Mathematics plays a vital role in developing students’ logical reasoning and problem-solving abilities, which are essential for both academic success and everyday decision-making. However, many Junior High School learners still struggling with the basic numeracy that leads to low performance in mathematics as a whole. Addressing this issue calls innovative and engaging teaching strategies that will help make mathematical ideas more understandable and appealing. This study investigates the effectiveness of counters-based activities and gamification interventions in improving the basic numeracy skills of struggling learners in Junior High School within Borongan City District IV. The research aims to determine which intervention will enhance learners’ understanding of fundamental mathematical concepts such as number sense, operation, and problem-solving. Using a quasi-experimental design, two groups of low-performing students were exposed to different interventions: one utilizing traditional counters and other employing gamified mathematical activities. Pre-test and post-test scores measured numeracy gains, while learners feedback provided insights on engagement and motivation. The findings aim to guide educators in adopting evidence-based, learner-centered strategies to strengthen numeracy development among struggling students in Junior High School. The pretest results showed that learners in all groups had low numeracy proficiency. The gamification group scored 35.5 (Low Proficient), the counters group 23.3 (Non-Proficient), and the control group 28.6 (Low Proficient), indicating that all the participants struggled with basic operations in Mathematics. After the intervention, post-test results revealed notable improvement. The gamification group achieved 68.5 (Nearly Proficient), the counters group 62.8 (Nearly Proficient), and the control group 58.6 (Nearly Proficient). Statistical analysis confirmed that these improvements were significant for all groups: gamification (t = -8.51, df = 29, p < .001), counters (t = -9.07, df = 29, p < .001), and control (t = -7.48, df = 29, p < .001). the null hypothesis was rejected in all cases, indicating that the interventions had a measurable effect on learners’ numeracy skills.