PlayCounter vs GamingGaiden

PlayCounter9.4Visit GGamingGaiden8.5Visit

Higher score PlayCounter #1 in Game Playtime Trackers 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 1 of 2 features Visit PlayCounter

vs

G GamingGaiden #4 in Game Playtime Trackers 8.5/10 Open source ✓ 1 of 2 features Visit GamingGaiden

• PlayCounter fits best

  Windows users tracking games across launchers

• GamingGaiden fits best

  PC and emulated-game tracking

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Side by side

Feature	PlayCounter 9.4/10 Visit ↗	GGamingGaiden 8.5/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	8.5
Ranking	#1 in Game Playtime Trackers	#4 in Game Playtime Trackers
Best for	Windows users tracking games across launchers	PC and emulated-game tracking
Pricing model	Free	Free
Starting price	Free	Open source
Free plan	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Desktop	Desktop
Platforms	Windows	Windows
Support	Community	Docs
Integrations	9 integrations	2 integrations
Built for	Solo, Small business	Solo, Small business
Features PlayCounter 1/2 · GamingGaiden 1/2
Mobile app	—	—
Desktop app	✓	✓
Specs
Tracking mode	Automatic	Automatic
Supported platforms	Windows; Steam; Xbox; PC Game Pass; Epic; GOG; EA; Ubisoft; Battle.net; itch.io; standalone installations; DOSBox; Dolphin	PC games and emulated platforms
History retention	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Data export	Multiple	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Tracks sessions automatically across major PC launchers and standalone games Imports Steam and Xbox playtime and supports manual corrections Includes searchable history, statistics, backups, overlays and launch actions	Automatically tracks PC games, emulators, ROMs, and RetroArch cores Removes idle time and provides statistics, charts, sorting, and search Stores data offline with backups and multi-PC database sharing
Cons	Windows desktop only, with no mobile app Game matching uses online lookups while history is stored locally Launcher history coverage centers on Steam and Xbox imports	Windows is the verified platform focus There is no mobile app Its focus is individual PC gaming rather than broader platforms
Our verdict	PlayCounter is a free, open-source Windows desktop application for people who want one playtime record across multiple PC game sources. It automatically records sessions by observing running processes, without requiring special launch… Read the review →	GamingGaiden is a Windows desktop application for individual PC gamers who want automatic playtime and session history across native and emulated games. It tracks PC games, registered emulators, ROMs, and RetroArch cores, giving players… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• PlayCounter — where it wins

  • Tracks sessions automatically across major PC launchers and standalone games
  • Imports Steam and Xbox playtime and supports manual corrections
  • Includes searchable history, statistics, backups, overlays and launch actions

  Where it doesn't

  • Windows desktop only, with no mobile app
  • Game matching uses online lookups while history is stored locally
  • Launcher history coverage centers on Steam and Xbox imports

• GamingGaiden — where it wins

  • Automatically tracks PC games, emulators, ROMs, and RetroArch cores
  • Removes idle time and provides statistics, charts, sorting, and search
  • Stores data offline with backups and multi-PC database sharing

  Where it doesn't

  • Windows is the verified platform focus
  • There is no mobile app
  • Its focus is individual PC gaming rather than broader platforms

• PlayCounter9.4/10 · Free plan

  A free, open-source Windows tracker with broad launcher coverage and local history.

  Visit PlayCounterFull verdict →
• GGamingGaiden8.5/10 · Open source

  A focused Windows tracker for detailed playtime across native and emulated games.

  Visit GamingGaidenFull verdict →