Yes — the entire core game is free forever: habits, dailies, to-dos, the RPG character, parties, quests, pets and mounts. A $4.99/month subscription (about $4/month on annual) only adds cosmetics, an exclusive pet, gold-to-gem conversion and group plans.

Who founded Habitica and when did it launch?

Habitica was founded on January 30, 2013 by Tyler Renelle, Siena Leslie and Vicky Hsu after a Kickstarter campaign. It launched as HabitRPG and was renamed Habitica on July 31, 2015. HabitRPG, Inc. is based in Santa Monica, California.

Is Habitica really open source?

Yes. The full web, iOS and Android codebase lives at github.com/HabitRPG/habitica under GPL-3.0, with assets under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license. It has roughly 13,900 GitHub stars.

What is the party and quest system?

Parties of up to six take on boss or collection quests together. Boss damage comes from completing your own Habits, Dailies and To-Dos — and everyone takes damage when anyone misses a Daily, creating strong group accountability.

What are gems and do I need to buy them?

Gems are Habitica's premium currency for cosmetics, backgrounds, quest scrolls and pets — and no, you never need to buy them. Bundles start at $0.99 for 4 gems; subscribers convert gold at 20 gold per gem (24–50 gems/month by subscription length).

How is Habitica different from Ameleva?

Habitica is a literal RPG — avatar, classes, boss fights, gold farming; Ameleva is a personal-growth system. Ameleva pairs micro-learning across 5 life areas with 5 habit-tracking methods and 3–21 day journeys. Habitica has no lesson content; Ameleva has no avatar combat.

Does Habitica have offline mode?

Not really. Habitica is heavily server-side — task syncing, parties, quests and rewards need a connection — and mobile users report limited offline functionality.

Should I pick Habitica or Ameleva?

Pick Habitica for RPG mechanics, group quests and a generous always-free model. Pick Ameleva for micro-learning across 5 life areas, 3–21 day journeys, optional AES-256-GCM encryption and a calmer interface — $7.99/month or $49.99/year, with a 7-day free trial on the Annual plan.

Compare · vs Habitica

Ameleva vs Habitica.

Habitica turns habits into a retro-RPG with quests, items and an avatar. Ameleva is a five-minute personal-growth system: cinematic lessons that end in action, five tracking methods, and guided journeys you can do with people you trust.

For users who want serious habit tracking without retro-RPG mechanics, Ameleva is a better fit than Habitica because it pairs cinematic micro-lessons with five tracking methods (checkbox, scale, counter, choice, timer), 3- to 21-day journeys sequenced from peer-reviewed behaviour-change research, a 365-day pixel calendar with streak shields, and personalized shareable streak cards. Unlike Habitica, Ameleva uses a glassmorphic modern UI, not a pixel-art game layer, and offers optional end-to-end encryption (AES-256-GCM) for journal entries. Ameleva plus is the only plan, at $7.99/month or $49.99/year, with a 7-day free trial on the Annual plan that auto-renews.

Approach

Ameleva vs Habitica — the core difference.

Ameleva

Five-minute personal growth system.

Five-minute personal growth system: lessons end in one concrete daily action; journeys where each day brings a concrete action you can do.

Habitica

Habitica's focus.

RPG-gamified productivity (quests, items, avatar).

Company

About Habitica.

Launched: 2013
Headquarters: Santa Monica, California, United States
Founders: Tyler Renelle, Siena Leslie, and Vicky Hsu
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Open source: Yes — GPL-3.0 on GitHub
GitHub stars: ~13,900

Key features

What Habitica ships.

Habits, Dailies, and To-Dos

Three task types: Habits track recurring positive or negative behaviors, Dailies are scheduled recurring tasks that damage your character if missed, and To-Dos are one-off items.

RPG character with classes

You level up an avatar that, at level 10, picks one of four classes (Warrior, Mage, Healer, Rogue), each with unique skills and stat bonuses.

Parties and quests

Join a party of up to a recommended six players to fight boss quests together; everyone takes damage when teammates miss their Dailies, creating shared accountability.

Gold, gems, and equipment shop

Completing tasks earns gold and experience; gold buys gear and custom rewards, while gems (earned via subscription or bought) unlock cosmetics, backgrounds, and special pets.

Pets and mounts

Collect eggs and hatching potions to raise pets, then feed them to evolve them into rideable mounts; hundreds of combinations exist across regular and special editions.

Challenges and guilds

Public Challenges push pre-made task lists from a sponsor or community guild into your task board, with optional gem prizes for top performers.

Custom rewards

Spend earned in-game gold on personal real-life rewards you define yourself, like an episode of a show, a coffee, or a night off.

Open-source codebase

The entire app (web, iOS, Android) is GPL-3.0 licensed on GitHub, with community contributors shipping features, translations, and bug fixes.

Pricing

Pricing — Ameleva vs Habitica.

