor, time, and muscle focus.
“I like how easy it is to customize based on what you want on any given day,” she says. “My yoga workouts are continuously challenging but attainable for my experience level.”
Pricing and Subscription Options
You’ll have the option to either sign up for monthly or annual billing (($9.99 or $59.99, respectively) to access the Down Dog app. However, we noticed the app is often on sale if you purchase directly through the Down Dog website versus the app in the Apple Store or Google Play.
Frieda signed up for a monthly subscription at $7.99 per month and noticed the annual membership was reduced to $39.99 per year. She rated the price and value of this yoga app 5 out of 5 stars. “I think this is a good price for what you get,” says Frieda. “In addition to the yoga app, Down Dog also gives you access to its HIIT, barre, prenatal yoga, and meditation apps.”
Frieda’s main callout with the pricing is the lack of a trial period. “The app charged my credit card right away when I signed up,” she says.
After digging through the FAQs, Frieda noticed two mentions of a “brief free trial” but no mentions of how to get access to a free trial. We even read through a thread on Reddit about other users also being confused about the free trial.
Based on our sleuthing, the app was free prior to 2018, so the price change may have caused lingering confusion. You can technically download the app for free (but you won’t have access to yoga classes or sessions) and make in-app purchases. For this reason, the app earns a 1-out-of-5-star rating in our trial category.
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Down Dog App Setup and Ease of Use
Frieda scored the Down Dog yoga app 5 out of 5 stars for both setup and ease of use. She says getting started was easy. Even if you sign up through the website, it’s easy to log in once you download the app.
Frieda went through a brief assessment to assess her fitness level and preferences on duration, type of music, and voice prompts. Once she finished that, she found the user interface easy to navigate.
“It’s very simple. There are only a few basic aspects to the app: The home screen, journey, and history,” she says. “The journey tab tracks your yoga frequency, and history shows your past sessions and even provides a yoga pose list.”
Frieda explains the home screen is where you can customize your yoga classes by a variety of factors, including:
- Skill level (Beginner 1 Level, Beginner 2 Level, etc.)
- Music and playlists
- Yoga teacher or instructor voice
- Muscles used or body part focus
Frieda also notes there is an account settings tab where you can access your account information and an extensive FAQ page within the app.
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Coaching and Instruction
The Down Dog app earns a 4 out of 5 stars for instruction. While you’re not getting in-depth coaching, cueing, and reasoning for every pose or muscle worked, you will have instructional videos with helpful voiceovers for each session.
“Don’t expect live classes,” says Frieda. “All sessions are patchwork videos of pre-recorded poses. Basically, each video session combines different poses together in different configurations depending on what you choose to focus on any given day.”
Frieda says you’ll be able to look up and reference the video at any point during your session or listen to the coaching cues. “Most sessions also include breathing cues and tips,” she adds.
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Accountability and Community
When it comes to accountability in a workout app, our testers look for features like push notifications, structured workout schedules, or the ability to add your workout to your personal calendar. Some apps even offer group challenges, forums, and coach check-ins.
Frieda scored the Down Dog app 1 out of 5 stars in this category because there are no accountability features. However, she notes there is a feature where you can set a goal of how many days per week you want to practice yoga. You can use the “Journey” tab to see your yoga practice streak and set that goal.
Frieda thinks it’s worth mentioning you can also use the History tab to see which yoga sessions you’ve completed or add certain sessions to your Favorites to practice again.
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Equipment Demands
While strength training apps like Caliber and CENTR require dumbbells and barbells, a yoga app doesn’t require much in the equipment department. Frieda gives the Down Dog app 5 out of 5 in this category.
“You just need one of the best exercise mats and yourself,” says Frieda, which she finds especially important as a fitness professional and a tiny home dweller. She says some folks may want yoga blocks or a strap, but she opts to keep it simple with just a yoga mat.
Workout Variety
When it comes to variety, the Down Dog app earns a middle-of-the-road 3 out of 5 stars. Frieda says she wasn’t expecting a ton of variety since it’s a yoga-specific app.
“Because it’s centered around yoga, many of the workouts will be similar,” she says. “However, you will have the ability to customize your practice enough to avoid getting bored.”
And bored she is not. Frieda continued to use the Down Dog app after her official GGR testing period. As of this writing, Frieda is on her fourth consecutive month of using Down Dog multiple times per week.
If you’re still concerned about variety, rest assured that your membership also gives you access to other Down Dog apps (all downloaded separately), including Down Dog HIIT, Barre, and Mediation.
