What's the best meditation app for beginners?

Question

Pavan Sethi · Accepted Answer

Super simple meditation app for beginners to start learning.  Give it prime real estate on your home screen to make sure you stick to 10 minutes a day!

Gaurav Agrawal · Answer

I personally used this, Its has smaller sessions, which is best for beginners, other then meditation sessions it has very focused sessions for different stress moments.

Frederik Waller · Answer

Great alternative to Headspace with more free content available. However, I have to admit, the narrator from Headspace is better and more relaxing.

Alfredo Torres · Answer

If you're a beginner, you still want to know why you should even meditate. Is there a point to sitting and breathing for x amount of time? Will it actually work for you? What are the real benefits?

10% Happier answers this in a conversational way. Like you and me talking, then meditating for a few minutes.

Vinh Pham · Answer

I was in search of a good meditation app this past weekend and landed on Meditation Studio. I like how they have guided meditation separated into different categories like stress, sleep and happiness. The guides are broken up into downloadable audio tracks that can easily be deleted. Another bonus is that it tracks your progress under the MIndfulness category in iOS' Health app.

Richard Banfield · Answer

I've been using Headspace for about 3 months now. I was a little skeptical at first but now I'm hooked. Ideal for beginners but also useful for old timers like me. If you're already doing some type of mindful meditation or breathing this can be used to add some new focusing elements to the practice.

Pushpak Chakraborty · Answer

So many meditation apps out there, but have you ever wondered how many are really true to the practice? Aware comes from the land of origin of meditation - India, and is created by teachers with decades of experiences in studying the vast subject. The app is absolutely simple, just like the way they teach meditation, and stays absolutely true to the practice.

The guide on the app is a meditation teacher who truly immerses you in the practice and he has already made Aware a life-changing experience for thousands across the globe.

The biggest differentiator about Aware is the intent with which it has been developed - to help people. Reasonable price, 24*7 assistance with meditation, and a Support Team that will never disappoint you.

Igor Bonatto · Answer

Headspace with a different voice and less visual noise.

Carol Mc Keon · Answer

I just started using this this week to try to manage stress and anxiety better, a total beginner but I find it very good, 10 mins a day on the first round, its not patronizing, I think its a keeper

J# · ジェイソン・サーガイン · Answer

Easy to use. Good complement to Headspace.

Kevando · Answer

Not an app, but I found this audio book incredible and re-enforced the amazing lessons from Headspace.

Jason Thai · Answer

Pause makes it super easy to get over the initial hump of mediation.  The initial experience is following a circle on your screen with your finger while listening to relaxing music.  The action naturally puts you in the flow of meditation.

S-M Robinson · Answer

They could use a little more musical variety, but I find that I feel better after a Brain.fm session as opposed to others.

Ryan Chin · Answer

MindFi is an easy-to-use app for busy humans to improve your focus and attention with a super-convenient meditation system, where you train with YOUR EYES OPEN. MindFi content is displayed in a daily timeline that consists of your daily routine like meals, commutes and breaks. For productivity geeks , we also baked in a handy Pomodoro timer so you can spend your 5-minute break wisely, with meditation!

Mario Mendoza · Answer

I've been using this app for 146 days and love it. The guided meditations offer various playlists to explore such as meditations based on stress relief, sleep, chanting/mantras, and mindfulness just to name a few. It also has a nice timer that can let you just explore your own meditation practice as well.

The stats section is nice and motivating when you see how many consecutive days you have been practicing and what time was dedicated.

I was also very impressed with the community. When you finish meditating it offers a list of people across the globe who were meditating at the same time as you, which is really cool. You can "thank them of meditating with me" and potentially become friends.

Brendan Beirne · Answer

Functional, straightforward meditation app with community and guided meditation features.

Andrew Peluso · Answer

Simple. Basic. Helpful. A nice variety of meditations and voices to take you through a meditation.

David Adamu · Answer

I used Headspace when I had a mental health situation. I had it before I fell into that situation but never used it. When I tried it, I discovered you sometimes never really know whether you're at the verge of depression or not. Headspace is a great product to help you maintain that balance.

