Here is a straightforward comparison of GymAware and Vitruve, focusing on key aspects for decision makers with full transparency.

You might also be interested in GymAware RS vs FLEX or GymAware validation or FLEX validation.

Ideally you should start any VBT device comparison by looking at the accuracy and independent validation. After all:

However, pricing is an important aspect of making the right decision too. Unlike others, GymAware doesn’t rely on hidden costs.

The biggest difference in pricing is that Vitruve charges software costs per hardware device, which means they become significantly more expensive as you scale (in the future). GymAware does not penalize customers for buying more units – the software pricing stays the same regardless of the number of units.

FLEX allows you to start with VBT in an accessible way, with highly accurate data. You can combine FLEX hardware with all GymAware’s app and cloud functionalities. This also allows users to add GymAware RS hardware devices later on.

GymAware RS and Vitruve both use a direct measurement technology. This technology is called a Linear Position Transducer (LPT). It’s considered the gold standard in Velocity Based Training (VBT), provided that it uses angle corrections.

LPTs work like a stopwatch and measuring tape (tether), measuring time and distance. Together, these two measurements determine velocity.

FLEX uses a laser optic technology that measures vertical and horizontal bar position relative to the ground. By differentiating this position data you get highly accurate velocity measures too.

To be accurate, LPTs need to consider the angle of the lift. Otherwise they are inconsistent and underestimating the distance you move.

GymAware RS measures the angle of the lift. Vitruve does not.

Here’s why not measuring the angle of the lift is problematic:

Take for example a hang clean exercise. Many athletes put the barbell 3 feet (i.e.) behind the LPT device, so they don’t drop the bar on it. This creates a situation similar to the image below, with the LPT on the ground and the tether attached to the bar in the starting position (bar pos. A).

In the end position of your hang clean, the bar is in a new position (bar pos. B). You would like to know the displacement of the bar to calculate the speed (dashed orange line). However, an LPT measures the change in tether length, which is significantly shorter than your bar displacement.

As a result, your measurements are way off, getting lower velocity data. Additionally, your measurements are inconsistent, if you don’t put the VBT device exactly 3 feet behind the LPT every time you lift.

Without x-axis correction, you’re not measuring the displacement of the bar (orange dotted line). Instead, you measure the change in tether length of the tether in position A compared to the length of the tether in position B. This results in highly inaccurate velocity data. GymAware RS uses x-axis correction by considering the (orange) angle of the lift.

There are two ways to solve this problem.

1. Make sure your bar goes up in a 100% vertical line and your LPT is placed straight underneath the bar, every time you use it (virtually impossible).
2. Use GymAware’s unique x-axis correction, which automatically considers the angle of the lift.

Angle correction is one of the aspects that make GymAware RS the gold standard in VBT.

GymAware RS – the Gold Standard in Velocity Based Training.

FLEX, GymAware RS and Vitruve, all connect with free apps that are available on iOS and Android.

GymAware offers two free app options:

1. The FLEX Stronger app is built for the needs of individual athletes, remote coaches and personal trainers. You can add other lifters into your session for group training with up to three people. This app is available on iOS and Android.
2. The GymAware app is built for teams. It is the culmination of more than 20 years of industry experience and it is uniquely designed to meet the needs of coaches and other industry professionals. This app is available on iOS iPads.

You can connect your FLEX hardware with the GymAware iPad app and vice versa: you can connect your GymAware RS hardware with the FLEX Stronger app.

Similar to Vitruve, GymAware offers app and cloud upgrades. Although pricing seems very similar at first, be aware that Vitruve charges app and cloud upgrades per hardware device, while GymAware does not. This means Vitruve can become significantly more expensive as you scale (in the future). Use the pricing calculator to find out yourself.

Learn more about the GymAware app and cloud options:

Who cares about business longevity? Well..

Being established in 2002, we’ve seen several VBT companies come and go. Think of Beast and PUSH, eventually shutting down the entire system (portal, app and hardware) leaving their customers empty handed.

GymAware a legacy of excellence

For more than 20 years GymAware has been trusted by World Champions, Olympians and Pro Athletes — and those who prepare them to win.

Vitruve was founded in 2017.

Accuracy and reliability are crucial in velocity based training. Here’s why inaccurate and unreliable VBT devices are useless at best and dangerous at worst.

Beside validation studies – which we’ll cover in a bit – there are comparison studies. Here’s a fairly recent one, comparing GymAware RS, FLEX, Vitruve and 2 more.

• The accuracy of measuring velocity during weightlifting movements with five velocity-based training devices

It says:

“The GymAware RS linear position transducer was the most accurate device, demonstrating no fixed or proportional bias when used to quantify velocity during the snatch and clean.”

The researchers compared all VBT devices with a 12-camera motion capture system. It not only shows GymAware RS (GYM) is most accurate, it also shows that FLEX (FLX) is more accurate than Vitruve (VIT):

GymAware RS vs Vitruve vs FLEX. Researchers conclude GymAware RS (GYM) is most accurate, and FLEX (FLX) is more accurate than Vitruve (VIT).

Let’s continue with validation studies per VBT device.

To our best knowledge, there are only 3 scientific publications looking at the validity of Vitruve. This is based on a PubMed search (keyword: Vitruve AND validity | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Vitruve+AND+validity) conducted in June 2025.

