Pip, a blue bird mascot wearing red headphones, excited

Pipstep press kit

Pipstep is a walking and running habit app for iPhone and Apple Watch: a path of short guided lessons, easy to hard, that starts with a five-minute walk and goes all the way to a half marathon. A cheerful voice coach called Pip talks you through each lesson in your AirPods, with taps on your wrist, and every target is set from your own pace and how you feel today. The whole path is free, with no ads.

The maker's story

Pipstep is made by a solo developer at Dodera Software SRL who felt lazy about running. The running apps they tried were too complicated, shared too much and weren't fun enough to make them want to go again. Running alone with music, they kept pushing too hard and ending up exhausted. So they built Pipstep, alone.

Key facts

Name: Pipstep. Maker: Dodera Software SRL, Satu Mare, Romania.
Platforms: iPhone and Apple Watch. On Apple Watch a lesson runs on the watch alone, so the iPhone can stay at home. Without a watch, lessons run on iPhone.
The path: 105 guided lessons in 7 sections, from a five-minute walk to tiny jogs, a first 5 and 10 kilometres, and a half marathon. The first section is walking only.
The coach: Pip, a blue bird, speaks in your AirPods and taps your wrist. Your music keeps playing; Pip just lowers it for a moment.
Made to fit: targets are relative to the person, from their own easy, steady and fast and today's condition. There are no fixed paces to chase.
Price: the whole path is free, with no ads. Pipstep Plus is an optional subscription (prices vary by country and are shown in the app).
Apple Health: every lesson is saved as a workout with route, heart rate and each step as an interval.
Privacy: Apple Health data stays on the person's devices and is never sent to Pipstep's servers. An account is optional.
Language: English.