The 10 best meditation apps of 2024— reviewed by a mind-body therapist

Written by Lauren Teeter, MS, MSW, CNS, LCSW, Fortune Recommends Mental Health Writer

How we test

We assessed countless meditation apps to find you the best ones thus far in 2024. Our testing process involves functionality, quality content, accessibility, and efficiency supported by clinical insights and research.

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Trusted experts

Krista Manning brings her years of experience as a medical copy editor and fact-checker to this piece. Rychel Johnson’s clinical expertise in anxiety treatment and personal development infuses our reviews with practical insights and guidance.

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Meditation is one of the best and simplest ways to support brain and body health in conjunction with nutrition and lifestyle factors. It refers to the mindful practice of paying attention to the moment through a number of unique modalities—including breathwork, body scans, visualizations, and chanting practices. (1)  

Rychel Johnson, M.S., LCPC, a clinical professional counselor, adds, “Meditation is a layperson-friendly way to approach self-care that directly impacts the brain and our relationship to our thoughts.”Meditation apps have gained extensive recognition over the years and are backed by research on calming the body and mind. (2, 3)

Our picks for the best meditation apps

• Best overall: Headspace
• Best sleep: Calm
• Best free: Medito: Meditation & Wellness
• Best for beginners: Relax Meditation: Guided Mind
• Best for anxiety: Ten Percent Happier
• Best guided: Buddhify 
• Best for kids: Smiling Mind
• Best for focus: Insight Timer
• Best for community: Sattva
• Best splurge: Breethe

Best overall meditation app: Headspace

Best overall meditation app

Headspace

This app delivers thoughtful, clinical, evidence-based mindfulness practices and psychoeducation for a range of users.

Fortune Score:

4.9 / 5

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Key product features

Services Mindfulness

Music Yes

Subscription Yes

Languages Five

What you should know

Headspace distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps by providing an extensive, clinically evidenced-based array of engaging mindfulness content that supports various aspects of health. 

• Headspace offers mindfulness meditations for sleep and improving mental health. 
• Offers a host of articles and resources for users.
• The app is best for those looking to get the most out of their meditation practices.

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Why we like Headspace as best overall

Of all the meditation apps we reviewed, Headspace offers the most evidence-based support for meditation. It stands out as one of the best clinical apps for meditation due to its personalized yet evidenced-based approach to improved wellness, with an extensive range of mindfulness modalities—with implications for body and mind health. 

Headspace makes meditation accessible to beginners and more experienced users with structured and intentional practices taught by experts in the field. With comprehensive guided meditation sessions rooted in scientific research, Headspace offers tailored programs targeting specific clinical areas, including stress reduction, anxiety management, sleep, and enhancing focus. Its range of content and mindfulness exercises provide users with practical tools and techniques to cope with various everyday challenges. 

Headspace’s user-friendly interface as a mental health app and individualized recommendations make it accessible and effective for those seeking clinically validated strategies to enhance their well-being. This app offers various meditation sessions to accommodate varying individual needs and preferences. Headspace has hundreds of guided mindfulness meditations and other valuable content for all ages—including sleep stories, music for productivity, stress reduction, engaging breathwork, and mindful movement practices, like yoga. 

From a clinical perspective, it supports well-being from both a body and mind perspective, which as a therapist and nutritionist, I truly appreciate. A growing body of evidence supports the health implications of mind-body practices for improved physical and mental health.(4) For instance, yoga and breathwork have been shown to improve physiological markers of stress in the body. Headspace also includes practices like yoga nidra, which further supports rest, promotes parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) dominance and a reduction in stress. (5)

It offers a two-week free trial, followed by a reasonable rate of $5.83 per month, billed annually at $69.99.

What customers are saying

Several Apple App Store users attested to how Headspace has improved their mental health and daily well-being.

“I am now going on three years with Headspace happier, healthier, more compassionate, resilient, focused, and more,” says Apple App Store reviewer with the username “Nicoco218.” “It brought attention to my mindless eating habits and even helped me lose weight (and keep it off). I didn’t realize that I was living in a ‘cloud’, on auto-pilot until Headspace helped bring me back to myself.”

However, some Apple App Store reviewers voiced dissatisfaction with Headspace’s short free trial, which still locks a lot of content behind a paywall, and the overall price of the app once subscribed.

