Does this mean that I lose access to my data?
No. It’s your data. Every user, including free users, is able to access their data through the free Strava app, the free Strava website, and download their data directly, for free.
Are you shutting off the API?
No. We are making changes to make it more secure, provide better support to developers, and stop the flood of poorly written AI generated apps and data scraping that was impairing platform performance and reliability for everyone.
Why are you making these changes now?
Keeping the developer platform secure, reliable, and useful is continuous and ongoing work. How developers build has changed radically over time—most recently with the rapid adoption of AI, which has shifted both usage patterns and the platform's risk profile. So we're modernizing it again, with three priorities: stronger security, better support for the developers building real value for athletes, and strict protections against data scraping and high-volume, low-quality traffic that degrades performance and reliability for everyone.
Did you consult with any developers before you made these changes?
Yes, we consulted with many developers as we were planning these changes. They understand the problems we are solving and appreciate that this will increase the support that we can provide them. We have also heard the frustration from the massive number of developers who were stuck in the application queue and this solves that as well.
What is going to happen to my favorite integrated app/device?
In the vast, vast majority of cases it will continue to work. There are 140 multi-user apps (0.06% of all apps) that will require changes to continue to integrate with Strava. We have reached out to all of them and will support them through the transition. Once that work is done, their apps will continue to work as well.
How many developers are going to be affected by these changes?
There are 140 multi-user apps (0.06% of all apps) that will require changes to continue to integrate with Strava. We have reached out to all of them and will support them through the transition. Once that work is done, their apps will continue to work as well.
Why is only Strava doing this?
Strava is by no means the only platform with a public API that is dealing with massive data scraping, and a flood of poor quality zero code apps cause review queue backlogs and platform performance problems. What is different in this approach is that we have found a way to continue to support access for hobbyist developers all the way up to major developers. We have also added new capabilities for individuals who want to interact directly with their data without coding.
Why is a subscription required?
It allows us to add subscription features to the MCP and the API. It also helps deter those who would seek to exploit the API.
What if I don’t like AI?
The MCP is an optional feature for subscribers, designed with security and ease-of-use in mind. No one is required to use it.
Why only Anthropic/Claude?
We are launching with Anthropic because we believe they will honor the terms not to use your data to train their models without your consent. We look forward to working with other AI platforms in the future that share our principles regarding the protection of user data.
Want to learn more? See our Press Release, Developer FAQ and MCP Connector