Comparison

Purposeful by Kumanu vs AARP Staying Sharp

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

Head to head
About

Purposeful by Kumanu

This science-backed wellbeing app guides you through evidence-based actions to enhance happiness, health, and energy. It helps build simple habits to improve clarity, boost energy, reduce anxiety, and enhance sleep, making wellbeing practices sustainable for daily life.

Highlights
  • Science-backed wellbeing actions
  • Build simple, evidence-based habits
  • Improve clarity and energy
  • Reduce anxiety and negative thinking
  • Enhance sleep quality
  • Sustainable wellbeing practice
Features
Read full description

Purposeful is a science-backed wellbeing app that empowers you to live more purposefully and bring your best to what matters most. Unlock true wellbeing with simple, evidence-based actions to feel happier, healthier, and more energized. Purposeful helps you build simple, science-backed habits to feel better—starting today. In just a few minutes a day, it can help bring you clarity, boost your energy, shift negative thinking, reduce anxiety, and improve sleep. Made for real life, Purposeful is simple, supportive, and easy to return to—so your wellbeing practice actually sticks. Start small. Keep going. Feel the difference. Terms (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

AARP Staying Sharp

This app offers science-based challenges and expert advice to improve brain health, focusing on memory, focus, and digital well-being. It provides interactive tools and exercises to help users build lasting, brain-healthy habits.

Highlights
  • Science-based brain health challenges
  • Expert advice on memory and focus
  • Digital decluttering strategies
  • Interactive tools and exercises
  • Progress saving across devices
  • Earn AARP Rewards points
Features
Read full description

Need to learn a variety of healthy-lifestyle skills? The AARP™ Staying Sharp® app is based on a holistic, lifestyle-based approach to brain health and features expert advice on memory, focus and more. Are you sometimes irritated by little memory slips like forgetting where you placed your keys or phone? In our “Memory Loss – Is it Inevitable?” challenge, you can learn how memory works. In addition, our Digital Declutter challenge teaches you ways to manage your digital world. Discover strategies for shifting technology away from being a distracting force in your life and into something that helps you live life more fully. And if you’re tired of forgetting details about new people you meet, our Faces & Names challenge can help you learn the secrets of those impressive people who never forget a name. Here’s what the app lets you do: Take challenges that are designed to help you learn about the brain and its ongoing health, including tips to incorporate healthy habits into your daily life. Take Staying Sharp challenges on the go. Your progress will be saved, no matter where you start or stop your challenge. And that works on a smartphone, computer or tablet. Who can use the app? Anyone can download and preview the Staying Sharp® app. AARP members and other authorized users have access to it. Plus, there’s more. Access includes the following: * Take the challenges to earn AARP Rewards points*. This loyalty program lets you gain points for participating in activities, including eligible Staying Sharp challenges. * Take advantage of easy access to the AARP Now app. This app lets users tap into news, events and savings, plus earn AARP Rewards points. *Unused AARP Rewards points expire 12 months after they are earned, in monthly batches on a rolling basis. About Staying Sharp and AARP Staying Sharp is an AARP program that shows you how to incorporate the six pillars of brain health into your life. Staying Sharp empowers you to develop meaningful and lasting brain-healthy practices that are based on these pillars: Be social, Eat right, Manage stress, do Ongoing exercise, get Restorative sleep and Engage your brain. The program has received industry recognition in multiple national competitions — including the Digital Health Awards and eHealthcare Awards — earning accolades for videos, interactive content and site design. AARP is the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to the more than 100 million Americans 50-plus and their families: health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. AARP also produces the nation’s largest circulation publications: AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. Terms of Service: https://stayingsharp.aarp.org/about/terms-of-service/ Privacy Policy: https://www.aarp.org/privacy/privacy-policy/

Screenshots

Purposeful by Kumanu4 screens
AARP Staying Sharp4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Purposeful by Kumanu at none against AARP Staying Sharp's shown. Purposeful by Kumanu also leads on review sentiment (81% vs 52%). AARP Staying Sharp's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.4) and ratings volume (3.3K vs 218). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Purposeful by Kumanu sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $12.99 per month and AARP Staying Sharp sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $20.00 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

AARP Staying Sharp holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: AARP Staying Sharp has 3.3K ratings behind it against 218, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 81% of Purposeful by Kumanu's written reviews are positive against 52% of AARP Staying Sharp's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Purposeful by Kumanu versus AARP Staying Sharp: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPurposeful by KumanuAARP Staying Sharp
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (218 ratings)4.7 (3.3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews80.8% of reviews — better52.4% of reviews
Number of ratings2183.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 5 weeks
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size96 MB76 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperKumanu, Inc.AARP

Customer experience

Purposeful by Kumanu

All ratings218 ratings
Positive87.6%
Neutral2.8%
Negative9.6%
Written reviews78 reviews
Positive80.8%
Neutral5.1%
Negative14.1%

AARP Staying Sharp

All ratings2,705 ratings
Positive93.5%
Neutral4.3%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews42 reviews
Positive52.4%
Neutral4.8%
Negative42.9%

User reviews

Purposeful by Kumanu

From 218 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ✨ Daily check-ins and reminders for mindfulness
  • 🎯 Helps set intentions and track daily purpose
  • 💪 Encourages positive mindset and self-reflection
  • 🧠 Evidence-based behavioral and neuroscience approach
  • 👥 Supportive and non-judgmental feedback

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Multiple login and account creation failures
  • 💳 Unexpected billing and subscription issues
  • 🔐 Limited accessibility without employer/healthcare plan
  • 🎭 AI responses feel repetitive and superficial
  • 🚫 Not helpful for serious mental health issues like bereavement

AARP Staying Sharp

From 3.3K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Helpful and practical exercises
  • 🧠 Effective for improving mental sharpness
  • 🎮 Fun and engaging games
  • 🔍 Useful for monitoring brain health
  • 💡 Recommended by healthcare professionals

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Recurring login issues
  • 🚫 Limited game selection
  • 🔁 Endless login loops
  • 🤯 Confusing user experience
  • 🚫 Inaccessible games

Bugs and requests

Purposeful by Kumanu

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • Account creation fails with security code errors
  • Email verification codes not working
  • Login failures through Google, Apple ID, and email
  • Integration issues with United Healthcare registration
  • App won't open after download
Show 3 more
  • Sign-in glitches on certain devices
  • Inconsistent reminder notifications
  • Incompatibility with iPhone 14

Requested features

7 requests
  • Integration with other apps like Day One
  • Ability to focus on multiple daily goals (not just one)
  • More personalized tracks for different user types (students, retirees, unemployed, etc.)
  • Deeper personality assessment and identification features
  • Better reminder notification system
Show 2 more
  • More advanced analytics and progress tracking
  • Improved customization for career vs. personal development focus

AARP Staying Sharp

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Games not launching properly
  • App freezing or crashing
  • Inability to access core features

Requested features

4 requests
  • Expand game library
  • Improve login and navigation experience
  • Add more accessibility features
  • Provide clearer instructions and guidance

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Purposeful by Kumanu

Subscriptions4
  • Purposeful Premium Monthly$12.991 Month
  • Purposeful Premium Annual7 Days trial$19.991 Year
  • Purposeful Premium7 Days trial$49.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Purposeful Premium7 Days trial$69.991 Year
1 purchases

AARP Staying Sharp

Subscriptions1
  • AARP Membership1 Year trial$20.001 Year

Questions

Is Purposeful by Kumanu free?
Purposeful by Kumanu is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is AARP Staying Sharp free?
AARP Staying Sharp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Purposeful by Kumanu or AARP Staying Sharp?
AARP Staying Sharp is rated higher. Purposeful by Kumanu averages 4.4 out of 5 from 218 ratings, while AARP Staying Sharp averages 4.7 from 3.3K ratings.
Do Purposeful by Kumanu or AARP Staying Sharp have ads?
AARP Staying Sharp shows ads; Purposeful by Kumanu does not.
Which is updated more often, Purposeful by Kumanu or AARP Staying Sharp?
Purposeful by Kumanu ships an update every 5 weeks, and AARP Staying Sharp every 5 weeks. Most recently, Purposeful by Kumanu was updated on November 2, 2026 and AARP Staying Sharp on November 7, 2026.

Other comparisons