Kick Counting: Paper Chart or App?
A paper chart and an app record the same things: when you counted, how many movements you felt, and how long it took. Neither has been shown to reduce stillbirth, and the RCOG says there is not enough evidence to recommend the routine use of a movement chart, so choose the one you will keep up and follow your provider's method.
Written by the Bumpi Kicks team at Speed AI Labs LLP. Last updated . General information, not reviewed by a clinician, and not medical advice. How we write and check these pages.
What a useful log needs
Date and start time
Without them you cannot compare one day with another or tell your provider when a change began.
Minutes to reach your number
Cleveland Clinic suggests writing down how many minutes it took. A tally on its own loses the time.
Paper has no screen
Nothing to open or charge, and it works if you dislike phones. It can be lost, and it does not draw a chart for you.
An app keeps the time and the history
Bumpi Kicks times the session, then shows a 7-day chart, a calendar of the current month and a list of sessions. A Pro subscription is needed to count.
Common questions
Does using an app make counting more accurate?
It makes timing and storage automatic. It does not change what you felt, and no source we read shows that an app reduces stillbirth.
Can I use both?
Yes. Keep whichever your provider asked for as the record, and use the other if it helps you stay consistent.
Is a kick counter app worth paying for?
It depends on whether automatic timing and a saved history are worth the price to you. No source we read shows that an app or a chart reduces stillbirth, and the RCOG says there is not enough evidence to recommend the routine use of a movement chart. Several kick counter apps are free, so read the price on a listing before you subscribe. The comparison of kick counter apps on this site sets out what each listing says.
Sources
These are the sources behind the statements on this page. We opened each one and checked it on the date shown.
- Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Your baby's movements in pregnancy (patient information based on Green-top Guideline No. 57, February 2011)
The RCOG says there is no specific number of movements that is considered normal, and that there is not enough evidence to recommend the routine use of a movement chart.
Limits: UK patient information published February 2019 and based on a 2011 guideline. The RCOG published a second edition of the guideline in 2026, which this site has not read. Advice elsewhere differs, and your own midwife or doctor comes first.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Cleveland Clinic, Kick Counts (Fetal Movement Counting): Purpose & How To, page last updated 05/08/2026
Cleveland Clinic describes timing how long it takes to feel 10 movements, says providers differ on the number and time window, and says it may be time to tell your provider if 10 have not come after two hours.
Limits: Cleveland Clinic credits the target of 10 movements within two hours to ACOG. ACOG's own patient page, listed on this site, does not state that number.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Mangesi L, Hofmeyr GJ, Smith V, Smyth RMD. Fetal movement counting for assessment of fetal wellbeing. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 15 October 2015
A 2015 Cochrane review of five studies (71,458 women) found them too few and too weak to assess stillbirth accurately, with no difference between routine and mixed or undefined counting, and less anxiety in one study of 1,013 women.
Limits: The review is about ten years old and pools studies that used different counting methods. It calls for more research comparing routine and selective counting, and it notes that counting tests can cause considerable anxiety for some women.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
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Bumpi Kicks keeps a simple log of your kick counts that you can look back on and show your care team.
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