Comparison

Timefully vs Luminous

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Timefully

This app offers a distraction-free meditation timer with deep tracking and motivational features like virtual tree growth. It allows for extensive customization of sessions, sounds, and progress monitoring, all while keeping your data private.

Highlights
  • Customizable meditation timer presets
  • Deep session tracking and statistics
  • Virtual tree growth for motivation
  • Extensive bell and ambient sound library
  • Apple Watch integration for standalone use
  • Privacy-focused with iCloud sync
  • Integration with Apple Health and Siri
Features
Read full description

Timefully helps meditators build a practice that lasts. A beautifully simple meditation timer with deep tracking, tree-growth motivation, and comprehensive statistics — trusted by 40,000+ meditators worldwide and rated 4.8 stars. WHY TIMEFULLY? Timefully is designed for meditators who know what they want — a distraction-free timer that stays out of your way, tracks your progress, and keeps you motivated. No guided content, no social feed, no ads. Just a powerful, beautiful tool for the practice you already have — Vipassana, Zen, mindfulness, mantra, yoga, or breathwork. YOUR TIMER, YOUR WAY • Unlimited presets per profile — create as many as you need • Unlimited segments: warm-up, main, intervals, cool-down, and more • Tap any segment to adjust its duration during setup • Open session mode for indefinite meditation • Count up or count down — your choice • Simple Mode hides the clock for deeper focus • Beautiful curated backgrounds, or use your own photos • Live Activity and Dynamic Island keep your session in view BEAUTIFUL BELLS & SOUNDS • 40 bell sounds: Tibetan bells, singing bowls, gongs, wind chimes, flutes, and more • Starting and ending bells (1–3 rings each) • Interval bells at set times or repeating • 6 ambient sounds: Rain, Forest, Ocean, Wind, Fireplace, Birds • Add your own custom sounds • Fade-in option and volume control • Silent mode with haptics TRACK YOUR PROGRESS • Automatic session tracking from the timer • Manual entry — including backfilling past sessions • Post-session mood and emotion tracking • Notes and reflections, with a word cloud built from your notes • 6 statistics reports with weekly, monthly, and yearly views • Monthly calendar glance view • AI insights with Apple Intelligence STAY MOTIVATED • Set daily and weekly practice goals • Grow virtual trees through consistent practice • 6 tree species: Oak, Cherry Blossom, Mangrove, Maple, Olive, Wisteria • Earn milestones and achievements, and keep your streak • Inspiring quotes after each session — or turn all in-app text off for quiet, focused sessions BUILT FOR APPLE WATCH • Standalone timer on your wrist • Real-time heart rate and HRV during sessions • Haptic guidance and Always-On Display support • Complications, and sessions saved as workouts • Fully 1:1 with iPhone — including intervals MULTIPLE PROFILES & PRESETS • Profiles for different practices: Meditation, Yoga, and more • Unlimited presets per profile, each with its own background • Quick switching between configurations PRIVATE BY DEFAULT • No account required — your data stays in your own iCloud • iCloud sync across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch • Export and import your data anytime (Open Sit, CSV and JSON) SEAMLESS INTEGRATION • Apple Health — sessions saved as Mindful Minutes • Siri & Shortcuts, with a ready-made Timefully Shortcut and Action Button support • Do Not Disturb automation • 6 Home Screen widgets and 4 Lock Screen widgets ON YOUR MAC • Native macOS app, ideal for desk meditation during work breaks • Large screen for comprehensive statistics • iCloud sync keeps your practice in step with iPhone and iPad PRICING AND TERMS The timer is always free — no account, no ads, no trial limits. Timefully Pro unlocks iCloud sync, Apple Watch heart rate & HRV, statistics & AI insights, tree growth, achievements & streaks, mood tracking, unlimited profiles, premium bells, and widgets. Timefully Pro offers two auto-renewing subscription options: Monthly: $2.99 per month Annual: $11.99 per year You can also purchase Lifetime access for a one-time payment of $24.99. These prices are for United States users. Pricing in other countries may vary. TERMS AND CONDITIONS: https://www.timefully.co/terms PRIVACY POLICY: https://www.timefully.co/privacy

About

Luminous

Explore meditation and the nature of awareness with guided sessions based on Rupert Spira's teachings. Discover inner peace and clarity through daily practices and introductory series, with transcriptions and optional music.

Highlights
  • Daily guided meditations
  • Introductory meditation series
  • Written transcriptions
  • Optional background music
  • Focus on the nature of awareness
Features
Read full description

Luminous is a meditation app based on the teachings of Rupert Spira, offering a simple and accessible way to explore meditation and the nature of awareness. The app features free daily guided meditations, inviting you to pause, turn your attention inward and discover the peace and clarity that are always present beneath the activity of the mind. Each meditation is guided by Rupert and reflects the essential themes of his approach: recognising the aware presence that is the essence of our experience. For those who are new to these teachings, the app also includes an introductory series of meditations that gently introduce the foundations of Rupert’s approach to meditation and self-inquiry. Alongside the latest daily meditation, the previous week of meditations remains available in the app so you can revisit and deepen your exploration. Each meditation is accompanied by a written transcription, allowing you to read and reflect on the guidance at your own pace. You can also choose to play music while meditating, creating a supportive and calming atmosphere for your practice. Whether you are new to meditation or already familiar with Rupert’s teachings, these meditations invite you to rest as the awareness you essentially are, the silent presence that illuminates all experience without itself being affected by it.

Screenshots

Timefully4 screens
Luminous3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Luminous at none against Timefully's 7. Luminous also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 85%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Timefully's advantage is ratings volume (1.1K vs 28) and update cadence (every 8 days vs every 3 weeks). On price, ads and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Timefully sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Luminous asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Luminous holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Timefully has 1.1K ratings behind it against 28, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of Timefully's written reviews are positive against 100% of Luminous's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Timefully ships an update every 8 days, Luminous every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Timefully versus Luminous: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTimefullyLuminous
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (1.1K ratings)5.0 (28 ratings) — better
Positive reviews85.2% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.1K — better28
Update frequencyEvery 8 days — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS18.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size398 MB80 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperLalune Creative ABAware Presence Limited

Customer experience

Timefully

All ratings1,089 ratings
Positive96.4%
Neutral1.7%
Negative1.8%
Written reviews162 reviews
Positive85.2%
Neutral6.8%
Negative8.0%

Luminous

Written reviews16 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Timefully

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Timer not always completing sessions
  • Apple Watch integration problems
  • Incorrect activity log data

Requested features

5 requests
  • More bell/chime sound options
  • Ability to adjust timer from Apple Watch
  • Option to disable tree growth feature
  • Expanded emotion/mood tracking
  • Sync progress across devices

Luminous

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Timefully

Subscriptions4
  • Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Quarterly$5.993 Months
  • Annual2 variants$11.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Timefully Annual, 14-day Trial14 Days trial2 variants$11.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$24.99
None

Luminous

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Timefully free?
Timefully is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Luminous free?
Luminous is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Timefully or Luminous?
Luminous is rated higher. Timefully averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.1K ratings, while Luminous averages 5.0 from 28 ratings.
Do Timefully or Luminous have ads?
Neither Timefully nor Luminous shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Timefully or Luminous?
Timefully ships an update every 8 days, and Luminous every 3 weeks. Most recently, Timefully was updated on November 3, 2026 and Luminous on October 30, 2026.

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