Dhamma.org vs Goenka Timer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Dhamma.org
Explore Vipassana meditation techniques and find residential courses worldwide. Access audio and video resources, apply for courses, and manage your user account. This app offers a path to self-purification through self-observation.
- Learn about Vipassana Meditation
- Find worldwide course locations
- Search courses by date, region, language
- Apply and register for courses
- Download/stream audio and video resources
- Manage user account and application forms
- Access group sitting recordings
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This is the official DhammaOrg iOS mobile App for Vipassana Meditation as taught by S.N. Goenka in the tradition of Sayagyi U Ba Khin. Vipassana Meditation Vipassana, which means to see things as they really are, is one of India's most ancient techniques of meditation. It was taught in India more than 2500 years ago as a universal remedy for universal ills, an Art of Living. Vipassana is the process of self-purification by self-observation. One begins by observing the natural breath to concentrate the mind. Then, with a sharpened awareness, one proceeds to observe the changing nature of body and mind and experiences the universal truths of impermanence, suffering and egolessness. This truth-realization by direct experience results in mental purification. Courses The technique of Vipassana Meditation is taught at 10-day residential courses during which participants learn the basics of the method, and practice sufficiently to experience its beneficial results. There are no charges for the courses - not even to cover the cost of food and accommodation. All expenses are met by donations from people who, having completed a course and experienced the benefits of Vipassana, wish to give others the opportunity to also benefit. Locations Courses are given in numerous Meditation Centers and at Non-Center course locations. Each location has its own schedule of courses. In most cases, an application for admission to these courses can be completed online using this App. There are numerous Centers currently in operation and more in development around the world, including Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. Features of this App - Learn more about Vipassana Meditation. - Find locations near you that offer Vipassana Meditation courses from a complete worldwide listing or map of over 300 locations spread across 80+ countries. - Locate Vipassana Meditation courses using search criteria such as dates, regions, and instruction languages. - Apply and register to attend a Vipassana Meditation course. - Download or listen online to audio resources in different languages, including 10-Day Discourses and instructions for Mini- Ānāpāna meditation. - Stream videos in different languages, including 10-Day Discourses, Talks, Interviews, and Q&As by S.N. Goenka, Documentaries about Vipassana for adults and children, Vipassana for business executives and Vipassana in prisons, and a Mini-Ānāpāna Introduction and Practice. - Support for creating and maintaining individual user account - Pre-fill course application forms with profile information from user account - Sync user account with updated information provided on application forms Old Students - One hour group sitting recordings in 25+ different languages. - Play group sitting recordings with an option to log your daily sittings. All logged data is only stored locally on your device. - Turn on group sitting counter to join and see how many Old Students are currently meditating. - Find information about group sittings and other events hosted near you or hosted online. - Additional audio resources, including discourses for Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta, 1/2/3-day, and 7-day teenager courses; Morning Chantings and Dohas for 10-day courses; Special Chantings; Talks, Interviews, and Q&As by S.N. Goenka; Pāḷi Training; and Gong Sounds. - Additional video resources, including Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta Discourses, Benefits of Dhamma Service, Talks, Interviews, and Q&As by S.N. Goenka for Old Students and Dhamma Servers, and Special Chantings in the Gem Set in Gold. - A wealth of written resources including the Old Student Guide, Course Formalities and Pāḷi Passages, Group Sittings Chantings, the 10-Day Discourse Summaries, Glossary of Pāḷi Terms, FAQs about doing a Self Course, information about the Chain of Teachers in this Tradition, information about Dhamma Service, and Dāna. - Administer standard or customized self courses
Goenka Timer
This meditation timer is specifically designed for practitioners of S.N. Goenka's Vipassana meditation. It allows custom timer settings with optional chanting, tracks your meditation history to maintain streaks, and provides automatic notifications with gong sounds. You can also connect with friends to share sit completions.
- Custom timer with intro/outro
- Optional chanting and mettā
- Meditation sit history and streak tracking
- Automatic sit reminders with gong
- Add friends and share sit completions
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Goenka Timer ========== A meditation timer designed for Old Students of S.N. Goenka (dhamma.org). Features --------- · Set custom timer with Goenka intro & outro. Optionally add chanting or extended mettā. · Track your sits w/ built-in History. Keep the streak going! Earn full credit for both morning & night. > You've sat twice a day for # days, > & at least once for # days straight. · Set automatic notifications to remind you to sit, with gong noise. You can pick morning & night times. · Add Friends Automatically notify fellow meditators whenever one of you completes a sit. Be happy :) For questions or support, please contact: hi@goenka.app
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Dhamma.org at 4.8 against Goenka Timer's 4.5. Dhamma.org also leads on ratings volume (189 vs 22). Goenka Timer's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs fortnightly) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 15.0). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Dhamma.org holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Dhamma.org has 189 ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of Dhamma.org's written reviews are positive against 78% of Goenka Timer's.
Dhamma.org ships an update fortnightly, Goenka Timer weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 12, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Dhamma.org | Goenka Timer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (189 ratings) — better | 4.5 (22 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 85.0% of reviews — better | 78.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 189 — better | 22 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 9.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 134 MB | 27 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | SAYATGYI U BA KHIN MEMORIAL TRUST OF MASSACHUSSETS, INC | David Ernst |
Customer experience
Dhamma.org
Goenka Timer
In-app purchases
Dhamma.org
No in-app purchases
Goenka Timer
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Dhamma.org free?
Is Goenka Timer free?
Which has better reviews, Dhamma.org or Goenka Timer?
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Which is updated more often, Dhamma.org or Goenka Timer?
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