# Day Counter vs Upcoming

The clearest difference is monetization model: Day Counter at free with in-app purchases against Upcoming's subscription. Day Counter also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (90% vs 57%). On price, rating, update cadence and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Day Counter sells 13 one-off in-app purchases and Upcoming sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Day Counter against 4.7 for Upcoming. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Day Counter has 447 ratings behind it against 40, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 90% of Day Counter's written reviews are positive against 57% of Upcoming's.

Day Counter ships an update every 6 weeks, Upcoming every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Day Counter | Upcoming |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (447 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/day-counter-countdown-timer/id1499976509/reviews) | [4.7 (40 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/upcoming-countdown-widget/id6444080645/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **447** | 40 |
| Positive reviews | **90.1% of reviews** | 56.5% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 6 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Subscription |
| Size | 72 MB | 22 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.6** | 16.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch** |
| Age rating | 4+ | +4 |
| Developer | [Bitsens](https://appshunter.io/developer/961189050) | [Kok Keong](https://appshunter.io/developer/1643079389) |

## What reviewers say

### Day Counter

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/day-counter-countdown-timer/id1499976509)

Track days until or since any special moment with this simple and elegant app. It helps you manage personal goals, habits, and important life events with customizable counters and notifications.

**Highlights:** Count Up & Countdown Modes, Unlimited Counters, Widgets & Reminders, Custom Notifications, Clean & Minimal Design, Habit and Streak Tracker

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $2.99 | one-time |
| Custom Colors | $2.99 | one-time |
| Notes | $3.49 | one-time |
| Dark Mode | $4.49 | one-time |
| All In One. 75% OFF | $4.99 | one-time |
| Widget | $5.99 | one-time |
| All In One. 50% OFF | $9.99 | one-time |
| All In One. 60% OFF | $9.99 | one-time |
| Unlimited counters | $10.99 | one-time |
| All In One. 50% OFF | $11.99 | one-time |
| All In One. 30% OFF | $15.99 | one-time |
| All In One | $19.99 | one-time |
| All In One | $24.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Simple and efficient
- 💡 Helpful for tracking progress
- 🎨 Nice design and colors
- 🙌 Motivating and accountability

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Limited free features
- 🔍 Lack of customization options
- 🔋 Frequent ads in free version
- 🕰️ Missing time-based tracking

**Reported bugs**

- Inconsistent date/time display
- Occasional sync issues between devices

**Requested features**

- Add time-based tracking (hours, minutes, seconds)
- Provide more customization options
- Improve widget functionality
- Introduce a dark mode option


### Upcoming

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/upcoming-countdown-widget/id6444080645)

Track important dates with a customizable countdown widget. Visualize your progress towards goals, events, or holidays with daily updates. Stay motivated and focused by seeing how much time remains until your next milestone.

**Highlights:** Daily countdown tracking, Customizable icons and colors, Event card styling, Motivation for goal completion, Sense of urgency for tasks

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $1.49 | per month |
| Yearly | $11.49 | per year |
| Lifetime - Early Bird Discount | $5.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime | $20.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Day Counter free?

Day Counter is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Upcoming free?

Upcoming is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Day Counter or Upcoming?

Day Counter and Upcoming are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 447 and 40 ratings respectively.

### Do Day Counter or Upcoming have ads?

Upcoming shows ads; Day Counter does not.

### Which is updated more often, Day Counter or Upcoming?

Day Counter ships an update every 6 weeks, and Upcoming every 2 months. Most recently, Day Counter was updated on October 8, 2026 and Upcoming on October 13, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*