Nothing worn on your wrist can really track steps exactly. They can only detect steps from the swinging of your arms as in normal walking. Fitbit uses algorithms to try to tell the difference between other movements and walking but obviously doesn't always get it right. Most people find that over the course of a day the errors are relatively small.
For a few activities you might find it better to take the Fitbit off, maybe use the time for charging, such as if you are doing a lot of knitting, playing drums, etc. For something like washing hands, I figure they will balance out if I am going for 10,000 steps a day. Plus I will probably wash my hands every day so it is still accurate for comparing days to each other.
For pushing a stroller or shopping cart, or walking on treadmill while holding hand rail, you can probably get better step count by putting tracker in your pocket, but then you won't be getting heart rate data.
But also keep in mind that besides steps, it is also getting heart rate data, which is a bigger factor in calculating calorie burn.
If it is into evening and I see I have 8,000 steps today, I might be motivated to take a 20 minute walk to hit my 10,000 steps. For me, that alone makes it worthwhile. One might say, well that was really only 9,800 steps, not really 10,000. I would say, so what? It motivated me to get more exercise.
But if an exact step count is the only thing you want, you might be as well of with something clipped to belt.
Before posting, re-read to see if it would make sense to someone else not looking at your Fitbit or phone.
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