With MV = mean velocity, MVP = mean propulsive velocity, PV = peak velocity, MP = mean power, PP = peak power.

1. Validity and reliability of velocity and power measures provided by the Vitruve linear position transducer

“Vitruve displayed both fixed and proportional bias for certain relative loads across all variables. Vitruve did not meet the validity criteria for all (MV, PP) or at least two (MP, PV) relative loads. (…) Vitruve was not valid for measuring velocity and power outcomes. Acceptable validity was observed only for PV in the Smith machine back squat, while the other variables—regardless of relative loads and exercise modes—were mostly inaccurate.”

2. Validity and Concordance of a Linear Position Transducer (Vitruve) for Measuring Movement Velocity during Resistance Training

“For the MPV, Vitruve showed high intra- and inter-device agreement and moderate error magnitude with pooled data in both exercises. However, the level of agreement decreased and the error increased as the velocity range increased. For the PV, the magnitude of error was very high in both exercises. In conclusion, our results suggest that Vitruve should only be used at MPVs below 0.45 m·s-1 for bench press and 0.75 m·s-1 for full-squat in order to obtain an accurate and reliable measurement (…) Therefore, it appears that Vitruve may not be appropriate for objectively monitoring resistance training and assessing strength performance along the entire spectrum of load-velocity curve.”

3. Validity of a New Portable Sensor to Measure Velocity-Based Resistance Training

“In conclusion, the Vitruve device overestimated MPV and underestimated PV at moderate and low loads (>0.65 m·s-1), with the discrepancies increasing as velocity rose. (…) Researchers and practitioners should take these findings into account when incorporating the Vitruve into velocity-based strength training protocols.”

In summary, these independent research publications suggests that Vitruve may be suitable for limited use cases but is not recommended for full-spectrum load–velocity profiling or high-precision performance monitoring.

The first independent validation study on FLEX was published in 2020. It concluded that:

“The FLEX provides valid and reliable mean concentric velocity outputs across a range of velocities. Thus, practitioners can confidently implement this device for the monitoring and prescription of resistance training loads.”

To be a bit more specific: the typical error of the FLEX was 0.03 m/s in the back squat and 0.04 m/s in the bench press. This was measured in a wide range of loads (20-90% 1RM) and therefore a wide range of velocities (1.09 – 0.30 m/s).

When you put two FLEX units on a barbell, the inter unit variance was less than 4%. Between-day variability turned out to be very low too (<4%). In other words: the FLEX  unit is highly accurate and reliable. Learn more about the FLEX validation.

There’s an almost never ending list of scientific publications showing the accuracy and reliability of GymAware RS.

Reading all of them would take days. Luckily there’s a summary (systematic review) using 82 scientific publications and talking about 22 velocity based training devices – including Vitruve. It says:

When these devices have been directly compared to each other during free-weight exercises, it appears that the GymAware provides the greatest accuracy. This accuracy may be due to the device’s ability to account for horizontal displacement and variable rate sampling which is distinct to this device.

In fact, GymAware RS is so accurate that many scientists use it to validate other VBT sensors.

Learn more about the GymAware RS validation.

The GymAware RS has a thick-walled, shock absorbing housing that meets military grade robustness. You can even drop barbells on the RS unit! Due to the integrated magnets, you can mount the unit on the floor or on an overhead rack.

Vitruve’s outer shell is made from plastic. Which is why the King of the Gym recommends to be careful when using Vitruve in Olympic lifts:

There are a few practical scenarios where you could break the outer shell and/or the Vitruve encoder itself:

– If you drop it from high enough onto a hard enough surface.

– Dropping a weight plate on it.

– Dropping a loaded barbell on it during exercise. This is most likely during Olympic weightlifting movements. That’s not to say you can’t use Vitruve for Olympic lifts. But if you do, you need to be mindful of where you position the encoder and where you drop the barbell (accounting for how the bar may bounce when dropped).

But remember: since Vitruve does not have angle correction, you have no choice but to place the device directly beneath the barbell – otherwise your data is inaccurate.

Buy Vitruve when:

Vitruve is probably your best option if you check all these boxes:

¹ If you want to keep the option open to buy more than 1 VBT device in the future, Vitruve will become expensive quickly, unless you stick to the free app (which is unlikely with more than 1 device). That is because Vitruve charges software cost per VBT device, which GymAware does not. Use the pricing calculator to find out yourself.

² If your budget is limited to $500 USD and you strictly want an LPT, Vitruve is one of your options.

³ Sure, there are worse VBT devices out there when it comes to accuracy. But as we’ve seen in the accuracy and validation section, Vitruve did not meet the validity criteria for all VBT metrics. We also shared a scientific comparison study that showed FLEX is more accurate than Vitruve.

Buy FLEX when:

FLEX is probably your best option if you check all these boxes:

If your budget is limited to $500 USD but you want an accurate and validated VBT device that you can trust, FLEX is your only option.

FLEX allows you to start with VBT in an accessible way, with highly accurate data. You can combine FLEX hardware with all GymAware’s app and cloud functionalities. This also allows users to add GymAware RS hardware devices later on.

Learn more about FLEX: