MoneyWalk: The Walking App That Rewards Your Steps and Your Sleep

This is the fifth independent walking app we’re featuring in the Points and Miles Japan article series. We originally planned to stop at four, but MoneyWalk Step Counter & Rewards deserves its own spotlight because it behaves differently from the others in several meaningful ways.

Before diving in, a quick update: Receipt Challenge (レシチャレ)—one of the apps previously covered—no longer supports point exchanges via Dot Money, which changes its usefulness for anyone focused on converting daily activity into airline miles or shopping points.

With that shift, MoneyWalk becomes even more relevant as an alternative for expats and point‑collectors in Japan.

MoneyWalk is built around a simple idea: reward healthy habits. The app tracks your steps automatically through Apple Health or Google Fit and gives you points for hitting daily milestones. Walking 5,000 steps typically yields 100–200 points, and every additional 1,000 steps unlocks a small bonus. Occasionally, the app surprises you with random rewards—sometimes as high as 10,000 points—though these are rare. Unlike ad‑heavy apps such as Trima, MoneyWalk does not require you to watch an ad for every step segment. Ads appear only when claiming certain bonuses or random rewards, and they last around 15–30 seconds.

One of MoneyWalk’s standout features is its sleep‑tracking reward system. Among all the walking apps we’ve covered, this is the only one that gives points for getting enough rest. If you sleep at least four hours, you earn a small reward; if you hit the “ideal” seven‑hour window, you earn more; and if you wake up within 30 minutes of your target time, you get an additional bonus. It’s a refreshing shift from apps that only reward movement, and it encourages a more holistic approach to health.

Another major advantage is its language flexibility. MoneyWalk automatically follows your phone’s system language. If your device is set to English, the entire app appears in English—menus, buttons, instructions, everything. For expats in Japan, this alone makes MoneyWalk dramatically easier to use than apps like Trima, Powl, or Prally, which remain mostly Japanese‑only.

But MoneyWalk isn’t without its frustrations. The biggest complaint among users is the presence of “hidden points”—small pop‑up bonuses that appear suddenly on the screen. If you tap too quickly or accidentally close the pop‑up, the points are lost permanently. This creates a sense of unpredictability and can feel unfair, especially for fast‑tapping users who are simply trying to navigate the app. Additionally, while walking and sleep rewards are steady, the overall pace of point accumulation is slower than apps that offer surveys or receipt uploads. Most users will need 2–4 weeks of consistent use to reach a Dot Money exchange threshold.

Setting up MoneyWalk is refreshingly simple. After downloading the app from the App Store or Google Play, you register using your email or social login. The app then requests permission to access step data through Apple Health or Google Fit. If you want to earn sleep points, you enable sleep tracking or activate “sleep mode” within the app. There are no complicated onboarding steps, no Japanese‑only screens, and no extra verification unless you choose to redeem points through Dot Money.

MoneyWalk is ideal for users who want a low‑effort, English‑friendly, health‑focused walking app that rewards both movement and rest. It’s especially appealing for expats who want a straightforward interface without navigating Japanese menus, and for anyone who values sleep as much as steps.