Comparison

Calm vs Breathing Exercises *

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

Head to head
About

Calm

This app offers guided meditations, sleep stories, music, and breathing exercises to help users reduce stress, anxiety, and improve sleep. It caters to all experience levels, integrating mindfulness into daily routines for enhanced mental well-being.

Highlights
  • Guided meditations
  • Sleep Stories
  • Breathwork exercises
  • Relaxing music
  • Stretching exercises
  • Mindfulness programs
Features
Read full description

Calm is the #1 app for sleep, meditation, and relaxation. Find anxiety relief, stress relief, and better sleep through breathing exercises, sleep sounds, deep sleep music, and mindfulness programs for insomnia, beginner meditation, and beyond. Downloaded by 180 million people worldwide. Fall asleep faster with Sleep Stories, bedtime stories for adults narrated by Matthew McConaughey, Stephen Fry, P\!nk, Bob Ross, and more. Only on Calm. Manage stress, relieve anxiety, improve your sleep cycle, and refocus your attention. Apple App of the Year. Apple Editors' Choice. Happiest App in the World (Center for Humane Technology). 3M+ five-star reviews. Recommended by top psychologists, therapists, and mental health experts. SLEEP STORIES — ONLY ON CALM * Drift off to Matthew McConaughey's Wonder — a dreamy journey through the mysteries of the universe * Travel through the village of Provence with master storyteller Stephen Fry in Blue Gold * Fall asleep to the soothing brush strokes of beloved painter Bob Ross in Happy Little Zzzs * Tackle insomnia with 100+ exclusive Sleep Stories, new content added every month MEDITATION & MINDFULNESS * Beginner meditation to advanced practice — guided sessions for every experience level * Daily Calm with Tamara Levitt, Daily Jay with Jay Shetty, Daily Trip with Jeff Warren * Mindfulness topics: deep sleep, anxiety relief, stress relief, focus, breaking habits, self-care, personal growth, and more * 7- and 21-day mindfulness programs to build a lasting practice ANXIETY RELIEF & RELAXATION * Breathing exercises and breathwork to ease anxiety, stress, and insomnia * Bilateral stimulation music and neuroacoustic sounds for nervous system regulation and somatic relaxation * Guided breathwork for stress relief, anxiety relief, and deep calm * Stress management and self-healing through Dailies: programs for social anxiety, personal growth, and mood balance * Mindful movement and stretching with Daily Move SLEEP SOUNDS, MUSIC & SOUNDSCAPES * Calming music, nature sounds, and sleep sounds: ocean waves, heavy rain, campfire, and more * Exclusive focus and sleep music from top artists * Full soundscapes and sleep sounds to help you relax, meditate, and sleep soundly ALSO FEATURING * Daily Streaks & Mindful Minutes — emotion and mental health tracker * Calm saves your meditation and sleep sessions to your Apple Health app. Mental health is health. Calm is for anyone looking to improve their sleep, manage stress, and address everyday anxiety. Meditation novice or seasoned expert. Take a deep breath and find your Calm. Calm is free to download and use. There are never any ads and some of the programs and features are free forever. Some content is only available through an optional paid subscription. Be sure to check out our Apple Watch app to quick-start breathing exercises and track your meditations. Subscription pricing and terms: Calm offers an auto-renewing monthly subscription at $14.99/month and an auto-renewing yearly subscription at $69.99/year to provide you with unlimited access to the Calm Collection while you maintain an active subscription. Payment will be charged to the credit card connected to your iTunes Account when you confirm the initial subscription purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current subscription period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and the cost of the renewal will be identified. You may manage your subscription and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to your Account Settings after the purchase. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when you purchase a subscription, where applicable. Read more about our terms and conditions here: Terms of service: https://www.calm.com/terms Privacy policy: https://www.calm.com/privacy

About

Breathing Exercises *

This app guides you through timed breathing exercises to help manage stress and promote relaxation. It offers pre-set intervals like Box Breathing and 478 Breathing, along with customizable options for personalized practice.

