Strava
Platform · this deep dive is built from the official pages of the platform itself and of the tools that support it.
Overview
Strava is a workout-logging app: running, cycling, walking, swimming, skiing, strength training. On top of the diary sits a social layer — follows, likes ("kudos"), segments with leaderboards, challenges and clubs. For promotion, that layer is the one that matters.
What sets the platform apart is that ordinary advertising does not exist here and will not appear on request. The section for brands says so plainly: Strava does not offer the usual ad formats, there is no programmatic buying through exchanges and DSPs, and third-party cookies and pixels are not supported. Instead, brands are offered three things: sponsored challenges, sponsored segments and a club. The club is the only one of the three that is free and available to anyone. The second working tool is the open API: terms, limits and access tiers are published, registration requires no negotiation, but it does require a paid subscription. We will go through both.
Who's here
All the audience numbers are the platform's own claims in its section for advertisers, not an independent measurement. Strava reports 200 million users in 185 countries and 51 million activities uploaded weekly. The page gives no date for these figures.
A breakdown by topic appears in the same place, citing the platform's own Year in Sport 2025 report: walking became the second most frequently recorded activity type, 72% of users recorded a workout directly in the Strava mobile app, and 54% recorded more than one activity type. The "how they think" block on the same page is built on data from the company GWI: figures such as "2.15 times more likely to have bought sportswear online" are a comparison against the average internet user in the GWI panel, not a fact about your future audience.
Getting started
Registration is free and requires no documents. Age: 13 and over, or older where the jurisdiction requires it (this edition of the terms has been in force since 1 January 2026). An important detail from the same document: content is public by default, except for users under 18. The operating entity depends on the region: in the EU and EEA it is Strava Ireland Limited, otherwise Strava, Inc.
There is no separate business account: a company's presence takes the form of a club. The section for brands puts it without hedging — "clubs are your brand's home on Strava", created from a desktop device at strava.com/clubs/new, with a logo, cover image, short address and description.
When creating a club you choose a sport, up to three tags, a location and an access mode: anyone can open a public club; for an invite-only club owners and admins invite people or approve requests; a private club is not invisible — only activities, discussions and private events are hidden from outsiders. The creator becomes the owner and cannot leave the club until ownership is transferred; e-mail invitations are disabled, and you can only invite an athlete inside Strava if you follow each other — which means the first members will have to be brought in from outside. For well-known brands there is a club verification programme; the criteria for being "well known" are not disclosed.
What you can publish
Inside a club you publish posts: a title, a description, any number of photos with one chosen as the main image, links to events, public routes and activities; links unfold into cards only if there are no photos. Comments can be turned off at the level of an individual post. One setting matters: in the mobile app you can enable "Only admins can post", and then admins publish either under their own name or on behalf of the club through the "Announcements" option.
Prohibitions are set by the acceptable use policy (in force since 2 July 2025). For marketing, the section on spam is the critical one: it forbids unsolicited and repetitive posting for attention, followers, advertising or business promotion; content unrelated to a club's purpose inside that club; repeated requests for follows, kudos and joining; and duplicating the same content in several places. The same document forbids impersonating a person, company or brand; using automated means that send more requests than a human in an ordinary browser; manipulating leaderboard data; and posting activities you did not perform. Separately banned is content that facilitates trade in alcohol and tobacco (including nicotine and vape products), weapons, regulated medical devices, medicines and unverified supplements.
How to grow
The platform's own advice to brands: post often, feature ambassadors, use events (when an event is created, every club member gets a notification), tag links with UTM parameters, cross-promote the club on other channels, show products, run giveaways.
How the leaderboard works: it resets at 23:59 on Sunday in the club's time zone, and no history beyond the previous week is kept; the website shows the weekly top 100, the app the top 10; clubs above 50,000 members have no recent-activity feed. How the algorithm ranks the feed is something Strava does not describe on the pages we checked.
Paid activations. A sponsored challenge is an incentive to complete a particular activity — say, cover 50 km in a month — in exchange for a discount or a prize; a sponsored segment turns a stretch of real road or trail into a branded experience. The platform publishes no budgets: pricing is calculated by market, reach and duration, and performance-based payment is not offered. Targeting is by geography and activity type, but not by training habits and goals; an advertiser cannot upload its own data; reporting gives impressions, joins and completions. The platform's direct recommendation: sponsored activations usually suit large brands, smaller ones should start with a club and an organic community; charitable organisations are promised substantial discounts.
