7 Best Pretty Progress Alternatives for iPhone in 2026
Checked 3 November 2026. Every competitor detail below comes from that app's US App Store page and Apple's public lookup data, fetched that day, and for Pretty Progress also from its official website. Left details come from the app itself.
Pretty Progress turns dates into progress bars, percentages and countdowns on the Home Screen, Lock Screen, Apple Watch and Mac. People look for an alternative when four free custom widgets aren't enough, when they want a different look, or when they want the year and their life as progress next to countdowns and habits. Here are seven alternatives and when each one fits.
Disclosure: we make Left, so we have put it first. Here is why, and when another app suits you better.
Quick verdict
- Best for year, day and life progress with free widgets, next to countdowns and habits: Left.
- Best for year progress in many styles with one purchase: Orbit: Year Progress & Life.
- Best free, single-purpose dots for the day, month, year or a lifetime: Life Dots.
- Biggest countdown app, with free Lock Screen widgets and Apple Watch: Countdown by Find Appiness.
- Best for Live Activities and a calendar view: Countdown: Event Countdown by ROOT38.
- Best for styling your own widgets and counting both ways: DayCount.
- Best photo-led countdowns with Apple Watch: Days • Countdown & Widgets.
What is Pretty Progress?
Countdown - Pretty Progress is a countdown and progress widget app by keinois OU, first released in December 2021. Its official website is prettyprogress.app, and the iPhone app is on the App Store as Countdown - Pretty Progress. The website also offers an Android version on Google Play.
- What it does: counts up or down to a date or with a timer, and shows the percentage complete, the time left or the time since, in years, months, weeks, days or a mix. Default daily, weekly, monthly and yearly progress is built in.
- Where it shows: Home Screen widgets in three sizes, Lock Screen widgets, StandBy, Apple Watch complications and Mac widgets, with 6 templates to customize.
- Other features: recurring events, notifications after a habit streak, import from Apple Calendar and Reminders, and iCloud sync. Version 2.2.0 in October 2026 added Dynamic Island support, alarms, a list widget, 21 shortcuts and a Siri integration in beta.
- Price: free to download. "The free version of Pretty Progress includes four custom countdown widgets with two designs, the default daily, weekly, monthly and yearly progress and some customization options." Pretty Progress PRO is listed on the US App Store at $4.99 a week or a month, $14.99 or $24.99 a year, and $49.99 or $59.99 for lifetime, and it can be shared with Family Sharing.
- Platforms: iPhone and iPad with iOS 18 or later, Apple Watch with watchOS 11 and Apple silicon Macs with macOS 15.
- Rating and privacy: 4.7 from 3,146 ratings on the US App Store. Its privacy label lists purchases, usage data, diagnostics and other data under "Data Not Linked to You".
If you want countdown and progress widgets on every Apple device, Pretty Progress remains a strong choice. The alternatives below differ on price, style and what else they track.
Comparison table
Ratings and counts are from the US App Store, checked 3 November 2026; Left's is its worldwide average. "Not listed" means the listing doesn't mention it, not that the feature is missing.
| App | Price model | Progress style | Lock Screen widgets | Apple Watch | Rating (US) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Pretty Progress | Free, 4 custom widgets; PRO weekly to lifetime | Bars, percentages, 6 templates | Yes | Yes, with complications | 4.7 (3,146) |
 Left | Free plan; Left Premium subscription or lifetime | Dot and symbol grids; bars and rings for dates | Yes | Yes, with complications | 4.7 (worldwide) |
 Orbit | Free; one Premium purchase | 10 year-progress styles | Yes | Not listed | 4.9 (11) |
 Life Dots | Free, no purchases listed | Dot grids | Yes | Not listed | 5.0 (37) |
 Countdown (Find Appiness) | Free with ads; one Premium purchase | Not listed | Yes (circular and inline free) | Yes | 4.8 (190,595) |
 Countdown: Event Countdown (ROOT38) | Free with ads; Premium monthly, yearly or lifetime | Not listed | Yes (Premium) | Not listed | 4.7 (23,934) |
 DayCount | Free; Premium yearly or lifetime | Not listed | Yes | Not listed | 4.7 (26,269) |
 Days • Countdown & Widgets | Free; monthly, yearly or lifetime Pro | Not listed | Yes | Yes | 4.8 (12,748) |
1. Left: progress for your year, your life and your dates
Left is a time awareness app for iPhone. Time Left shows where you are in the year, month, week, day and hour, and in your life, as a grid of dots or symbols where the past dims. Ahead holds your countdowns, and Since holds habits, streaks and Aims.
