# UCLA Mindful vs Free Form Minds

The clearest difference is rating: Free Form Minds at 5.0 against UCLA Mindful's 4.5. Free Form Minds also leads on iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). UCLA Mindful's advantage is ratings volume (176 vs 4). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Free Form Minds holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: UCLA Mindful has 176 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UCLA Mindful ships an update every 3 months, Free Form Minds every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | UCLA Mindful | Free Form Minds |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (176 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ucla-mindful/id1459128935/reviews) | **[5.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/free-form-minds/id1475163407/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **176** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 months** | Every 4 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 23 MB | 35 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **11.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [UCLA Health](https://appshunter.io/developer/646973492) | [Free Form Minds LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1475163406) |

## What reviewers say

### UCLA Mindful

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ucla-mindful/id1459128935)

Practice mindfulness meditation with guided sessions and educational content from UCLA Health. Learn to manage stress, reduce anxiety, and cultivate positive emotions through regular practice. Explore various meditation types, informative videos, and weekly recordings to enhance your well-being.

**Highlights:** Guided basic meditations, Wellness meditations for health conditions, Informative videos on mindfulness, Weekly live/virtual meditation recordings, Talks on mindfulness topics, Customizable meditation timer

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🙏 Free and accessible resource
- 🧘‍♀️ High-quality guided meditations
- 🗣️ Calming and comforting narrator voices (Diana Winston)
- 👍 Simple, easy to use, and navigate
- 🌍 Multiple languages offered

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🗣️ Presenter talks too much during meditations
- 🔌 Requires a good internet connection (streaming)
- 🔄 No offline access
- 📱 App doesn't rotate on iPad in landscape mode
- 🔊 Loud ding at the end of some tracks

**Reported bugs**

- 🐛 Loop repeat did not replay when screen is locked
- 🐛 Audio stops when iPhone screen locks/turns off
- 🐛 Back button disappears on search podcast tab
- 🐛 Search in previous podcast is slow to respond
- 🐛 Custom timer doesn't work as intended

**Requested features**

- Offline access/downloadable sessions
- More voice diversity (ethnicity and gender)
- Add to Apple Health for tracking mindful minutes
- Improve pausing points for Vietnamese meditations
- Remove the ding at the end of tracks


### Free Form Minds

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/free-form-minds/id1475163407)

This app provides tools and resources for personal mindfulness and meditation practices. It delivers customized programs and portable resources to support users on their journey to being more mindful and present.

**Highlights:** Personalized mindfulness practice support, Customized live programs, Portable resource kit, Learn to be in the moment, Meditation guidance

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is UCLA Mindful free?

UCLA Mindful is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Free Form Minds free?

Free Form Minds is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, UCLA Mindful or Free Form Minds?

Free Form Minds is rated higher. UCLA Mindful averages 4.5 out of 5 from 176 ratings, while Free Form Minds averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.

### Do UCLA Mindful or Free Form Minds have ads?

Neither UCLA Mindful nor Free Form Minds shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, UCLA Mindful or Free Form Minds?

UCLA Mindful ships an update every 3 months, and Free Form Minds every 4 months. Most recently, UCLA Mindful was updated on October 25, 2026 and Free Form Minds on October 24, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*