Path to monetization
Strava does not pay authors for content. There are no revenue-sharing programmes, payout thresholds or creator funds on the pages we checked. The only thing the platform names is working with creators and athletes as an opportunity for brands to do influencer marketing: the money goes from the advertiser to the author, bypassing the platform.
Money moves in the opposite direction — from the user. On the date we checked, the subscription page returned prices to us in euros: individual €6.25 a month on annual billing at €74.99, family for 4 accounts €2.71 per person a month at €129.99 a year, student €3.12 a month at €37.49 a year, with a 30-day trial. Prices and currency depend on the region of the request. For companies there is one more paid channel — not advertising, but buying subscriptions in bulk at a discount for your own community.
Tools and automation
The Strava V3 API is a public interface, the same one the platform's own mobile apps use; the data covers athletes, activities, routes and gear.
The key limitation is stated up front: the API does not let you retrieve data on all public athletes the way you see it on the website; an athlete must log in through your application and grant permissions via OAuth 2.0. The policy puts the rule more strictly: a given user's data may be shown only to that user; other people's data — even data publicly visible on Strava — may not be shown. Building analytics on other people's clubs or comparisons between athletes on top of the API is impossible for contractual reasons, not technical ones.
Barrier to entry: creating an application requires an active Strava subscription. A new application starts with capacity for 1 athlete, and from the dashboard access is raised to 10 athletes, 200 read requests per 15 minutes and 2,000 per day, with an overall limit of 400 per 15 minutes and 4,000 per day. The default limits are 200 requests per 15 minutes and 2,000 per day; a separate "non-upload" limit of 100 per 15 minutes and 1,000 per day; exceeding them returns 429. Access tiers: Standard Tier up to 10 and up to 9,999 users (a subscription is required) and Extended Access Tier from 10,000 users by individual decision; admission to the programme is at Strava's discretion, and it promises no review timeline. Uploads support FIT, TCX, GPX and, in limited form, JSON, with no new formats planned.
Agent access is described separately: Strava MCP is declared the only authorised primary interface for AI agents and is available to subscribers solely for working with their own data, with no commercial or third-party use; the launch of the connector was announced on 1 June 2026.
Prohibitions in the agreement: you may not build applications that compete with Strava's features or replicate them; one token, one application; a suspected leak must be reported to developers@strava.com within 24 hours; Strava may change or terminate access at any moment without compensation. A token can be revoked, including for virtual races and for copying Strava's services, and the Strava marks may not be used in an application's name or logo.
Limits and rules
- Age and law. 13 and over; content is public by default except for minors; in the EU and EEA the contract is with Strava Ireland Limited.
- Advertising. No standard formats, no programmatic, no third-party pixels or cookies.
- Clubs. Leaderboards keep no history; above 50,000 members there is no activity feed. The owner and admins are responsible for content; a club for fans of a brand you are not authorised to represent must say so in its name or description.
- API. A subscription is mandatory for Standard Tier, and a user's data is shown only to that user.
Who it's for
Suits brands whose product is tied to movement: kit, footwear, nutrition, gadgets, running and cycling events. A club is free and requires neither budget nor negotiation — the platform itself recommends this route to those whose budget is small. Suits race organisers and local communities: events that notify every member and weekly leaderboards give you a ready-made rhythm of activity. Suits developers building a tool for the athlete themselves: diaries, visualisations, syncing.
Does not suit anyone who wants to build analytics on other people's accounts and rankings out of Strava data: that is forbidden by policy, not merely limited technically. Does not suit you if you need performance advertising with precise targeting, a pixel and payment by result. Does not suit authors who need income from the platform: Strava does not pay for content.
Verified data
The checked data this deep dive rests on.
About the platform
the platform describes itself as follows: «Strava connects millions of runners, cyclists, hikers, walkers and other active people through the sports they love – all on our mobile app and website.»
