Best step counter apps

Years of reliability, step history and trends, cross-device sync, accuracy close to Apple Watch, non-aggressive subscription

Extra games and social features on opening, many taps to a simple step number, watch feature vanished after an update, occasional number discrepancies

People who want a reliable step tracker with history and trends and can ignore the extra features

It counts automatically, with no ads or subscription traps, and the numbers often match Health exactly.

It sometimes racks up phantom steps while you sit, misreads stairs and climbs, and does not really work with Apple Watch.

People who carry their phone and want a simple, honest pedometer with no ads or paywalls.

Fast, lightweight, no ads, no signup and no popups, it does exactly one thing. The step widget missing from Apple Fitness was found by many via Reddit and loved.

For some users the count differs from Health and Apple Watch by 500-2000 steps, and it sometimes overcounts when the phone is shaken. Updates occasionally lag and you cannot view a longer time range.

For anyone wanting a minimalist free pedometer with a widget and no ads on iPhone. Those needing perfect step-by-step accuracy should cross-check with Health.

Detailed ad-free stats, motivation to hit a daily goal, simple and visual, free

Count differs from Apple Watch, steps vanish retroactively, sometimes 1000 steps in a minute, bugs after iOS updates, poor at counting stairs

People who want a detailed ad-free pedometer and aren't chasing perfect accuracy

Route map at the end of a walk, steady GPS distance, motivation to walk, free version is enough

GPS gives different numbers on the same route, adds distance when you stop without pausing, subscription hard to cancel, no manual stride length setting

People who walk and hike and want to see the route on a map, not just a step number

Tolkien theme with details from the books and films, achievements, and following the route together with friends and family.

Without a subscription the counter is capped at 1 mile a day, distance is often inaccurate and diverges from the phone, and tracking friends or lifting the cap costs money.

Lord of the Rings fans who want a playful reason to walk more and don't mind paying for the full route.

Simple and clear, reliable for years, accurate step count, easy to use

Freezes and glitches after updates, steps not live and roll back, manual Apple Watch sync, shaking the phone adds steps, ads interrupt workouts

People who want a simple pedometer and can tolerate delayed updates and occasional glitches

A fun competition with friends and family, with avatars, bonks and photo updates, really nudges you to move more. It has a BeReal-like vibe and pulls you in.

Steps often disagree with Health and go missing, and Fitbit and Garmin sync works only sometimes. Too much is paywalled: a full day, history, upgrades, you pay for each separately.

For groups of friends and families on iPhone with Apple Watch who want a gamified step competition. Garmin, Fitbit and Samsung owners will suffer from the sync issues.

Simple and visual, route map, voice cues, motivation to work out, free core

Much behind premium, inaccurate distance with the goal triggering too early, recording cuts out and loses distance, no profile so progress is easily lost, voice interrupts music

Runners and walkers who want a simple GPS tracker with a map and are willing to pay for the full set

Simple and reliable, it shows steps and averages for years and pleasantly motivates daily movement.

Too many ads, sometimes whole strings of them, occasional zero-step days for several days in a row, and the free version asks for card details.

People who want a years-proven simple pedometer and can tolerate ads or pay once to remove them.

An addictive game about planets and space that keeps you walking for years, pleasant visuals, and co-op play with friends.

Won't sync with Apple Watch and Fitbit, counts only phone steps, more and more long ads, pay-to-win elements, and glitches on veteran accounts.

Those who like game-style motivation and always carry their phone, not relying on a watch.

Amazon gift cards really do arrive, it pulls from Apple Health, and it noticeably motivates you to move.

Points expire monthly, the counter freezes at zero, there is no Apple Watch support, ads are everywhere, and there are seven taps before each video.

People who carry their phone in a pocket, are fine watching ads, and are glad to get a gift card for walking.

A great way to stay connected with family and friends and compete on steps. Simple to use, and it truly motivates you to walk extra for first place.

The count differs from watches by thousands of steps and updates with hours of delay. Account logouts, no widget or chat, and Fitbit and Garmin sync is finicky.

