What the free version of 8 popular water tracker apps really gives you, and which one fits what you need.
Waltermelon is free to download. No ads. · Updated October 18, 2026 · Mateusz Tylman & Paweł Ławiński, Waltermelon
Looking for the best free water tracker app? We went through 8 popular ones and wrote down what the free version actually gives you: ads or no ads, which drinks you can log, reminders, widgets, friends, Apple Watch and Android. Every fact comes from each app’s current store listings, or from its own website where a listing is silent.
We installed each app fresh, skipped every paid offer, logged one glass of water and then tried to log a coffee. These are the screens we got, not edited.
Hydro Coach
On the App Store since 2023
My Water
On the App Store since 2015
Plant Nanny
On the App Store since 2019
Waltermelon
On the App Store since 2025
Water Drink Reminder
Android only, on Google Play
Water Reminder by VGFIT
On the App Store since 2017
Waterllama
On the App Store since 2019
WaterMinder
On the App Store since 2013
Screenshots taken on October 18, 2026 on an iPhone (English) and a Samsung Galaxy (Water Drink Reminder), free versions, with the status bar cropped and nothing else changed.
No app is the best for everyone. Here’s what each one does best, based on the facts further down.
Hydro Coach syncs with Health Connect, Fitbit, Samsung Health and Google Fit, and has a Wear OS app. Free logging is water only, and the Android app has ads.
See what’s freeMy Water logs water, coffee and tea for free and has Apple Watch and Wear OS apps. The free version shows ads.
See what’s freePlant Nanny turns each glass into water for a virtual plant. It logs water only, and its ads are optional, for rewards.
See what’s freeWaltermelon has free friends and shared challenges, logs water, coffee and tea for free and has no ads on any plan, on iPhone and Android. No Apple Watch app yet.
See what’s freeWater Drink Reminder is a simple Android reminder with custom cups and graphs. It has ads and isn’t on the App Store.
See what’s freeWater Reminder by VGFIT reminds you between your wake-up time and bedtime. Free logging is water only.
See what’s freeWaterllama’s free version includes the Apple Watch app, with no ads. Free logging is water only, and it’s not on Android.
See what’s freeWaterMinder runs on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Mac and Vision Pro, plus Android and Wear OS. It has ads, and the watch app is Premium.
See what’s freeOnly what you get without paying. “Not stated” means the store listing doesn’t say, so we didn’t guess.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| App | Ads | Drinks you can log | Reminders | Widgets | Friends | Apple Watch | Android |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hydro Coach | On Android; none on iPhone | Water only | Yes | Progress only | Team feature on Android, free or paid not stated | Yes, not listed as Premium | Yes, plus Wear OS |
| My Water | Contains ads | Water, coffee and tea | Yes | Progress only (iPhone) | Friends (per website) | Yes, not listed as Premium | Yes, plus Wear OS |
| Plant Nanny | Optional, for rewards | Water only | Yes | Graph widget free (iPhone only) | Not in listing | Can’t log from the watch | Yes |
| Waltermelon | No ads | Water, coffee and tea | All free | Free, one-tap logging | Friends and shared challenges | In the works | Yes |
| Water Drink Reminder | Contains ads | Cup sizes only | Yes | Not stated | Not in listing | Not on the App Store | Yes, plus Wear OS |
| Water Reminder by VGFIT | On Android (Play label); none on iPhone | Water only | Yes | Progress only | No | Premium | Yes |
| Waterllama | No ads | Water only | Smart reminders | Lock screen widgets | Share a picture only | Yes, free | No |
| WaterMinder | Contains ads | Water; others after an ad (iPhone) | Basic; smart ones Premium | Progress only | Sharing: today’s total | Premium | Yes, plus Wear OS |
The ads column is what we saw in our test on October 18, 2026: banners while you track, only optional ads you choose to watch, or none. Store labels (“Advertising” in the App Store age rating, “Contains ads” on Google Play) are on each app’s card below.
Of the 8 apps here, only two have no ad label in any store they’re sold in, and no mention of ads in their listings: Waltermelon and Waterllama. Both are free to download with optional upgrades. Waltermelon has no ads on any plan.
The difference between them: Waltermelon also runs on Android, logs coffee and tea for free and brings your friends along. Waterllama has a free Apple Watch app and a polished design: it’s an Apple Design Award finalist, a 2022 App Store Award winner and an App Store Editors’ Choice.
The other six are labeled as containing ads in at least one store. In our test, My Water and WaterMinder on iPhone and Water Drink Reminder on Android showed ad banners while we tracked water. Plant Nanny only offers ads you can choose to watch for in-app rewards. Hydro Coach and Water Reminder by VGFIT showed no ads on iPhone, but their Android apps have ads.
5 of 8 apps show ads while you track water, on iPhone or Android
Ads while you track
Only optional ads, for rewards
No ads
In alphabetical order: what each listing says is free, what costs money and who each app suits best. We leave out prices because they change by country and over time; every app here is free to download with an optional subscription or one-time purchase.