Highlights
  • Timed inhales, holds, and exhales
  • Box Breathing Interval
  • 478 Breathing Interval
  • Ujjayi Interval
  • Three custom intervals
  • Easy-to-follow exercises
Features
Read full description

Breathing is an automatic function of the body that is controlled by the respiratory centre of the brain. When we feel stressed, our breathing rate and pattern changes as part of the response to the situations. This app can help you relax and help your stress. It includes easily timed inhales, holds and exhales which you can follow and improve your life. * Box Breathing Interval * 478 Breathing Interval * Ujjay1 Interval * Three Custom Intervals The app contains very easy to follow exercises with timed inhales, exhales and holds. You can also set the interval cycles and there are three custom intervals which you can set all of the settings for a custom breathing exercise. This all can help your life so please download it now and begin improving your life! Please note it is recommended to seek a doctor's advice in addition to using this app and before making any medical decisions. Here is a great web site post from the American Lung Association to learn more about breathing exercises: https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/wellness/breathing-exercises

Screenshots

Calm4 screens
Breathing Exercises *4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Breathing Exercises * at none against Calm's shown. Breathing Exercises * also leads on review sentiment (75% vs 64%) and iOS requirement (16.2 vs 18.0). Calm's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 6 weeks) and ratings volume (2M vs 57). On price, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Calm sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month and Breathing Exercises * sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Calm holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Calm has 2M ratings behind it against 57, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 64% of Calm's written reviews are positive against 75% of Breathing Exercises *'s, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Calm ships an update every 4 days, Breathing Exercises * every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and August 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Calm versus Breathing Exercises *: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCalmBreathing Exercises *
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (2M ratings) — better4.5 (57 ratings)
Positive reviews64.1% of reviews75.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2M — better57
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#6 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.016.2 — better
Further details — not scored
Size167 MB17 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCalm.comSteve Veloudos

Customer experience

Calm

All ratings1,981,815 ratings
Positive94.9%
Neutral2.6%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews3,855 reviews
Positive64.1%
Neutral7.5%
Negative28.4%

Breathing Exercises *

All ratings57 ratings
Positive87.7%
Neutral1.8%
Negative10.5%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%

Bugs and requests

Calm

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App crashes or freezes
  • Playback issues with audio and video
  • Difficulty cancelling subscription

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add repeat button for sleep stories
  • Separate kids and adult content
  • Allow creating custom playlists
  • Improve search and navigation
  • Add more diverse narrator voices
Show 1 more
  • Provide text-based instructions for techniques

Breathing Exercises *

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

8 purchases

Calm

Subscriptions8
  • Calm Subscription$14.991 Month
  • Calm Premium$14.991 Month
  • Calm Premium$16.991 Month
Show 5 more
  • Calm Premium$29.991 Month
  • Calm Premium$69.991 Year
  • Calm Premium7 Days trial2 variants$69.991 Year
  • Calm Premium7 Days trial3 variants$79.991 Year
  • Calm Premium$79.991 Year
3 purchases

Breathing Exercises *

One-time3
  • More Breathing Exercises$9.99
  • More Breathing Exercises$12.99
  • More Breathing Exercises$25.99

Questions

Is Calm free?
Calm is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Breathing Exercises * free?
Breathing Exercises * is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Calm or Breathing Exercises *?
Calm is rated higher. Calm averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2M ratings, while Breathing Exercises * averages 4.5 from 57 ratings.
Do Calm or Breathing Exercises * have ads?
Calm shows ads; Breathing Exercises * does not.
Which is updated more often, Calm or Breathing Exercises *?
Calm ships an update every 4 days, and Breathing Exercises * every 6 weeks. Most recently, Calm was updated on September 25, 2026 and Breathing Exercises * on August 16, 2026.

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