Shot timer app or dedicated shot timer?

Updated 22 October 2026 · 4 min read

I make a shot timer app, so take this with that in mind: a phone app doesn't fully replace a good dedicated timer. It is tied to the phone's speaker, microphone and battery. But for most practice it does the job, for free.

The short answer

Use an app for dry fire, for regular practice, and when your timer is at home. Buy a dedicated timer if you run matches, train live fire often on loud outdoor bays, or want something that survives the range bag year after year.

Beep loudness

Dedicated timers are built to be heard through ear protection on an outdoor range. A phone speaker is quieter, and how loud it gets depends on the phone. Two things close most of the gap: a screen flash and a vibration on the beep, which Simple Shot Timer fires at the same moment as the sound, and a Bluetooth speaker. The app measures the speaker's delay through the microphone, so its lag doesn't end up in your times.

Microphone and fast splits

A dedicated timer's microphone and electronics are designed for one sound: a gunshot. A phone microphone is designed for voices, and phones process the signal to make speech clearer. Simple Shot Timer switches that processing off where the phone allows it, can filter for the frequency band of your shots, and uses an echo filter (80 ms by default) so one shot doesn't count twice off a wall.

For normal splits that works well. Where a phone is most likely to miss or merge a shot is very fast splits on a loud indoor range with a lot of echo. That is exactly what a good dedicated timer is built for. If a shot is missed or doubled, you can fix it in the review, but on a timer you trust you shouldn't have to.

Neighbouring bays

Any timer that listens for shots can count a neighbour's shot that is as loud as yours, dedicated or not. Keeping the timer close to you helps both. The app lets you delete a stray shot in the review afterwards.

Battery and toughness

A dedicated timer runs a long time on its batteries and is built to be dropped, rained on and stuffed into a range bag. A phone runs with the screen on during strings, and it's the same phone you need for everything else, so a long range day costs real battery. Brass and drops are also harder on a phone than on a timer.

Price

A dedicated shot timer costs about $100 or more. Simple Shot Timer is free, with no ads, no in-app purchases and no account, and the code is open source.

History and analysis

This is where a phone is strong. The app saves every string together with the drill it was shot with, up to 5,000 strings, and shows splits, first shot, fastest, slowest and average for each. You can add a label, notes and a penalty, save the drills you run often, and export everything as CSV. Some dedicated timers sync to an app as well; others only keep the last few strings on the device.

When a dedicated timer is worth buying

You run matches as a range officer. Matches are normally run with dedicated timers.
You shoot live fire every week on loud outdoor bays, where the beep has to cut through ear protection and wind.
Your splits are fast enough that every hundredth matters, on any range.
You want one rugged device that only times, and keeps the phone in your pocket.

Until then, an app is a solid alternative, and a good backup for the day the timer is at home. To get the most out of one, read how to use your phone as a shot timer, and for practice ideas, the dry-fire par drills.

Which dedicated timer to buy

These are the timers you'll see most at IPSC, USPSA and IDPA matches. I don't sell any of them and nobody paid to be listed. Prices are US prices from the maker or a major US retailer in October 2026, rounded.

CED7000 GEN-2 (Competitive Edge Dynamics, sold by Double-Alpha, about $140): the small timer range officers have used at IPSC and USPSA matches for years. A loud beep, a rechargeable battery with USB-C, no app.
PACT Club Timer III (about $130): simple and very loud, with no app or Bluetooth. It runs on a 9-volt battery.
Competition Electronics ProTimer and ProTimer BT (about $140 and $170): US-made match timers with five par times. The BT version syncs strings to an app and to PractiScore. The older Pocket Pro II is no longer made.
AMG Lab Commander (about $190): listed by USPSA as its official timer, with Bluetooth sync to PractiScore and a sensitivity the maker says picks up dry fire. It is often on backorder.
Shooters Global SG Timer GO and SG Timer 2 (about $180 and $330): app-connected timers that sync to the maker's Drills app and to PractiScore, with dry-fire detection.

A simple timer like the PACT or the CED7000 covers everything a match needs. The Bluetooth models are worth the extra if you want your strings in an app. For dry fire alone you don't need any of them: a par timer is enough.