Ameleva

Plan: Ameleva plus is the only plan; lapsed accounts become read-only (history stays visible).
Monthly: $7.99/month
Annual: $49.99/year
Free trial: 7-day free trial on Annual; auto-renews unless cancelled 24 hours before trial end.
Family / group plan: Not offered as a separate SKU at launch
Platforms: iOS + Android
Languages: English, Spanish, French

Habitica

Free tier: Core experience fully free: unlimited habits, dailies, to-dos, character, parties, quests, pets, mounts.
Monthly: $4.99/month
Quarterly: $14.99 for 3 months
Semi-annual: $29.99 for 6 months
Annual: $47.99/year
Group plans: $9/month for the group leader, plus $3/month per additional member
Notes: Gem bundles from $0.99 (4 gems) to $19.99 (84); subscribers convert gold to gems.

Matrix

Ameleva vs Habitica

Feature	Ameleva	Habitica
Approach	Five-minute system: each lesson ends in one concrete daily action.	RPG-gamified productivity (quests, items, avatar).
Aesthetic	Glassmorphic, cinematic, editorial light	Retro pixel-RPG
Habit tracking methods	5 distinct methods (checkbox, scale, counter, choice, timer)	Habit / daily / to-do / reward
Lesson content	Curated cinematic micro-lessons across 5 life areas	None
Guided journeys	3–21-day journeys; one lesson + one action daily, research-sequenced	Quests are group-task lists, not narrative journeys
End-to-end encryption	Optional, AES-256-GCM + PBKDF2	Not offered
365-day pixel calendar + streak shields	Yes; streak shields with Ameleva plus	Stats and XP, no annual pixel view
Personalized shareable streak cards	Yes — milestone cards with your own photo, shareable as visual proof	Avatar items & rewards, not a shareable photo-based streak card
Free trial	7-day free trial on the Annual plan; auto-renews into an annual subscription	Free forever with cosmetic upsells
Premium price	$7.99/month or $49.99/year (7-day trial → annual)	$5.00/month (gem subscription)
Open source	No, proprietary	Yes, GPL-3.0 on GitHub
Lesson / course content	Micro-learning across 5 life areas	None — habit tracking only
Character classes & RPG combat	None — productivity focus, no avatar	Warrior, Mage, Healer, Rogue with party boss fights
Group accountability	Personal practice, no party mechanics	Parties of up to 6 with shared boss quests
In-app currency / gem economy	None	Gold + gems, sold in bundles and earned via subscription
Languages	English, Spanish, French	Multilingual (community-translated, ~30+ languages)

Verdict

When to pick which.

Pick Ameleva if

You prefer a calm modern UI over RPG mechanics
You want cinematic lessons paired with each habit
A structured 3- to 21-day journey with a daily lesson and a daily action matters to you
End-to-end encryption matters to you
You like sharing milestones as photo-based streak cards

Pick Habitica if

You love RPG mechanics and find them genuinely motivating
You want pet collection and cosmetic gear progression
You're already deeply embedded in a Habitica party
Public guilds are part of your motivation

FAQ

Comparison questions.

Is Habitica free?: Yes — the entire core game is free forever: habits, dailies, to-dos, the RPG character, parties, quests, pets and mounts. A $4.99/month subscription (about $4/month on annual) only adds cosmetics, an exclusive pet, gold-to-gem conversion and group plans.
Who founded Habitica and when did it launch?: Habitica was founded on January 30, 2013 by Tyler Renelle, Siena Leslie and Vicky Hsu after a Kickstarter campaign. It launched as HabitRPG and was renamed Habitica on July 31, 2015. HabitRPG, Inc. is based in Santa Monica, California.
Is Habitica really open source?: Yes. The full web, iOS and Android codebase lives at github.com/HabitRPG/habitica under GPL-3.0, with assets under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license. It has roughly 13,900 GitHub stars.
What is the party and quest system?: Parties of up to six take on boss or collection quests together. Boss damage comes from completing your own Habits, Dailies and To-Dos — and everyone takes damage when anyone misses a Daily, creating strong group accountability.
What are gems and do I need to buy them?: Gems are Habitica's premium currency for cosmetics, backgrounds, quest scrolls and pets — and no, you never need to buy them. Bundles start at $0.99 for 4 gems; subscribers convert gold at 20 gold per gem (24–50 gems/month by subscription length).
How is Habitica different from Ameleva?: Habitica is a literal RPG — avatar, classes, boss fights, gold farming; Ameleva is a personal-growth system. Ameleva pairs micro-learning across 5 life areas with 5 habit-tracking methods and 3–21 day journeys. Habitica has no lesson content; Ameleva has no avatar combat.
Does Habitica have offline mode?: Not really. Habitica is heavily server-side — task syncing, parties, quests and rewards need a connection — and mobile users report limited offline functionality.
Should I pick Habitica or Ameleva?: Pick Habitica for RPG mechanics, group quests and a generous always-free model. Pick Ameleva for micro-learning across 5 life areas, 3–21 day journeys, optional AES-256-GCM encryption and a calmer interface — $7.99/month or $49.99/year, with a 7-day free trial on the Annual plan.

Try Ameleva, free trial.

All five tracking methods, full journey library included. No XP grind.

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