LightUp vs Mindful Timer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
LightUp
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Don't always want to look at your timer during lessons or in your practice? Still keep track of your times! Let this light signal-based timer be your visual guide! As a yoga teacher or practitioner, it is always important to keep an eye on your times. In Kundalini yoga in particular, it is often important to guide participants through the duration of the exercises. We have equipped this timer with light signals and other helpful features so that you can preset your times individually, call them up quickly and keep an eye on them with little effort. The interval between the signals shortens as the exercise draws to a close. The signals can be a flashing of the screen or a lighting up of the camera flash as well as a vibration of the device. Of course, the end of the exercise can also be signaled with a sound. Apple EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Mindful Timer
This app provides a simple, unguided interval timer for self-guided meditation, breathwork, and yoga practices. It features customizable timers, gentle bells, and a distraction-free interface. Save your favorite routines and track your weekly sessions without any ads or subscriptions.
- Multiple automatic timers
- Customizable interval bells
- Save preset routines
- Weekly session tracking
- Gentle bell sounds
- Distraction-free design
- Offline functionality
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A simple meditation timer for unguided practice. No ads. No subscriptions. No distractions. Just gentle bells to keep time while you practice. Set your session, put your phone down, and let the bells guide you. Mindful Timer is built for people who just want the space to meditate—no courses, no sleep sounds, no content library. Just timers, soothing sounds, and you. Perfect for meditation, yin and restorative yoga, breathwork, zazen, or any self-guided practice. NEW + 20+ curated sounds: singing bowls, bells, and simple voice cues + Choose how many times the bells ring —once, twice, or three times + Practice insights and heat maps to help you build consistency + Sync sessions to Apple Health as Mindful Minutes CORE FEATURES + Sequential timers that flow automatically from one to the next, so you never check the clock + Interval bells at your chosen frequency (e.g. every 5 minutes) + Fully custom timer durations + Save your routines as presets and start them in one tap + Track streaks, weekly and monthly sessions, and lifetime minutes + Play your own music (Spotify, Apple Music, etc.) + Runs in the background and while your phone is locked + Large countdown display. DESIGNED FOR CALM FROM DAY ONE + No ads, ever + No subscriptions, ever — one simple purchase, yours forever + No guided meditations, courses, or content to wade through + No social feeds or comparison + Dark mode so it's easy on the eyes + Works fully offline + Gentle sounds to guide you through transitions (unlike most interval timers) PERFECT FOR + Any self-guided or silent meditation + Zen, zazen, vipassana, and insight meditation + Yin yoga and restorative yoga + Breathwork and pranayama + Practicing at home before a vipassana or meditation retreat + Building a daily unguided meditation or yoga habit + Yoga teachers keeping time during class + Interval walking, Japanese interval walking, and Pomodoro focus blocks WHAT MAKES IT DIFFERENT + Incredibly simple and intuitive design. + Keeps time in the background, so you never pick up your phone mid-practice. + Carefully curated, soothing sounds. No jarring alarms. + No clutter, no distractions, nothing you don't need.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Mindful Timer at weekly against LightUp's every 6 weeks. LightUp's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.6). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. LightUp sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per year and Mindful Timer sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
LightUp ships an update every 6 weeks, Mindful Timer weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | LightUp | Mindful Timer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 5.0 (10 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 10 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 31 MB | 52 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Looking4Cache UG (haftungsbeschraenkt) | Burnt Cinnamon Labs |
In-app purchases
LightUp
- Annual funding 1$0.991 Year
- Annual funding 2$1.991 Year
- Annual funding 3$4.991 Year
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- Annual funding 4$8.991 Year
- Quarterly funding 5$12.993 Months
- Annual funding 5$12.991 Year
- Annual funding 6$14.991 Year
- Quarterly funding 7$19.993 Months
- Annual funding 7$19.991 Year
- Annual funding 8$24.991 Year
Mindful Timer
- Premium: Bell Sounds, Insights$2.99
- Premium: Bell Sounds, Insights$4.99
Questions
Is LightUp free?
Is Mindful Timer free?
Do LightUp or Mindful Timer have ads?
Which is updated more often, LightUp or Mindful Timer?
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