“VictorAllThingsTech,”, an Apple App Store reviewer says, “Headspace is great and I may say that it’s better than most apps I’ve used. But I don’t like the fact that after going through the tutorial it locks most of the content Headspace offers you and forces you into a subscription that feels overly priced. Yeah, they give you a free trial but after that your pretty much forced. Offer more videos that are free and let people decide for themselves.”

Specs

Best meditation app for sleep: Calm

Best meditation app for sleep

Calm

The Calm app delivers high-quality content backed by research for restorative sleep and stress reduction

Fortune Score:

4.7 / 5

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Key product features

Services Sleep

Music Yes

Subscription Yes

Languages Seven

What you should know

Calm differentiates in the realm of meditation apps by its high-quality, research-backed sleep content. 

• Calm offers evidence-based strategies for reducing stress with ambient music and soothing sounds.
• The app is best for those looking for more calm in their lives.
• It provides clinically proven content in the realm of sleep with bedtime stories and a sleep timer.

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Why we like Calm as best for sleep

Calm offers evidence-based tools focused on improving sleep and well-being. Its comprehensive range of features is tailored specifically to enhance sleep quality and promote relaxation. With a diverse selection of soothing sleep stories, calming music tracks, guided meditations, and breathing exercises, Calm offers a holistic approach to addressing sleep-related challenges. Its immersive audio experiences, narrated by renowned voices, support listeners to tranquil landscapes, promoting a sense of calmness conducive to falling asleep. The app’s Sleep Stories feature is also complemented by supporting children in winding down, establishing healthy bedtime routines, and soothing stories. 

“One of my favorite features of the app is the Sleep Sounds,” says one of our product testers. “I found them to be the most effective in helping me sleep. I personally loved the Classic Piano sounds the most, but they have so many different sounds you can listen to, including wavelengths that are proven to help people fall asleep.”

With customizable sleep timers and ambient soundscapes, Calm empowers users to create personalized sleep regimens tailored to their preferences, making it an efficient tool for those seeking restorative sleep.

Sleep is imperative to overall health. It affects nearly every bodily system—having vast implications for our physical and mental well-being. Sleep affects metabolic, hormonal, immune, and mood health  (6), (7), (8). Compromised sleep can negatively impact these factors. In fact, research suggests that insomnia is a predictor of mental health, further underscoring the impact (8)

Sleep also has a bidirectional relationship with the quality of the gut microbiome, which has also been evidenced to play a role in our well-being (9).  It truly has a soothing impact on both the body and mind. This is important as 80% of the communication in the body is bottom-up; this means that the body sends up messages to the brain relative to its physiological state and functioning. When functions are compromised, this can alert relay signals to the brain.

What customers are saying

Apple App Store users are particularly impressed with Calm’s sleep meditations and the soothing voices they use. 

An Apple App Store reviewer with the username “Calm girl10” says “Whenever I feel stressed or anxious about someone or something, I listen to one of the daily calms or the next day on the meditation trial. Right away, it’s as if you were brought into some beautiful relaxing world where there are these voices saying, ‘It will be ok no matter what. This will pass.’ And it does. It’s amazing how calming and peaceful this app is.”

However, some Apple App Store reviewers note that Calm needs to make improvements in its accessibility, especially for users with visual impairments.

“I am blind and use the screen reader voiceover,” begins “Apellio727,” an Apple App Store reviewer. “I can play the videos for the content well enough with play pause, fast forward but the biggest barrier I am facing is that the mountains which you tap on in the for you tab to bring up the settings are unlabeled. I was trying to turn off the babbling Brook sound, accessible apps need to have text labels to accompany any clickable items. I would love to resubscribe once you have resolved these issues.”

Specs

Best free meditation app: Medito: Meditation & Wellness

Best free meditation app

Medito: Meditation & Wellness

This app delivers a strong meditation product and diverse services for all users, regardless of budget.

Fortune Score:

4.8 / 5

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Key product features

Services Guided

Music Yes

Subscription 100% free

Language English

What you should know

Medito: Meditation & Wellness stands alone as the best meditation app for your budget while still being high-quality. 

• Medito: Meditation & Wellness offers a vast array of mindfulness meditation properties. 
• The app is best for those on a budget looking to meditate. 
• Supports reductions in stress, improved sleep, countless mindfulness meditation exercises, and relaxation techniques. 
• Clinical, evidence-based content.

