Comparison

Sleep Cycle vs Pillow

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

Head to head
About

Sleep Cycle

This app uses sound analysis to track sleep patterns and improve rest. It features an AI sleep coach, a smart alarm that wakes you during light sleep, and tools to identify issues like snoring. Gain insights into your sleep and build healthier habits for more energized days.

Highlights
  • AI sleep coach
  • Smart Alarm clock
  • Sound-based sleep tracking
  • Snoring and cough detection
  • Sleep sounds library
  • Long-term sleep pattern analysis
Features
Read full description

Built on science, Sleep Cycle uses sound analysis to track and improve sleep for over 3 million users worldwide. Our AI sleep coach, sleep tracker and Smart Alarm clock app help users to identify potential sleep issues, gain valuable insights into their sleep patterns and build a healthier sleep routine. Sleep Cycle is the world’s no.1 sleep app with more than 40 million downloads. Track your rest, wake refreshed, and build lifelong sleep habits. AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS Sleep Cycle has been awarded Best Sleep App in 2024 by Digital Health Magazine and featured as App of the Month in Wellness Today. In 2024, Sleep Cycle won two Merit Healthcare Awards: Gold for Mobile Digital Health Resources and Silver for Best Use of Artificial Intelligence. WITH SLEEP CYCLE YOU CAN • Get guidance based on your sleep patterns with our AI sleep coach Luma. • Wake up gently during your lightest sleep phase with our Smart Alarm clock. • Track every night using patented sound technology or accelerometer-based sleep detection, no wearables needed. • Detect nighttime noises like snoring, coughing, or sleep talking, for a path to quieter sleep. • Drift off easily using our sleep sounds library of relaxing stories, sleepy soundscapes and guided meditations. • Understand your sleep patterns with long-term trends and compare your sleep to global benchmarks. • Log sleep notes to understand how caffeine, stress, or exercise affect your rest. WHY USE SLEEP CYCLE? • Wake feeling refreshed with no more groggy mornings. • Get daily stats to help you understand your rest. • Sleep guidance based on your tracked nights. • Health insights with snoring and cough tracking for wellness. • No gadgets, just place your phone on the nightstand. • Premium tools like supportive soundscapes, sleep stories, data export, Philips HUE sunrise and Apple Health sync. ABOUT SLEEP CYCLE Sleep Cycle helps you sleep smarter. Track your nights, gain valuable insights into your sleep patterns, and wake at just the right time to start the day energized. Sleep Cycle gives you science-backed tools and an AI sleep coach Luma to help you improve your sleep for brighter days. Our popular features include: • Superior sleep tracker. • AI sleep coach. • Smart Alarm clock. • Sleep talking recorder. • Advanced sleep analysis. • Snore tracker. • Sleep timer. • Cough recorder. • Sleep stages. • Sleep programs. • SleepGPT. • Sleep goal and score. • Relaxing sleep sounds like nature, rain and ocean sounds. • Sleep Aid including calming meditations and breathing exercises. • And more features to help you improve your rest. TALK TO US If you need any help please contact our customer service at support.sleepcycle.com JOIN THE COMMUNITY ▶ Web: https://sleepcycle.com/ ▶ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sleepcycleapp/ ▶ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sleep_cycle ▶ Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/sleepcycle/ Terms & Privacy https://www.sleepcycle.com/privacy-policy/ DOWNLOAD NOW – Sleep Better with Sleep Cycle

About

Pillow

This app analyzes your sleep cycles automatically using your Apple Watch, iPhone, or iPad. It functions as a smart alarm to wake you at your lightest sleep stage and records audio events like snoring. Explore sleep trends and compare your quality with Apple Health metrics.

