The best pedometer apps and step counter apps for Android

Tracking exercise is a lot easier than it used to be. Back in the day, you needed a notebook, there was a lot of estimating, and it required your full attention. These days, apps and devices can keep track of that stuff for you, and all you have to do is enjoy the exercise experience. That includes step counting. There are many apps to count steps, many of which do the job amicably. You won’t get the precision of a fitness tracker, but it’s good enough to give you a general idea.

Smartphone app vs fitness tracker accuracy

Before we get into the best pedometer apps for Android, let’s touch on the accuracy of smartphones and fitness trackers regarding step tracking.

Right off the bat, you need to understand that step counting isn’t an exact science for wearables or smartphones. While both devices use built-in accelerometers and gyroscopes to translate your body movement into what they think could be a step, there will always be an error margin. This isn’t a big problem, provided you understand these limitations. The real reason to count your steps is to encourage movement and a daily progression of fitness goals. Pedometer apps and wearables will both aid you on this journey.

Here are the best pedometer and step counter apps for Android.

Google Fit is a free step counter app and a good start for most Android users. It keeps track of many things, including steps, time active, and more. The app also supports Wear OS smartwatches and Xiaomi Mi Bands. Additionally, the app integrates with other apps, including Runkeeper, Strava, MyFitnessPal, Lifesum, Sleep as Android, and many others. Google Fit does a relatively decent job of being a pedometer. It makes some mistakes. However, it’s nothing that you won’t also see in other apps as well. Pedometer apps, in general, just aren’t as reliable as you get with hardware. In any case, Google Fit is completely free, with no in-app purchases or ads. Again, it’s a good start.

Leap Fitness Step Counter

Price: Free / $2.99

Leap Fitness Step Counter is one of the simpler pedometer apps. It works well for the minimalists out there. The app requires no sign-in, no cloud service, and also no GPS tracking. It just counts your steps with the sensors on the device. Other features include themes, report graphs, and optional backup to Google Drive. All of the features are usable in the free version. However, the pro version goes for a very reasonable $2.99, and it should remove any advertising. It does have the occasional problem, but most seem to like it. We did too.

MapMyWalk

Price: Free / $5.99 per month / $29.99 per year

MapMyWalk is part of the Under Armour app family and really is a great little addition for walkers. The app provides a great split-time visualization and lets you compare your latest walk to previous sessions. There’s also a walking route discovery section and a social aspect to help keep you motivated.

MyFitnessPal

Price: Free / $19.99 per month / $79.99 per year

MyFitnessPal is one of the most powerful step counter apps. It also does a whole bunch of other things. Most people use the app for calorie counting, macro tracking (as in, how many carbs one consumes daily), fitness tracking, water tracking, and, you guessed it, step tracking. It tracks steps via other apps. Thus, you’ll need something like Google Fit to track the steps and then MyFitnessPal overlays that data with other stuff.

Pedometer by ITO Technologies

Price: Free (with ads)

Pedometer by ITO Technologies is another simple pedometer app. This one also works best for planned workouts. The app has a start/stop button. Thus, you can use it for that run or walk you plan on taking. The app also tracks things like burned calories, distance, walking/running time, and speed. This one may not work as well as a 24/7 step counter as with fitness bands or other apps. That said, the app is completely free (with advertising), so it’s difficult to complain too much about a lack of features. It’s good for what it does, though.

Pacer Pedometer

Price: Free / $49.99 per year

Pacer Health’s Pedometer and Step Counter app is one of the more popular step counter apps. It lets you tweak the step counter sensitivity in a lot of ways. Thus, it has a good chance of being accurate for your needs. The app also features GPS step tracking (optional), a no-login experience, and support for Fitbit and MyFitnessPal. The premium (read: subscription) version includes additional features like workout tools and coaching. Thankfully, the subscription price isn’t overly bad. Other than the occasional hiccup, the app also works pretty well.

Runkeeper

Price: Free / $11.99 per month / $39.99 per year

Runkeeper is one of the most popular pedometer apps. Tracking your runs and walks is the whole point of the app. The app features workout tracking, goals, fitness routines, progress reports, and more. It also includes community challenges, exercise rewards, and other little things for motivational purposes. The subscription also includes better workout support, progress tracking, and live tracking support. The free version should work for most people mainly because the subscription price is a little much for what it provides.

StepsApp

Price: Free / Varies

StepsApp is precisely what it says it is on the tin. The app features a built-in step tracker and a history feature so you can compare your progress day to day. When you need to extend those walking goals, you can choose between increasing total walking time, total steps, and more. The app’s also probably the best looking on this list, with many themes to fit your style.

Zombies, Run! and The Walk

Price: Varies

Zombies, Run! and The Walk are two very popular fitness apps. They try to add some fun to the proceedings. Players walk, run, or bike while they listen to a story. Their distance progresses them through the story. Thus, to hear the next part of the tale, you have to keep going. Of course, if you don’t keep going, you lose the game. The games don’t necessarily keep track of every individual step. However, they do keep track of your overall distance. Zombies, Run! has a free trial with the first several missions included. The full version costs $5.99 per month or $39.99 per year. The Walk is free with a $4.99 pro version. Neither price is unreasonable for what you get.

Your fitness band’s app

Price: Free

Most people going for fitness buy a fitness band or tracker (like Fitbit, for instance). Most of these fitness trackers have their own apps. The apps keep track of everything your hardware records, including steps, sleep, calories burned, stairs climbed, and how active you are. In some cases, they even track your heart rate. This is an optimal solution for those with fitness trackers. Those with hardware fitness trackers should try out the apps that come with them first. They’re almost always free, are usually at least somewhat customizable, and work best with the hardware they were designed for.