Zenways vs Bon Calendar
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Zenways
This app combines nature sounds, guided Zen meditations from a Buddhist monk, and binaural beats to promote relaxation and inner peace. Users can customize meditation duration and sound mix, or use it as a free sound source.
- Guided Zen meditation
- Relaxing nature sounds
- Binaural beats
- Customizable meditation timer
- Adjustable sound mix
- Free sound source option
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Zenways is a Zen app. It uses a combination of relaxing sounds of nature, guided Zen meditation from Buddhist monk Julian Daizan Skinner and powerful binaural beats to help you relax and find your Zen. Set the meditation time from 21 to 90 minutes, and adjust the balance of the sounds, guide voice and binaural beats to suit you. You can even turn them off entirely, so this app can be used as a free sound source for meditation or relaxation. However, we strongly suggest you look at our Chillax app for the complete relaxation experience using soothing music, sound and binaural beats. This Zen app is made in partnership with Zenways, who provide yoga, meditation and teacher training. The Buddhist monk Julian Daizan Skinner (Juran Daizan 寿鸞 大山), is a British Rinzai Zen Buddhist Rōshi. He has also received Dharma Transmission in the Sōtō tradition of Zen. Daizan Roshi is the founder of the Zenways Sangha and head abbot of Yugagyo Dojo (Zen Yoga Camberwell) in London, United Kingdom. The Mindfulness of the breath meditation was found to be one of the most powerful and effective meditation techniques in extensive testing, and is presented to you here, totally free. Enjoy!. Binaural Beats Binaural beats or binaural tones are auditory processing artifacts, or apparent sounds, the perception of which arises in the brain for specific physical stimuli. This effect was discovered in 1839 by Heinrich Wilhelm Dove, and earned greater public awareness in the late 20th century based on claims that binaural beats could help induce relaxation, meditation, creativity and other desirable mental states. The effect on the brainwaves depends on the difference in frequencies of each tone: for example, if 300 Hz was played in one ear and 310 in the other, then the binaural beat would have a frequency of 10 Hz
Bon Calendar
Access the Tibetan Bön calendar with daily lunar dates, observances, and element combinations. View Tibetan dates for any year between 1901 and 2100, and access Bön prayer books in multiple languages. This app works fully offline.
- Tibetan lunar date and Bönpo year
- Daily practice and observance
- Month view with special days marked
- Tibetan dates for 1901-2100
- Bön prayer books in multiple languages
- Offline functionality
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Bon Calendar brings the Yungdrung Bön calendar to your iPhone and iPad, in Tibetan and English, from the Gyalshen Institute. • Each day’s Tibetan lunar date, month and Bönpo year beside the Western date • The day’s practice, special observance and element combination • A month view with full moon, new moon, double days and skipped days marked • Tibetan dates for any year from 1901 to 2100 • Bön prayer books in Tibetan, English, Chinese and Polish Works fully offline. No account, no ads, no data collected.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Zenways at 70% against Bon Calendar's 33%. Zenways also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). Bon Calendar's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, monetization model and device support 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. Zenways sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Bon Calendar asks for nothing beyond the download.
Zenways ships an update every 12 months, Bon Calendar every 6 months. Both last shipped on October 29, 2026.
| Parameter | Zenways | Bon Calendar |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (9 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 70.0% of reviews — better | 33.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 9 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 12 months | Every 6 months — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 60 MB | 73 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Wimbledon Sound | GYALSHEN INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF ZHANG ZHUNG AND TIBETAN CULTURE INC |
Customer experience
Zenways
Bon Calendar
In-app purchases
Zenways
- remove ads$1.99
Bon Calendar
No in-app purchases









