Compare HabitNow, Habitive, and Habitica: Which App is the Best?

Habitica is honestly unlike any other habit tracker we've used. It turns your daily tasks into a full-on RPG adventure, which makes building routines way more fun. You can track habits, daily routines, and one-off to-dos, and you get experience, gold, and collectibles for checking things off. It's surprisingly motivating!

• Gamified Habit Tracking: Every time you finish a task, your character levels up and you get new rewards.
• Flexible Task Types: You can track habits, daily routines, and one-off to-dos all in one place.
• Party & Social Features: Team up with friends for extra motivation and shared quests.
• Customization: Make your avatar your own, collect gear and pets, and join community challenges.
• Reminders & Widgets: Notifications and home screen widgets help you stay on track.

We did wish there were more advanced stats and better ways to manage tasks (like duplicating or redoing them). We also ran into a few bugs that messed with streaks or notifications. For users who need comprehensive analytics, HabitKit offers detailed statistics and beautiful progress visualization. Still, Habitica's features are fun and keep you coming back—especially if you like games. We give features an 8.2 out of 10.

Habitive has all the basic features you'd want in a habit tracker, plus some nice extras. It's not trying to do everything - it focuses on helping you build habits without getting complicated.

What we liked most:

1. Unlimited Habits

This is where Habitive really shines. Most free habit trackers only let you create 3-5 habits, but Habitive lets you create as many as you want. No artificial limits. Unlike HabitKit which restricts free users to just 4 habits, or Disciplined which locks away detailed statistics behind a paywall, Habitive gives you everything upfront.

Setting up a new habit is super simple. Just tap the plus button, pick a name, and choose how often you want to do it each week. That's it.

2. Weekly Goals

Instead of forcing you to do something every single day, you can set flexible goals. Want to exercise 4 times a week? No problem. Want to read every day? That works too.

This makes it much more realistic for most people's lives.

3. Achievement System

The app has a fun game-like system where you unlock achievements as you stick with your habits. It sounds silly, but it actually helps keep you motivated. While not as elaborate as Habitica's full RPG experience, it provides just enough gamification to keep things interesting.

4. Progress Tracking

You can see your stats for each habit - how many times you've completed it, your current streak, and a calendar view of your progress.

5. Home Screen Widgets

You can add widgets to your phone's home screen so you always see your habits. This is great for staying on track, though some users have reported bugs with this feature.

What could be better:

The app doesn't let you organize habits into groups or categories. If you have lots of habits, they can feel a bit scattered. Also, syncing between different devices doesn't work very well. For users who need more organizational features, Loop Habit Tracker offers better categorization and grouping options.

Overall, we give features an 8.5. It has all the essentials and does them well, but could use some organizational tools.

Most of the time, Habitica runs smoothly and does what you need. We did run into some slowdowns, bugs, and issues with notifications or widgets—something other users have mentioned too. These problems didn't ruin the experience, but they were a little annoying. For users who prioritize performance and stability, HabitKit offers consistently smooth operation with a 9.2 performance rating. With some bug fixes, Habitica's performance could be even better. For now, we rate it 7.2 out of 10.

The app runs smoothly most of the time. You can track habits without any delays or crashes.

Marking habits as complete is fast and reliable. You can also check your progress and stats without waiting. The app works offline, so you can use it anywhere, even without internet.

What works well:

• Fast Startup: Opens quickly and is ready to use
• Responsive: Taps and swipes work smoothly
• Efficient: Doesn't slow down even with lots of habits
• Stable: Core features work reliably
• Lightweight: Doesn't use much phone storage or battery
• Consistent: Performance stays good over time

There are some issues though. Several users reported problems with home screen widgets - sometimes adding a widget makes the app stop opening. You have to remove the widget to fix it.

Some people also said the app doesn't work properly on certain phones. This might be due to specific phone models or software versions.

Overall, the main app works great, but the widget feature and device compatibility have some problems. We give performance an 8.8 - generally excellent for daily use, but with some technical issues.

Habitica's design is a breath of fresh air compared to most productivity apps. The retro pixel art and RPG theme make it feel playful and rewarding. The interface is colorful and lively, and we had a lot of fun customizing our avatars.

• Pixel Art Style: The graphics and RPG touches make Habitica stand out.
• Customizable Avatars: Tons of ways to make your character unique.
• Colorful UI: The bright, fun interface actually makes you want to use the app.

Sometimes the UI can feel a bit busy, and we'd love even more options for color coding and icons. For users who prefer minimalist design, HabitKit offers a clean, GitHub-inspired interface that focuses purely on habit tracking. But overall, Habitica's design is charming and makes habit tracking feel less like a chore. We rate it 8.8 out of 10.

Habitica is free to use, with optional in-app purchases for gems and subscriptions. Most features are available for free, and we never felt pressured to pay. Some of us wished there were more ways to earn premium currency without spending money, but overall, the value is fair—especially if you want a fun way to stay productive. For users who want completely free access without any limitations, Habitive offers unlimited habits at no cost, while Loop Habit Tracker provides premium-quality features completely free. We give value for money a 7.5 out of 10.

Getting started with Habitica is pretty easy, and the game-like approach makes tracking habits feel less boring. Adding tasks, checking them off, and customizing your avatar are all simple. If you need a little extra motivation, this app really helps.

There is a bit of a learning curve if you want to use all the features, and sometimes the interface can feel overwhelming at first. We also hit a few bugs and slow moments here and there.

Once you get used to it, though, Habitica is user-friendly and rewarding. For users who want the simplest possible setup, Habitive offers a 3-click habit creation process that's even more straightforward. We'd love to see better onboarding and smoother performance, but overall, ease of use scores a 7.8 out of 10.

Habitica says your data stays private and isn't sold to third parties, which is great. We didn't find much info about advanced privacy or security features, but we also didn't run into any issues. For most people, privacy is handled well, but if you have strict needs, you might want to look a bit deeper. We rate security and privacy at 7.0 out of 10.