Colors
HabitKit alternative: a color calendar, not a grid
Published 6 August 2026 · Updated 10 August 2026
The short version. If you are shopping for a HabitKit alternative, start by knowing it is a good app. HabitKit is the closest app to Colors in philosophy, and we would rather say that than pretend otherwise: no account, data on your device, and a real free tier. It is on Android today and Colors is not.
The difference is what you look at. HabitKit gives each habit its own GitHub-style grid. Colors gives every habit a color and puts them all on one calendar. Pick the picture you would rather see.
Side by side
| HabitKit | Colors | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99/mo · $19.99/yr · $41.99 lifetime | $4.99/mo · $29.99/yr · $49.99 lifetime |
| Free tier | 4 habits | 3 habits, this month and last, 1 reminder |
| Platforms | iOS, Android | iPhone (Android planned) |
| Data model | On device, no account | On device, no account, no analytics |
| Visualisation | One heatmap grid per habit | One calendar, a color per habit |
Colors prices are US pricing and may vary by region. The yearly plan includes a 7-day trial.
Choose one or the other
Choose HabitKit if…
- You want the GitHub-style grid. A year of one habit as a block of squares is a genuinely satisfying picture, and it is what HabitKit is built around.
- You are on Android. HabitKit ships there today; Colors does not yet.
- You want the cheaper option. It is cheaper at every tier, and its lifetime is $41.99 against $49.99.
- You want one more free habit: four against three.
- You think per-habit rather than per-day: one grid each keeps them separate and comparable.
Choose Colors if…
- You want one calendar where a single day shows, by color, every habit you completed that day.
- You think in months, not in year-long grids: what did my August look like, rather than how dense is this one habit.
- You want the full history and several reminders unlocked alongside unlimited habits.
- You want no analytics of any kind as an explicit commitment, alongside the local storage.
The honest part: these two agree about a lot
Most comparison pages have to manufacture a villain. This one does not.
HabitKit and Colors both keep your data on your device, both work without an account, and both have a free tier you can use indefinitely. If your reason for shopping is “I do not want a habit tracker that harvests me”, both apps pass, and you can stop reading and pick on looks.
That is not a small thing to have in common. It rules out most of the category.
One grid each, or one calendar for all
Here is the actual difference.
HabitKit draws a heatmap per habit: a grid of squares, one per day, in the pattern GitHub made familiar. Six habits is six grids. Each one is easy to read on its own, and following a single habit over a long stretch is exactly what it is for.
Colors draws a single month calendar and gives each habit a color. A day where you did four habits is a ring with four colored arcs; a day with one is a filled disc in that habit’s color. Six habits is still one calendar.
So the question is which failure you would rather have. With separate grids you see each habit clearly but have to hold six pictures in your head to know what a Tuesday looked like. With one calendar you see the day at a glance, but a single habit’s long run is less prominent than its own grid would make it.
Neither is better. They answer different questions, and you probably already know which one you ask yourself.
Price and free tiers
HabitKit is cheaper at every tier, and it gives four free habits to Colors’ three. On price alone it wins, and the gap is not trivial: $19.99 a year against $29.99, and $41.99 lifetime against $49.99.
Colors’ free tier shows the current month and the previous one, and limits reminders to one, where HabitKit’s free limit is the habit count. If you want a long history without paying, that is another point for HabitKit.
Platforms
HabitKit is on iOS and Android now. Colors is iPhone only, with Android planned after launch.
If you are on Android, this section is the whole comparison: HabitKit is the one you can install.
Questions
Do either of them require an account?
No. Both work without one and keep your data on the device.
Which is cheaper?
HabitKit, at every tier: $1.99/mo, $19.99/yr and $41.99 lifetime against $4.99, $29.99 and $49.99.
Which has the better free tier?
HabitKit allows four habits, Colors three. Colors’ free tier also shows only this month and last, and limits reminders to one.
Can I get the GitHub-style grid in Colors?
No. Colors’ picture is the month calendar with a color per habit. If the heatmap grid is what you want, HabitKit is the app that draws it.
What is the best HabitKit alternative?
On iPhone, Colors is the closest in philosophy: no account, data on the device, a real free tier, and one calendar instead of a grid per habit. Streaks if you would rather pay once. Habitify if you want everything synced across devices. Our buying guide compares all of them.
Colors is our app. Facts checked August 2026 from public listings; if something is outdated, tell us at hello@getcolors.app.