For families and groups on iPhone with Apple Watch who care about social motivation. Those wanting an accurate tracker or using Garmin and Fitbit will feel constrained.

A handy widget with daily progress, good Apple Watch support and a calorie estimate, all for free.

For some people steps do not record at all, the widget breaks on older iOS, and the Apple Watch app crashes on launch.

People who want a simple step widget on phone and watch and are willing to check that counting works for them.

A clean, ad-free counter that puts steps and your goal right on the watch face. Many say it restored convenience after Fitbit left iOS.

The complication updates with a lag and sometimes shows zero until tapped, watch/phone/Health numbers diverge, and the goal cannot be changed from the iPhone without a watch.

Apple Watch owners who want a simple, ad-free step counter on the face and can tolerate a slight update lag.

Clean, easy interface with nothing extra. Good for measuring a single walk or a dog stroll, and some find its count more accurate than rivals.

The app stops on its own and resets the count, and it misses steps on stairs and in normal walking. GPS eats the charge quickly and the daily auto-reset is unreliable.

People who want a bare-bones measure of a single walk and are fine starting the count by hand and living with battery loss.

Years of habit and simplicity, confetti motivation on hitting the goal, basic count without a subscription

Redesign removed Apple Watch features, count differs across phone watch and Health, watch complication drains the battery fast, disputed subscription charges, lost streaks from count glitches

Long-time simple-pedometer users who value the habit over the new watch design

A smooth, easy interface with no intrusive ads that pleasantly motivates you to exercise.

It went fully paid after an update, undercounts by two or three thousand steps a day, does not show past days, and does not save your step goal.

People who want a simple, clean pedometer with no rewards or ads and are willing to pay a subscription.

It does exactly what it claims without extra complexity and pairs well with Apple Watch. It keeps the step count when you carry the phone and is handy for sending stats to a doctor.

Sync lets it down: widgets and watch show yesterday's steps, the count differs by multiples, and sometimes data is not recorded for months. Ads intrude mid-workout and remain even after paying for a subscription.

For iPhone and Apple Watch users who want a simple reliable pedometer and will pay extra to remove ads. Those with flaky watch sync should test it themselves.

It runs in the background with no start-stop, offers clear hourly graphs and decent distance accuracy.

It periodically stops counting and shows zeros for days, loses some steps, and needs a phone restart to come back to life.

People who care more about distance and background counting and can tolerate occasional gaps in their stats.

Years of reliability and habit: people keep it for years, rack up millions of steps, and love the simplicity.

There is no driving mode, so false steps pile up on the road, you cannot set stride length, and updates have wiped accumulated history.

Longtime users and anyone who wants a simple, established counter rather than perfect Apple Watch-level accuracy.

Accurate real-time logging of route, distance, speed and elevation gain. The free version is enough for many, and the interface is friendly and handy for walking and running routes.

Account registration often hangs and never completes. Distance is sometimes inflated and shows places you never went, and hitting stop can wipe the whole track. The line between free and paid and the point of the one-off purchase are unclear.

Walkers and hikers who want a route track with distance and elevation, not a step counter.

During a walk it is handy to see route, distance, steps and calories, with a pause button for a breather.

After a session the total mileage turns absurd like 1,124 miles, weight in pounds is impossible to enter, and the free access ends after three days.

People who want route and metrics during a walk or run and are fine paying after a short trial.

Long-standing habit and convenience: slip the phone in your pocket and go. Users value the time, calorie, and distance tracking.

Auto-start and auto-pause are unreliable, the counter stops on its own, history sometimes resets, and support does not answer emails.

Longtime users and anyone willing to start workouts manually and tolerate occasional resets for simple tracking.

A cute tamagotchi game with rewards for steps, and the little dopamine hits honestly nudge you to walk more.

Sync with Health and the watch keeps dropping, steps hang at zero, and forced two-minute ads pop up at every turn with no way to disable them.

People who need a cute gamified wrapper for motivation and can tolerate intrusive ads and finicky syncing.

