image credit: Unsplash
We make StepUp, so it's on this list and it comes first. Every other app here was checked against its own App Store listing on 31 October 2026, and nobody paid to be included. Where a listing doesn't say whether an app does something, we say so rather than guess.
Do you need a step counter app at all?
Not to count. Your iPhone counts steps on its own, with the motion sensors inside it, and keeps them in the Health app: nothing to install, nothing to pay. If you wear an Apple Watch, its steps go to the same place. Counting steps on iPhone goes through how it works, and step tracking without an Apple Watch covers what you miss without one.
So the number is rarely what separates these apps. Every one of them starts from the steps your iPhone or Watch records, and where you carry the phone matters more than which app reads it (does your iPhone count steps in a bag?). What differs is what each app does with the count: the goal it sets, how it shows your week, whether it nudges you, and what it costs. That's what this comparison looks at.
The apps
Best for a goal that fits you
StepUp
Made by us, the makers of StepUp
- Price
- Free, with optional StepUp Pro
- Best for
- People who've given up on 10,000 and want a target built from their own walking
Good
- A weekly walking plan from your real history, asking no more than 10% more each week
- An Apple Watch app with its own GPS walks, heart rate and eight complications
- Walks recorded with their route on iPhone or Watch, live on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island
- Nine walking metrics, five of them free
- Expeditions: journeys along real routes in your own town
- Your steps and walks never reach our servers
Less good
- Needs iOS 17 or later, and watchOS 11 for the Watch app
- The walking plan and Golden Hour are free for your first week, then need Pro
- Four of the metrics, the bigger widgets and some routes need Pro
Best if you just want the number
Apple Health
By Apple
- Price
- Free, and already on every iPhone
- Best for
- Seeing today's steps and your trend, with nothing to set up
Good
- Counts from the moment you have an iPhone
- Charts by day, week, month and year, with trend analysis
- Gathers steps from your iPhone, Apple Watch and other apps in one place
- Encrypts your health data while your phone is locked
Less good
- Steps sit among dozens of other health records
- Its listing doesn't mention a step goal, streaks or step widgets
Best simple counter with Apple Watch
Pedometer++
By Cross Forward Consulting, LLC
- Price
- Free, with an optional Premium subscription
- Best for
- A clean daily count on your iPhone and your wrist, plus routes for hikes
Good
- An iPhone and Apple Watch app, with watch face complications
- Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets
- A custom step goal, badges, and flights of stairs
- Routes, GPX import and offline maps for hiking
Less good
- Workout tracking on iPhone needs Premium
- The goal is one you set yourself, not one that adapts
Best for streaks and friends
StepsApp
By StepsApp GmbH
- Price
- Free, with an optional Pro subscription
- Best for
- Staying consistent with streaks, and walking against friends or coworkers
Good
- Daily goals and streaks, with streak freezes
- Groups, leaderboards and challenges
- Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets, and an Apple Watch app
- Syncs with Garmin, Oura, Fitbit, Whoop and more
- Wheelchair support, and you can export your data
Less good
- GPS workouts, advanced goals and an ad-free app need Pro
- A big download, over 400 MB
Best for routes and walking groups
Pacer
By Pacer Health, Inc
- Price
- Free, with an optional premium subscription
- Best for
- Finding places to walk, joining groups, and following a plan to lose weight
Good
- Counts with your phone in a hand, a pocket or a bag
- Local routes and trails, and GPS maps of your walks
- Walking groups and challenges with friends on any phone
- Weight, BMI and guided workout plans
Less good
- Its listing doesn't mention widgets
- Its more accurate tracking option uses your location
- A big download, over 500 MB
Best for mapping every walk
Map My Walk
By Outside Television Inc
- Price
- Free, with an optional MVP subscription
- Best for
- Recording walks with GPS, hearing your pace as you go, and seeing the route after
Good
- Real-time GPS with a map of every route
- Audio updates on pace, distance, time and calories
- Over 600 kinds of activity, indoors and out
- Syncs with Apple Watch, Garmin and Apple Health
Less good
- Built around recorded walks more than your steps through the day
