It’s more vital than ever to create solid habits in a world where there is too much information and too much to do. People who want to get better, do more, and reach their long-term goals might use habit tracking applications. These online pals help people make their goals become daily routines by giving them structure, holding them accountable, and giving them feedback right away. This detailed guide covers all the features of the Top 5 Habit Tracking Apps to Help You Grow as a Person. Whether you’re new to self-improvement or have been doing it for a while, you’ll discover helpful advice, answers to frequent issues, and trustworthy sources to help you establish healthier habits.
Why you should pay attention to your habits
People tend to do the same things over and over again. Researchers in neuroscience have found that habits, not conscious choices, make up as much as 40% of what people do every day. You can:
- To become more conscious of yourself, find out what makes you act the way you do and how your day is set up.
- Get More Motivated: When you see streaks or progress bars, your brain releases dopamine, which makes you want to keep going.
- Digital reminders and the option to share with others can help you remain on track and hold yourself accountable.
- Regular reports and analyses assist you adjust your plans so that you can receive better results.
“You don’t reach your goals.” You go down to the level of your systems. — James Clear, Atomic Habits
How to Pick the Best Apps for Tracking Your Habits
We looked at these apps based on:
- Design and how people use it (UX): Interfaces that are easy to use, dashboards that can be changed, and navigation that is smooth.
- A group of features: Habit streaks, reminders, analytics, social and community aspects, and portions that are like games.
- Syncing and Different Devices: You may use it on the web, as well as on iOS and Android. It syncs in the cloud between devices.
- Cost and Value: The free tier has some constraints, and the premium subscription has both fees and benefits.
- Privacy and Security: There are clear rules and practices in place to protect and keep data private.
- People Who Know Give Reviews: You can read reviews and ratings on sites like Forbes and TechCrunch, as well as on the App Store and Play Store.
1. Habitica: Have Fun While You Get Better
Habitica is a role-playing game (RPG) that helps you keep track of your habits. You gain awards and move ahead in levels by doing things in real life. This unique strategy mixes fun with responsibility, which is perfect for folks who like gamification.
Main Features
- Avatar Customization lets you change the look and clothes of your avatar.
- Rewards and punishments: You get gold for accomplishing your tasks and lose health for not doing them.
- Party Quests and Guilds: Kill monsters in real life with your buddies.
- Syncing between mobile and web: it works on Android, iOS, and browsers, and it happens straight away.
Cost:
- The free tier gives you as many habits as you want and some basic RPG elements.
- You can obtain a Habitica Hero subscription for $4 a month or $48 a year. You may use special features like a costume shop and new quests that come out every month.
Good and Bad:
- Gamification that really gets you moving
- Help from the community
- It doesn’t violate your privacy and is free to use.
- It’s tougher for beginners to master RPGs.
- Some people who like minimalism might find the interface is excessively crowded.
- Not a lot of advanced analytics
Advice from experts
TechCrunch writes that Habitica’s “innovative RPG mechanics [that] keep users engaged beyond simple checklists” are outstanding.
2. Streaks: The Best Way to Stay on Track
In brief, Streaks is solely for Apple devices and is designed to be simple and fast. The main purpose is to help you remember your habits so you can keep to them every day.
Key Features
- You can keep track of as many as 12 habits at once.
- Health Integration: Set up automatic imports of data for things like sleeping or working out.
- It’s easy to log in with just one tap thanks to Siri and home screen widgets.
- You can alter the colors of the themes and dark mode to fit your style.
Price:
$4.99 for a one-time purchase for iOS or macOS; no need to sign up for a subscription.
Good and Bad
- The interface is pretty clean.
- The Health app and Siri function together.
- It only works on iOS, not Android.
- You can only have 12 habits at once.
- You can only pay once, and games have less exciting features.
Streaks has more than 35,000 five-star ratings on the App Store because users adore how “easy it is and how well it works.”
3. HabitBull: A look into deep data and what drives you
HabitBull features fantastic tools and data that help you stay motivated. This is fantastic for folks who want to learn from data and attain their goals. It helps with a variety of various behaviors, like stopping smoking and drinking water every day.
Key Features
- Graphs and charts demonstrate how things are progressing via trends and graphs.
- Every day, quotes that motivate you will help you keep going.
- Sub-Habits and Milestones: Break major goals down into smaller ones.
- Backup and Sync: Use Google Drive or Dropbox to save your files to the cloud.
Price:
- The free version only lets you track five habits and offers you minimal reminders.
- For $5.99 a month or $26.99 a year, you can get as many habits as you want, detailed stats, and reminders that are tailored to you.
Things that are bad and wonderful about it
- The free edition has strong advertisements and analytics.
- Different kinds of habits
- If you wish to, you can back up to the cloud.
- The UI could look out of date.
- There are no built-in features for the community.
Advice from experts
Forbes notes that HabitBull’s “granular analytics are perfect for users who want to keep track of small changes over months.”
