The trend: Nearly two-thirds of consumers (63%) have used a health, fitness, or wearable app on their smartphone or wearable device, per our January 2026 Digital Health survey.

This article pulls information from our recently-published “Health and Fitness App Usage 2026” report.

Zooming in: Like mobile apps overall, health apps are often downloaded but quickly abandoned by users.

• Only 3% of health and fitness app users are still active users by the end of the first month, according to a January 2026 Business of Apps report.
• For context, retention is low across most mobile apps, with an average 30-day retention rate of just 5.7%, per October 2025 Business of Apps data.

Reasons for health app churn vary, including reaching a goal and the stress of constant tracking. For example, a weight loss app may be abandoned once a user reaches their goal rather than serving as a long-term lifestyle tool. And many fitness app users are ashamed of logging unhealthy foods or discouraged by app-determined goals they can’t reach, according to an October 2025 study published in the British Journal of Health Psychology.