Diogo Ferreira · Answer

I already used Headspace and Calm but find out that Inscape has some longer sessions with techniques that worked better with me.

Robb · Answer

Perfect for beginners. Either start a meditation journey or do a one-off here and there. Love it

Ela Mazurkiewicz · Answer

My favorite one! I started my meditation practice using Stop, Breathe & Think. It helped me to relax and manage anxiety and stress. I believe that it's perfect for beginners.

Beth Hudson · Answer

Pacifica is more of cognitive behavioral therapy, but they have guided and unguided meditation for free on the app, as well! I just think it's designed really well, and you don't have to make in-app purchases unless you want to.

Archana Patchirajan · Answer

Sattva is the most authentic meditation app! Ancient Guided Meditations & Mantras for the modern world!

Elias Bizannes · Answer

It's hard to get into meditation and develop a practice for it. Visualising relaxing environment helps get you there faster and is a good way to get into it.

Ben Raz · Answer

i used it for a couple of mothns and i must say it is fully costumazible and relaxing

Ben Raz · Answer

natural sounds with timer
easy to relax by yourself from a busy day

Barry Graubart · Answer

Very simple, especially for sleeplessness. Only complaint is categories are hard to discern in the dark, making navigation harder than it needs to be.

Alec Ellin · Answer

Love this for going to sleep / can't sleep meditations

Oscar Morrison · Answer

Its a hardware + software solution, but for me made it super easy to get into meditation. I love all the data it provides as well. I highly recommend.

Alin - Catalin · Answer

It's the best meditation app for beginners. It's simple to use, it's focus is on learning to meditate so it's ideal for beginers!

Vinit Agrawal · Answer

Meditation practice with just 10 minutes everyday

Kees Suijkerbuijk · Answer

Easy to learn and great user experience. Would like to have more meditation options though.

Answer

Probably the oldest and the most well researched.

Ben Raz · Answer

i discovered it from this site and it looks high quallity and really effective tools

also the web app is great and usefull

Ben Raz · Answer

colorful and simble app

i like just the ambient and timer

Daniel Wilkinson · Answer

Insight Timer is one of the most popular free meditation apps out there, and it’s easy to see why. The app features more than 4,000 guided meditations from over 1,000 teachers—on topics like self-compassion, nature, and stress—plus talks and podcasts. If you prefer a quieter meditation, you can always set a timer and meditate to intermittent bells or calming ambient noise.

joshua bradley · Answer

While it has more features perhaps than some of the others, the wealth of guided meditations ensures that meditation at any level is available with guidance from some great teachers.

Also, I would suggest trying to get in on the beta for Oak Meditation app by Kevin Rose. It is going to be a strong offering and is perfect for getting started

Sambruce Joseph · Answer

Omvana has great tracks which relaxes the mind and great for beginners like me

Jon Maldia · Answer

It's easy to use. A lot of free resources and their guided meditation is excellent. Also, for most of the meditations, you can set it to however long you want, even the guided ones.

Ben Raz · Answer

vareity of meditations
easy to use and easy to understand

Jay Mutzafi · Answer

Guided meditation in beautiful and meditative settings.

Ariel Jalali · Answer

I love SBT.  The fact  that it works in messengers like Slack make it the perfect thing to neutralize the largest cause of stress during the day - work stress. Great job!

Anne-Laure Le Cunff · Answer

Love this app I've recently discovered. They did a great job with the web app too so you can use it anywhere.

Ben Raz · Answer

you can also get a daily break reminder

you can also follow your progress using built in calendar

Petar Jursic · Answer

"Learn how to strengthen your mind, cultivate resilience, master your emotions, and pave the way towards a modern enlightenment."
It's a no positive thinking/mindfulness/new age bullshit meditation app. It's meant to track your progress and guide you with short audio lessons unlockable by meditating.

Menachem Krinsky · Answer

@kevinrose is working on a new meditation app called Oak. Join his private group to access the beta