In Balanced Achievement’s ‘iThrive’ series, we aim to present you with a variety of useful iOS and Android Apps that are designed to accelerate personal growth and improve one’s quality of life. In this article, we look at the 25 best meditation apps that you can utilize to cultivate inner peace and enrich your spiritual practice.
Over the past 20 years, the ancient practice of meditation has taken on a digital flair and what once was reserved for monks in the Himalayas and sadhus on the banks of the Ganges is now widely available to spiritual seekers throughout the world. As technological advancements have given rise to powerful personal devices such as the iPhone and iPad, each and every one of us has gained an ever-expanding opportunity to learn from iconic meditation teachers, track our meditative progress, and connect with a worldwide community of like-minded seekers.
That said, there are a seemingly endless number of compelling meditation apps available to us and we’ve aimed to illuminate the best of the best here while remaining cognizant of the fact that practitioners of different experience levels may desire different app features. We’ve separated our list of the 25 best mindfulness & meditation apps into two sections below, with a top 10 featuring in-depth app analysis and a second section with 15 shorter app reviews, with hopes of presenting various programs that can bolster the practices of beginner and advanced meditators.
Balanced Achievement’s Top 10 Meditation Apps:
When compiling our list, we additionally sought to limit our focus to empowering meditation apps that come at a reasonable price and are easy to use. This means that although enriching practice tools such as the Muse: Brain Sensing Headband and other spirituality-related services such as Gaia: Streaming Consciousness TV and Thrive for Alexa are accompanied by their own apps, we’ve left them off our list because of their cost and the additional accessories they require. With that being said, let’s now turn our attention to examining Balanced Achievement’s top 10 mindfulness and meditation apps:
10.) One-Moment Meditation:
For those of you who struggle to find the time to practice or are looking for a transformative technology that you can quickly call upon whenever you find yourself in stressful situations, the One-Moment Meditation App, which comes equipped with a five-minute instructional video, meditation timer, practice reminders, and additional meditative exercises, may be just what you’re looking for.
9.) Simple Habit – Meditation:
If the hectic nature of everyday life makes it impossible for you to maintain a regular practice, the Simple Habit Meditation App, which is designed to help users stress less, achieve more and live better with just five minutes each day, maybe the app you’re looking for.
8.) Stop, Breathe & Think:
To date, the Stop, Breathe & Think App, which assuredly can foster a greater sense of self-awareness in both kids and adults, has been downloaded over 3.5 million times, accumulated over 11 million emotional check-ins, and ranks #167 on Apple’s list of best health & fitness apps. If you’re interested in giving this inspiriting app a try, you can access over 30 exercises free of charge but will need a subscription, which costs $9.99/month or $58.99/year, to unlock the entire meditation library.
7.) 10% Percent Happier: Meditation:
In addition to learning meditation from the likes of Sharon Salzberg, Joseph Goldstein, and Judson Brewer, users are also given precise instructions on how to apply mindfulness to different facets of life including their relationships, diet, work, and political stress. If you’re looking for a practical meditation app that was designed for everyday individuals, the 10% Happier App, which costs $9.99/month or $99.99/year, maybe the app for you.
6.) Pacifica for Stress & Anxiety:
While the vast majority of other apps featured in this article are built solely around meditative practices, the Pacifica App seamlessly fuses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) activities with Mindfulness Meditation and other relaxation exercises. With innovative psychologist-designed tools such as a mood tracker, thoughts record, self-monitoring journal, and more, the price of only $8.99/month or $53.99/year makes Pacifica a must-have for anyone dealing with the debilitating symptoms that come from stress.
5.) Meditation Studio:
Better yet still, the app allows users to collect their favorite guided activities, relating to topics such as habit change, health, happiness, and compassion, and unguided practices to create their own personalized meditation studio collection. With a price tag of only $7.99/month, $17.99/quarter, or $49.99/year, there are few apps that can match the package the Meditation Studio App offers.
4.) Headspace: Meditation:
With an animated interface that keeps individuals motivated to practice, hundreds of themed meditation sessions focusing on everything from sleep to anxiety, and a variety of other practical exercises and useful tools, all of which are based on science, Headspace has amassed over six million users and rose to #9 on Apple’s list of best health & fitness apps. While the app offers an introductory course free of charge, to gain full access to the app’s meditation library, you’ll have to pay for a subscription at a cost of $12.99/month or $94.99/year.
3.) Sattva Meditations and Mantras:
In addition to the mystical meditations, chants, and mantras, Sattva also has a number of other features designed to keep users enthusiastic about their practice. For example, the app tracks user statistics, arranges group sittings, awards trophies for completed challenges, hosts live events, and offers a fully interactive meditation community. At a cost of just $12.99/month or $49.99/year, Sattva Meditations and Mantras is the perfect app for anyone interested in the ancient roots of meditation.
2.) Calm:
Additionally, the monthly Calm Masterclass, which is taught by world-renowned meditation experts, and highly customizable guided meditations add to Calm’s wide variety of life-affirming offerings. For a cost of $12.99/Month or $59.99/Year, there’s a good reason why many consider Calm to be the best mindfulness app on the market today.
1.) Insight Timer – Meditation App:
Additionally, with guided meditations from over 2,000 of the world’s best teachers, including Tara Brach, Mooji, Ram Dass, Jack Kornfield, and Sadhguru, the app offers the rare chance to be instructed by some of the greatest spiritual minds alive today. On top of this unmatched collection of meditations and teachers, Insight Timer, which is entirely free to use unless you want to pay $2.99/month for access to the guided practices while you’re offline, features a fully interactive meditation community that brings together nearly five million meditators.
15 Additionally Inspiriting Mindfulness & Meditation Apps:
While all of Balanced Achievement’s Top 10 Meditation Apps can assuredly help you take your practice to the next level, they only scratch the surface of the seemingly endless number of empowering mindfulness apps that are available today. Depending upon where you find yourself in life, what your meditation experience level is, and why you’re ultimately interested in nurturing your practice with an app, there may be one that better suits your needs. For this reason, we’ve included 15 additionally inspiriting meditation apps below, presented in alphabetical order, all of which can enrich your practice in their own unique way:
Aura: Calm Anxiety & Sleep: Ranked #32 on Apple’s list of the best health & fitness apps, the Aura App, which fully utilizes the power of artificial intelligence, can help you reduce stress and improve sleep quality in as little as three minutes each day.
bNirvana: Guided Meditations: The bNirvana App offers a sleek design, highly customizable features, and expertly guided instructions for a wide variety of meditation and yoga practices.
Bodhi Mind Meditations: From the founder of the Buddhist organization Wildmind and acclaimed spiritual teacher Bodhipaksa comes this empowering app which houses over 100 meditations, guided by the master himself, on a variety of different topics related to life.
Breethe – Meditation & Music: As the #71 ranked Health & Fitness app, Breethe can help you bring more calm, peace, and happiness into your life with a diverse collection of ten-minute guided meditations.
Brightmind: Guided Meditation: In this inspiriting app, you have the chance to be guided through an extensive and life-affirming meditation system directly from the iconic spiritual teacher, Shinzen Young, who developed it.
buddhify: meditation on the go: The Buddhify App ranks #40 on Apple’s list of best health & fitness apps and differentiates itself from the crowd by offering a wide variety of meditation practices, both for when you’re on the go and when you have time to sit formally, at a fraction of the price of many other meditation apps.
Chill Outz: For any parent struggling to discipline their children with traditional timeouts, the Chill Outz App may be the alternative they’re looking for as it houses a collection of animated stories that teach kids how to stay mindful and relaxed.
Happify: for Stress & Worry: With techniques developed by experts in the fields of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness Meditation, and Positive Psychology, the Happify App can be a powerful tool for anyone wanting to gain better control of their emotional well-being.
Mindbliss – Guided Meditation: With an impressive collection of guided meditations, highly acclaimed teachers, and numerous practice tools, such as 3D nature soundscapes and advanced brain entrainment technology, the Mindbliss App can assuredly help you increase your levels of subjective well-being.
Mindfulness Daily: This innovative App is designed to systematically help users build mindfulness into their daily routine with a number of practice tools and gentle reminders for short daily exercises.
Reflectly – Journal / Diary: While all of the apps we’ve discussed throughout this article can help you better manage your emotions and live more fully in the present moment, the Reflectly personal journal and diary, which is driven by artificial intelligence and utilizes various activities from Positive Psychology, Mindfulness Meditation, and CBT, can more specifically improve your self-awareness and enhance your capabilities to transform negative thoughts into positive alternatives.
Shine – Daily Self-Care: The Shine Daily Self-Care App offers a unique personal development approach and includes app features such as inspirational text messages, gratitude check-ins, mindful moments, and motivational audio talks.
Simply Being – Guided Meditation: For anyone looking for a simple and inexpensive app that’s still got a bit of elegance and a lot of empowering practices, the New York Times recommended Simply Being App, which offers a range of customizable features, maybe what you’re looking for.
Smiling Mind: If you’re interested in teaching your children meditation, there are a few options that can match the Smiling Mind App, which was designed by psychologists and educators, as it offers mindfulness programs specifically designed for kids aged between 7-18 years old.
The Mindfulness App: With over 200 guided meditations and courses, user statistics, and an array of customizable options, The Mindfulness App, which is used by millions of meditators in over 130 countries, can help you cultivate a more relaxed and healthier state of mind.