Research has shown meditation to reduce stress, enhance overall health and wellbeing, boost the immune system, increase creativity and problem-solving skills. Meditation can also help you sleep better. Here are some of our favorite apps that can get you started on your way to a happier life.
1) Calm – Meditation Timer/Sleep Sounds/Nature Sounds
Meditation apps are really just slept sounds apps because you’re supposed to be asleep! The one big difference is the timer, because if you’re trying to fall asleep then you need to know when it’s time for bed so that’s why we have this app up here in number 1. There are also lots of great nature sound apps out there too but this is definitely my favorite. Available for both iOS and Android.
2) Insight Timer – Meditation Timer/Sleep Sounds/Nature Sounds
Another great timer app with this cool feature that makes it easy to find new meditations by category, length, language etc. Available for both iOS and Android.
3) 10% Happier – Guided Meditations/Daily Emails/Relaxing Music
This is the app I wish I had when I started out on my meditation journey! It’s so well designed with short guided meditations by world-renowned teachers Daniel Goleman, Goldie Hawn, Satya Twena—and you can also learn from Joe Rogan too if that’s your thing. The daily email summaries are just brilliant! You can read all about my 10% happier experience here. Available for both iOS and Android.
4) Buddhify – Meditation Timer/Sleep Sounds/Natures Sounds
Love the simplicity of this app and it’s a great one to start with if you’re new to meditation and don’t want too many bells and whistles at first. Love that they also have an option of sleeping sounds, nature sounds or both together if you need some white noise to help you sleep! Available for both iOS and Android.
5) Headspace – Guided Meditations/Mindfulness Coach/Daily Emails
Another fantastic app—I love the daily emails as well as the ability to connect with your friends on leaderboard (if that’s your thing). I also love that it breaks down the concept of meditation into 10 areas—so if you want to work on one of them each day then this is a great app for that. It has over 100 guided meditations by Andy Puddicombe, who founded it in 2010. Available for both iOS and Android.
6) Meditation Studio – Guided Meditations/Relaxing Music/Daily Emails
Do you like beautiful sounds and calming music? This app has it all! You can listen to lots of great guided meditations as well as nature sounds and relaxing music! There’s also the option to set an alarm and use sleep mode (I think this function should be available in every meditation app!). Meditation Studio claims that 1 in 3 people could benefit from meditation and I think this is a great way to find out how it can help you. Available for both iOS and Android.
7) Mindfulness – Guided Meditations/Daily Emails/Sleep Mode
This app has quite a few good features with lots of guided meditations, daily emails—and the sleep mode function where you can choose between white noise or guided meditation audio! If your mind wanders during meditation then this is one of the best apps out there because they have a lot of exercises to help improve mindfulness. This app is another one I wish was around when I first started meditating because it’s so easy to use. Available for both iOS and Android.
8) Positive Head – Guided Meditations/Music to Relax/Affirmations
This is a great app for beginners that covers most of the bases with guided meditations, music—and also includes some positive affirmations! I love the sleep mode function too which plays soft relaxing music for you while you fall asleep. Available for both iOS and Android.
9) Omvana – Meditation Timer/Daily Emails/Relaxing Music
This app has it all in one place which can be really useful if you don’t want to have lots of apps on your phone! You get white noise sounds to help you relax, over 1000 guided meditation tracks with human voice-overs in 30+ different languages! It even has soothing nature sounds too if that’s your thing. Available only for iOS at the moment.
10) Solitude – Meditation Timer/Daily Emails/Relaxing Music
This app is both beautiful and brilliant—it’s like having a meditation teacher in your pocket! There are lots of great guided meditations to choose from, daily emails, relaxing music and even meditations that you can customise by choosing the background sounds or length of track. I love this one because it has different themes you can subscribe to too if meditating on specific topics is more your thing. Available only for iOS at the moment.
