Left / Habit tracker
A habit tracker and streak counter for your iPhone Home Screen
The best habit tracker is the one you actually look at. Left puts your habits on your Home Screen and Lock Screen, lets you tick off today from a Home Screen widget, and keeps the streak counting so you can see the chain you are building.
For iPhone with iOS 26 or later. The free plan includes 2 habits and 2 streaks.
Habits, streaks and Aims: three ways to track
Left’s Since section holds three kinds of tracker, because not every goal works the same way:
- Habit: something you do and tick off, on a schedule. "Go for a run", "Read for 20 minutes", "Drink water 4 times a day". It "gets completed when you do it", and your habit streak grows each time you hit the schedule.
- Streak: a counter that runs on its own until you restart it. "No alcohol", "No phone during meals". It "increases automatically unless you restart it". See the days since widget page for these.
- Aim: a number you want to count up or down, such as books read, kilometers run or money saved. See how Aims work.
If you are not sure which to use, streaks vs habits walks through examples.
Why track habits on your Home Screen
Habit apps fail quietly: you stop opening them, and the habit goes with them. A widget flips that around. Every time you unlock your phone you see what is due today and how long your streak is, and ticking it off takes one tap without opening anything. That small, constant visibility is what keeps a habit going on a busy day.
How to set up a habit tracker widget
1. Create the habit
- Open Left and go to Since. Tap +.
- Type what you want to do to find a ready-made template, or choose Habit under Build from scratch.
- Add a name and, if you like, a goal ("What’s your goal with this?").
- Choose the period (day, week or month) and how many times. Daily habits can run every day, on weekdays, on weekends, on specific days of the week, or on a number of days per week. Weekly and monthly habits can be done any day in the period, on different days.
- Turn on Get reminders and add up to 4 reminders, each with its own days and time. For a last nudge, turn on Get a persistent reminder and choose Before what time?: if the habit still is not logged, a Live Activity appears an hour before that time.
- Save.
2. Add the widget
- Touch and hold an empty part of your Home Screen, tap Edit, then Add Widget.
- Search for Left. Choose Habit for one habit, or Habits list to see several habits and their progress (up to 4 in Small and Medium, 8 in Large).
- Pick a size, tap Add Widget, then Done. Touch and hold the widget, tap Edit Widget, and choose which habit (or habits) it shows.
3. Tick it off
To log from your Home Screen, touch and hold the Habit widget, tap Edit Widget and set Layout to Text. Then tap today’s circle to log the habit without opening Left; habits that need several completions fill up with each tap. In the app, open the habit and tap Log; if you tapped by mistake, you can undo it.
For a streak counter that needs no ticking, add the Streak widget alongside. For more detail on widgets, see Home Screen widgets and Lock Screen widgets.
Habit and streak widget sizes
| Widget | What it shows | Home Screen | Lock Screen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Habit | One habit; in the Text layout, tap to log today | Small, Medium | Rectangular |
| Habits list | Up to 8 habits with their progress (4 in Small and Medium) | Small, Medium, Large | Circular, Rectangular |
| Streak | One streak counter | Small, Medium, Large | Rectangular |
| Streaks list | Up to 7 streaks (3 in Medium) | Medium, Large | Not available |
Seeing your progress
Each habit keeps its own history: the current streak, days completed and missed, your longest streak, and a grid of past completions so gaps are easy to spot. Habit strength shows how consistent the habit has become, which is more forgiving than a single number that drops to zero after one missed day. If you need a break, archive the habit: it is hidden from Since and widgets, and the archived days count as skipped. You can also log habits with Siri and the Shortcuts app.
What is free and what needs Left Premium
Left is free to download and the widgets are free. The free plan lets you create 2 habits and 2 streaks, plus 2 countdowns and 2 Aims. The limit counts every one you create, so deleting a habit does not give the slot back.
Left Premium removes the limit and adds automatic tracking with Apple Health, so a habit like "10,000 steps" completes on its own, plus friends who can keep you accountable and Planner, which shows today’s habits next to your calendar. Prices are shown in the app before you buy.
Curious how long your current run is? Try the free habit streak calculator.
Questions
Can I check off a habit from the widget?
Yes. Set Left’s Habit widget to its Text layout (touch and hold it, tap Edit Widget, then Layout) and tap today’s circle to log the habit without opening the app. Tap again to undo; habits with several daily completions fill up first.
Is Left a free habit tracker?
Left is free to download and its widgets are free. The free plan lets you create 2 habits and 2 streaks; deleting one does not free up a slot. Left Premium removes the limit, and prices are shown in the app before you buy.
What is the difference between a habit and a streak?
A habit is something you complete on a schedule and tick off. A streak counts time since a start date and keeps going until you restart it. Both live in Left’s Since section.
Can a habit be weekly or several times a day?
Yes. Choose a day, week or month period and how many times. Daily habits can be every day, weekdays, weekends, specific days or a number of days per week.
Will Left remind me before I break my streak?
Yes. Add up to 4 reminders per habit. Get a persistent reminder also shows a Live Activity an hour before the time you choose if the habit is still not logged.
Keep the chain going.
Download Left, add a habit, and tick it off from your Home Screen.
Scan or search "Left" on the App Store.