Quick comparison
| Feature | Baseline | TrainingPeaks | |---|---|---| | Pricing | $0 / $12/mo / $249 lifetime | Free / $19.95/mo Premium / $39.95/mo Premium Coach | | Free tier | Limited dashboard, single source | Limited to 3 workouts/week and 3 months history | | Structured workout planning | Planned (Pro+ tier, not yet available) | Industry standard - full workout calendar, prescribed by you or your coach | | Coach-athlete communication | Planned (Coach tier, not yet available) | Built-in - workout comments, PM feedback, structured communication | | Cross-source dashboard | First-class - Strava, WHOOP, Apple Health, Garmin, Oura, Coros, Wahoo | Strava and Garmin sync (activity only, no wellness metrics) | | Training load model | CTL/ATL/TSB with configurable time constants | CTL/ATL/TSB with Performance Management Chart (PMC) | | AI insights | Daily "three things to know" card + weekly summary | Performance IQ (AI-powered feedback on workouts, limited to Premium) | | Visual design quality | Premium, curated, responsive | Utilitarian, functional, desktop-focused | | Geographic depth | Full heatmap V3.1, country/state stats, trip detection | Basic maps, no geographic analysis | | Workout compliance tracking | Not available (no workout plans) | Full - planned vs completed, workout library, PM feedback | | Heatmap | Full-resolution V3.1 with bleed, interactive | Not a feature | | Data export | Full JSON download, one click | Activity export, no bulk data export | | Integration breadth | 7 platforms (live + planned) | 5 platforms (Strava, Garmin, Zwift, TrainerRoad, Google Fit) | | Target athlete | Self-coached, multi-device, data-curious | Coached or plan-following, goal-oriented, structured |
Where TrainingPeaks wins
TrainingPeaks has been the dominant platform for structured training and coach-athlete communication for over a decade. Its strengths are hard-earned:
Structured workout planning is the industry standard. TrainingPeaks lets you (or your coach) build a workout calendar weeks or months in advance, prescribe specific intervals, set target power/pace/heart rate zones, and track compliance. This is the core competency of the platform and nothing else matches it. Baseline does not have this feature - it's planned for a future Pro+ tier.
Coach-athlete communication is mature. TrainingPeaks has built-in tools for coaches to prescribe workouts, leave feedback, review completed sessions, and communicate with athletes. The workflow is polished: coach creates plan, athlete executes, coach reviews, athlete adjusts. Baseline's Coach tier is planned but not yet built.
Performance IQ is genuinely useful. TrainingPeaks Premium includes Performance IQ, which analyses your completed workouts and provides automated feedback - was your power distribution appropriate for the workout goal? Did you hit your target zones? It's AI-powered training feedback without a chatbot, similar to Baseline's approach.
Metrics library for coaches. TrainingPeaks gives coaches a comprehensive view of all their athletes' data in one place: training load, compliance, fitness trends, workout history, and communication threads. If you're a coach managing multiple athletes, TrainingPeaks is the professional tool.
Data depth in structured contexts. When you complete a prescribed workout on TrainingPeaks, the platform compares actual vs planned performance in detail - did you complete the prescribed intervals? At the right intensity? With the right rest? This structured feedback loop is powerful for athletes following a plan.
Where Baseline wins
Baseline is designed for a different use case: the self-coached, multi-device athlete who wants to understand their data, not just follow a plan:
Cross-source data is the killer feature. TrainingPeaks syncs activities from Strava and Garmin, but it doesn't import WHOOP recovery, Garmin Body Battery, Oura sleep data, or Apple Health metrics. Baseline shows you all of these alongside your training load. For athletes who wear multiple devices, this is the difference between seeing half your picture and seeing all of it.
Visual design that makes data accessible. TrainingPeaks is utilitarian - it shows you the numbers and expects you to interpret them. Baseline is designed to be looked at daily. The visual hierarchy, typography, and information architecture make patterns visible at a glance. For athletes who don't have a coach to interpret their data, good design is a feature, not an aesthetic preference.
Geographic analysis is first-class. TrainingPeaks treats maps as a reference. Baseline treats geography as a dimension of training analysis - country/state breakdowns, trip detection that groups activities by travel, altitude tracking, and a full-resolution interactive heatmap. If where you train matters to you, Baseline delivers.
