Comparison

Somnee vs Absolute Rest

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

Head to head
About

Somnee

This app works with a smart headband to improve sleep quality using personalized neurostimulation and EEG tracking. It provides detailed sleep reports and insights to help you sleep faster, longer, and deeper.

Highlights
  • Personalized sleep neurostimulation
  • Clinical-grade EEG sleep tracking
  • Detailed sleep performance reports
  • AI sleep coach
  • Phone-free session start
  • Comfortable, breathable headband design
Features
Read full description

Meet Somnee, the app that works with the award-winning smart sleep headband that directly improves sleep quality and decodes nightly sleep performance for unrivalled insights. As your own clinical-grade AI sleep coach, Somnee pairs proven personalized neurostimulation that helps you naturally sleep faster, longer, and deeper, with precise sleep reports powered by lab-grade EEG tracking. IMPROVE 360° SLEEP HEALTH Somnee is proven to cut time to fall asleep by 50%, reduce wake-ups by 33%, and boost total sleep time by ~30 min. It’s 4x more effective than melatonin, 2x more effective than CBT-i, and 1.5x more effective than Ambien. PERSONALIZED SLEEP NEUROSTIMULATION Somnee maps the unique way your brain sleeps, then delivers gentle frequencies to boost your optimal sleep signals. The result: a dynamic, effective, 100% personalized sleep system that evolves with you as your sleep changes over time. BRAIN-BASED TRACKING + SLEEP REPORTS Clinical-grade EEG+ sensors collect precise brainwave data straight from the source, uploading 40x more sleep data than most trackers. Explore reports featuring insights into sleep onset, sleep stages, and more. PHONE-FREE USE, ALL-NIGHT COMFORT Start sessions phone-free with just the click of the headband button. Somnee’s soft, breathable fabric and innovative design molds to you for maximum comfort, no matter how you sleep. MADE BY WORLD-RENOWNED SLEEP NEUROSCIENTISTS Developed over 7 years of R&D by Dr. Matthew Walker (Author of NYT Bestseller, “Why We Sleep”), Dr. Bob T. Knight. Dr. Ram Gurumoorthy, and Dr. Rich Irvy — Somnee leverages cutting edge neuroscience used by top sleep labs for decades, now made available from the comfort of home. Our real-world results are clinically proven and published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal, Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. Have questions? We’re here to help. Email us at support@somneesleep.com. Terms of Use: www.somneesleep.com/pages/privacy-policy-and-terms-of-use/ www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Absolute Rest

This app provides a comprehensive sleep management program using an FDA-cleared testing system to analyze sleep patterns through the autonomic nervous system. It offers personalized insights and expert support to improve sleep quality and daytime performance.

Highlights
  • Comprehensive sleep assessment
  • Autonomic nervous system testing
  • Personalized insights and expert support
  • User-friendly app interface
  • Continuous monitoring of sleep parameters
Read full description

Transform Your Sleep with Clinical Precision Absolute Rest combines the capabilities of a professional sleep laboratory with the precision of sleep science to deliver the first and only comprehensive sleep management program directly to your home. Utilizing an innovative FDA-cleared testing system, designed to detect sleep patterns through the autonomic nervous system with cutting-edge technology, you'll get a comprehensive analysis of your sleep quality and personalized insights to help you achieve your best rest. Key Features: Comprehensive Sleep Assessment: Absolute Rest transforms your fingertip into a clinical sleep lab, measuring every movement, heartbeat, and breath throughout the night. Detect and analyze a wide range of sleep problems and disorders, including insomnia, sleep apnea, hyperarousal, hyperactivity, and much more with unmatched depth and clarity. Cutting-Edge Autonomic Nervous System Testing: Gain insights from your autonomic nervous system while you sleep, with precise measurements of sympathetic fragmentation, deep parasympathetic restoration, sleep-disordered breathing including apneas, hypopneas, and RERAs, the only objective and FDA cleared sleep quality index (SQI), and much more. Personalized Insights and Expert Support: Receive detailed, actionable recommendations based on your unique sleep data. Your dedicated team, including a sleep clinician, clinical psychologist, and behavioral sleep expert, tailors solutions to your specific needs. Your team actively monitors nightly data to provide real-time, personalized guidance and comprehensive management to improve your sleep health and daytime performance. User-Friendly App Interface: The Absolute Rest app makes it simple to track meaningful sleep metrics and understand your unique patterns and trends with intuitive visuals and reports available on our companion web app. Continuous Monitoring: Unlike laboratory-based sleep studies, Absolute Rest continuously monitors multiple sleep parameters over time, providing ongoing insights and adjustments to help you optimize your sleep, and energize your life. Why Choose Absolute Rest? Millions suffer from poor sleep quality, leading to fragmented sleep, fatigue, and many associated health issues. Absolute Rest goes beyond traditional sleep trackers, offering a comprehensive, clinical-grade assessment to help you uncover the root causes of your particular sleep problems. With personalized insights and expert support, you can finally achieve the deep, restorative sleep you need to perform your best every day.

Screenshots

Somnee4 screens
Absolute Rest3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Absolute Rest at free against Somnee's paid. Absolute Rest also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). Somnee's advantage is ratings volume (71 vs 3). On price, rating, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 3.7 for Somnee against 3.7 for Absolute Rest. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Somnee has 71 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Somnee ships an update every 2 months, Absolute Rest every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 18, 2026 and July 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Somnee versus Absolute Rest: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSomneeAbsolute Rest
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (71 ratings)3.7 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews64.4% of reviews—
Number of ratings71 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size164 MB41 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStimScienceAbsolute Rest, Inc

Customer experience

Somnee

All ratings71 ratings
Positive64.8%
Neutral2.8%
Negative32.4%
Written reviews59 reviews
Positive64.4%
Neutral5.1%
Negative30.5%

Absolute Rest

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

Bugs and requests

Somnee

Reported bugs

18 issues
  • App malfunctions and prevents use
  • Sleep reports are delayed or unavailable
  • Device asks for reset in the middle of the night but won't restart
  • App stops tracking sleep if woken up and button is pressed
  • Device inaccurately registers sleep patterns (e.g., REM sleep)
Show 13 more
  • App says user is not due for another session after taking device off
  • Headband falls off frequently
  • App is not intuitive and lacks instruction
  • New UI is missing reports
  • Headband is not reliable and asks for reset
  • App is buggy and prevents use (e.g., 'cool down mode')
  • Bad connection with electrodes
  • Device doesn't track sleep stages
  • Customer service is evasive with answers
  • Trial period starts from order date, not activation date
  • Subscription is required for cancellation
  • App is extremely buggy and data is useless
  • App prevents use due to 'cool down mode'

Requested features

8 requests
  • Add more sleep tones or meditation sounds
  • Provide a better tutorial on data interpretation
  • Improve headband design for comfort
  • Offer bulk electrode sales
  • Provide warranty on the headband
Show 3 more
  • Add a dark mode to the app
  • Track sleep stages for real-time feedback
  • Easier way to update payment information

Absolute Rest

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Somnee

No in-app purchases

None

Absolute Rest

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Somnee free?
Somnee is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Absolute Rest free?
Absolute Rest is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Somnee or Absolute Rest?
Somnee and Absolute Rest are both rated 3.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 71 and 3 ratings respectively.
Do Somnee or Absolute Rest have ads?
Neither Somnee nor Absolute Rest shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Somnee or Absolute Rest?
Somnee ships an update every 2 months, and Absolute Rest every 3 weeks. Most recently, Somnee was updated on September 18, 2026 and Absolute Rest on July 31, 2026.

Other comparisons