6 Free Meditation Apps That Can Help You Manage Stress

6 Free Meditation Apps That Can Help You Manage Stress

We all know how important it is to take care of your emotional health.

When it comes to practicing mindfulness, self-kindness, and living in the moment, something that can be really grounding for anyone is meditation. Obviously not everyone has a moment to sign up for a workshop or a class, either of which can often take a half hour or more. So, here are some meditation apps (all of them free!) to take with you on the go, whether you’re feeling thrilled, lethargic, moody, stressed, erratic, or whatever else.

Stop, Breathe & Think

Available on iPhone, Android, and any web browser, this app is exactly what you need right now, literally. It’s responsive to how you’re feeling in the moment that you use it, meaning that the first thing you do on the app is input up to five adjectives for how your mind and body are feeling at the time, anywhere from happy and energetic, to neutral, to sad and crummy. Then, it registers those adjectives and recommends a meditation catered to responding to your emotional and physical state, anywhere from two minutes to 15 minutes and in between.

Headspace

It really is amazing what 10 minutes could do for your day, and Headspace is proof of that. Backed by science, this application is meant to be a personal trainer for your mind, which means more room to address and respond to any stress, anxiety, distraction, or any other emotional and mental turmoil you might be going through. Not sure how all of that can actually be proved? They have a whole page on how the science works—citing that meditation and mindfulness can be great for your creativity, anxiety, concentration, stress, and relationships.

Omvana

Omvana is an application that helps you with whatever mindful practice you’re striving for, whether that’s meditation, concentration, relaxation, or sleep. After you sign up for free, you have access to hundreds of audio files separated into the following categories: Body, Mind, Lifestyle, Productivity, Relationships, Hypnosis, and over a thousand customizable meditations. (So, basically everything you could ever care about, plus hypnosis, I guess?) All jokes aside, though, it’s been rated the World’s #1 Meditation App, so it’s definitely worth checking out.

Calm

More than just a platform with a variety of meditation sequences (as if that wouldn’t be enough!), Calm also provides ambient, atmospheric noise loops, such as a crackling fireplace, or a grassy field, or a beach setting. Most of the meditation options are free (including a “7 Days of Calm” that introduces you to the basic of meditation for any beginners), but you can also purchase more advanced ones if you try it out and love it.

MINDBODY

If you’ve really dived into a number of meditation apps or dabbled with the practice on your own time, and you’re ready to take your experience further, MINDBODY is the perfect platform for finding more local events in your area. An app that lets you book beauty, health, and fitness classes—or massage sessions, it definitely is a great next step for anyone who’s devoted to living a healthier and happier life.

Smiling Mind

A free, science-backed, mindfulness platform, Smiling Mind calls itself “modern meditation for young people.” Available both on the web and in mobile app forms, its mission is to provide accessible, life long meditation tools as widely as possible. With meditation sequences available based on age group, you can bet that it speaks somewhat relatedly to whatever you might be going through at your current stage of life, something which definitely impacts the excitements and stressors that are most immediate to people. That way, you can have a healthy, long pause from whatever’s on your mind—personalized to whatever you feel you might need.

Image courtesy of Getty Images.