Pay to use.
This app looked great when I first downloaded it, but after the introduction a subscription is required. Overall, this app is fine but I don’t see the need to pay to be healthy. As with most apps.
Response from developer
Hey - We offer a free trial to help you decide if Rise works for you without paying anything! Additionally, while we operate as a business, we believe that money should never be the reason why someone doesn't have access to Rise. If you truly cannot afford it or want a longer time to try, please email us at support@risescience.com and we'd be happy to help.
Working better, still some kinks...
Update: Did finally hear from developer, and some issues have been fixed. It’s still not logging my sleep time 100% correctly, but it’s communicating better with Apple Health and at least somewhat responsive to when I input my own sleep times (though it’s hit or miss).
I think the biggest issue is that it has expectations of what a “normal person” sleeps like, and that’s not me. I might sleep 4 hours at night or 9 hours during the day... and those 9 hours might be split between multiple sleep sessions. I get this isn’t most people, but some of us (who probably can benefit most from the wisdom in this app) don’t have “normal” sleep patterns.
Still love the idea, and hope it keeps improving for weirdos like me. Will keep trying for now, in the hopes it’ll finally sync up 100% (or at least closer). ✨🙏🏼✨
Original Review: I’ve been trying to use this app for weeks and even connected it with my Health app which is connected to another sleep app. For some reason, it can’t seem to keep track of my sleep properly, and keeps showing that I haven’t slept enough, when I have. Reached out for customer support and they are the ones who suggested that I connect to the other sleep app, but still didn’t work. Reached out again, no reply. Great idea, incredibly frustrating that it didn’t work. Apparently, it does for others. Lucky them.
I think the biggest issue is that it has expectations of what a “normal person” sleeps like, and that’s not me. I might sleep 4 hours at night or 9 hours during the day... and those 9 hours might be split between multiple sleep sessions. I get this isn’t most people, but some of us (who probably can benefit most from the wisdom in this app) don’t have “normal” sleep patterns.
Still love the idea, and hope it keeps improving for weirdos like me. Will keep trying for now, in the hopes it’ll finally sync up 100% (or at least closer). ✨🙏🏼✨
Original Review: I’ve been trying to use this app for weeks and even connected it with my Health app which is connected to another sleep app. For some reason, it can’t seem to keep track of my sleep properly, and keeps showing that I haven’t slept enough, when I have. Reached out for customer support and they are the ones who suggested that I connect to the other sleep app, but still didn’t work. Reached out again, no reply. Great idea, incredibly frustrating that it didn’t work. Apparently, it does for others. Lucky them.
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Much better with bug fixes
I had written a review here and within the app with a long list of features that were either not working or presenting data that made absolutely no sense. A developer reached out to me and I told him if the issues were just due to bugs, I’d be happy to try it again when those were fixed. He said it was all devs hands on deck to fix some issues and extended my trial period. I left the app alone for a couple weeks, but left it on my phone so it could continue collecting data. I just checked it again and all seems to be working well. The app is aesthetically pleasing, easy to understand, and provides helpful info and recommendations for reducing sleep debt. The dev team isclearly working hard to keep the app working properly and they communicate openly with users, which is awesome. Five stars!
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Inaccurate Calculations
This app is wonderful in theory, but garbage in practice. I went into a week with about 6 hours of sleep debt, and every single day that week I slept 9-9.5 hours. My sleep need is 8 hours, so this should have reduced my sleep debt close to zero. It reduced my debt to around 4 hours. I contacted the developer on October 23rd, and was given a generic answers that didn’t address my specific situation. I asked again for help, and was told just to request a refund from the Apple store. I was outside of the refund window, so again I asked the developer to look into my issue. He acknowledged what needed to be done (although didn’t overtly state that he would do it), and I haven’t heard anything else from him in over a week. Between time spent trying to get a refund (at the developer’s suggestion) and time spent trying to get the developer to help, I have wasted hours and hours on this app. I’m more mad that I can’t get my time back than that I can’t get my money back. Don’t waste your time with this app if you care about accurate information.
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Yet Another Subscription, But Worth it
I was fully gonna cancel this subscription after a month. I do that with a lot of apps I just want to try, and figured this would just be another one. But... I love it. I have found my lifestyle actually changing because of this app!! I’m more aware of my productivity, when my brain is elsewhere (when to not fight the procrastinating) and when to dive back in. I love the widgets I can use. And sleep debt tracking is honestly SUCH a game changer. Way more helpful than simply tracking your hours asleep (which is what I was originally doing). I feel more aware of the tolls my lack of sleep has on my body, and how to care for it until I’m back in the green. I’m giving it 4 stars because it’s kinda pricey, and I think the interface could be better (not a fan of the little pop up windows in the main screen). On to another month of Rise!
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Evidence-based sleep improvement!
First and foremost, I find this app to be a huge help in improving your energy throughout the day. I have tried a few different paid sleep recording apps and this one is far above the rest in terms of scientific support and ultimate results!
As a medical student, I’ve found that this app is tempting to refer patients to as a sleep aid resource. However, it’s looking like I’ll only be able to afford the free five-day trial. Would love to see if there’s any kind of healthcare or student discount to help pay for the cost of the app so I can better trial it and use it in my clinical practice!
