A quick note before the list: "best" here means best for a purpose, not universally superior. Some of these are apps, one isn't an app at all. Rank accordingly to what you actually need.
Consistently one of the most recommended habit apps on iOS, and for good reason — an Apple Design Award winner with a genuinely polished, native feel. It works as a checklist of daily habits rather than a single counter, with tight Health and Reminders integration. Best for people who want to track several small daily habits at once and are happy to pay for the download.
The pick for anyone who responds better to game mechanics than plain numbers. It turns your habits and to-dos into an RPG — you level up a character, earn gear, and can join parties with friends for accountability. It's a much bigger commitment to engage with than a simple counter, but for the right person that extra structure is exactly what keeps them coming back.
Not an app at all, and still worth including: pin a calendar to the wall and put a big X on every day you keep your streak. It costs nothing, requires no setup, and the physical, visible chain is exactly the psychological trick every app on this list is trying to digitize. The obvious downsides are no reminders, no milestones, and nothing that travels with you.
Our own app, built for anyone who wants the X-on-a-calendar simplicity with the convenience of a phone. It handles both count-up streaks and count-down targets, with real milestone tiers (bronze through purple, from day 3 up to a full year) and Home Screen or Lock Screen widgets so your count is visible without opening the app. It's free, requires no account, and stores everything on-device only — no cloud sync, no social feed, no ads.
Picking the right one for you
If you like structure and gamification, Habitica's RPG layer will probably keep you more engaged than a plain number ever could. If you want the cleanest possible daily checklist with deep iOS polish, Streaks is hard to beat. If you just want the wall calendar's simplicity — dead simple, visible, no distractions — with real milestones and a widget, that's the gap LOCKEDIN Day Counter fills.
Try LOCKEDIN Day Counter
Free to download. Track streaks, crush countdowns, and stay locked in — fully private, zero setup.
The bottom line
Every option here relies on the same basic principle — make consistency visible, and consistency becomes easier to keep. Which tool you use matters far less than actually using one. Pick whichever format you'll still be opening in three months.