- Progress widgets: the Year, Month, Day and Life widgets show what's left as a grid, and the Year widget can show the percentage left. They come in small, medium and large, and circular, rectangular and inline on the Lock Screen.
- Progress towards a date: Ahead Bars and Ahead Circle show how close a countdown is, as bars or a ring, with the time left or a percentage.
- Left Wallpaper: a Lock Screen wallpaper that updates itself through the Shortcuts app.
- Countdowns: repeats, units from hours to years, a symbol, color and photo per date, reminders, and Live Activities on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island.
- Habits: habits, streaks and Aims in the same app, so the year's progress sits next to the things you're building.
- Apple Watch: a watch app with Time Left, countdowns, habits, streaks, Aims, Planner, Fasting and Focus, plus complications for your watch face in circular, rectangular, inline and corner sizes.
Best for: people who want the year, the day and their life as a calm visual, plus a few countdowns and habits, in one iPhone app.
Price: free to download, with no ads. The free plan includes the time grid widgets for your life, year, month, day and hour, Dynamic Time, the analog and digital clocks, Notes and Left Wallpaper, plus 2 each of countdowns, habits, streaks and Aims. Widgets that show something you create, such as a countdown, habit or streak, need Left Premium, a subscription or lifetime purchase that also unlocks unlimited items. Prices are shown in the app before you buy.
Pros: free year, day and life progress widgets on the Home Screen and Lock Screen; a self-updating wallpaper; countdowns and habits in the same app; an Apple Watch app with complications; its privacy label lists only purchases as linked to you.
Cons: widgets for your own countdowns need Premium, while Pretty Progress gives you four free; fewer design templates; needs an iPhone with iOS 26 or later.
2. Orbit: Year Progress & Life
By Rahul Singh. Its App Store page shows the whole year as live progress in 10 styles, including Ring, Matrix (a day-by-day dot grid), Wave and Orbit, and lists countdowns with days remaining, day number and percentage complete. Widgets come in small, medium and card sizes on the Home Screen, and circular, rectangular and inline on the Lock Screen. Version 2.0.0 in October 2026 added a Quote widget.
Best for: year progress in many visual styles, without a subscription.
Price: free to download. The free version includes year progress in the Ring style, basic Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets and calendar sync for 2 events. Orbit Premium is a one-time purchase for all 10 styles, reminders and full widget customization.
Pros: the closest to Pretty Progress's progress look; one purchase; its privacy label says Data Not Collected.
Cons: only 11 ratings; no iPad or Apple Watch version listed; reminders need Premium.
3. Life Dots: Visualize Time
By The Digital Minimalist Pte. Ltd. Its App Store page describes a grid of dots showing how much of your day, month, year or expected lifespan has passed, with a widget for the Home Screen or Lock Screen.
Best for: one free progress widget and nothing else.
Price: free, with no in-app purchases listed.
Pros: free; its privacy label says Data Not Collected; iPhone, iPad and Mac; updated in October 2026.
Cons: no countdowns to your own dates; 37 ratings; a very short feature list.
4. Countdown by Find Appiness
By Find Appiness LLC. Its App Store page lists unlimited events, free circular and inline Lock Screen widgets, Home Screen widgets for one event or a list, and, with Premium, the rectangular Lock Screen widget and StandBy. It also lists an Apple Watch app with watch face support, repeats on your own schedule, a weekdays-only count, time since past events, calendar and contacts import, iCloud sync, sharing links, and Siri and Shortcuts. Alarms that ring on silent are Premium and need iOS 26.1.
Best for: many countdowns in a big, established app, with Apple Watch.
Price: free with ads. Premium is "One purchase. No subscriptions." It unlocks all widgets, custom reminders, alarms, Auto Import and every countdown format, and removes ads.
Pros: 4.8 from 190,595 ratings; free Lock Screen widgets; a one-time Premium; updated in October 2026.
Cons: its listing doesn't mention progress bars or percentages; ads in the free version; its privacy label lists identifiers used to track you.
5. Countdown: Event Countdown by ROOT38
By ROOT38 Limited. Its App Store page lists, for free, unlimited event countdowns, a Next Event Home Screen widget, counting up or down in units down to seconds, 450 icons, notes and sharing. Premium adds a calendar view, the full widget collection (a Live Countdown widget that ticks every second, plus Lock Screen, StandBy and multi-event widgets), Live Activities on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island, sync and repeating events with ages on birthdays.
