# Orbit vs Routinery: Two Routine Runners Compared *Orbit and Routinery both run routines step by step. Where they differ: platforms, accounts, and what happens to your streak on a missed day.* URL: https://orbit.groot-apps.com/compare/orbit-vs-routinery/ By Aron de Groot · Published 6 September 2026 · 479-word read In short Routinery and Orbit are the same category — apps that walk you through a routine rather than logging it afterwards. Routinery covers iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, has voice-guided timers and a large template library. Orbit is iPhone-only, needs no account, keeps data on device, and spends a streak freeze automatically on days you miss. Key facts - Both apps run a routine step by step with timers, rather than asking you to tick it off afterwards. - Routinery is made by Routinery Corp.; it runs on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch and requires iOS 15.5 or later. - Orbit is iPhone-only, requires iOS 26 or later, and needs no account. - Both are free to download with a paid subscription. - The clearest functional difference is the missed day: Orbit spends a freeze automatically instead of resetting. ## The same idea, built twice Most apps in this space are trackers: you do the thing, then you tell the app you did it. Routinery and Orbit are both in the smaller category that does the opposite — the app holds the sequence and moves through it with you, so the running of the routine is the product rather than the record of it. Because they agree on the fundamental idea, the comparison is unusually narrow. It comes down to reach, to what happens when you fail, and to where your data lives. ## Side by side | | Routinery | Orbit | |---|---|---| | Made by | Routinery Corp. | Aron de Groot (Groot Apps), Netherlands | | Apple devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone only | | Minimum iOS | 15.5 | 26 | | Download | Free, paid subscription | Free, paid subscription | | Runs the routine step by step | Yes | Yes | | Streak on a missed day | — | Freeze spent automatically | | Account required | Yes | No | | Storage | Cloud account | On device, optional private iCloud | Platform facts checked against each app's App Store listing on 6 September 2026. ## Where Routinery is genuinely better Reach. iPad and Apple Watch support are real advantages if you want a routine on your wrist rather than in your hand. Templates. Routinery ships a large library of ready-made routines, which is genuinely useful when the blank-screen problem is what stops you. Maturity. It has been on the App Store for years with a large body of reviews behind it. Orbit is new. Older devices. Routinery runs on iOS 15.5; Orbit needs iOS 26, which rules out anything that cannot run this year's release. ## Where Orbit is genuinely better The missed day. This is the whole reason Orbit exists. Freezes are granted automatically as your streak grows and spent automatically when you miss, so the count survives a bad Tuesday and the record still shows what really happened. No account. Orbit asks for nothing to start — no email, no sign-up screen between you and the first routine. Data stays on the device. Routines live in local storage and sync, if you enable it, through your own private iCloud container rather than a company's servers. Presence outside the app. The current step shows on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island, which is where you actually look when you get lost mid-routine. ## How to choose If you need Apple Watch or iPad, the decision is made for you: Routinery. If you have abandoned a routine app before because a broken streak made opening it feel bad, that is the pattern Orbit is designed around, and it is worth trying the one that treats a missed day as expected rather than as a failure state. If neither of those is decisive, install both — they are free to download — and notice which one you still open in the second week. That is a more reliable answer than any comparison table. Orbit is a routine app, not a medical device, a diagnosis or a treatment. Nothing here is medical advice. If ADHD symptoms are affecting your daily life, talk to a qualified clinician. ## Frequently asked **What is the difference between Orbit and Routinery?** Both walk you through a routine step by step. Routinery reaches more Apple devices and ships a large library of pre-made routines; Orbit is iPhone-only, works without an account, keeps data on the device, and protects your streak automatically on days you miss. **Is there a Routinery alternative that does not punish missed days?** That is the specific gap Orbit was built for. Streak freezes accumulate as the streak grows and are spent automatically, without you needing to open the app, so a missed day does not reset the count. **Which is better for ADHD, Orbit or Routinery?** They are close enough that it comes down to two questions: do you need iPad or Apple Watch, and does a broken streak end your relationship with an app? If yes to the first, Routinery. If yes to the second, Orbit. ## Sources and further reading - Routinery on the App Store — Apple - Routinery — official site — Routinery Corp. - Orbit on the App Store — Apple ## Orbit builds these routines for you Orbit is an ADHD routine builder for iPhone: templates instead of blank screens, an ambient orb that runs each step with you, and streak freezes so a missed day doesn't undo a month.