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Why we like Medito: Meditation & Wellness as best free

The Medito app provides a comprehensive platform for users to cultivate mindfulness, reduce stress, and improve overall well-being. With diverse guided meditations, mindfulness exercises, and relaxation techniques, Medito: Meditation & Wellness caters to users of all experience levels and preferences. Its user-friendly interface, customizable features, and free access to a wide range of content make it an accessible and valuable resource for individuals seeking to establish or deepen their meditation practice. 

We love that it ensures that mindfulness practices are available to all, regardless of socioeconomic status or background. It provides a supportive and empowering environment for users to prioritize their mental health and embark on their journey toward greater mindfulness and self-care. This is important as many individuals don’t have access to mental healthcare (10). 

“Often, one primary barrier to pursuing a meditation practice is the belief that it’s unattainable to meditate regularly or that there is an associated cost,” notes Johnson. “Medito addresses both of these barriers with its free platform and diverse range of meditation offerings.”

What customers are saying

Apple App Store reviewers love Medito’s high quality and free price.

Apple App Store reviewer Montana K. says, “I love this app so much. It has a lot of amazing features, and it definitely helps me improve my mindfulness and mental clarity. It actually has a ton of content, and as someone who regularly struggles with insomnia so bad that even taking melatonin doesn’t usually put me to sleep, the sleep music and the meditation for sleep are both extremely beneficial. I would recommend this app to anyone and everyone, honestly.

My only complaint is that it runs a little slow occasionally or won’t load one of the features. However, that is very rare and only seems to happen if there’s a lot of traffic to the app. They regularly work on making sure the app runs smoothly, and they do a really great job. Considering how much awesome stuff is available on the app for free, I don’t even consider this an issue at all.

Medito is worth downloading!”

However, some Apple App Store users complain that app updates make the app less accessible offline.

“I’ve been using Medito for over a year now and I must say that it was the greatest meditation app I’ve ever used,” begins Apple App Store reviewer with the username “Troll football.” “The simple, seamless design was the selling point for me. But ever since the October UI update, it felt like the developers wanted to ruin the experience for anyone who uses their app offline. I can’t even access the app now without an internet connection, which is a very annoying hurdle to overcome since connection in my area isn’t the greatest thing, so I have to download my meditation sessions beforehand and listen to them when I wake up in the morning…I hope the developers can read this review and fix this issue because I really love Medito and the whole team behind it.”

Specs

Best meditation app for beginners: Relax Meditation: Guided Mind

Best meditation app for beginners

Relax Meditation: Guided Mind

This app provides thoughtful guided meditations to promote a relaxed mind, which is suitable for beginners and more seasoned users.

Fortune Score:

4.7 / 5

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Key product features

Services Soothing sounds

Music Yes

Subscription Yes

Languages Nine

What you should know

Relax Meditation: Guided Mind distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps by being efficient and high-quality for those new to meditation.

• Relax Meditation Guided Mind offers various guided meditations and sessions for all users.
• The app is best for those new to meditation. However, it is also suitable for more seasoned users.
• It has customizable sessions that track progress over time with soothing music.

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Why we like Relax Meditation: Guided Mind as best for beginners

A valuable tool for meditation, this app is considered one of the best for beginners due to its user-friendly interface, gentle guided meditations, and accessible content. It provides a welcoming and engaging introduction to meditation with a variety of guided sessions specifically designed for newcomers. 

These sessions focus on relaxation, stress reduction, and mindfulness fundamentals, making them easy for beginners to follow and engage with. We also noted that the app offers features such as customizable session lengths, soothing background music, and progress tracking to support beginners in establishing a regular meditation practice and tracking their growth over time. 

Music has been shown to support overall well-being with its mood-uplifting properties and stress relief. In fact, music has a powerful influence on the brain, shaping structures and functions (11). Finally, this app also provides a supportive and encouraging environment for beginners to explore mindfulness and embark on their meditation journey with confidence. This is important as a community is essential to our well-being (12).

What customers are saying

Apple App Store reviews mention the impact Relax Meditation has made on their lives, particularly for users who are new to meditation.

“I’ve always wanted to learn to meditate,” says “Ook-bay over-lay”, an Apple App Store reviewer. “I have really been stressing out this past year so I went looking for meditation apps and really liked this app right off the bat when I tried it. The voice of the meditation leader is perfect and I can individually adjust the sounds and the volume of each. I’m hard of hearing so this is actually a big deal to me otherwise I struggle to hear the meditations because the background noise is too loud. There are a lot of features to customize with the sounds, music and background settings. It’s easy to use and intuitive.”

