# Calm vs Buddhify

The clearest difference is price: Calm at Free against Buddhify's $4.99. Calm also leads on ratings volume (2M vs 6.2K) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 4 weeks). Buddhify's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 18.0). On rating, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Calm is free to download; Buddhify costs $4.99 up front. Calm sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month and Buddhify sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $29.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Calm against 4.8 for Buddhify. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Calm has 2M ratings behind it against 6.2K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 64% of Calm's written reviews are positive against 57% of Buddhify's.

Calm ships an update every 5 days, Buddhify every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Calm | Buddhify |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $4.99 |
| Rating | **[4.8 (2M ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calm/id571800810/reviews)** | [4.8 (6.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/buddhify-guided-meditation/id687421118/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **2M** | 6.2K |
| Positive reviews | **64.1% of reviews** | 57.5% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 days** | Every 4 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#5** | #116 |
| Size | 173 MB | 622 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **11.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Calm.com](https://appshunter.io/developer/571800813) | [CELESTIAN GOLDEN APPS](https://appshunter.io/developer/1815911753) |

## What reviewers say

### Calm

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calm/id571800810)

**Currently charting:** #5 Top Grossing · Health & Fitness, #53 Top Free · Health & Fitness, #132 Top Grossing (US App Store)

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:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Calm Subscription | $14.99 | per month |
| Calm Premium | $14.99 | per month |
| Calm Premium | $16.99 | per month |
| Calm Premium | $29.99 | per month |
| Calm Premium | $69.99 | per year |
| Calm Premium | $69.99 | per year |
| Calm Premium | $79.99 | per year |
| Calm Premium | $79.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 💤 Helpful for sleep
- 🧘‍♀️ Effective for meditation and relaxation
- 🎨 Variety of content (sleep stories, meditations, music)
- 🙏 Positive impact on mental health
- 🤗 Soothing narrators

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Expensive subscription
- 🔒 Limited free content
- 🕰️ Difficulty finding specific content
- 🔁 Repetitive sleep stories
- 🙃 Accessibility issues for disabled users

**Reported bugs**

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

**Requested features**

- Add repeat button for sleep stories
- Separate kids and adult content
- Allow creating custom playlists
- Improve search and navigation
- Add more diverse narrator voices


### Buddhify

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/buddhify-guided-meditation/id687421118)

**Currently charting:** #116 Top Paid · Health & Fitness (US App Store)

This app offers guided meditations to reduce stress, anxiety, and improve sleep. It provides exercises for various situations, from work breaks to bedtime, helping users find calm and clarity throughout their day.

**Highlights:** Over 200 guided meditations, Mindfulness exercises for any situation, Sessions for beginners and experienced users, Solo meditation timer, Kids meditation content, Integration with Apple Health

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Buddhify Membership (optional) | $29.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🌟 Excellent meditation app
- 👍 Variety of meditations for different situations
- 💰 One-time payment, no subscription
- 🧘‍♀️ Helps with anxiety, stress, and sleep
- 🎨 Customizable wheel of meditations

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent bugs and glitches
- ⏱️ Slow to load and open the app
- 🔇 Lack of background music or nature sounds
- 🙄 Some voices/narrators not preferred by users
- 🤔 Difficulty navigating between kid and adult wheels

**Reported bugs**

- Meditations not downloading or playing
- Frequent crashes and error messages
- Inability to log in or access account
- Wheels not loading or updating properly
- Syncing issues between devices

**Requested features**

- Apple Watch integration
- Ability to create playlists of meditations
- More advanced/longer meditation options
- Improved offline functionality
- Better support and communication from developers


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Calm free?

Calm is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Buddhify free?

Buddhify costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Calm or Buddhify?

Calm is rated higher. Calm averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2M ratings, while Buddhify averages 4.8 from 6.2K ratings.

### Do Calm or Buddhify have ads?

Calm shows ads; Buddhify does not.

### Which is updated more often, Calm or Buddhify?

Calm ships an update every 5 days, and Buddhify every 4 weeks. Most recently, Calm was updated on November 6, 2026 and Buddhify on November 1, 2026.

### Which is more popular, Calm or Buddhify?

Calm currently peaks at #5 in the App Store charts, and Buddhify at #116. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*