I need a pedometer that syncs to my iPhone

July 7, 2023 4:17 PM

I'm looking for a pedometer that can sync to my iPhone, meaning the Health app and Fitness app that are built in to iOS.

Some caveats:

• I don't have an Apple Watch, and I'm not going to get one. I'm not interested in any kind of watch or watch-like device.
• This device needs to clip on to my belt. I'm tracking my steps on an under desk treadmill while I'm working, so any kind of watch or fitness band would be mostly stationary because my hands will be on the keyboard and not swinging by my side.
• This device will not be used for any other type of fitness tracking. It will just be a pedometer. I'm OK with buying a device that does more than just tracking steps, but that's all I'll be using it for.
• I know my phone has a way to track steps, but my phone stays on my desk and not in my pocket.

It looks like some of the Fitbit devices would work, but from what I've read those don't sync directly to iOS, they need a third-party app to do the sync.
If that's true, does anyone have any recommendations for a good app to use?

Are there any other devices that would work? I've looked at a few Garmin devices, but didn't see anything that would sync to my built in apps on my phone.

posted by ralan to Health & Fitness (6 answers total)

Garmin Connect is the companion app to Garmin devices, and will write data to Apple Health. I've been doing it for almost a decade now.
posted by meowzilla at 4:53 PM on July 7, 2023 [3 favorites]

I have a Fitbit and I use an app called Sync Solver to get the info over to the Apple Health app. It actually works in the background. When I went to find the name, I realized iOS undownloaded it from lack of use. I downloaded it again, clicked sync and bibity bobity boop. The info is in the health app. I think it was free, and if it wasn't, it was just a couple bucks.
posted by kathrynm at 5:38 PM on July 7, 2023 [2 favorites]

This information is years old. It may no longer be accurate. When I tried this a few years ago, the issue wasn't with syncing to the Health app. That you can do with third party apps. It was when I tried to get the steps to show up in the Fitness app. I gave up and started strapping an Apple Watch to my ankle (not visible) while I'm at work. We're not allowed to wear exposed watches at work.

I know they make the ankle band, and I'm pretty sure I've seen belt clips. They may even make one to clip to your shoe.

Old Apple Watches are more affordable, and if you're only using it for steps, you won't really need the other features anyhow.

Sorry for recommending the thing you specifically didn't want, but I don't know if there is a better alternative available.
posted by Zealotte at 6:51 PM on July 7, 2023 [3 favorites]

I was just searching for something like this myself! Here's what I found:

Wirecutter recommended this pedometer as an alternative to a watch-type device. Not sure if it has an app or syncs to your phone but I got the impression it might?

Both Garmin and Fitbit have accessory clips you can buy to attach specific models of their devices to your waist instead of your wrist. I ended up buying a Fitbit Inspire 2 at Walmart (it's an older model so slightly cheaper), and the holder that clips it to your waist is like $15-20 on Fitbits website. So far it feels like overkill since I only want it to track my steps and nothing else, but it was rated high for accuracy and I didn't want to wait for shipping for the Wirecutter pick.

Hope that helps.
posted by carlypennylane at 8:06 PM on July 7, 2023 [1 favorite]

Echoing BlahLaLa's question. I have an app named Pedometer for my Android phone which works well enough; I would search the Apple store for a similar app
posted by TimHare at 9:21 PM on July 7, 2023

I can confirm that what Zealotte says appears to be correct: my Fitness app only displays the ring for "Move". It does not take in data for steps or standing time from Apple Health, and appears to require an Apple Watch.
posted by meowzilla at 9:02 AM on July 8, 2023 [1 favorite]