Comparison

StepDeck vs SummonRun

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

StepDeck

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StepDeck turns your daily steps into a card collecting adventure. Powered by Apple Health, every 1000 steps you take earns card packs filled with unique artwork, glowing effects, and cards ranging from Common to Legendary. WALK. EARN. COLLECT. Every 1000 steps earns a Standard Pack with 5 cards. Hit 10000 steps in a day to unlock a Daily 10k Pack – 6 cards with significantly better rarity odds. The more you move, the more powerful your collection becomes. FOUR RARITIES. ONE HOLY GRAIL. • Common – your everyday pick-up • Rare – a solid find • Epic – a serious pull • Legendary – the one you're chasing Epic and Legendary cards have a 10% chance to appear as shiny Foil variants, treated as separate collectibles in your deck. THREE CARD SERIES The Run Series features comic-style action cards inspired by the runner's spirit. The exclusive Glacier Series takes things further with icy, limited artwork not found in standard packs – including Foil Epics and Legendaries baked directly into the drop pool. And the all-new Art Series brings artistic cards with a look unlike anything else in your collection.

About

SummonRun

This app transforms your runs into tangible progress by evolving mythical creatures. Connect your favorite fitness tracker to earn coins, upgrade islands, and collect companions. It focuses on consistency rather than pace, offering a unique, motivating fitness experience.

Highlights
  • Apple Health integration
  • 16-stage monthly creature evolution
  • 25 collectible gacha creatures
  • Six upgradeable elemental islands
  • Friend leaderboard (non-pace based)
  • Apple Watch companion app
  • Home Screen widget
Features
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SummonRun is the carrot, not the tracker. Free to download, no subscription. Keep using your favorite running app (Apple Watch, Apple Fitness, Nike Run Club, Strava, MapMyRun, or anything that writes to Apple Health). SummonRun reads each qualifying run from Apple Health and turns it into tangible progress: a creature you summon, name, and watch evolve. Pick your daily goal (1 mile up to 10K). Hit it consistently and your creature evolves through 16 stages over the course of the month. Each month brings a new mythical creature: phoenix, leviathan, golem, griffin, and more. You name it. Miss a day and your streak resets, but evolution progress carries forward. Alongside the monthly arc, hatch egg chests to collect 25 gacha creatures across four rarities, from common sparrows and turtles up to legendary elemental dragons. Plus a fifth tier: the limited-edition Founder Dragon, only available during launch period. Every creature has its own element and lives on one of six animated islands: Volcanic Forge, Tidal Shore, Verdant Grove, Sky Haven, Crystal Abyss, Radiant Sanctum. Each island upgrades across three tiers as you earn coins. FEATURES: • Apple Health powered. If it writes a running workout to Apple Health, it counts. We never replace your tracker. • 16-stage monthly creatures, a new one every month. • 25 gacha companions across commons, uncommons, rares, and legendaries, plus the Founder Dragon at launch. • Six elemental islands with three upgrade tiers each. • 31 achievements with coin rewards across running, evolution, collection, social, and economy. • Friend leaderboard ranked by creature progress, not pace. Add friends, visit their habitats. No pace or distance shame. • Apple Watch companion with multiple complication styles. • Creature photo: take a picture with your pixel-art companion overlaid on the camera. • Home Screen widget: creature, streak, runs, and coins at a glance. • Pixel art throughout, dark fantasy aesthetic. • Notifications: daily run reminders, evolution-ready alerts, friend requests. EARNING AND SPENDING: Earn coins by running. One per qualifying run, plus a bonus at every seven-day streak milestone. Spend them on egg chests, island upgrades, or creature extensions. In-app purchases are optional shortcuts. Every creature can be earned by running. PRIVACY: SummonRun minimizes what it stores. Run data is reduced to "what date, and did you hit your goal." No GPS, distance, pace, or duration ever leaves your device. Photos never leave your phone. See summonrun.com/privacy for details. Lace up. Your creature is waiting.

Screenshots

StepDeck3 screens
SummonRun4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: StepDeck at none against SummonRun's 5. StepDeck also leads on update cadence (every 5 days vs every 11 days). SummonRun's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. SummonRun sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. StepDeck asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

StepDeck ships an update every 5 days, SummonRun every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on September 28, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
StepDeck versus SummonRun: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStepDeckSummonRun
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—5 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterEvery 11 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.616.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size692 MB91 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMarcel BrueckTYLER MATTHEW CHIA

In-app purchases

None

StepDeck

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

SummonRun

One-time5
  • Pouch of Coins$0.99
  • Sack of Coins$2.99
  • Treasure Chest$4.99
Show 2 more
  • Creature Extension$4.99
  • Dragon's Hoard$9.99

Questions

Is StepDeck free?
StepDeck is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SummonRun free?
SummonRun is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do StepDeck or SummonRun have ads?
Neither StepDeck nor SummonRun shows ads.
Which is updated more often, StepDeck or SummonRun?
StepDeck ships an update every 5 days, and SummonRun every 11 days. Most recently, StepDeck was updated on September 28, 2026 and SummonRun on October 2, 2026.

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