The main improvement that I would like to see is the ability to adjust one’s wake-up time. This may already be implemented, I simply haven’t had enough time to look into it, but if so it could be simplified as well. I know this app is focused on circadian rhythm so that may prove to be a hurdle with this request but all in all truly have enjoyed my trial with Rise!
As a medical student, I’ve found that this app is tempting to refer patients to as a sleep aid resource. However, it’s looking like I’ll only be able to afford the free five-day trial. Would love to see if there’s any kind of healthcare or student discount to help pay for the cost of the app so I can better trial it and use it in my clinical practice!
The main improvement that I would like to see is the ability to adjust one’s wake-up time. This may already be implemented, I simply haven’t had enough time to look into it, but if so it could be simplified as well. I know this app is focused on circadian rhythm so that may prove to be a hurdle with this request but all in all truly have enjoyed my trial with Rise!
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Great app, could use some additional features
So far, I really like this app. For the first time, I actually feel real motivation to get more sleep on a regular basis because I want to see my sleep debt go down! The information about energy peaks and dips and melatonin windows is also extremely helpful and very accurate so far. I only wish that there was a way to add naps to lower sleep debt. The pop up windows are constantly suggesting taking naps during energy dips, yet I couldn’t find a way to add a nap to my sleep total. I was really hopeful that adding a nap would lower my sleep debt, but maybe science suggests it doesn’t work that way, so they didn’t include that option? Idk, but I sure wish they did, or at the very least included some information about the science of naps if they have some reason not to add this feature.
Update: now that I know how to add naps, my main concern with the app has been resolved, and I will fully endorse it with 5/5 stars. Its design motivates me to get more sleep, which is exactly what I was needing.
Update: now that I know how to add naps, my main concern with the app has been resolved, and I will fully endorse it with 5/5 stars. Its design motivates me to get more sleep, which is exactly what I was needing.
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Response from developer
Thank you for the feedback! Naps are a great way to reduce sleep debt, however, you need to make sure they're timed appropriately to not disturb your night sleep. You can add naps by: On the "Sleep" tab, tapping last night → add nap time On the "Progress" tab, tapping a specific night → add nap time (we have plans to make this clearer in the near future!)
This app is not free!!!
Makes you enter all your information, processes all your data, and then pulls up a screen asking for payment. There is no way to use the app unless you pay. Just make us pay up front instead of making it seem free!
Response from developer
Hey - We offer a free trial to help you decide if Rise works for you without paying anything.😊 While we operate as a business, we believe that money should never be the reason why someone doesn't have access to Rise. If you truly cannot afford it or want a longer time to try, please email us at support@risescience.com and we'd be happy to help.
Like the concept
I’ve updated my initial review to reflect customer service reaching out to me about my experience, and because Apple provided me with my request for a refund. For this, I have added two stars.
I really want to like the app, but it is not suited to people with non-standard sleep schedules.
It is nice to be able visualize your energy peaks and valleys in the format provided, and receive notifications to help your behaviors, e.g., when to stop drinking caffeine, when to begin wind-down activities for your day.
Personally, the bedtime goal provided to me is not possible due to my work schedule. I’ve been told by customer service that bedtime goals adjust slowly based on sleep times and sleep debt. For the three weeks I used the app, my bedtime goal did not adjust at all, even when I achieved a satisfactory sleep debt number. I appreciate the app encouraging me to go to bed earlier to help with my sleep debt, but my preference would be to have a bedtime goal that accurately reflects when I am able to go to bed related to my life.
The in-app support system is convenient. But in the support conversations I started, I only got initial answers to my questions. My follow-up questions went completely unanswered. It would be nice if the customer service email was more readily available, as I only see it listed in their responses to negative reviews.
I really want to like the app, but it is not suited to people with non-standard sleep schedules.
It is nice to be able visualize your energy peaks and valleys in the format provided, and receive notifications to help your behaviors, e.g., when to stop drinking caffeine, when to begin wind-down activities for your day.
Personally, the bedtime goal provided to me is not possible due to my work schedule. I’ve been told by customer service that bedtime goals adjust slowly based on sleep times and sleep debt. For the three weeks I used the app, my bedtime goal did not adjust at all, even when I achieved a satisfactory sleep debt number. I appreciate the app encouraging me to go to bed earlier to help with my sleep debt, but my preference would be to have a bedtime goal that accurately reflects when I am able to go to bed related to my life.
The in-app support system is convenient. But in the support conversations I started, I only got initial answers to my questions. My follow-up questions went completely unanswered. It would be nice if the customer service email was more readily available, as I only see it listed in their responses to negative reviews.
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Quickly deleted
There’s no free version. It forces you to pick a few (yearly or monthly) after setting your profile.
Response from developer
Hey - We offer a free trial to help you decide if Rise works for you without paying anything! While we operate as a business, we believe that money should never be the reason why someone doesn't have access to Rise. If you truly cannot afford it or want a longer time to try, please email us at support@risescience.com and we'd be happy to help.😊