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Down Dog App vs Daily Yoga
Daily Yoga
Daily Yoga
Product Highlights
- Over 100 yoga asana and meditation classes for all users of all levels
- Daily and weekly challenges along with a beginner-friendly tutorial series
- Smart Coach feature to streamline class selection and generating a 28-day schedule displaying a new class each day
- Personalized yoga plans and progress tracking
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Receives multiple awards and accolades
- Variety of routines offered to meet all fitness-levels and available timeframes
- Beginners do find the beginner series a great introduction to yoga
- Detailed pose library
- Good community
Cons
- Reports of the app being glitchy
- Free to download but subscription is required
- Pricing is very unclear on the website
Bottom Line
The Daily Yoga app is a comprehensive yoga and meditation app appreciated by millions of yogis worldwide. However, there are complaints about the app being glitchy and pricing is very unclear so it may not be for everyone.
If you’ve been researching yoga apps, you’ve probably landed on the Daily Yoga app as a popular contender. It’s highly recommended on social media. However, Frieda tested both Down Dog and Daily Yoga and preferred to stick with Down Dog to carry into her daily practice.
While neither app offers live classes, she preferred the Down Dog sessions. She says the AI Coach in the Daily Yoga app is pretty chaotic and just throws you a bunch of random workouts adjacent to your goals.
During the app setup process for Daily Yoga, Frieda said her goal was to focus on strength and flexibility. She then proceeded to get “arm toning” and “thigh toning” workouts, which seemed like a half-step away from traditional yoga and mobility exercises.
One aspect Frieda liked about the Daily Yoga app was the “skills” section, where you can work on advanced yoga skills like splits and handstands.
| Down Dog App | Daily Yoga | |
| Pricing | $9.99/month or $59.99/year | $20.99/month |
| Trial period | No | 7 days |
| Subscription options | Monthly or annually | Monthly or annually |
| Type of training | Yoga, barre, pilates, HIIT, mediation | Yoga, mediation |
| Available on | iOS and Android | iOS and Android |
Customer Experience
The Down Dog app allows you to cancel at any time directly from your smartphone. There is an extensive FAQ section on the Down Dog website outlining the steps to cancel whether you purchased your membership on the Down Dog website, Apple App Store, or Google Play.
Frieda says there is also a support messaging feature within the Down Dog app. Overall, she gives the customer experience 3 out of 5 stars because she was neither blown away nor ticked off by the company support.
Another thing we liked about the app is that you can share your login with other family members. The app isn’t supported by Apple Family Sharing, but the website notes you log in with the same account information with your family. Just keep in mind you’ll be sharing one shared profile and workout history.
Customer Reviews
Between the Apple App Store and Google Play, there are nearly 600,000 customer reviews on the Down Dog app. Both platforms have a 4.9-out-of-5-star average rating. Most customers appreciate the solid yoga instruction and easy-to-use interface.
The negative reviews centered around the setup process and the app lacking a free trial.
Final Verdict of Our Down Dog App Review
The Down Dog app is an ideal workout app if you enjoy yoga or are new to exercise and not sure where to start. The app offers a wide variety of beginner-friendly sessions and ways to customize your sessions to make them more difficult. You’ll enjoy the Down Dog app if:
- You don’t want to spend a ton of money on a monthly subscription.
- You’re limited on home gym equipment.
- You have experience or interest in yoga poses (asana) and styles.
- You want to take advantage of the other Down Dog apps for HIIT, guided meditation, and more.
Full Rating
Down Dog App
For those who prioritize variety in their yoga practice, Down Dog offers over 60,000 ways to personalize your yoga practice, beginner-friendly options and various practice types. The pricing on their website is unclear.
Product Brand: Down Dog
Product Currency: $
Product Price: 9.99
Product In-Stock: InStock
3.8
Down Dog App: FAQs
Is Down Dog worth the money?
Based on our testing experience, Down Dog is worth the money. It doesn’t require much space, equipment, or time. Pricing starts at $9.99 per month (and often goes on sale on the Down Dog website). This is less expensive than many other apps in the yoga, pilates, and mediation space that our GGR team has tested.
How much does the Down Dog app cost?
Pricing for the Down Dog app starts at $9.99 per month with the option for an annual membership at $59.99 per year. Keep in mind that we’ve seen the Down Dog website offer discounted rates at $7.99 per month.
What type of yoga is Down Dog app?
In the Down Dog app, you can filter and search for your preferred style of yoga, including Vinyasa, Hatha, Yin, Ashtanga, gentle, and restorative.
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Are you on the hunt for a fitness app ideal for building strength, cultivating relaxation, and utilizing a minimal home workout setup? We’ve got you covered. In our best workout apps roundup, the Down Dog yoga app was our top pick for yoga workouts. We think it’s both beginner-friendly and challenging for experienced yogis. In this Down Dog app review, we’ll dive into what you can expect from this app and cover everything we liked and some aspects we’d like to see improved. » Read more about: Down Dog App Review (2024): Highly Customizable Online Yoga » Read more
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