Self-description: this is the platform's claim about itself, not an independent assessment
source, checked 2026-07-28
Who's here
the platform reports 200 million users
A Strava claim in the section for brands; the measurement date and the definition of «user» are not stated
source, checked 2026-07-28
the platform reports 185 countries
A Strava claim; there is no list of countries
source, checked 2026-07-28
the platform reports 51 million activities uploaded weekly
A Strava claim; there is no date
source, checked 2026-07-28
the platform reports: 72% of users recorded a workout directly in the Strava mobile app
Data from its own Year in Sport 2025 report
source, checked 2026-07-28
Getting started
the minimum age is 13, or higher where the jurisdiction requires it
Terms of Service, the edition in force from 1 January 2026
source, checked 2026-07-28
Account and access
Strava describes only the settings switched on by default in a newly created account: Flyby — «No One», Training Log — «Private», «Who can message you: Following», and also «Map Visibility: The first and last 200 meters of your future activity maps will be hidden by default when you log in to the Strava app». The help centre names no restrictions tied to account age (a post limit, a compulsory check for newcomers); the ceiling of 2000 follows and the leaderboard rules apply to all athletes alike.
www.strava.com/robots.txt was read in full (52 lines) and contains the group «User-agent: ClaudeBot ... Disallow: /», so www.strava.com was not read at all. The help centre on the separate host support.strava.com was used, whose robots.txt was read in full (5 lines) and forbids only /not-authorized, /not-found and /(helpCenterIdentifier)/ with Crawl-delay: 1. The full help sitemap (447 English articles) was reviewed and the following were read in full: «Your Privacy Defaults When You Create a Strava Account», «Understanding Account Enforcement», «Spam, bots, and Unwanted Solicitations», «Segment Leaderboard Guidelines», «Verified Badge for Athletes on Strava», «Maximum Number of Athletes You Can Follow on Strava», «Messaging on Strava».
source, checked 2026-08-07
There is no «maturing» condition at all: the default settings are changed by the user at any time — verbatim: «You can adjust your settings at any time to reflect your desired experience». The caveat concerns only minors: «These defaults do not apply if you are under 18».
www.strava.com/robots.txt was read in full (52 lines) and contains the group «User-agent: ClaudeBot ... Disallow: /», so www.strava.com was not read at all. The help centre on the separate host support.strava.com was used, whose robots.txt was read in full (5 lines) and forbids only /not-authorized, /not-found and /(helpCenterIdentifier)/ with Crawl-delay: 1. The full help sitemap (447 English articles) was reviewed and the following were read in full: «Your Privacy Defaults When You Create a Strava Account», «Understanding Account Enforcement», «Spam, bots, and Unwanted Solicitations», «Segment Leaderboard Guidelines», «Verified Badge for Athletes on Strava», «Maximum Number of Athletes You Can Follow on Strava», «Messaging on Strava».
source, checked 2026-08-07
Business terms
a brand's presence takes the form of a club; the platform calls a club «your brand's home on Strava», created at strava.com/clubs/new
The resources section for brands
source, checked 2026-07-28
a verification programme applies to well-known brands running clubs
The criteria for being «well known» are not disclosed
source, checked 2026-07-28
What you can publish
a club post: a title, a description, any number of photos with one chosen as the main image, links to events, public routes and activities; links unfold into cards only when there are no photos
Strava help, the article Club Posts
source, checked 2026-07-28
Content
content is public by default, except for users under 18
Terms of Service (2026)
source, checked 2026-07-28
an admin can enable «Only admins can post» mode and publish on behalf of the club through the Announcements option
The setting is available only in the mobile app
source, checked 2026-07-28
Advertising
the platform states: there are no standard ad formats, no programmatic through exchanges and DSPs, and third-party cookies and pixels are not supported
The FAQ of the section for brands
source, checked 2026-07-28
the paid formats are sponsored challenges and sponsored segments; targeting is by geography and activity type, not by training goals; uploading advertiser data is not permitted
The FAQ of the section for brands
source, checked 2026-07-28
How the money works here
Who is admitted. "Strava's Affiliate Program is available to Verified and Pro athletes. Once you're approved for a Verified or Pro badge you can apply to the program". The page sets no numeric thresholds (subscribers, activity); the Verified badge is described thus: "The Strava Verified Badge will tell people you're a public figure, community builder and/or highly influential person in your sport or profession"
entry is not by numbers but by approval of a Verified or Pro badge
source, checked 2026-08-04
Strava's Affiliate Program (commission for new Strava subscriptions through a personal discount); taking part in brand campaigns, Sponsored Challenges and joint materials for holders of the Verified and Pro badges
