Positive Intelligence vs HeartMath
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Positive Intelligence
This app is for participants of a mental fitness program designed to improve your positive intelligence quotient (PQ). It helps you identify and overcome sabotaging thoughts, activating a more effective and stress-free performance mode through science-based techniques.
- Raise PQ levels
- Intercept sabotaging thoughts
- Activate stress-free performance mode
- Build new mental muscles
- Improve mindset and resilience
- Enhance emotional mastery
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This app is for exclusive use of participants in the Positive Intelligence Program, which is based on the New York Times bestselling book of Stanford lecturer Shirzad Chamine. The Positive Intelligence program raises your PQ (positive intelligence quotient) levels significantly in as little as 6 weeks. Its foundation lies in recognizing and intercepting mental thoughts and habits that sabotage us and activating the part of the brain that is connected to a far more effective and stress-free performance mode. Using simple, actionable techniques that are science-based and field-tested with CEOs, the Positive Intelligence Program enables you to build new mental muscles quickly and profoundly. The Positive Intelligence Program is a powerful blended learning experience consisting of seven live video sessions with Shirzad Chamine combined with daily practice and personalized coaching delivered via the Positive Intelligence smartphone app and the support of an online peer community. This ensures that learning is reinforced and cemented. Participants in the Positive Intelligence Program can expect to experience immediate and sustained improvements in their performance and happiness, including: • A more positive and adaptive mindset • Increased resilience • Greater emotional mastery • Reduced stress responses • Enhanced creativity • Greater empathy • Increased skilfulness in leadership and coaching others • Improved professional and personal relationships
HeartMath
This app helps you manage stress, improve focus, and achieve optimal performance by aligning your heart, mind, and emotions. It offers guided sessions, immersive journeys, and coherence practices based on over 30 years of research.
- Real-time HRV Coherence Measurement
- Coherence Training
- Scientifically Validated Techniques
- Guided Learning Sessions
- Progress Tracking
- Heart-Brain Coherence Benefits
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Align your heart, mind, and emotions to help you manage stress, improve focus, and perform at your best. Enjoy HeartMath’s free intro experience to access your heart’s natural intelligence and see your heart-brain coherence as real-time feedback. Then start your 7-day free trial to explore a comprehensive collection of guided sessions, immersive journeys, and coherence practices designed to help you experience greater calm, focus, clearer thinking, and a more balanced you. **Inner Balance Coherence Plus sensor owners: Use your sensor to unlock a lifetime subscription.** Built on 30+ years of research on the heart-brain connection and supported by over 500 research studies, HeartMath is used in wellness and resilience programs at organizations including Stanford Healthcare and Kaiser Permanente, as well as in professional sports, the military, law enforcement, leading universities, non-profit organizations, and major corporations. It is used by coaches, trainers, and health professionals for stress education and resilience training. The HeartMath system is more than stress management: it’s a journey to more heart-centered living. This app puts HeartMath’s practical, research-supported tools right at your fingertips. Make mental and emotional well-being an achievable part of your daily life. The HeartMath technology is for stress education and resilience training. It is not a medical device. We encourage you to consult a health professional before making any medical decisions. KEY FEATURES • Real-time HRV coherence feedback: Use your phone’s camera or upgrade to the Inner Balance Coherence Plus sensor for a more precise signal and a free app subscription. • Coherence training: Whether you choose the game or the guided mode, watch your heart-rhythm pattern and coherence change in real time. • Research-Supported: Techniques developed from 30+ years of scientific research to help boost focus, positive feelings, and your ability to manage stress. • Guided learning: Explore guided meditations, courses, and videos led by HeartMath trainers. • Progress tracking: View your progress over time with a variety of chart options. WHAT REGULAR COHERENCE PRACTICE CAN SUPPORT Heart-brain coherence is a balanced, focused state you create yourself through calm breathing and positive focus. Coherence supports the body’s natural ability to shift from tension to calm, helping you manage everyday stress and build inner balance. • SUPPORTS STRESS MANAGEMENT & EMOTIONAL BALANCE • SUPPORTS FOCUS AND MENTAL CLARITY — coherent states are associated with more focus, clarity, and creativity. • SUPPORTS RESILIENCE — regular practice can help you adapt to and recover from challenging situations more quickly. • ENHANCES EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING AND SELF-AWARENESS — practice can support a greater sense of inner calm and a more mindful relationship with your emotions. Subscription terms: • Subscriptions renew automatically at the end of each year. • You can cancel your subscription at any time in your account settings. • You will not be refunded for any unused portion of a subscription. • Price is subject to change. • Subscriptions are not available in all countries. • Full subscription terms: https://my.heartmath.com/terms If you’d like to purchase an Inner Balance Coherence Plus sensor to unlock complimentary lifetime access to the HeartMath app, please visit the HeartMath website.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: HeartMath at 4.6K against Positive Intelligence's 170. HeartMath also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.7). Positive Intelligence's advantage is iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.0). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads 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. Positive Intelligence sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and HeartMath sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $39.00 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
HeartMath holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HeartMath has 4.6K ratings behind it against 170, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 78% of Positive Intelligence's written reviews are positive against 73% of HeartMath's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Positive Intelligence ships an update every 2 weeks, HeartMath every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Positive Intelligence | HeartMath |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (170 ratings) | 4.9 (4.6K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 77.5% of reviews — better | 73.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 170 | 4.6K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 58 MB | 185 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Positive Intelligence | HeartMath Inc. |
Customer experience
Positive Intelligence
HeartMath
Bugs and requests
Positive Intelligence
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
HeartMath
Reported bugs
4 issues- Sensor connection issues on newer devices
- App crashes and freezes on iPhone 16 Pro
- Inaccurate heart rate and coherence readings
- Screen sleep behavior disrupting sessions
Requested features
5 requests- Add dark mode option
- Allow playing music/sounds during sessions
- Provide audio feedback on coherence levels
- Add session history customization and details
- Improve sensor compatibility with older devices
In-app purchases
Positive Intelligence
- Positive Intelligence Program$999.99
HeartMath
- HeartMath Premium7 Days trial$39.001 Year
- HeartMath Premium7 Days trial$59.001 Year
- HeartMath Premium7 Days trial2 variants$79.001 Year
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- HeartMath Premium7 Days trial$99.991 Year
Questions
Is Positive Intelligence free?
Is HeartMath free?
Which has better reviews, Positive Intelligence or HeartMath?
Do Positive Intelligence or HeartMath have ads?
Which is updated more often, Positive Intelligence or HeartMath?
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