Best for: Live Activities and a month calendar of your countdowns.
Price: free with ads; Premium is "available as a monthly or yearly subscription, or as a one-off lifetime purchase".
Pros: a clear free tier; a ticking widget and Live Activities with Premium; updated in November 2026.
Cons: Lock Screen widgets and Live Activities need Premium; its listing doesn't mention progress bars or an Apple Watch app; its privacy label lists identifiers and usage data used to track you.
6. DayCount
By Zaminiti Pty Ltd. Its App Store page lists counters before and after a date, categories, photos from your library or Unsplash, repeats at custom intervals, notes, decimal counting, daily streaks and habits, widgets with filters, fonts, textures and borders on the Home Screen or Lock Screen, a daily summary notification, calendar import, Face ID lock and sync across iPhone, iPad and Mac.
Best for: styling your own countdown widgets, with simple streaks alongside.
Price: free to download; DayCount Premium is an annual subscription with a 7-day free trial, or a lifetime purchase.
Pros: detailed widget styling; counts both ways; streaks next to events; updated in October 2026.
Cons: no Apple Watch app listed; free limits aren't stated; its privacy label lists contact info and user content as linked to you.
7. Days • Countdown & Widgets
By MD Apps Ltd. Its App Store page describes countdowns and count-ups, a countdown calendar with full-screen event photos, Lock Screen and Home Screen widgets, recurring events and reminders, and its compatibility list includes Apple Watch.
Best for: photo-led countdowns with Lock Screen widgets and an Apple Watch app.
Price: free to download, with monthly, yearly and lifetime Pro options.
Pros: Lock Screen widgets; Apple Watch; a lifetime option.
Cons: its listing doesn't mention progress bars; free limits aren't stated; its privacy label lists purchases used to track you.
How we chose
- Search first: we searched the US App Store for progress and countdown widget apps on 3 November 2026 and looked at apps people list as Pretty Progress alternatives.
- Kept: apart from Left, which we include because we make it, apps updated in the last few months that either show time as progress, like Orbit and Life Dots, or are countdown widget apps with thousands of ratings.
- Dropped: apps not updated in over a year, and apps from alternatives directories that have no iPhone version.
- Sources: each app's own App Store page, including release notes, Apple's lookup data, and Pretty Progress's official website. No paid placements, and no developer reviewed this page.
Which one should you pick?
- You want free year, day and life progress widgets, plus countdowns and habits: Left.
- You want year progress in many styles with one purchase: Orbit.
- You want one free dot grid and nothing else: Life Dots.
- You want the biggest countdown app, with Apple Watch: Countdown by Find Appiness.
- You want Live Activities and a calendar view: ROOT38's Countdown.
- You want to style every widget yourself: DayCount.
- You want photo-led countdowns: Days.
- You want progress widgets on your iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch: stay with Pretty Progress.
For more, see our year progress apps, the countdown widgets guide and Widgetsmith alternatives. To see how far through the year you are right now, try the year percentage calculator.
See more examples on the Left year progress widget page.
Questions
What is the best alternative to Pretty Progress?
Left suits you if you want free year, day and life progress widgets next to countdowns and habits. Orbit is the closest in look, with 10 year-progress styles and a one-time purchase. Countdown by Find Appiness is the biggest countdown app, with free Lock Screen widgets and Apple Watch.
Is Pretty Progress free?
Partly. The free version includes four custom countdown widgets with two designs and the default daily, weekly, monthly and yearly progress. Pretty Progress PRO is a weekly, monthly or yearly subscription or a lifetime purchase.
What is the official Pretty Progress website?
It's prettyprogress.app, run by keinois OU. The app is on the App Store as Countdown - Pretty Progress, for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch.
Can Pretty Progress track habits?
Its listing names habit streaks: you can count up from a date and get a notification every day, week, month or year after it. If you want to check off habits and protect streaks day by day, Left keeps habits, streaks and Aims next to its progress widgets.
Which Pretty Progress alternatives work on Apple Watch?
Left has an Apple Watch app with complications, and Countdown by Find Appiness and Days list Apple Watch apps. Orbit, Life Dots, ROOT38's Countdown and DayCount don't list one.
Start noticing what matters.
Download Left on your iPhone to see the time you have left, dates you are looking forward to, build the habits you want to keep, and become a better version of yourself.
Scan or search "Left" on the App Store.