Highlights
  • Automatic sleep tracking
  • Smart alarm clock
  • Snore and sound recording
  • Sleep cycle analysis
  • Heart rate analysis
  • Personalized sleep tips
  • Sleep aid library
Features
Read full description

Sleep trouble? Sleep better with Pillow, your smart sleep tracker. Pillow can analyze your sleep cycles automatically using your Apple Watch, iPhone or iPad. Use Pillow as a smart alarm clock to wake up at the lightest possible sleep stage and start your day refreshed and relaxed. Record important audio events such as snoring, sleep apnea, and sleep talking. Explore trends about your sleep and compare your sleep quality with many Apple Health metrics that affect sleep. As seen on: The New York Times, Forbes, The Guardian, BuzzFeed, The Washington Post, TechCrunch, MacStories, Daily Mail, and many more. Rated as one of the best sleep tracking apps for the Apple Watch and iPhone. Join the millions that have discovered the life-changing benefits of great sleep! TRACK YOUR SLEEP AUTOMATICALLY - Simply wear your Apple Watch during sleep. Pillow will automatically detect and analyze your sleep. - View last night's report right on your Apple Watch, along with the heart rate analysis for the night. - Switch between manual and automatic mode anytime. SLEEP CYCLE & HEART RATE ANALYSIS - Advanced sleep cycle analysis algorithm based on the latest scientific findings in sleep research. - Detailed heart rate analysis - Detailed sleep stage diagram (Awake, REM, Light Sleep, Deep Sleep) and sleep score. - Home Screen, Lock Screen Widgets and Apple Watch Complications AUDIO RECORDINGS USING MACHINE LEARNING - Snoring, sleep apnea, sleep talking and other nightly sounds. - All processing is done using on-device intelligence to ensure privacy. PERSONALISED INSIGHTS & SLEEP TIPS - Create a unique personal sleep program to reach your goals - Regularly updated sleep tips - Advanced Insights, including optimal bedtime, chronotype and more. SLEEP TRENDS - Explore your sleep history with Week, Month, Year, and All Time overviews. - Compare your sleep quality with many Apple Health categories that affect sleep. BACKUP & SYNCHRONIZE - Synchronize and backup your sleep data and audio recordings between your devices. ALARM PRESETS & NAPS - Powernap, recovery, and full-cycle nap - Customisable alarm presets MOOD & NOTES - Track your mood when you wake up - Discover how your notes affect your sleep quality SLEEP AID - Access an expanding library of Meditations, Bedtime Stories, Soundscapes and Music. - Use a track from Apple Music or iTunes as an alarm. - Siri Wind Down support PREMIUM FEATURES: - Unlimited sleep history & analysis - Advanced sleep analysis - Sleep trends & Apple Health comparison - Sleep notes - Heart rate analysis - Sound recordings - Nap modes & Customisable presets - Access to Sleep aid library - Access to all wake-up melodies - Discover: Create a personalised sleep program. - Wake-up melodies from your iTunes library or Apple Music - Data export in CSV format - Smart Wake-up Learn more at https://pillow.app SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Your payment will be charged to your iTunes Account as soon as you confirm your purchase. You can manage your subscriptions and turn off auto-renewal from your Account Settings after the purchase. If you start a free trial, you will be charged automatically at the end of the trial period unless you cancel 24 hours before the expiration period. Your subscription will renew automatically unless you turn off auto-renew at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. The renewal cost will be charged to your account within 24 hours before the end of the current period. When canceling a subscription, your subscription will stay active until the end of the period. Auto-renewal will be disabled, but the existing subscription will not be refunded. If offered, any unused portion of a free trial period will be forfeited when purchasing a subscription. Terms & Privacy Policy: https://pillow.app/pillow-privacy-policy-en

Screenshots

Sleep Cycle4 screens
Pillow4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Sleep Cycle at 4.7 against Pillow's 4.4. Sleep Cycle also leads on chart position (#56 vs #193). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and update cadence 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. Sleep Cycle sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Pillow sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Sleep Cycle holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 32K and 96K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 40% of Sleep Cycle's written reviews are positive against 42% of Pillow's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sleep Cycle ships an update weekly, Pillow every 9 days. Both last shipped on November 12, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 9 level
Sleep Cycle versus Pillow: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSleep CyclePillow
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (32K ratings) — better4.4 (96K ratings)
Positive reviews39.6% of reviews41.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings32K96K — better
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 9 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
Best chart rank#56 — better#193
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS16.2 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size306 MB691 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperSleep Cycle ABNeybox Digital Ltd.