Motivation through groups and bots, competitions with friends, the habit of carrying the phone, fun to track progress

Poor sync with Apple Watch and Garmin via Health, loses thousands of steps, suspicious virus-scare ads, shaking the phone inflates steps, shifting bot algorithm

People motivated by competitions with friends and groups rather than absolute counting accuracy

A pleasant look, accurate step and workout counting for some people, and handy pace and distance views.

Steps drift to the wrong days or reset on Fridays, the voice confuses miles with kilometers, and not everyone can cancel the subscription or get a refund.

People who want a tidy step and workout tracker and are ready to watch the subscription and cancellation carefully.

Customizable stride length, simple view of steps miles and calories, step history, free

Aggressive and sometimes inappropriate ads with auto-sound, misses some steps, odd calorie counts, shows data before install, app crashes

People looking for a free pedometer with stride tuning who can tolerate heavy ads

A rich set of health tools built over years, a comfortable interface, and a weight, nutrition, and activity log all in one place.

After updates it loses steps and stops counting, heart rate and workouts were cut, support does not reply, and the app looks abandoned.

Long-time fans who value a single health log and can tolerate fading support.

Reliable counting for long-time users, a simple interface, handy history, and the ability to go without a watch.

Widgets don't work after iOS 18, steps are sharply underreported for some, treadmill isn't counted, data is lost after updates, and there are pushy off-topic ads.

Long-time fans of a simple phone pedometer who can tolerate ads and outdated widgets.

Users value that it is free and simple, plus the water and movement reminders. Some credit it for weight loss through consistency.

It often miscounts or fails to count steps, sometimes starts from a wrong number, and the water reminders feel nagging to some.

People who want a simple free counter and can tolerate missed steps in exchange for reminders and a zero price.

Competing with friends and family on steps is fun, and the interface is pleasant and lively.

Without the phone in your pocket Apple Watch steps do not count, the tally resets overnight, and the leaderboard breaks with impossible numbers.

People who keep their phone on them and want friendly step challenges rather than perfect accuracy.

Clean with no ad clutter, it has meditations and habit tracking, and the social feature with friends and family is motivating.

Points exchanged for gift cards often never arrive, support stays silent for weeks, sound plays even in silent mode, and the interface confuses with podcasts.

People who want a calm habit tracker with meditations and social motivation and treat rewards as a bonus.

Users value the minimalism and how the complication cleanly shows steps and progress toward daily and weekly goals right on the watch face.

The complication will not update in the background without opening the app, phone and watch counts differ by half, and past-day history is unavailable.

Apple Watch owners who want a simple step complication on the face and do not need perfect phone sync.

A simple clear interface, readable charts and monthly totals, and years of reliable step tracking for regulars.

Loses and zeroes steps, won't sync with Apple Watch, underreports distance, a flood of ads including indecent banners, and cut-back free features.

Those who want a simple phone pedometer without a watch and are willing to pay to remove ads.

Simple and motivating to move, and it once was accurate with a handy weekly overview of steps by day.

After updates it counts intermittently and undershoots, freezes midday, is flooded with ads that are hard to exit, and demands a rating before you can enter.

Undemanding users who need basic step counting and can put up with ads and reduced accuracy.

The dog on the watch face genuinely motivates walking, and the breed often matches your own pet. For those where it works, pleasing the pup every day feels rewarding.

After iOS updates the dog disappears or turns into a white silhouette, the app crashes on newer iPhones, and step counts can run thousands short.

Dog lovers who want playful Apple Watch motivation rather than pharmacy-grade counting accuracy.

Walk route map, workout mode, motivation to walk, free version

Stops counting steps after an update, shows zero while walking, differs from Apple Watch and other trackers, silent support, some features only behind payment

People who want a simple free tracker with a map and are willing to gamble on accuracy

A simple clear interface, readable trends and charts, and for some, years of help hitting a daily goal.

Step history moved to a paid subscription, accuracy floats and differs between devices, a wrong stride length spoils calories, data is lost on time-zone changes, and there are many notifications.