However, some Apple App Store users find the app’s sound quality isn’t up to par, and its meditations aren’t useful for seasoned meditators.

“Myldrid,” an Apple App Store reviewer says, “There are much better options available. Its meditations are a joke and may be useful only for a few weeks to someone totally unfamiliar with meditation, but it’s more likely to turn someone off meditation than to show what a powerful tool it is. Don’t waste your time or money on this app.”

Specs

Best meditation app for anxiety: Ten Percent Happier

Best meditation app for anxiety

Ten Percent Happier

This app provides unmatched anxiety support by delivering clinically evidence-based content.

Fortune Score:

4.8 / 5

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Key product features

Services Anxiety

Music Yes

Subscription Yes

Language English

What you should know

Ten Percent Happier distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps by being specifically tailored to those with anxiety. 

• Ten Percent Happier offers evidence-based support for coping with anxiety.
• The app also provides extensive support and psychoeducation around being with difficult emotions.
• The app is best for those who may need extra support with anxiety.

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Why we like Ten Percent Happier as best for anxiety

This app supports mindfulness relative to uncertainty and difficult emotions, addressing these with nonjudgmental awareness. It emphasizes not trying to change our feelings but being with them with acceptance, which is essential for anxiety. Often, in our culture, we think we need to push away what we perceive as negative thoughts and feelings rather than sit with them. This app appears to utilize theory from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), which works to embrace the full range of your emotions while staying in the present moment with mindfulness. (13)

In fact, general mindfulness is strongly supported in the literature for anxiety (14) and mindfulness meditation exercises (15). Full of a variety of meditation exercises and courses for anxiety, sleep, and stress relief, led and taught by renowned meditation experts, this app is of high regard with promising benefits for reduced anxiety and improved well-being. It also includes material on learning about anxiety, happiness, and overall healthy habits. 

To further support users dealing with anxiety, we love that Ten Percent Happier offers guided daily meditations and “talks” that provide practical advice on applying mindfulness techniques in everyday life. These resources are specifically designed to help users understand and manage their anxiety more effectively. During our review, we noticed the app’s community feature allows users to connect with others who are also working on managing their anxiety, which helps foster a supportive environment where you can shaere experience and strategies with others.

One notable feature we reviews is the “coaching” session where users can ask questions directly to experienced meditation coaches. These coaches can provide personalized feedback and guidance, what can be particularly valuable for users new to meditation or those struggling with specific issues related to anxiety.

What customers are saying

Despite its high cost, many Apple App Store reviewers say Ten Percent Happier is well worth the price.

“Ringer22”, an Apple App Store reviewer says, “I was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder two years ago and was told that I’ve probably been suffering from it much longer than I realized. Fast forward to 2020, I became a first-time mom at 38 years old, suffered from postpartum depression, and just when I was starting to find my footing, the world was immediately hurled into the COVID-19 pandemic. The stress wreaked havoc on my body; I felt so helpless…Now I use the app daily…It’s part of a bigger picture and has made a world of difference. Physically, the chest tightness and muscular tension have decreased significantly. And mentally, I find myself much more resilient in the face of stress, especially the kind induced by the intrusive irrational fears that come with GAD. Thank you to the 10% Happier team. In my case, “10% Happier” would be an understatement.”

Negative reviews are hard to come by, as 10 Percent Happier’s Apple App Store score of 4.8 stars out of 5 demonstrates.

Specs

Best guided meditation app: Buddhify

Best guided meditation app

Buddhify

This app delivers high-quality meditative exercises, ideally for those who want to meditate on the go.

Fortune Score:

4.8 / 5

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Key product features

Services Customizable

Music No

Subscription Yes

Language English

What you should know

Buddhify distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps by being developed by a husband and wife with strong values, providing a thoughtful and intimate meditative experience. 

• Buddhify offers a range of mindfulness meditations on a customized wheel, from walking to improving sleep, reducing stress reduction, and coping with difficult emotions.
• The app is best for those who have limited time for meditation. 
• The team is comprised of a diverse array of dedicated teachers aligned with its mission.

