The 5 Best Walking Apps in 2026
Walking is the most underrated workout on the planet. No equipment, no gym membership, no learning curve. You just go outside and move.
But if you’re going to walk regularly (and you should, because a 2025 Lancet study found that just 7,000 daily steps cuts the risk of early death by 47%), it helps to have a way to track your progress. Seeing your distance, routes, and consistency over time is one of the simplest ways to stay motivated. That’s where walking apps come in.
Here’s the problem: there are too many of them. Some are bloated with features you’ll never touch. Others are really running apps that happen to also track walks. A few are genuinely built for people who walk, and those are the ones worth your time.
We’re not ranking these best walking apps from first to worst. That depends entirely on what you’re looking for. Instead, here are five solid options that each do something different. Whether you want dead-simple GPS tracking, a social community, guided audio walks, or just a reliable step counter running in the background all day, one of these will fit.
(Already found your walking app and looking for running recommendations too? Check out the best running apps in 2026.)
Vima Walk: Simple GPS Tracking Without the Clutter
Vima Walk is built on one idea: track your walks without making you wade through a dozen features you didn’t ask for.
Open the app, tap start, and go walk. GPS tracks your route while recording distance, speed, altitude, and time. When you’re done, your route shows up on a map, color-coded by speed so you can see exactly where you were cruising and where you slowed down. Green stretches mean you were moving fast; red means you slowed. That’s a nice touch that most walking apps skip entirely, and it’s surprisingly useful if you’re trying to build up your pace over time.
What makes it different: The simplicity is the point. You get voice summaries at set intervals (so you don’t have to keep checking your phone), split times for different distance segments, calorie tracking, and even shoe tracking to know when your walking shoes need replacing. That last one is underrated. Worn-out shoes are a common cause of foot and knee discomfort, and most people have no idea how many miles they’ve put on a pair. Vima Walk also works on Apple Watch, so you can start, pause, and check your stats from your wrist without pulling out your phone. No social feeds, no gamification, no subscription required for basic tracking.
Best for: Walkers who want to track distance and routes without the noise. People who walk their dog every evening and want to see how far they actually went. Anyone who’s tried other fitness apps and felt overwhelmed by menus and features they didn’t need.
MapMyWalk: The Route Mapper With a Massive Community
MapMyWalk has been around since the early days of smartphone fitness tracking, and it’s one of the few apps designed specifically for walkers (not runners who also happen to walk). In 2024, Outside Interactive reacquired the app from Under Armour, bringing it back to its original creators.
The core feature is right in the name: mapping. GPS tracks your walk in real time, drawing your route on a map while feeding you audio updates on pace, distance, and calories. You can discover popular walking routes near you, save your own favorites, and browse what other walkers in your area are doing. The app tracks over 600 different activity types, but walking is clearly its home turf.
What makes it different: The community is massive. With hundreds of thousands of App Store ratings and a global user base, MapMyWalk has built-in challenges, badges, and social sharing that keep people coming back. You can compete with friends, join group challenges, and share your achievements. It also connects with Garmin watches, Apple Watch, and Apple Health for more complete data. If you have a Garmin, you even get personalized Form Coaching tips to improve your walking stride. The route discovery feature is also worth mentioning: if you’re visiting a new city or just bored of your usual loop, you can find popular walking paths that other people have already mapped out.
Best for: Walkers who like exploring new routes and want a community to keep them accountable. People who enjoy challenges and friendly competition. Anyone who wants a walking-first app with genuine depth behind it.
Free vs. paid: The free version covers GPS tracking, route mapping, audio coaching cues, and community features. MVP premium adds live tracking (which shares your real-time location with friends or family, great for safety on longer walks), heart rate zone analysis, custom splits, and personalized fitness plans.
The catch: The app has a lot going on. If you just want to hit start and walk, the interface can feel busier than necessary. There’s a bit of a learning curve compared to simpler options. MapMyWalk is also owned by a larger media company now (Outside Interactive), so expect some cross-promotion for outdoor content.
Strava: The Social Network for Walkers (and Everyone Else)
If you’ve heard of Strava, it’s probably because a runner or cyclist in your life won’t stop talking about it. But Strava works just as well for walking, and the social features that make it popular for competitive athletes also make it surprisingly fun for daily walkers.
Every walk you log becomes a post on your feed. Friends can give you kudos (Strava’s version of a like), leave comments, and see your route on a map. It sounds simple, but there’s something weirdly motivating about knowing your Tuesday evening walk will get a few thumbs-up from people who are also out there moving. Social motivation is powerful, and Strava leans into it harder than any other fitness app.
What makes it different: The social layer is genuinely good, and it’s what sets Strava apart from everything else on this list. Segments let you compare your performance on specific stretches of a route against your own past efforts and other people’s. There are challenges you can join (monthly distance goals, for example) and leaderboards if you’re competitive. Strava also integrates with basically every fitness device and app on the market, so your data travels well no matter what watch or phone you’re using. Garage Gym Reviews names it a top overall walking app largely because of the Beacon safety feature, which shares your live location with up to three contacts while you walk. That’s not a premium-only feature either. It’s available on the free tier.
Best for: People who are motivated by social accountability. Walkers who already have friends or family on the platform. Anyone who tracks multiple activities (walking, running, cycling) and wants everything in one place rather than juggling separate apps.
Free vs. paid: Free Strava covers activity tracking, the social feed, kudos, challenges, and the Beacon safety tool. Premium ($11.99/month or $79.99/year) adds route building, full segment leaderboards, detailed performance analysis, and training plans.