the platform has no payout programme for content of its own — there is an affiliate programme for its own subscription and work with brands
source, checked 2026-08-04
Creator's share. The size of the commission is not named: it says only "share exclusive Strava subscription discounts with your audience, and earn commission on every new signup"
__
source, checked 2026-08-04
There are no rules about affiliate links on the pages that were read; at the same time Strava itself invites creators to distribute affiliate discount links to the subscription, and allows sponsors to be shown in the profile and in posts
no separate document with rules about outbound links was found at Strava
source, checked 2026-08-04
Paid subscriptions
on the check date the subscription page was served in euros: individual €6.25/month on annual billing at €74.99; family for 4 accounts €2.71/month per person at €129.99/year; student €3.12/month at €37.49/year; a 30-day trial
Prices and currency depend on the region of the request
source, checked 2026-07-28
Pricing
the price of a challenge is calculated by market, reach and duration; the platform publishes no specific budgets; performance-based payment is not offered
Not a single figure on the public pages
source, checked 2026-07-28
Limits and restrictions
a club's leaderboard resets at 23:59 on Sunday in the club's time zone; no history beyond the previous week is kept; the website shows the weekly top 100, the app the top 10
Strava help, the article Clubs on Strava
source, checked 2026-07-28
clubs with more than 50,000 members have no recent activity feed
Strava help
source, checked 2026-07-28
e-mail invitations are disabled; you can only invite an athlete inside Strava if you follow each other
Strava help
source, checked 2026-07-28
Restrictions
forbidden are unsolicited and repetitive posts for attention, followers, advertising or business promotion; posting content unrelated to a club's purpose; repeated requests for follows, kudos and joining; duplicating the same content in several places
Acceptable Use Policy, in force from 2 July 2025
source, checked 2026-07-28
content that facilitates trade in alcohol and tobacco (including nicotine and vape products), weapons, regulated medical devices, medicines and unverified supplements is forbidden
Acceptable Use Policy
source, checked 2026-07-28
Legal
in the EU and EEA the services are provided by Strava Ireland Limited, otherwise by Strava, Inc.
Terms of Service (2026)
source, checked 2026-07-28
the owner and admins of a club are responsible for its content; failure to comply may lead to account termination and deletion of the club; a club for fans of a brand you are not authorised to represent must say so in its name or description
Club Moderation Guidelines
source, checked 2026-07-28
API access
by default 200 requests per 15 minutes and up to 2000 per day per application; a separate «non-upload» limit of 100 per 15 minutes and 1000 per day; exceeding them returns 429
The 15-minute window resets at the 0, 15, 30 and 45 marks; the daily one at midnight UTC
source, checked 2026-07-28
creating an application requires an active Strava subscription
Getting Started with the Strava API
source, checked 2026-07-28
a new application starts with capacity for 1 athlete; raising it from the dashboard gives 10 athletes, 200 read requests per 15 minutes and 2000 per day, with an overall limit of 400 per 15 minutes and 4000 per day; beyond that — an application for review
Single Player Mode
source, checked 2026-07-28
Standard Tier — up to 10 and up to 9999 users (a subscription is required), Extended Access Tier — from 10,000 users by individual decision (with no subscription requirement)
API Policy, in force from 1 June 2026
source, checked 2026-07-28
a given user's data may be displayed in an application only to that user; other users' data, even data publicly visible on Strava, may not be displayed
A key limitation for analytics services
source, checked 2026-07-28
Strava MCP is declared the only authorised primary agent interface; it is available to subscribers for working with their own data, and commercial and third-party access through it is forbidden
The launch of the connector was announced on 1 June 2026
source, checked 2026-07-28
activity upload supports FIT, TCX, GPX and, in limited form, JSON; no new formats are planned
Uploading to Strava
source, checked 2026-07-28
one token, one application; a suspected leak must be reported to developers@strava.com within 24 hours; Strava may change or terminate access at any moment without compensation
API Agreement, in force from 1 June 2026
source, checked 2026-07-28
you may not build applications that compete with Strava's features or replicate them; a token may be revoked, including for virtual races and competitions
A statement on the main page for developers
source, checked 2026-07-28
Languages
the interface language of the home page: en-US
The language is taken from the markup attribute, the versions from hreflang
source, checked 2026-07-28
Catalogue section: all similar See also: catalogue index · region: USA and Canada · scheduler comparison · find by situation · platform restrictions