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Why we like Buddhify as best guided

Buddhify is an empowering and accommodating app for users who are thoughtful about the amount of time and individual preferences for meditation use. A beautifully designed wheel provides an overview of the wide range of categories provided. Buddhify’s categories are based on individual needs at the moment—such as dealing with difficult emotions, reducing stress, and improving sleep, among many other categories—all of which impact our mental health. 

Sessions range from meditation on the go—as few as 4 minutes to 30 minutes. This app was developed by a family and diverse team with core values. Additionally, it includes walking and mindfulness meditations for the purpose of work breaks. Noteworthy, the team, in addition to a husband and wife, comprises a diverse array of teachers who are all aligned with its mission and contribute to the app.

Our testing revealed that Buddhify does not require a subscription, offering most of its features upfront with a single purchase. This approach makes it accessible and prevents the barrier of recurring costs. The app also provides personalized meditation experiences without the need for an internet connection, allowing users to engage in guided mindfulness sessions anywhere at any time. We love that Buddify not only accommodates a wide range of meditative needs, but also promotes a holistic approach to mental wellness that is both inclusive and practical.

What customers are saying

Apple App Store reviewers love the soothing voices and short meditations that can be easily incorporated into their day.

“I’ve used Buddhify for a few years now, and it’s by far the most usable, helpful, and interesting of any meditation aids l’ve tried, at a much more accessible price point than most,” says “Kitkattango12,” an Apple App Store reviewer. “Before this I had zero experience with meditation, and felt it was useless when I tried because I didn’t know how to go about it or what to aim for. Then I started listening to Buddhify’s shorter 5-15 minute guided meditations most nights before bed. In addition to being a very relaxing pre-sleep ritual, I gradually learned and practiced various approaches to meditation techniques, mind states, even fun games. …The app is also beautifully designed, voices are enjoyable to listen to, and there’s clearly such care put into every aspect of it—I can’t recommend it enough.”

However, some Apple App Store users found they prefer the breathing-focused meditations on other apps instead.

“4jalee,” an Apple App Store reviewer says, “It gets 3 stars because the layout and the amount of content is impressive. However, the guided meditations in this app are just not my thing. There isn’t enough focus on breathing I think. My mind keeps wandering and I realize halfway through that I’m not even listening to the audio at all. I feel like the other apps give constant gentle reminders (regardless of category) to bring me back into focus.”

Specs

Best meditation app for kids: Smiling Minds

Best meditation app for kids

Smiling Minds

This app delivers high-quality, free content with strong integrity and values in supporting emotional health.

Fortune Score:

4.7 / 5

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Key product features

Services Body scans

Music Yes

Subscription No

Languages Six

What you should know

Smiling Minds distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps by providing free services to improve accessibility to emotional well-being.

• Smiling Minds offers free, engaging content developed by psychologists and educators.
• The app is best for children. 
• Provides body scan meditations and mindful eating, among various other mindfulness and interactive features.

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Why we like Smiling Mind as best for kids

This app has tailored content that is child-friendly, age-appropriate learning, and meditation exercises. It supports the integration of mindfulness, emotional regulation, and self-awareness, measuring progress and providing daily reminders. Developed by psychologists and educators with a library of guided meditations, mindfulness exercises, and relaxation techniques, the app offers a holistic approach to mental well-being. 

Its user-friendly interface, engaging content, and 100% evidence-based practices make it accessible and effective for individuals seeking to cultivate mindfulness relative to the body and mind, manage stress, and enhance emotional resilience. 

We love that it supports integral aspects of well-being for children in congruence with evidence-based research. Smiling Mind’s commitment to education and accessibility ensures that mindfulness practices are accessible to all, making it a valuable resource for promoting mental health and well-being across diverse demographics. 

We appreciate the messaging from Smiling Mind, with its focus on early prevention during childhood for mental health issues that occur throughout adolescence and adulthood. Encouraging youths to engage in a mindfulness practice early, similar to introducing a second language early in life, takes advantage of the higher brain plasticity that allows children to pick up new skills quickly. (16)

What customers are saying

Apple App Store users appreciate how Smiling Minds helps them navigate through stressful situations and make daily life easier.

