Apple Fitness+ Isn’t Dying — It’s Doubling
Apple
Toggle Dark Mode
It appears the rumors of the demise of Apple Fitness+ may have been greatly exaggerated. Today, Apple announced that it’s expanding the service to 28 new markets, with AI-generated versions of the trainers’ own voices to help fill in the language gaps.
It’s the largest expansion in the service’s history, and it’s probably fitting that it comes on the fifth anniversary of its original announcement. While Fitness+ didn’t go live until Monday, December 14, 2020, Apple’s press release announcing the launch date came five years ago today.
Likely because the workouts were originally hosted only by English-speaking trainers, the service launched exclusively in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK, and the US. The following November, Apple expanded it to 15 additional countries, relying on subtitles in French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.
That brought the total to 21 countries, a list that remained unchanged for another four years. That makes today’s expansion significant: it’s been a long time coming, but it more than doubles the number of countries where Fitness+ is now available.
Specifically, Apple Fitness+ will be coming to 27 countries this month, with Japan following in early 2026. Those getting it on December 15 include Argentina, Belgium, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, Taiwan, Venezuela, and Vietnam.
What makes this expansion different from four years ago is that many fitness enthusiasts won’t need to rely on subtitles anymore. Apple has taken a big step toward making Apple Fitness+ more accessible by offering digital dubbing into Spanish, German, and Japanese.
To help make Fitness+ even more welcoming to users around the world, the service is introducing digitally dubbed versions of workouts and meditations in Spanish and German, with Japanese dubbing to follow early next year alongside the availability of the service in Japan. The dubbed workouts and meditations feature a generated voice based on the actual voice of each of the 28 Fitness+ trainers.
Apple
The Japanese dubbing isn’t expected to be ready until next year, which is likely why Apple has delayed the rollout there. However, as of December 15, users will find new episodes dubbed into Spanish and German. They’ll be able to choose their preferred language on the fly or specify it in their Fitness app’s settings to ensure that all episodes play in their preferred language.
“Through its seamless integration across Apple devices, Fitness+ has helped inspire users to live a healthier day,” said Jay Blahnik, Apple’s vice president of Fitness Technologies. “From seeing real-time, personal metrics right onscreen with Apple Watch or AirPods Pro 3, to the ability to bring the service with you wherever you go on iPhone or iPad, we’re delivering unmatched motivation to users. We couldn’t be more excited to bring this experience to even more users around the globe with our biggest expansion yet.”
Alongside this extended global reach, Apple is also adding a new K-Pop music genre for all workout types, featuring global hits from top artists. This will join the existing selection of genres that include Upbeat Anthems, Latest Hits, Hip-Hop/R&B, Latin Grooves, and more.
The Future of Fitness+
In November, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman said that Fitness+ was being reevaluated by Apple, calling it one of Apple’s “weakest digital offerings,” and noting that it doesn’t earn much money for the company.
This led some to fear that Apple might have been planning to pull the plug on it, but Gurman was quick to point out that even though Fitness+ is expensive to operate — and likely not profitable on its own — it has enough of a loyal fanbase to make it difficult to shut down. Plus, it’s unlikely it’s costing Apple more than Apple TV, which is estimated to be losing $1 billion a year. Compared to Hollywood production budgets, the cost of Fitness+ is probably a rounding error on Apple’s balance sheet.
With Apple poised to launch a paid Health+ service next year, it’s far more likely the company will simply find a way to meld the two services together into a broader subscription platform that will bring AI to both the health and fitness experiences. That will likely carry a slightly higher price tag, but even if it doesn’t, the expanded portfolio could encourage more folks to sign on for the comprehensive solution — and stick with it for the longer term.