- Live tracking, plans and heart rate zones need MVP
- GPS in the background uses battery, as its listing says
Best if you want rewards
WeWard
By WEWARD
- Price
- Free
- Best for
- Turning steps into cash, gift cards, deals or donations
Good
- Free, and pays out rewards for walking
- Challenges with friends, and a leaderboard
- You can give your rewards to charity
Less good
- Built around rewards and offers from its 500+ brand partners
- Its listing doesn't mention an Apple Watch app, Apple Health or widgets
Side by side
| Feature | StepUp | Apple Health | Pedometer++ | StepsApp | Pacer | Map My Walk | WeWard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, optional Pro | Built in | Free, optional Premium | Free, optional Pro | Free, optional premium | Free, optional MVP | Free |
| Apple Watch app | Yes, with its own walks | Collects Watch steps | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not stated |
| Reads Apple Health | Yes | It is Apple Health | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not stated |
| Step goal | Built from your history | Not stated | One you set | Daily, advanced with Pro | Daily goals and plans | Personal goals | Personal goals |
| Streaks | Yes | Not stated | Badges | Yes, with freezes | Not stated | Badges | Not stated |
| Widgets | Home and Lock Screen | Not stated | Home and Lock Screen | Home and Lock Screen | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Maps of your walks | GPS routes, iPhone and Watch | Not stated | Routes, offline maps | With Pro | Yes | Yes | Not stated |
| Friends | Share cards | Share with people you choose | Share workouts | Groups, leaderboards | Groups, challenges | Challenges | Challenges, leaderboard |
| Needs iOS | 17 or later | Built in | 15 or later | 15 or later | 15 or later | 16 or later | 16.4 or later |
"Not stated" means the App Store listing doesn't say, not that the app can't.
Which one should you pick?
- You just want to see your steps: Apple Health. It's already there.
- You want a free counter on your wrist and your Home Screen: Pedometer++.
- A streak or a bit of competition keeps you going: StepsApp, or Pacer if you'd like walking groups and routes near you.
- You walk for the route as much as the steps: Map My Walk.
- You'd walk more for a reward: WeWard.
- You've tried 10,000 and it never stuck: StepUp. It starts from what you walk now and asks a little more each week. Why fixed step goals fail explains the idea, and the daily step goal calculator gives you a number to start with today.
How we chose
We searched the US App Store for "step counter" and "pedometer" on 31 October 2026, and kept apps that count steps on iPhone, were updated that month and have tens of thousands of ratings or more. Apple Health is in as the baseline, since every iPhone has it. Of the apps that pay you to walk, we kept one, WeWard, to stand for the kind.
Each app's details come from its own App Store listing on that day: what it says it does, what it costs and which devices it runs on. We haven't raced the apps' step counts against each other, since on iPhone they start from the same sensor data. Apps change often, so check a listing before you pay for anything. We'll check these again at least every three months.
Questions
What's the best free step counter app for iPhone?
Apple Health, because it's already on your iPhone and costs nothing. If you want a goal, widgets or an Apple Watch app on top, Pedometer++ and StepsApp are both free to download, with optional subscriptions. StepUp is free to download too, with an optional Pro.
Do I need an Apple Watch to count steps?
No. Your iPhone counts steps on its own as long as it's on you, and every app here can read that count. An Apple Watch adds the steps you take while your phone sits on a desk, and your heart rate during walks.
Are step counter apps accurate?
On iPhone they're about as accurate as each other, because they start from the same motion sensor data. What changes the count is where your phone is: in a pocket or a hand it catches most of your steps, and left on a desk it counts none.
Which step counter app pays you to walk?
From this list, WeWard: it pays out cash, gift cards and deals for your steps, or lets you give them to charity. Sweatcoin is another app of the kind, which we left out to keep the list to one.
Is StepUp out yet?
Yes. StepUp is on the App Store for iPhone, for iOS 17 or later, with an Apple Watch app for watchOS 11 or later. It's free to download, with an optional Pro.
Sources
Written by Dheeraj Kumar Sharma, who makes StepUp. How the guides are written.