“I am a teenager,” begins “Eliteballer,” an Apple App Store reviewer. “Throughout my life so far, I have dealt with many stressful situations. From big basketball matches to big tests and exams to self esteem to personal issues. All of which have caused without a doubt, unreasonable and unnecessarily high amounts of stress…Smiling mind has made things so much easier and less stressful. It has made me focus on my breathing through stressful situations and it has made me realize that the stress is not real. It is your mind creating negative thoughts and thinking of all the bad things. It has also made me more calmer and relaxed as a person. I am able to go day to day with a relaxed and healthy and peace at mind thanks to this app.”

One top complaint from Apple App Store reviewers is the relatively small amount of content compared to other meditation apps, which forces them to repeat meditations frequently.

“Picture Editor,” another Apple App Store reviewer says “I’ve used smiling mind for the past three or four years and I’ve loved it…The only negative thing I have to say is that I want more! Particularly more sleep meditations and meditations specifically for when you wake up. I’ve already gone through their 21-day sleep meditation module twice, as well as their sleep for teen and adults modules many times, and they’re amazing, but they do get repetitive if you’re doing them super often.”

Specs

Best meditation app for focus: Insight Timer

Best meditation app for focus

Insight Timer

This app delivers high-quality content for improved focus, with over 190,000+ guided meditations.

Fortune Score:

4.7 / 5

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Key product features

Services 190k+ meditations

Music Yes

Subscription Yes

Languages 18+

What you should know

Insight Timer distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps with its practices tailored to enhance focus. 

• It offers over 190,000 unique guided meditations.
• The app is best for those looking to improve concentration and focus.
• Delivers different types of yoga, visualization, and hypnotherapy.

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Why we like Insight Timer as best for focus

This app provides more than 190,000 guided meditations, including relaxing, concentrative music, courses, workshops, yoga, and an extensive range of educational topics. Insight Timer has thoughtful meditations and a mood tracker. We love this part as it supports emotional awareness and regulation. 

Practices like yoga further promote a sense of grounding and mindfulness while helping to release stress and suppressed emotions through the body via the vagus nerve. This nerve represents the primary component of the PNS and is an example of the bidirectional communication between the body and brain. Its long, extensive nerve fibers are interconnected with nearly all body systems—and relay information relative to the body’s physiological state up to our brain—indicating cues of safety or distress. Practices that activate the vagus nerve include deep abdominal breathing and exhaling, in addition to yoga nidra.(17)

Insight Timer also includes an extensive library of guided meditations and mindfulness practices specifically tailored to enhance focus, concentration, and efficiency taught by an impressive array of professionals. It also has a number of unique features, including visualization and hypnotherapy. With customizable meditation timers and ambient sounds, users can create personalized productivity sessions to suit their needs and preferences. Insight Timer’s community features also promote accountability and support, empowering users to stay motivated and achieve their productivity goals with mindfulness.

What customers are saying

Apple App Store users like how Insight Timer stands apart from other meditation apps with its useful features and frequent updates.

“I initially downloaded this app for the timer—a nice variety of authentic-sounding bowls, blocks, and chimes,” begins “LaurelIT,” an Apple App Store reviewer. “Fast forward four years and I’m continually blown away by the incredible amount and quality of the guided meditation content now available here—all for free. With new recordings arriving each day, there’s everything from basic breath work and mindfulness practices, to creative visualization and hypnotherapy, Yoga Nidra, meditations on specific topics, children’s meditations, meditations in a variety of foreign languages, music, and spiritual talks. I do enjoy seeing the charts of my practice over time and feel more centered and able to cope with life as I enjoy realizing the personal goals l’ve set.”

However, some Apple App Store users complain that the updates make the app less useful and take away what they originally liked about the app.

“This used to be a great app,” laments “Soodfq,” an Apple App Store reviewer. “Simple and compelling. But more than any other app I can think of, they keep making changes that lower the experience…clutter the screen, put the most commonly used features (the timer, for instance) underneath menus instead of on the home page. And they’ve destroyed the community they had by a series of rearrangements and bugs that have killed off a lot of the friendly conversations with others which I enjoyed about this app.”

Specs

Best meditation app for community: Sattva

Best meditation app for community

Sattva

Sattva delivers high-quality content rooted in ancient healing modalities for the body and mind while providing a sense of community.

Fortune Score:

4.7 / 5

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Key product features

Services Mudras

Music Yes

Subscription Yes

Languages Five

What you should know

Sattva distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps by providing tailored recommendations and a sense of community.