The catch: Strava’s heart is still in running and cycling. Walking-specific features are limited compared to apps built for walkers first. Your walking activities will show up alongside friends’ marathon training logs, which can feel a little deflating (even though it shouldn’t, because walking is legitimately great exercise). Activities also default to public unless you adjust your privacy settings, which is worth doing before you start logging walks from your home address.
Pacer: The Step Counter That Became a Walking Community
Pacer started as a straightforward pedometer. The kind of app that counts your steps in the background without you doing anything. But it’s grown into something more: a full walking platform with challenges, groups, and an AI coach.
The app counts your steps automatically using your phone’s motion sensors. No need to remember to press start before you head out the door. It runs in the background all day, tracking everything from your morning commute to your after-dinner loop around the neighborhood. Then it shows you daily, weekly, and monthly trends so you can spot patterns in your activity. That long-term view is genuinely helpful. You start to notice things like how much more active you are on weekends, or how a busy work week tanks your step count.
What makes it different: The emphasis on step counting makes Pacer the most passive app on this list. Other apps require you to actively start a workout. Pacer just works. On top of that, you get walking challenges where you compete against other users globally, guided walking workouts (premium), and a social community built specifically around walking. The challenges are a standout. They range from daily step goals to multi-week events, and the global leaderboard adds just enough competition to make you think twice about skipping your evening walk. Pacer is also one of the more accessible apps for people just starting to build a walking habit, because you don’t need to hit 10,000 steps for it to feel like progress. The app syncs with Apple Watch and Apple Health, so your data stays connected across devices.
Best for: People who want all-day step tracking without manually logging walks. Beginners who need a simple, encouraging introduction to tracking their activity. Anyone motivated by daily step challenges and global leaderboards.
Free vs. paid: The free version handles step tracking, daily goals, and basic challenges. Premium adds an AI coach for motivation and fitness tips, guided walking plans with audio, video workouts, and deeper analytics.
The catch: Because Pacer relies primarily on your phone’s motion sensors rather than GPS, distance accuracy can be less precise than apps that use GPS tracking for mapped walks. If you care about exact route mapping and pace data for specific walks, you’ll want something else (or you can manually start a GPS-tracked walk within the app). The premium push can also get a little aggressive with pop-ups encouraging you to upgrade.
Apple Fitness+: Guided Walks With Celebrity Storytelling
Apple Fitness+ isn’t a walking app in the traditional sense. You won’t use it to map your route or track your steps (that’s what the built-in Apple Health and Workout apps handle). What Fitness+ does is make your walks more interesting by giving you something compelling to listen to while you move.
The “Time to Walk” feature is the standout. These are 25-to-40 minute audio episodes where a celebrity, athlete, or musician walks with you (figuratively) and tells stories from their life. Photos curated by the guest pop up on your Apple Watch as you listen. It sounds like a podcast, but it’s designed specifically for walking, with prompts to notice your surroundings and check in with how you’re feeling. Apple introduced the feature in 2021, and the library has grown significantly since then.
What makes it different: No other walking app offers anything like Time to Walk. It turns a regular walk into something you genuinely look forward to, which is honestly half the battle when it comes to building a consistent habit. When the hardest part of your walk is deciding which episode to listen to, you’ve won. Beyond the guided walks, Fitness+ includes a full library of workout classes (HIIT, yoga, strength, treadmill walks, and more) and lets you share activity with friends through the Apple Watch sharing feature. You also get fall detection and a check-in safety feature that automatically notifies a chosen contact when you finish a workout, so someone always knows you made it home.
Best for: Apple Watch owners who get bored on walks and need something more engaging than music or a podcast. People who want guided fitness content beyond just walking. Anyone already in the Apple ecosystem who wants one subscription covering multiple workout types.
Free vs. paid: Fitness+ requires a subscription at $9.99/month or $79.99/year. There’s no free tier, though Apple Watch buyers often get a free trial period (typically three months). The basic Apple Workout app (which tracks walks with GPS, distance, heart rate, and calories for free) works independently of Fitness+ and is already solid on its own.
The catch: You need an Apple Watch. Period. No Apple Watch, no Fitness+. That’s a significant barrier if you don’t already own one. It’s also the most expensive option on this list, and if you only want it for walking, you might not get enough value unless you also use the other workout classes. Android users are completely out of luck here.
So Which Walking App Should You Actually Use?
It depends on what you need. (Not the most exciting answer, but it’s the honest one.)
Pick Vima Walk if you want clean, simple GPS tracking and you don’t need social features or coaching. Just tap and walk.
Pick MapMyWalk if you like exploring routes, joining challenges, and being part of a walking community with real depth.
Pick Strava if your motivation comes from social accountability, you track multiple sports, or your friends are already on the platform.
Pick Pacer if you want an all-day step counter that runs in the background without you thinking about it, plus walking challenges to stay motivated.
Pick Apple Fitness+ if you own an Apple Watch and want guided audio walks that make your daily walk something you actually look forward to.
You can also use more than one. Plenty of walkers track with Vima Walk or MapMyWalk for GPS data and also check Pacer for their daily step count. Strava syncs with almost everything, so your walks can live in multiple places if you want them to. Find what works, ignore what doesn’t.
Here’s the thing most people overthink: the best walking app is the one you’ll actually open. A simple tracker you use every day beats a feature-packed app that sits untouched on your home screen.
If you’re walking for weight loss, any of these will help you stay consistent and see your progress over time. If you’re walking for general health, even better, because the bar is lower than you think. That Lancet study found meaningful health benefits starting at just 5,000 steps a day, with the biggest gains happening between 2,000 and 7,000 steps. You don’t need a perfect app or a perfect routine. You just need to keep moving.
Now go walk.