Those who want a simple phone pedometer with clear trends and don't need perfect accuracy.

Simple and clear, an easy start for a beginner. It has step goals, water and calories in one place.

For some users counting does not run at all: an hour of walking and the counter reads zero. Calories show as zero, the interface confuses, the app keeps begging for a rating, and there is no iPad support.

For those wanting a basic free steps and water tracker, if it works for them. Accuracy sticklers and iPad owners should look elsewhere.

Motivation to walk more, free to join, the idea of earning from steps

Payouts are tiny, lottery rewards with almost no winners, gift-card prices keep rising, tons of ads and pop-ups, errors when claiming rewards

People who want light motivation to walk, but should not count on real earnings

The idea of turning walking into a game and the motivation to move for small rewards. Some people actually do get paid on time.

The step-to-currency exchange rate is stingy, coins credit less than promised, conversions reset to zero, and Venmo or PayPal payouts often fail.

People who want light gamified motivation to walk and are not counting on real income.

The tidy interface and the free fasting tracker won people over. The first days are full of support and motivation, and the start feels easy.

Ads show interactive tai chi and workouts that are not in the app. Double charges and being billed again for a subscription after signing in, and refunds only come after threatening to complain.

For people who just want a simple intermittent-fasting tracker and can ignore everything else. Not for anyone after a real pedometer or actual tai chi sessions.

The challenge and auction mechanics are addictive, and walking gets more interesting when a prize is on the line.

The counter is wildly off, coins get stuck at zero, and promised prizes and gift cards simply never arrive even after complaints.

People who want gamified motivation to walk and can live with the fact that real rewards may never show up.

Users praise the clean minimalist design, the playful water reminders, and the auto-generated plan.

Step counting often fails or shows zero, the widget will not update in the background, watch sync will not configure, and essentials are locked behind a paywall.

People who care more about a good-looking water tracker with pleasant design and treat step counting as secondary.

Simple to set up and start, and it motivates some people to take more steps even at home. For a short walk within the limit it works fine.

The 3000-step cap on the free version makes it useless for a full day, and buying the full version does not lift the cap or carry over data for some users. It only counts with the screen open and forgets settings after shutdown.

People willing to buy the full version up front and to live with keeping the screen on.

The familiar graphics from the original and the route logging of where you went and for how long. The return of a once-loved app is a joy in itself for old fans.

The step count is badly undercounted and often zero, and bike rides and other activities are not recorded. Heavy battery drain, some features and screens are impossible to find, and ads show up even after a paid purchase.

People nostalgic for the old Moves who care more about a route log than an accurate step count.

It credits points even for sleep, gift cards sometimes arrive the same day, and there are many ways to earn.

It miscounts steps and will not link to Apple Watch, the daily points cap is tiny, accounts get locked before withdrawal, ads are endless, and cards take weeks.

Patient gift-card hunters willing to watch tons of ads for a slow reward.

Easy to get into from day one, a motivating format, and at a reasonable price it once satisfied long-time users.

Underreports steps and distance, doesn't count treadmill, won't let you edit data, a 'free' pitch, breakage after payment, and crashes.

Those who want a simple walking-for-weight-loss app on the phone and can tolerate limits and ads.

Gift cards genuinely arrive, and some have already earned several 10-dollar ones. Auto-collect and low attention demands make it almost passive income.

Payouts are tiny: about 100 coins for 10k steps, while a 10-dollar card needs 16k. Steps are counted inaccurately and go missing, league progression cuts off some rewards, and ad popups will not quit.

For the patient who will walk a long time and grind surveys for small gift cards. Not for those expecting meaningful money or an accurate pedometer.

It tracks steps, calories and miles neatly, and GPS route tracking is a particular favorite. It has useful reminders to move.

The subscription screen has no close button and you must restart the app three times. The 9.99-per-week subscription feels like a rip-off, without paying every tap meets a minute-long ad, and GPS mode crashes.