• Sattva offers a Meditation Time Tracker, a progress tracker.
• The app is best for community connection. 
• Provides an individualized approach and personal insights.

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Why we like Sattva best for community

This app has content from spiritual teachers and experts, providing guiding meditations, music playlists, mantras, and mudras—facilitating the channeling and unblocking of energy or chakras. It has soothing effects on the body and mind through these properties, promoting alignment of the body, mind, and spirit. 

Sattva provides a sense of community for users, allowing them to connect and share experiences. This app also demonstrates meditation’s ancient roots, drawing from healing Vedic principles, teachings, and practices. Chanting and mudras have notably been shown to activate the vagus nerve, promoting a sense of body safety that is communicated to the brain or central nervous system. (18)

When we looked closer into the community features, we noticed that Sattva includes a unique social platform where users can create profiles, join meditation circles, and participate in live events, fostering a global community of meditation practitioners. This sense of connection is enhanced with leaderboards and shared meditation challenges that encourage a friendly, supportive environment for growth and learning.

We love that Sattva integrated personalized progress tracking and rewards, which reinforces user engagement and creates a more tailored meditation journey.

What customers are saying

Apple App Store users love Sattva because of the variety of its meditations and other features.

“This app is much better than Calm or Headspace,” begins “CMGazul,” an Apple App Store reviewer. “First, the free version offers much more than either of the other two apps. That’s generosity. And second, the subscription is comparable or less, and you get more. Try it. I have been using it for three years and I love it. Awesome guided meditations and fabulous music and chants. I highly recommend it.”

Common Apple App Store complaints include disappointment with app updates and having a hard time contacting user support.

“Casey_2481,” an Apple App Store reviewer says “I used to love this app, it was perfect! Then came a big update where the appearance totally changed. It feels really cumbersome to start a meditation since you now have to scroll down, manually set an ending bell (I’ve forgotten a few times and so I’ve gone over my time), and I have to manually input my time since it’s no longer one of the preset times. The overall effect it has now is being clunky to use, where before you opened the app and tapped a few buttons. Very simple.”

Specs

Best splurge meditation app: Breethe

Best splurge meditation app

Breethe

This app provides customizable and unique features from a body and mind perspective and quality content.

Fortune Score:

4.6 / 5

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Key product features

Services Hypnotherapy

Music Yes

Subscription Yes

Languages Two

What you should know

Breethe distinguishes itself in the realm of meditation apps by providing unique mindfulness modalities. 

•  Offers personalized programs to enhance relaxation. 
•  The app is best for those interested in hypnotherapy. 
•  Provides unique music for user experience.

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Why we like Breethe as best splurge

This app’s relatively high price tag pays for its many benefits, including mindfulness exercises, meditations, sleep stories, and music specialized to support relaxation and reduce user stress, as well as breathing exercises. The premium content of this app offers personalized programs for increased relaxation, reduced stress, and improved overall well-being from renowned experts. This app also supports tuning out and winding down with hypnotherapy and unique music soundtracks. Hypnotherapy has been suggested to play a role in combating stress and improving overall health, as evidenced by research on GI issues and sleep (19), (20). 

A key feature we love about Breethe is its customizability in getting to the underlying reason for the user’s anxiety and stress. This is important as it individualizes modalities for the individual while attempting to get to the root cause.

Adding to its premium offerings, we noticed that Breethe provides exclusive access to masterclasses and webinars led by world-class experts in the field of mindfulness, psychology, and wellness. These sessions are designed to offer deeper insights and practical tools for managing stress, enhancing emotional intelligence, and fostering mental resilience. 

During our review of the app, we noted that it also features a vast library of content that includes over a thousand tracks f guided meditations, sleep aids, and mindfulness talks that are regularly updated. We love that users will never run out of options and can always find something new to help them in their journey towards mental wellness.

What customers are saying

Apple App Store users love the helpful customer service and impactful features Breethe provides.

“Mightymrsquinn,” an Apple App Store reviewer says “Learning to meditate and sleep better!

This app has been a real asset to me. I didn’t know how to quiet my mind in order to meditate nor did I feel comfortable beginning on my own as I felt unsure of how to start. Breethe has not only shown me how to get started but helped me understand that random thoughts during meditation are completely normal.”

Negative Apple App Store reviews note bugs within the app, especially with the daily streak counter. But many also found that customer service was helpful in working one-on-one to resolve their issue.

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