Codium App Ideas · Best for: Android health apps
My Water Drink Tracker Oy · Best for: A watch on either platform
SPARKFUL Inc. · Best for: Gamification
Waltermelon (that’s us) · Best for: Friends, and no ads on any phone
Leap Fitness Group · Best for: No frills on Android
VGFIT · Best for: Simple scheduled reminders
Llama Luna Apps · Best for: Apple Watch and design
Funn Media · Best for: The most devices
On October 18, 2026 we read each app’s US App Store page (the age rating, which flags “Advertising”, the in-app purchase list and device compatibility) and its US Google Play page (the “Contains ads” label and the description). Where a listing didn’t say what is free, we used the developer’s own website or help center, and the text says so. Anything we couldn’t confirm is marked “not stated”.
For WaterMinder and Waterllama we also used both iPhone apps ourselves on October 14 and 15, 2026, for our side-by-side comparisons. We also tested the free versions of My Water, Hydro Coach and Water Reminder by VGFIT ourselves, checking which drinks you can log and what their widgets do.
We picked the apps people actually find and use in US search on both stores. We looked at Aqualert too, but left it out: its current Google Play listing is a small app (1K+ downloads), and the App Store apps with that name come from unrelated developers.
On October 18, 2026 we installed every app again from scratch and took the screenshots on this page: the home screen after one glass of water, and what happens when you try to log a coffee.
We don’t rank the apps, because the best one depends on what you need: an Apple Watch, Android, friends, or a game. They’re listed in alphabetical order, ours included.
Apps change all the time. If something here is out of date, write to support@waltermelon.garden and we’ll fix it.
All app names are trademarks of their owners. Waltermelon is not affiliated with the makers of the other apps on this page.
It depends on what you need. Of the 8 popular apps we checked on October 17, 2026, only Waltermelon (which we make) and Waterllama have no ad label in any store. Waterllama’s free version includes an Apple Watch app, but it runs on Apple devices only. Waltermelon runs on iPhone and Android, logs water, coffee and tea and tracks caffeine for free, and is the only one whose listing offers free shared challenges with friends. If a game keeps you going, Plant Nanny turns your water into a growing plant.
Of the 8 popular apps we checked on October 17, 2026, Waltermelon (iPhone and Android) and Waterllama (Apple devices only) have no ad label in any store they’re sold in. WaterMinder, Plant Nanny, Hydro Coach, My Water and Water Drink Reminder are labeled as containing ads, and Water Reminder by VGFIT is labeled on Google Play while its App Store description says Premium removes advertising. Most remove ads with a paid upgrade. Waltermelon has no ads on any plan.
Yes. Waltermelon and My Water both log water, coffee and tea for free. WaterMinder’s iPhone app unlocks other drinks only if you watch an ad. The difference: Waltermelon has no ads on any plan, while My Water shows ad banners and WaterMinder asks you to watch an ad. In Waterllama, Plant Nanny, Hydro Coach and Water Reminder by VGFIT, free logging is water only.
Nearly every water app has free reminders, so pick by how they work. Waterllama’s free version has smart reminders. Waltermelon’s are all free: you pick an interval from every 30 minutes to every 3 hours, they only ring between your wake-up time and bedtime, smart notifications restart the timer after each drink, and they can stop once you hit your goal. If you want nothing but a simple reminder, Water Reminder by VGFIT (no ads on iPhone, ads on Android) and Water Drink Reminder (with ads) do just that.
Waterllama. Its App Store listing includes the Apple Watch app in the free version, with no ads. WaterMinder also has a standalone Apple Watch app, but it is a Premium feature. My Water and Hydro Coach have Apple Watch apps too, and neither lists the watch app among its Premium features. Plant Nanny lists Apple Watch support, but its help center says you can’t log water from the watch. A Waltermelon Apple Watch app is in the works; today you can log from home screen widgets or with Siri on iPhone.
If you want no ads, Waltermelon: it’s the only app we checked with no ads on Android, with free coffee and tea logging, one-tap widgets, Health Connect sync and friends with shared challenges. If you wear a Wear OS watch, Hydro Coach and My Water both have Wear OS apps; if you use Fitbit or Samsung Health, Hydro Coach has the widest sync (Health Connect, Fitbit, Samsung Health and Google Fit). Both are labeled as containing ads on Google Play. Waterllama is not on Android.
Yes. In Waltermelon, friends are free: you see each friend’s streak and today’s progress, send cheers and nudges, and start a 3- or 7-day shared challenge for free, on iPhone and Android. Hydro Coach’s Android listing mentions a Team feature, My Water’s website mentions adding friends and comparing daily progress, and WaterMinder’s Sharing tab lets friends see your total for today.
Yes. Waltermelon is free with optional Premium and has no ads on any plan. Free covers water, coffee and tea logging, caffeine tracking, reminders, widgets, Apple Health and Health Connect sync, stats, streaks, friends, daily challenges, Rescue Shields and shared challenges with friends. Optional Premium adds more drinks, AI logging of any drink you type, sugar and alcohol tracking and more challenge types.
Free on iPhone and Android. Set up in a minute, log your first sip, and be ready to hold $WALTERMELON before the rest of the timeline even opens Phantom.
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