Breathe2Relax vs Inner Balance
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Breathe2Relax
Learn diaphragmatic breathing for stress management. This app offers detailed information on stress's effects and guided exercises to improve mood, control anger, and manage anxiety. It integrates with Apple Watch to track heart rate during sessions.
- Stress management information
- Diaphragmatic breathing exercises
- Mood stabilization
- Anger control
- Anxiety management
- Heart rate tracking with Apple Watch
Read full descriptionHide full description
Breathe2Relax is a portable stress management tool which provides detailed information on the effects of stress on the body and instructions and practice exercises to help users learn the stress management skill called diaphragmatic breathing.Breathing exercises have been documented to decrease the body’s ‘fight-or-flight’ (stress) response, and help with mood stabilization, anger control, and anxiety management. Breathe2Relax can be used as a stand-alone stress reduction tool, or can be used in tandem with clinical care directed by a healthcare worker. Breathe2Relax now uses HealthKit and your Apple Watch device to measure your heart rate throughout your breathing exercise to help provide an even more complete picture of the relaxation experienced.
Inner Balance
This app synchronizes your heart, mind, and emotions to enhance health, well-being, and performance. It requires a HeartMath sensor to measure heart rhythms and provides real-time feedback and guided meditations to help you manage stress and improve focus.
- Real-time HRV monitoring
- Guided meditations
- Real-time coaching tips
- Coherence score
- Progress tracking
Read full descriptionHide full description
Inner Balance™ gets your heart, mind, and emotions in sync for greater calm, focus, and a more balanced you in everyday life. HEARTMATH® SENSOR REQUIRED: This is the companion app to the Inner Balance sensor. It requires one of the HeartMath Inner Balance sensors (e.g. Bluetooth® or the Inner Balance Lightning sensor), which connects to your device and clips to your earlobe to pick up your heart-rhythm pattern. Inner Balance™ is a system of software and sensor that helps you strengthen your inner balance through training, guidance, and self-observation. It supports you in bringing your heart, mind, and emotions into a balanced, focused state (coherence), which you create yourself through calm breathing and positive focus. More than 400 independent, peer-reviewed studies have been published on HeartMath technologies and methods. Inner Balance gives you a real-time coherence score as feedback, and guided meditations and dynamic graphics support you toward a calmer, more centered, and more focused state. 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. LEARN HOW TO: • Bring your heart, mind, and body into a calm, balanced state in the moment • Settle reactive emotions and manage everyday stress • Feel calmer, more centered, and more focused • Access clearer thinking to support better everyday decisions Just five minutes of coherence practice, three times a day, fits easily into your routine - and it’s enjoyable. Inner Balance guides you and tracks your progress as you shift your state and watch the changes occur in real time. FEATURES: • Real-time HRV coherence feedback to guide your practice • Guided meditations to support relaxation, focus, and a better wind-down before sleep • Real-time coaching tips with encouraging on-screen prompts • Advanced options: four challenge levels, customizable settings and screens • Access to a free cloud platform to save and review all your sessions and get tips and training WHAT REGULAR COHERENCE PRACTICE CAN SUPPORT: • A calmer way of handling everyday stress • More focus and mental clarity, even under pressure • Shifting more quickly into a state of calm and balance • Quieting the mind and letting go of racing thoughts • Strengthening inner resilience and recovering more quickly • Training coordination and reaction time for athletes • Complementing your own meditation practice Inner Balance Bluetooth sensor: clip the sensor to your earlobe and press the soft button on the sensor pod to activate a blue flashing light. Open the app and press the “Start” arrow to scan for the sensor. When your sensor ID appears and matches the number on the back of the pod, tap to accept and wait 15–20 seconds for calibration to begin your first session. Inner Balance Lightning sensor: follow the same steps to clip the sensor, open the app, and start your session. You can purchase an Inner Balance sensor at https://store.heartmath.com/innerbalance.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Inner Balance at 4.8 against Breathe2Relax's 4.2. Inner Balance also leads on update cadence (every 4 months vs every 24 months) and ratings volume (18K vs 316). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Inner Balance holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Inner Balance has 18K ratings behind it against 316, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Breathe2Relax's written reviews are positive against 83% of Inner Balance's.
Breathe2Relax ships an update every 24 months, Inner Balance every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on August 29, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Breathe2Relax | Inner Balance |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (316 ratings) | 4.8 (18K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews | 82.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 316 | 18K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 24 months | Every 4 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 117 MB | 21 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | +4 |
| Developer | Defense Health Agency | HeartMath Inc. |
Customer experience
Breathe2Relax
Inner Balance
User reviews
Breathe2Relax
From 316 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🌟 Excellent for stress and anxiety relief
- 👍 Simple and easy to use
- 🧘♀️ Helps with breathing and relaxation
- 🤩 Calming and soothing experience
- 💤 Useful for sleep and sleep issues
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues, unable to stream videos
- 🔇 Lack of audio/sound options
- ⏱️ Limited breathing cycle duration
- 📱 Compatibility issues with older devices
- 🤖 Monotonous voice instructions
Inner Balance
From 18K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💗 Coherence integration
- 💤 Helps with sleep
- 🧘♀️ Calms the mind
- 🧠 Improves focus and concentration
- 🧠 Helps with emotional regulation
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues with sensor
- 🐛 Sensor durability concerns
- 🕰️ Lag in real-time feedback
- 🤖 Finds it challenging to maintain high coherence scores
- 🤖 Feels like trying to please the app rather than focusing on self
Bugs and requests
Breathe2Relax
Reported bugs
3 issues- Videos not playing due to connectivity issues
- App crashing or freezing on some devices
- Inability to connect to Apple Watch
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to set custom breathing cycle duration
- More background music/nature sound options
- Different voice options for guidance
- Integration with Apple Watch/fitness tracking
- Longer breathing sessions beyond 16 cycles
Inner Balance
Reported bugs
3 issues- App crashes when stopping a session
- Sensor disconnection issues
- Inconsistent heart rate readings compared to other devices
Requested features
5 requests- Add audio breath pacing
- Implement guest mode to separate user data
- Develop an Apple Watch version
- Provide more detailed progress tracking and analytics
- Include more breathing technique options
In-app purchases
Breathe2Relax
No in-app purchases
Inner Balance
No in-app purchases