For the ad-tolerant who want a steps and route tracker and will pay to remove ads. Not for anyone infuriated by pushy subscriptions and popup clips.

Route suggestions and audio guidance during a walk help some people settle in and feel better.

You must pay before seeing anything, subscription cancellation does not work, and 86-89 dollar charges are non-refundable.

Almost no one: the built-in pedometer is free and just as good, while here the risk of getting stuck in a non-cancellable subscription is high.

Many payout methods and the thrill of a growing balance. Sometimes payouts really do arrive.

Real money only comes through installing and paying for games, support stays silent, cashing out demands a photo ID, and earned points get lost.

Maybe fans of game offerwalls willing to endure ads for a few dollars.

For some the payout does go through, and the first few cents landing in PayPal are a pleasant surprise.

Earnings are pennies, cash-out constantly breaks with a network error, small amounts expire, and you get nothing without watching ads.

Essentially no one: it is weak as a step tracker and an illusion as an earner with cents you cannot withdraw.

The idea of gamified walking and reminders nudges people to move, and some enjoy the concept itself.

Cashing out is unreachable, step rewards get slashed again and again, the app crashes within seconds, step accuracy is poor, and streaks get reset.

Almost no one. Those looking for a nudge to walk who don't count on real payouts.

People who got past the billing like the variety of walking programs and how it nudges them to move and keep pace for weight loss.

Cancellation is hidden behind a two-step flow, charges continue even after you delete the app, and support replies with canned messages and refuses refunds.

Almost no one. The risk of hidden charges and months fighting to cancel is too high.

The very hope of getting something for steps nudges people to walk, and some enjoy the surveys.

The cash-out threshold is unreachable, coins trickle in, tons of ads, the counter is inaccurate and freezes, and there are disputed trial charges.

Almost no one. Maybe those willing to endure ads for a token nudge, with no hope of a payout.

Some like the map and GPS route of the walk, and the self-starting format helps people move without a gym.

The price is buried behind a long questionnaire, the subscription costs more than a gym, the first workout fails to record, the app freezes, and cancellation does not stop the charges.

Almost no one. Too pushy an onboarding and a hidden expensive subscription atop a half-baked core feature.

In the past, fast small payouts, some still occasionally get $5, and surveys add points.

Payouts stall in review for a long time or vanish, support sends templated replies, the counter is inaccurate, and ads are long.

Almost no one. Maybe those willing to risk their time for small payouts that may never arrive.

Points pile up easily and watching the balance grow is thrilling at first. The tiny random cents sometimes really do pay out.

Cashing out needs 50 fragments that almost never drop from eggs even after hundreds of ads and reset to zero, so real money cannot be withdrawn.

Almost nobody, the reviews flatly advise not to install it.

The very promise of money for steps is enticing, the interface is simple, and some like the idea itself.

Withdrawal is blocked by a quota and puzzles, progress freezes at 98 percent, points get zeroed, support is silent, and the counter is inaccurate.

No one. This is a broken earning scheme, not a usable pedometer.

At first it feels like money comes easily, and small amounts even trickled in for some. It is nice to see steps, calories and walk time in one place.

Cashing out does not work: the balance grows but shows 'insufficient funds' or freezes your energy. After the first 30-dollar threshold all savings reset, and task rewards are cut to token amounts.

Not for anyone who believes the promised payouts. Pointless as a pedometer, the whole thing exists for ad impressions.

Early on coins pile up easily and small Amazon payouts of 15-35 cents sometimes arrive. Some like it as a nudge to move more.

Cashing out is blocked: the last of 50 fragments never drops, and the reward is forever 'delayed'. In practice it is not a pedometer but an ad-viewing machine.

Not for anyone expecting to actually receive the promised money. It is a trap built on ad impressions, not a walking tracker.

There is nothing to praise. Even the five-star reviews, read by their text, are complaints about being scammed.

An ad every couple of seconds, no sign-up bonus that ever arrives, and single-coin payouts near the cash-out limit so you never reach it.

No one. It is a scam that spends your time on ads and pays nothing.