Best Tally Counter for Japa Mala
A japa mala has 108 beads — one for each mantra repetition. Practitioners in Hindu, Buddhist, and Sikh traditions may do dozens of rounds daily. A digital mala counter tracks your beads, counts your rounds, and saves your progress so you never lose count mid-practice. We compared every major online mantra counter to find the best.
What makes a great japa mala counter?
Searching for "online japa counter" or "108 bead counter"? Here's what separates a real mala counter from a basic tally:
- 108-bead cycle — auto-reset after 108 taps and start the next round.
- Round tracking — see how many complete malas you've done today and overall.
- Chanting goal / target — set a goal like 10 malas (1,080 mantras) or a total count like 100,000.
- Visual mala progression — see your position on the mala as beads fill in.
- Haptic or audio feedback — a click or vibration per bead keeps rhythm without looking.
- Saved progress — resume tomorrow where you left off.
- Mantra selection — name your mantra and track different mantras separately.
Japa mala counter features — compared
We tested dedicated mantra counters — ChantingCounter, JapaCounterOnline, muktimantra, vinish.dev, and others — alongside DigitalTallyCounter.com to find which actually supports structured japa practice.
| Feature | chantingcounter.com | digitaltallycounter.com | muktimantra.com/naam-japa-counter-online | rk-dev-test.github.io/Mala | vinish.dev/mantra-counter-online | webutility.io/naam-japa-counter-online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japa Mala-Specific | ||||||
| 108-bead mala cycle tracking | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mantra repetition counter | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Sankalpa (intention) setting | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Multiple mantra presets | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1008 repetition tracking | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mala completion sound/chime | — | — | — | — | — | — |
The verdict
DigitalTallyCounter.com
Configurable 108-bead counting with automatic round tracking, haptic feedback at the summit bead, preset targets, and full offline PWA support. Track multiple mantras as separate counters with statistics over time.
Open DigitalTallyCounter.com →ChantingCounter
A purpose-built chanting counter designed for mantra repetition. Simple interface focused on the counting experience with customizable targets for japa practice.
Visit ChantingCounter →What is japa mala? A guide to 108-bead counting
Japa means "to repeat or mutter" in Sanskrit. A mala is a string of 108 beads plus a "guru bead" or "meru" that marks the start and end of a round. Practitioners hold the mala in one hand and advance one bead per mantra repetition. After 108 repetitions, you've completed one round — many practitioners do multiple rounds in a single sitting.
The number 108 holds deep significance across Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism — it represents the wholeness of existence. Common mantras include Om Namah Shivaya, Hare Krishna, Om Mani Padme Hum, and Waheguru in the Sikh tradition.
Dedicated mantra counters vs. general tally counters
Dedicated japa apps like ChantingCounter and JapaCounterOnline are built specifically for mantra practice. They often include visual mala representations, round counting, and sometimes mantra audio. However, many lack features practitioners need for long-term practice: progress saving between sessions, offline support, and historical statistics.
DigitalTallyCounter.com offers 108-bead counting as a configurable mode within a full-featured platform — you get round tracking, haptic feedback, auto-save, offline PWA, and statistics that show your practice over time. You can also track multiple mantras as separate named counters.
How many rounds of japa should I do?
A common daily practice is 1 mala (108 repetitions) per sitting. More dedicated practitioners do 4 rounds (432), 10 rounds (1,080), or even 16+ malas daily. Some traditions set long-term goals — 100,000 or 1,000,000 repetitions of a mantra as a purascharana (completion offering). A digital counter with goal tracking makes these large counts manageable by saving your cumulative total across sessions.
Start your japa practice — for free.
108-bead counting with round tracking. Works offline. No signup required.
Open DigitalTallyCounter.com