I'll be honest with you: I tried Headspace for 6 months. The animations were cute, Andy's voice was soothing, but something was missing. At $70/year, I expected more personalization, more conversation, more... connection. 🤷♂️
If you're reading this, you're probably feeling the same way. Maybe Headspace isn't clicking for you, or you just want to explore what else is out there before committing. Either way, I've spent the last few weeks testing every major Headspace alternative app on the market so you don't have to.
Here's what I found.
🏆 Quick comparison: all apps at a glance
Before we dive deep, here's the TL;DR for busy people:
| App | Best For | Price | Free Tier | AI Chat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calm | Sleep & relaxation | $70/year | Limited | ❌ |
| Insight Timer | Budget users | Free (Premium $60/year) | Excellent | ❌ |
| Wysa | Anxiety & CBT | $100/year | Good | ✅ |
| Woebot | Mood tracking | Free | Full access | ✅ |
| Ube AI | Daily mental wellness | Free trial + $6/mo | Great | ✅ |
Now let's break down each one.
1. Calm 🌙
Best for: People who struggle with sleep
Calm is basically the Netflix of meditation apps. It's polished, premium, and packed with content. The Sleep Stories are genuinely amazing – Matthew McConaughey reading you a bedtime story hits different at 2am when your brain won't shut up.
What I loved:
- Sleep Stories are 🔥 (Harry Styles, LeBron James, Idris Elba...)
- Daily Calm gives you fresh content every single day
- The nature sounds are actually high quality, not those cheap YouTube rain sounds
What annoyed me:
- $70/year is steep when you mainly use one feature
- The meditation library feels generic after a while
- Zero personalization – it doesn't know or remember anything about you
💡 Pro tip: If you ONLY want sleep content, Calm is probably worth it. For everything else? Keep reading.