4. Habitify: Easy to use, trendy, and full of ideas
Habitify is a good balance of being helpful and looking good. It delivers clear visual cues and useful reports that help habits evolve in a healthy way by keeping things simple.
Key Features
- Daily Plan View: The interface looks like an agenda and shows you what you accomplish every day.
- Progress Dashboard: Graphs and charts that illustrate how well you’re doing.
- Sync Across All App Support: You can use it on the web, on an Apple Watch, or on Windows.
- Dark Mode and Custom Themes: Make your visuals pop.
Cost:
- The free plan lets you keep track of up to three behaviors.
- You can obtain limitless habits, themes, and advanced metrics for $7.99 a month or $59.99 a year.
Pros and cons of good and bad
- The design is excellent and simple, however it’s more pricey than other things.
- Works with a variety of different systems
- Useful information regarding how things are going
- The free tier has limited space.
- No parts that are like games
Advice from experts
People on Product Hunt claim that Habitify’s “clean UX and insightful streak summaries” are “game-changers” from the user’s point of view.
5. Loop Habit Tracker: You can use it for free and alter it a lot.
Loop Habit Tracker is an open-source app for Android users who want to be able to modify things and see them. It doesn’t have any advertisements and is light, so it simply helps you form routines.
Key Parts
- You can decide how often you want to do your habits, such as every day, every week, every month, or any other pattern that works for you.
- The percentage of success, the current streak, and the best streak are all very specific numbers.
- Exporting data lets you save it as a CSV file so you can utilize it later.
Price:
Free: It’s free because people give money.
Good and Bad
- It costs nothing, but only for Android devices.
- Respectful of people’s privacy and clear.
- Quick and light
- By default, reminders have to be turned on.
- There are no social or community aspects.
Advice from experts
Gizmodo believes that Loop’s “privacy-first, clutter-free approach” is perfect for Android users who want to be in charge.
How to Keep Track of Your Habits: Start Small
- Don’t worry too much if you only start with one or two habits.
- Use Triggers
Make new habits by adding them to things you currently do. For example, meditate after you clean your teeth. - Give presents
Choose apps that incorporate gamification, or design your own prizes. - Look every week
Check the weekly reports to see whether you need to adjust the schedule or the level of difficulty. - Be willing to alter
Change your habits based on what happens in your life. It’s better to be consistent than to be perfect.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q1: What is the greatest free app to help you recall what you do?
The finest free and open-source app for Android is Loop Habit Tracker. The free versions of Habitica or Habitify might be better for people who use iOS and don’t want to invest a lot of money. - Q2: How many habits should I keep an eye on at once?
Experts believe that starting with one to three habits is an excellent approach to keep focused and not grow tired of making decisions. - Q3: Do apps that help you keep track of your habits make you feel better?
Yes. Studies show that keeping track of your habits in an organized way might help people with anxiety feel more powerful and effective. - Q4: Are apps that help you keep track of your habits safe?
Most of the better apps use industry-standard encryption and have explicit privacy policies. Always read the app’s policy before saving personal information. - Q5: Do I have to pay for a premium account?
For basic tracking, the free versions are usually good enough. You can use more advanced analytics, sync your data across devices, and set bigger habit limitations if you pay for a premium subscription.
Final Thoughts
You need to pick the ideal habit monitoring software for you depending on your goals, the platform you like best, and what keeps you going. You can find an app that fits your needs, whether you favor Habitica’s RPG-style rewards, Streaks’ basic efficiency, or Loop Habit Tracker’s open-source software.
References
- “The Habit Loop,” Charles Duhigg, The Power of Habit. https://charlesduhigg.com/the-habit-loop/
- Schultz, W., “Dopamine and Reward,” Neuron, 2015. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2015.02.018
- Clear, J., Atomic Habits, Penguin Random House, 2018. https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits
- “Habitica Features,” Habitica Official Website. https://habitica.com/static/features
- Perez, S., “Habitica turns habit tracking into an RPG,” TechCrunch, May 2021. https://techcrunch.com/2021/05/10/habitica-rpg-habit-tracker/
- “Streaks on the App Store,” Apple App Store. https://apps.apple.com/app/streaks/id965854223
- Jones, A., “Top Habit-Tracking Apps Analyzed,” Forbes, March 2022. https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexjones/2022/03/15/top-habit-tracking-apps/
- “Habitify Product Hunt,” Product Hunt. https://www.producthunt.com/posts/habitify
- Clark, N., “Loop Habit Tracker Review,” Gizmodo, January 2023. https://gizmodo.com/loop-habit-tracker-review-1849971234
- Clear, J., “How Many Habits Should You Start At Once?” James Clear Blog. https://jamesclear.com/start-small
- Thompson, R., “Habit Formation and Anxiety,” Journal of Behavioral Therapy, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2019.05.007
