Beatcast
A heart rate app with no subscription
By Andreas B. Diendorfer · ORCID · LinkedIn · Updated
Short answer
Beatcast has no subscription. You get 14 days with the whole app, starting the first time you open it, and nobody asks for a card or an account. After that, one in-app purchase unlocks it, with no renewal. For live heart rate you need a sensor, during the trial and after it.
Last checked: 27 October 2026.
The 14 days
The trial starts at first launch and covers the whole app: live heart rate, sessions, zones, alerts, the Lock Screen and the Dynamic Island, exports. You enter no card, create no account and hand over no payment details. So when the 14 days end, nothing is charged.
One purchase, no renewal
After the trial, a single in-app purchase unlocks Beatcast. You pay once, through the App Store, and see the price there in your own currency.
With the same Apple Account on both, the purchase unlocks Beatcast on your iPhone and your iPad. On a new phone, or after a reinstall, Restore brings it back.
No account, no ads
Beatcast shows no ads. There is no sign-up, no analytics, no tracking and no Beatcast server. Your sessions and settings stay on your iPhone or iPad.
Without the purchase
Your history stays open. Past sessions, the detail of each one, export as CSV or TCX, the backup file and deleting a session all keep working. You can take your recordings elsewhere. Or decide later.
What needs the purchase is the live part: the heart rate readout, starting a new session, and broadcasting your heart rate to other apps or equipment.
What the sensor is for
Live heart rate comes from a sensor. Most people use a Bluetooth strap or arm band, worn wherever it reads. On iPhone you can also use AirPods Pro 3. The sensor list shows which models work. If you need one, choosing a strap helps, and the guide without an Apple Watch covers the other routes.
Where Beatcast fits
Start a session and the number moves into the Dynamic Island and onto the Lock Screen. It stays there while you are in another app. Beatcast on the App Store. Fourteen days with the whole app, then a one-time purchase.
Questions
Does Beatcast need a subscription?
No. After 14 days free, one in-app purchase unlocks it, with no renewal.
Do I need a card or an account for the trial?
No. The trial starts when you first open the app. There is no card, no account and no payment details.
What can I still do after 14 days without buying?
Open your history: past sessions, their detail, CSV and TCX export, backup and delete. Live heart rate, new sessions and broadcasting need the purchase.
Does one purchase cover iPhone and iPad?
Yes, with the same Apple Account. Restore brings the purchase back on a new device or after a reinstall.
Are there ads?
No. There are no ads, no analytics and no tracking.
Do I need a sensor?
Yes, for live heart rate. A Bluetooth strap or arm band works, and on iPhone you can also use AirPods Pro 3.
Good to know
Beatcast is not a medical device. It is built for training and general wellbeing, and it cannot detect, diagnose, treat or monitor any condition. If something about your heart worries you, talk to a doctor rather than to an app.
The Bluetooth word mark is a registered trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc. Apple, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods, App Store, Dynamic Island and Lock Screen are trademarks of Apple Inc. Other names belong to their owners and are used only to describe compatibility. Beatcast is an independent product and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or certified by any of them.
Got your device working? Report it in r/beatcast and it goes on the list.