AI insights without a plan context. Baseline's daily insights work without you having a structured training plan. The system reads your data and surfaces what changed: CTL trend shifts, HRV anomalies, new best efforts, recovery patterns. It's useful whether you're following a plan or just training by feel.
Pricing advantage. Baseline Pro at $12/month (or $249 lifetime) undercuts TrainingPeaks Premium at $19.95/month. The lifetime option is particularly attractive for athletes who plan to use the platform for years. Baseline's free tier is also more generous than TrainingPeaks free (which limits to 3 workouts/week and 3 months of history).
Integration breadth for non-coached athletes. Baseline supports or plans to support 7 platforms - Strava, WHOOP, Apple Health, Garmin, Oura, Coros, and Wahoo. TrainingPeaks supports 5 (Strava, Garmin, Zwift, TrainerRoad, Google Fit). For athletes who track with multiple devices, Baseline is more likely to have the integration you need.
Feature comparison deep dive
Let's look at the specific areas where these platforms differ meaningfully.
Training load: both use PMC, but differently. Both platforms use CTL/ATL/TSB, but TrainingPeaks uses fixed time constants (42-day CTL, 7-day ATL) while Baseline lets you configure the decay rates. For most athletes, the default constants work fine, but for older athletes, women, or athletes with unusual recovery patterns, adjustable time constants make a real difference in training load accuracy.
Cross-source integration depth. TrainingPeaks syncs activities from Strava and Garmin but imports only the workout data - it doesn't pull wellness metrics like HRV, sleep stages, or recovery scores from these sources. Baseline's integrations pull the full dataset from each connected platform, including recovery, sleep, HRV, and body measurements alongside activities. This means Baseline can show you correlations like "your power output is 8% higher after nights with 7+ hours of sleep" that TrainingPeaks cannot surface.
Visual design philosophy. TrainingPeaks is designed for data entry and review - coaches and athletes spend significant time on the platform inputting planned workouts and reviewing completed ones. The interface prioritises information density over visual hierarchy. Baseline is designed for daily check-ins - you open it to see what changed, not to enter data. Both approaches are valid for their use case, but they serve different engagement patterns.
AI approach: Performance IQ vs daily insights. Performance IQ analyses individual workouts against their prescribed targets - did you execute the workout as planned? Baseline's AI analyses trends across all your data - is your CTL trending up? Is your HRV declining? Are you getting faster at the same heart rate? Performance IQ is workout-specific; Baseline's AI is system-wide.
The planning gap. TrainingPeaks' structured workout planning is the feature that keeps athletes on the platform. If you follow a plan created by a coach or a training plan service, TrainingPeaks is the tool that connects planning to execution to review. Baseline does not yet offer this. The "what to do today" question is answered by TrainingPeaks; the "what happened to my fitness this month" question is answered by Baseline.
Where they're even
Both platforms use CTL/ATL/TSB for training load (TrainingPeaks calls it the Performance Management Chart). Both have mobile and web apps. Both have AI-powered insights (Performance IQ vs Baseline daily summaries). Both sync with Strava and Garmin for activity import. Both have free tiers with paid upgrades. Neither is a complete replacement for the other.
The honest recommendation
If you work with a coach who uses TrainingPeaks: stick with TrainingPeaks for everything. The coach-athlete workflow is the best in the industry, and your coach's tools depend on it. You can use Baseline as a secondary dashboard for cross-source analysis if you wear multiple devices, but TrainingPeaks should remain your source of truth.
If you're self-coached and follow structured plans: TrainingPeaks is still strong here. The workout calendar, interval prescription, and compliance tracking are features Baseline doesn't yet have. Use TrainingPeaks for planning, Baseline for analysis.
If you're self-coached, train by feel or loose structure, and wear multiple devices: Baseline is the better choice. You don't need TrainingPeaks' planning features, and Baseline's cross-source dashboard and visual design give you more value for less money. The $249 lifetime option makes it a one-time purchase.
If you're a coach: TrainingPeaks is the professional tool. Baseline's coach features are planned but not yet competitive.
Try Baseline free → - see how the cross-source dashboard compares to your current setup.