Top Free and Discounted Meditation Apps for a More Mindful You

Woman in an orange sweater with her eyes closed and headphones in looks peaceful as she sits on the edge of a couch

Mindfulness apps have become a go-to resource for managing stress, improving sleep, and enhancing overall well-being. The great news? Many of these apps offer free content, making mindfulness accessible to anyone with a smartphone. Some are entirely free, while others provide free trials or have discounted plans available right now. Just remember to cancel before the trial ends if you don’t want to be charged! Many of these apps also feature family friendly content like sleep stories and lullabies, making them perfect for both adults and children. Let’s dive into some of the best free and discounted mindfulness apps available today.

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Image depicting the "wheel" section of the Buddhify app with different meditations collected in one place

Buddhify

Buddhify does not offer a free trial nor discounts on its memberships, but it is one of the most affordable at $30 a year. Plus, its free content library is robust and designed for busy, modern lifestyles. 

Highlights of the App
  • On-The-Go Meditations: These meditations are designed to meet you where you are you don’t have to carve out special time for mindfulness. 
  • Guided Meditations: When you do have more time for meditation, there are practices devoted to stress, taking a break from work, sleep, and a variety of other topics. 
  • Customizable: Create a wheel that suits your needs using Edit Mode or pick from curated wheels such as “Tough Times” or “Mindfulness Ninja.” 
Content from the Calm app is shown including sleep meditations, bedtime stories, and more.

Calm

Sign up to access Calm’s free content here. You can give also Calm Premium a try for free for 14 days when you sign up for a yearly plan. That yearly plan is $69.99 ($5.83 per month) and a monthly plan is $14.99 per month. Right now, the Calm Premium yearly plan is marked down 50% to $34.99 here. 

Highlights of the App
  • Music: Exclusive audio for the Calm app is tailored to help in several areas including focus, relaxation, and sleep. 
  • Guided Meditations: Hundreds of various guided meditations to practice mindfulness in as little as two minutes. 
  • Sleep Stories: These bedtime stories for grown-ups come in a variety of lengths and styles with many read by celebrities including Harry Styles, Cynthia Erivo, and Cillian Murphy. 
  • Student Plan: Students over 18 years old enrolled in a post-secondary program or university can sign up with their .edu email address and receive a 30-day free trial and a monthly subscription at $3.50 per month. 

Headspace 

Download and access Headspace’s free content here. If you sign up for a monthly plan, you can try the paid version of Headspace for seven days to start. If you sign up for a yearly plan, you can try it for 14 days. Plans are usually $12.99 when paying by month or $69.99 for the year ($5.83 per month). Headspace has a limited time offer here: $38.99 for three months and $48.99 for a year. 

Highlights of the App
  • Guided Meditations: There are over 1,000 guided meditations offered with a range of themes from calming everyday anxiety to audio created for navigating injustice and tragedies.  
  • Sleep Assistance: Guided meditations, sleep health courses by scientists, and even bedtime stories are available. You can also use Soundscapes – comprised of sounds and music – to relax and fall asleep with. 
  • Expert-led courses: Courses are offered to help navigate sleep issues, manage difficult emotions, and let go of stress. 
  • Student access: Students 18 years or older in a post-secondary program or university can get a year’s worth of access for $9.99.  
Image of Healthy Minds App on phone showing a module on Awareness

Healthy Minds

One key difference of Healthy Minds is that it’s entirely free! It’s also a structured app with a sequence of modules. 

Highlights of the App
  • Four Pillars: You’ll start with answering questions to set a baseline in four areas – awareness, connection, insight, and purpose. 
  • Course Length: You can set the duration of each series in five-minute increments so you can adjust to your needs as you go. 
  • Progress: Your mindfulness journey with the Healthy Minds App will be tracked for you to keep you motivated to continue. 
Insight Timer app screen is shown with Timer, a picture of a singing bowl, and settings for the timer

Insight Timer

Access free content on Insight Timer here. You can also try a Member Plus account for free for seven days here. Their plans are $60 for the year and include nearly 5,000 courses on a range of mindfulness topics. You can sign up here right now for a 25% off discount and get a year for $44.99.  

Highlights of the App
  • Meditation Timer: You can customize your meditation experience with a starting and ending bell of your choice and ambient sounds (or choose no sound). Their timer is the world’s most popular meditation timer. 
  • Guided Meditations: You can narrow down the type of meditation you want by length and male vs female vocals. There are over 197,000 free meditations to choose from. 
  • Yoga Nidra: A deep meditation that puts our mind and body into a state of deep relaxation and conscious rest. 
  • Free Content: Insight Timer offers more free content than many of the other apps including live meditations and yoga events, music tracks, groups, and more.
Smiling Mind app's welcome screen is shown on a phone with the message"Good morning, Sarah How are you feeling today?"

Smiling Mind

Based in Australia, Smiling Mind is another completely free app! It gives the user options between guided courses and individual meditations. 

Highlights of the App
  • Mental Fitness Model: The courses in Smiling Mind are designed to build up mental fitness with five core skillsets – Embrace Flexible Thinking, Grow Connections, Act Purposefully, Recharge Your Body, and Live Mindfully. 
  • Routine: You can set up and customize a Routine using multiple pieces of mindfulness content that works best for you. 
  • Content for Families: Their content is aimed to “create generational change in mental health” by focusing on kids and the adults who support them. Content for kids is easy to find and there are also mindfulness practices geared towards parenting. 

Whether you’re a seasoned meditator or just dipping your toes into mindfulness, these apps offer something for everyone. From completely free options like Smiling Mind and Healthy Minds to affordable favorites like Buddhify and Calm, there’s no shortage of tools to help you find balance and tranquility. Why not try a few and discover what works best for you? With so much free and discounted content available, mindfulness has never been more accessible.

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