Track habits by tapping an NFC tag

Stick an NFC tag on your water bottle, gym bag, or door, and tap your phone to update a counter. No need to open the app. Counter writes the action straight to the tag.

Guide for the Counter app on Android. Requires a phone with NFC.

What you need

• The free Counter app for Android.
• A phone with NFC.
• One or more NFC tags or stickers. Common NTAG213, NTAG215, and NTAG216 tags all work well.

Step 1: Open the counter and choose NFC write

Open the counter's detail screen and select the NFC write option.

Step 2: Pick the action

Choose what a tap should do:

• Increment
• Decrement
• Reset

You can also set a custom step value, for example +2 per tap.

Step 3: Write the tag

Hold an NFC tag near the back of your phone until Counter confirms the write. That single tag is now bound to that action.

Step 4: Place the tag and tap to count

Stick the tag where the action happens. Tap your phone on it any time to trigger the action, even from the lock screen if NFC is enabled system-wide.

Where to stick your tags

• Water bottle: tap every time you drink to track water intake.
• Gym bag: tap to count workouts.
• Front door: tap on the way out to count walks or commutes.
• Desk: tap to count focus sessions or coffees.
• Medicine box: tap when you take a dose to keep a simple count (Counter is not a medical device).

For more on NFC options, see the FAQ.