Customer experience

Sleep Cycle

All ratings31,983 ratings
Positive93.4%
Neutral3.1%
Negative3.6%
Written reviews2,316 reviews
Positive39.6%
Neutral13.0%
Negative47.4%

Pillow

All ratings95,807 ratings
Positive84.6%
Neutral6.5%
Negative8.8%
Written reviews1,640 reviews
Positive41.8%
Neutral9.2%
Negative49.0%

User reviews

Sleep Cycle

From 32K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Accurate sleep tracking
  • 👍 Gentle alarm wakes you up during light sleep
  • 📊 Detailed sleep data and insights
  • 🌙 Soothing sleep aid sounds

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Alarm not always reliable, sometimes doesn't go off
  • 🔋 High battery drain, especially on Apple Watch
  • 💰 Expensive subscription model, limited free features
  • 📉 Inaccurate sleep tracking in some cases

Pillow

From 96K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Helpful for tracking sleep patterns
  • 🚀 Automatic sleep detection
  • 🎨 Colorful and intuitive interface
  • 📊 Detailed sleep data and analysis
  • 🔊 Audio recording of sleep sounds

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Inaccurate sleep tracking
  • 🔒 Paywall for basic features
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 🤔 Confusing alarm and nap features
  • 🤷‍♀️ Inconsistent sync between watch and phone

Bugs and requests

Sleep Cycle

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App crashes or stops recording sleep randomly
  • Inconsistent time zone handling, causing alarm issues
  • Microphone issues, unable to detect certain sounds

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to edit sleep data and notes
  • Nap tracking and power nap functionality
  • More customization options for alarms and sleep aid
  • Improved integration with Apple Health and other devices

Pillow

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes or freezes
  • Sleep data not syncing properly
  • Audio recording issues
  • Alarm not working as expected

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to edit sleep sessions and data
  • Sleep cycle trends and insights
  • Dream journal integration
  • More customization options for alarms and sounds

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Sleep Cycle

Subscriptions9
  • Sleep Cycle Premium$2.991 Month
  • Premium1 Month trial$9.991 Year
  • Premium1 Month trial$11.991 Year
Show 6 more
  • Premium1 Month trial$19.991 Year
  • Sleep Cycle Premium$19.991 Year
  • Premium1 Month trial$29.991 Year
  • Premium1 Month trial$34.991 Year
  • Premium: Unlock all features$39.991 Year
  • Sleep Cycle Premium7 Days trial2 variants$57.991 Year
5 purchases

Pillow

Subscriptions5
  • Pillow Premium - Monthly$19.991 Month
  • Premium Sleep Tracking7 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Pillow Premium - Annual$39.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Pillow Premium - Annual1 Year trial$39.991 Year
  • Pillow Premium - Quarterly$59.993 Months

Questions

Is Sleep Cycle free?
Sleep Cycle is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Pillow free?
Pillow is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sleep Cycle or Pillow?
Sleep Cycle is rated higher. Sleep Cycle averages 4.7 out of 5 from 32K ratings, while Pillow averages 4.4 from 96K ratings.
Do Sleep Cycle or Pillow have ads?
Neither Sleep Cycle nor Pillow shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sleep Cycle or Pillow?
Sleep Cycle ships an update weekly, and Pillow every 9 days. Most recently, Sleep Cycle was updated on November 12, 2026 and Pillow on November 12, 2026.
Which is more popular, Sleep Cycle or Pillow?
Sleep Cycle currently peaks at #56 in the App Store charts, and Pillow at #193. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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