Top 10 Ways to Fix Samsung Health App Not Tracking Steps on Galaxy Phone
The Samsung Health app utilizes the built-in sensors on your Galaxy phone to accurately track steps and various other activities. You can evenset your daily goalsand receive notifications when you exceed or achieve them. But what if the Samsung Health app suddenly stops tracking steps? If this has happened to you, this guide has some troubleshooting tips that will help.
Table of Contents
1. Enable Step Counting
Your first step is to ensure that the step-counting feature is enabled in the Samsung Health app. Here’s how to check.
1.Open theSamsung Healthapp on your phone and selectSteps.
2.Tap thekebab menu(three vertical dots) in the top right corner and selectResume step counting.
2. Allow the App to Track Physical Activity
The Samsung Health app requires your consent to track your steps, workouts, and other physical movements. If you have previously denied this permission to the Samsung Health app, the step counter won’t work. Here’s what you may do to fix it.
1.Long press on theSamsung Healthapp icon and tap theinfo iconfrom the menu that appears. On the app info page, selectPermissions.
2.Tap onPhysical activityand selectAllowfrom the following menu.
3. Allow the Samsung Health App to Run in the Background
Another reason why the Samsung Health app may fail to track your steps is when you have imposed battery restrictions on it. Here’s how you can remove them and allow the app to run in the background.
1.Long press on theSamsung Healthapp icon and tap theinfo iconfrom the menu that appears.
2.Tap onBatteryand selectUnrestrictedfrom the following screen.
4. Remove Samsung Health From the Sleeping Apps List
On your Samsung phone,One UI has a featurethat puts unused apps to sleep in order to optimize device resources. If the Samsung Health app is added to the sleeping apps list, it may have trouble tracking your steps accurately.
To prevent the Samsung Health app from sleeping on your phone:
1.Open theSettingsapp and navigate toBattery and device care.
2.Tap onBatteryand selectBackground usage limitsfrom the following screen.
3.Tap onNever sleeping apps.
4.Tap theplus iconin the top right corner, selectSamsung Healthfrom the list, and tapAdd.
5. Enable Notifications for Steps
Is the Samsung Health app failing to send notifications about your daily step goals? If so, it’s likely that you have disabled notifications for the app. Here’s how to change that.
2.Tap onNotificationsand enable the toggle next toAllow notifications.
3.SelectNotification categoriesand enable the toggle next toSteps.
6. Sign Out and Sign Back In
At times, temporary issues with your Samsung account can prevent the Health app from syncing your step count data across devices. You can try signing out of the Samsung Health app and signing back in to see if that helps.
1.In the Samsung Health app, tap thekebab menu(three dots) in the top right corner and selectSettings.
- Tap onSamsung accountand then scroll down to select theSign outbutton.
3.SelectSign outto confirm.
Now, sign back into the Samsung Health app and check if the issue is still there.
7. Uninstall Other Step Tracking Apps
Samsung Health app may fail to track your steps if you have installed other similar step counter apps on your Galaxy phone. To avoid any potential conflicts, it’s best to uninstall any step-tracking health or fitness apps from your phone.
8. Clear App Cache
Overwhelming or corrupt cache data can also cause the Samsung Health app to malfunction on your Galaxy phone. If that’s the case,clearing the existing app cacheshould get the app to work again.
2.Go toStorageand tap theClear cacheoption at the bottom.
9. Update the App
Using an outdated version of the Samsung Health app can also cause such anomalies. So, if the above fixes prove ineffective, try updating the Samsung Health app viaPlay Store or Galaxy Store.
10. Wipe Cache Partition
If the Samsung Health app doesn’t count your steps even after you update it, there may be an issue with the system cache data. In that case, you will have to wipe the cache partition on your Samsung Galaxy phone by putting it intoRecovery Mode.
1.Press and hold thePower buttonuntil you see the power menu.
2.Tap thePower offoption to turn off your phone.
3.Connect your phone to your PC with a USB cable.
4.Now, press and hold thePower buttonandVolume Up buttonsimultaneously until the Samsung logo appears.
Note:Once your phone enters Recovery Mode, the touch screen will become non-responsive. So, you will have to rely on the volume keys and the power button to navigate within the menu.
5.Use theVolume Down keyto highlight theWipe cache partitionoption. Then, press thePower buttonto select it.
6.Use theVolume Down keyto selectYesand press thePower keyto confirm.
7.Once the cache is cleared, you’ll be taken to the recovery menu. Highlight theReboot system nowoption and press thePower keyto confirm.
Every Step Counts
Hopefully, one or more of the above fixes have helped you fix the issue, and the Samsung Health app is now tracking your steps as before. However, if nothing works, you can consider switching to someother step counter or pedometer appfor some time.
Pankil Shah
Pankil is a Civil Engineer by profession who started his journey as a writer back in 2016. He joined TechWiser in March 2021 as a freelance writer to cover buying guides, explainers, and tips & tricks for Android, iOS, Windows, and Web.
