Best App to Track Calories Burned on Apple Watch
Best for hour-by-hour activity and workouts: ActivityTracker Pedometer. Best for a total daily burn (active plus resting) on your watch face: Total Calories. Best for a one-time estimate from your body stats: TDEE. The two kinds of app answer different questions. Trackers read what your Apple Watch measured. Calculators estimate from age, height, weight and activity.
How we compared. We read each app's App Store listing and pulled rating, rating count and update date on October 12, 2026. For Total Calories, TDEE, TDEE Calculator and Dynamic TDEE Tracker we also ran the app and noted onboarding, plans and what the first session shows. Disclosure: Jack Wallner makes Total Calories, so read its entry with that in mind.
Comparison table
| App | Best for | Price model | Apple Watch | iPad | Account | Rating (count) | Last updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Calories | Total daily burn on the watch face | Free + subscription or lifetime upgrade | Yes | Not listed | None | 5.0 (11) | Oct 10, 2026 |
| ActivityTracker Pedometer | Hourly activity, steps and GPS workouts | Free + PRO upgrade | Yes | Not listed | Not stated | 4.78 (102,278) | Sep 18, 2026 |
| TDEE (Apperitif) | A one-time maintenance estimate with macro splits | Free + one-time Pro upgrade | Not listed | Yes | None in our test | 4.71 (494) | Jul 30, 2026 |
| TDEE Calculator (Clixade) | Formula numbers with BMR, RMR and body fat inputs | Free + subscription or lifetime upgrade | Not listed | Yes | None in our test | 4.58 (439) | Oct 12, 2026 |
| Dynamic TDEE Tracker | Adaptive TDEE from logged intake and weight | Free | Not listed | Yes | None in our test | 3.5 (4) | Nov 19, 2025 |
Ratings and update dates are from each app's App Store listing as of October 12, 2026. Apple Watch and iPad show the devices each listing names; "Not listed" means the listing does not name them. Price models describe the structure only, because prices vary by region and change.
The apps, one by one
Total Calories
Total Calories reads active and resting energy from Apple Health, adds them and shows one daily total on the Apple Watch face, the Home Screen, the Lock Screen and an iPhone dashboard. Watch complications and widgets are free, and it needs no account. Limits: it is not a food logger, the free tier is the burn side only, the figure is whatever your Watch and iPhone record (there is no formula estimate from body stats), and the iPhone dashboard has no hour-by-hour view. It has only 11 ratings so far.
ActivityTracker Pedometer
ActivityTracker is the established choice. Its listing describes steps, active calories, distance, active time and floors, an hourly view, weekly targets split into daily ones, GPS activities with route maps, and an Apple Watch app. Calorie targets, import and export and some other features are marked PRO. The calorie figure it describes is active calories, so look elsewhere if you want resting energy included in one number.
TDEE (Apperitif)
This is a calculator, not a tracker. You enter sex, age, height, weight and activity level and get a maintenance figure, a table of deficit and surplus targets, BMI, and a macro split. It reads nothing from Apple Health and keeps no history, so there is nothing to come back to after the first use. It is fast and the core calculator was free in our test, with Pro covering customization and some inputs.
TDEE Calculator (Clixade)
The listing describes TDEE, BMR, RMR, BMI and lean mass outputs, plus percentage deficit and surplus targets and a body fat input. It also lists AI-generated content with an accuracy disclaimer. In our test a plan screen appeared before the first result, so check what is free before you enter your details. It does not read Apple Health.
Dynamic TDEE Tracker
This one estimates TDEE backward from what you eat and how your weight moves over 12 weeks, instead of from a formula or a Watch. You log calories daily and weigh in, or pull weight from Apple Health. That is a different method, and a good one if you already log food, but it shows little on day one. It has only 4 ratings, so its score is unproven.
Which should you pick?
- You wear an Apple Watch and want your whole-day burn, active plus resting, on the watch face: Total Calories.
- You want hourly breakdowns, step targets or GPS workouts in one place: ActivityTracker Pedometer.
- You have no watch and want a quick estimate from your body stats: TDEE or TDEE Calculator. Compare what is free before you type your details.
- You log food every day and want maintenance calories inferred from your own weight trend: Dynamic TDEE Tracker.
- You already use a food logger and want to see burn next to intake: Total Calories shows a net figure from the dietary energy that logger writes to Apple Health, in its paid tier.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best app to track calories burned on Apple Watch?
It depends on what you want. Total Calories shows total daily burn (active plus resting) on the watch face. ActivityTracker Pedometer gives hourly detail and workouts. Both read data your Apple Watch records in Apple Health.
Does the Apple Watch already track calories burned?
Yes. The Watch records active energy and resting energy in Apple Health. The Move ring counts only active energy, so a third-party app is useful if you want the combined total on a watch face.
Are TDEE calculator apps the same as calorie burn trackers?
No. A calculator estimates your daily burn from age, height, weight and activity level. A tracker reads what your devices measured. The two numbers often differ by a few hundred calories.
Do I need a food logger to use Total Calories?
No. Total Calories shows burn only. If you want intake next to it, a separate food logger can write dietary energy to Apple Health and the paid tier will show the difference.
Is this comparison independent?
Jack Wallner makes Total Calories. Competitor entries use their public App Store listings and our own testing, and the listings are linked below so you can check them.