Hvil vs Penumbra
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hvil
Read full descriptionHide full description
Hvil® is a sleep app that can help you sleep better and healthier. Through smart technology and data, Hvil can create a sleep program that matches your lifestyle and needs the best. The sleep program is easy to get started with and cover several aspects of sleep, such as sleep hygiene, deactivation and cognitive exercises. The app works as a digital sleep coach that supports you in completing daily activities and changing sleep habits and aspects that contribute to poor sleep. BENEFITS OF USING HVIL® • A PERSONAL SLEEP DIARY Hvil® helps you track your sleep from day to day through a digital sleep diary. You can easily input information about your bedtimes, sleep duration, sleep quality and much more. • A TAILORED SLEEP PROGRAM You can get tailored advice and guidance on how best to improve your chances of getting more and better sleep. • TRACK AND FOLLOW YOU PROGRESS You can follow how your sleep habits and sleep quality are developing, so you can see if the changes you make in your habits are having an positive impact on your sleep. • NOT A QUICK FIX Many solutions on the market promise faster results, while reality is different. It takes time to change habits. • UNDERSTAND YOUR SLEEP Hvil® offers a bunch of information sleep, what affects your sleep and gives you the tools to establish habits, behaviors and thoughts around your sleep so you can sleep better. • ABOUT HVIL® ACCESS Hvil® offers access through In-app purchase. Users need to have purchased access to get a sleep program. PRIVACY POLICY & TERMS OF USE Read more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use here: Privacy Policy: https://hvil.app/privacy-policy Terms of Use: https://hvil.app/vilkaar-og-persondata WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU Please send us any feedback or suggestions by writing to us at info@hvil.app.
Penumbra
Read full descriptionHide full description
Penumbra is a structured shadow work journal built on one idea: the deepest self-reflection needs the deepest privacy. There's no account, no sign-in, and no cloud — every word you write stays on your iPhone unless you share it, behind the same Face ID lock you use for your phone itself. SIX GUIDED JOURNEYS Paced, multi-day programs instead of a pile of prompts: • Meeting Your Shadow — a gentle 7-day introduction, free • The Inner Critic — 14 days tracing the harsh inner voice to its roots • Triggers & Projection — 14 days following strong reactions back to what they're protecting • Boundaries & People-Pleasing — 14 days unlearning the automatic yes • Grief & Letting Go — 14 days with a loss of any kind • Money & Scarcity — 14 days on what money stirs up and where that started Each day has 2-3 prompts with optional dive-deeper follow-ups. Content notes appear before tender sessions, and every prompt can be skipped. VOICE CAPTURE Tap the mic to dictate into the journal, trigger log or glimmer log. Speech is turned into text on your iPhone, never sent to a server, and no audio is saved. You review the text and tap Insert before anything is added. If on-device recognition isn't available for your language, typing works as always. DAILY CHECK-IN A free, two-tap check-in on Today: mood and energy, each from 1 to 5. Pro Insights adds a 7- and 30-day trend. DAILY REFLECTIONS On days between journeys, open one prompt from a 120-question deck spanning inner child, persona, relationships, the body, self-compassion, patterns, values, and dreams and symbols. Thirty prompts are free forever; the full deck and its dive-deeper questions are part of Penumbra Pro. TRIGGER LOG A 30-second capture for the moment something lands harder than it should: what happened, the emotion, a body sensation, and an intensity rating — free forever, with no limit. GLIMMER LOG The trigger log's counterpart for good moments: a 30-second capture for what steadied or lifted you, with a feeling from a ten-tag set. Free forever; glimmer patterns show up in Insights. FREEFORM JOURNAL Unlimited plain-text entries, searchable, editable, always free. Writing itself is never behind a paywall. INSIGHTS Your most-felt emotions, recurring trigger clusters, glimmer patterns, a practice heatmap, and Then & Now — revisit any prompt you've answered and see what changed. INNER-CHILD & PARTS EXERCISES Six structured exercises, from a letter to your younger self to a dialogue with a protective part. FACE ID LOCK Lock the whole app behind Face ID or your passcode. Your journal opens only for you. EXPORT & BACKUP Plain-text export is free forever; PDF export is part of Penumbra Pro. Save your whole journal to one file anytime, free forever. Keep it in iCloud Drive or Files, or email a copy to yourself. An optional passphrase encrypts the file, and an opt-in weekly reminder nudges you to back up. This is a backup you control, not automatic sync. PENUMBRA PRO • All six journeys (77 guided days) • Full 120-prompt deck + level-2 dive-deepers • Inner-child & parts exercises • Insights: emotions, triggers, patterns, check-in trends • PDF export Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel anytime from Settings or your App Store settings. If you start a free trial, you can turn on an optional reminder the day before it ends. Payment is charged to your Apple ID. Penumbra is a self-reflection tool, not therapy or medical care, and some prompts may stir up old or difficult feelings. You can skip any prompt, close the app, or come back another day — and a Crisis Resources screen, with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and other helplines, is always one tap away, even before you unlock your journal. Terms: https://bogtsi.xyz/umbra/terms Privacy: https://bogtsi.xyz/umbra/privacy No server of ours ever sees your words. They leave your iPhone only if you share or back them up yourself.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Penumbra at none against Hvil's shown. Hvil's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and iOS requirement 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. Hvil sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days and Penumbra sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Hvil | Penumbra |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 35 MB | 48 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Enversion | Bogdan Tsiganiuk |
In-app purchases
Hvil
- Weekly access$1.997 Days
- Monthly Subscription$2.991 Month
- Monthly Premium Subscription$7.991 Month
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Yearly Premium Subscription$79.991 Year
- Sleep program$99.00
- Unlimited access$99.00
Penumbra
- Penumbra Pro Monthly7 Days trial$6.991 Month
- Penumbra Pro Annual7 Days trial$39.991 Year









