Comparison

CalmAnchor vs Ashimoto Zen

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

Head to head
About

CalmAnchor

This app provides immediate, practical tools for managing anxiety and building lasting calm. It offers evidence-based techniques, a personalized healing journey, and features like Panic SOS and guided journaling.

Highlights
  • Panic SOS for instant relief
  • Personalized 30-day healing plan
  • Guided daily journal entries
  • Mood and anxiety analytics
  • Healing streaks for motivation
  • Private journaling, no account needed
Features
Read full description

Having a panic attack? Tap once. CalmAnchor opens straight into Panic SOS from a Lock Screen widget: 5-4-3-2-1 grounding, then six slow guided breaths with a live countdown in your Dynamic Island. Rate how intense it feels before and after, and watch it come down. Then it helps you need it less. Check in on your mood, follow a 30-day plan built around your triggers, and earn your way up the ranks as calm becomes a habit. PANIC SOS — FREE • One tap from your Lock Screen widget into a guided session • 5-4-3-2-1 grounding to bring you back to the present • Six slow breaths (in 4, hold 4, out 4) with a Dynamic Island countdown • Calming affirmations and a before-and-after intensity check • A coping library: box breathing, 4-7-8, body scan, thought records and more • The 988 Lifeline and Crisis Text Line, one tap away HELP FROM ANYWHERE — NEW IN 2.0 • Apple Watch app: Panic SOS on your wrist, with breaths you can feel • Start Panic SOS from the Action Button, Control Center, Siri or Spotlight • Haptic breathing: feel each breath with your eyes closed • Optional voice guidance through grounding and breathing • Optional Apple Health: mindful minutes, mood as State of Mind, and your heart rate before and after EARN YOUR CALM RANK • 50 badges to unlock, from First Anchor to secret moments like Night Watch • An Anchor Pass with 20 ranks, from First Breath to Zen Anchor, that turns from Sea Glass to Pearl as you climb • Celebrations for streaks, badges and new ranks, with cards you can share • Daily quests, plus a grace day so one missed day doesn't erase your streak • Your week in calm: a story recap of your sessions, moods and wins LASTING CALM — PREMIUM • A personalized 30-day plan built around your triggers • A guided journal with gratitude, affirmations and free writing • Mood and anxiety trends over 7 days, 30 days or all time PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your journal, moods and sessions stay on your iPhone, unless you choose to save sessions and moods to Apple Health. No account, no ads. CalmAnchor is a self-help and wellness tool, not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you're in crisis, call or text 988 or your local emergency number. SUBSCRIPTION & LEGAL CalmAnchor offers auto-renewable subscriptions (weekly, monthly, yearly) and an optional one-time Lifetime purchase. Subscriptions auto-renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; manage or cancel in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://gwlabs.app/terms Privacy Policy: https://gwlabs.app/privacy

About

Ashimoto Zen

Features
Read full description

Stepping stones. Alternating boards. Paths that make you want to match your steps. Stay seated and hold your phone steady while ink-painted feet walk on screen. Watch each foot find its place, then the next, and listen to the footsteps. Ink feet, one foothold at a time Stepping stones, alternating boards, and bricks. Look down at ink-painted robes and feet as they follow the footholds in each scene. The hem follows each step, and footprints left on the ground gradually fade. There is no need to tap the footholds or swipe during your walk. Choose from 10 places A wooden veranda, stepping-stone garden, white line, brick path, rice field, mossy stones, pilgrimage trail, Ganges, space, and Heart Sutra. All 10 are available from the start. Choose a scene to start walking there directly. Touch the home-screen stone for a two-minute walk in the stepping-stone garden. A journey through all ten scenes Choose the ten-scene journey for one continuous circuit, lasting about 21 minutes. Each scene flows into the next without another tap. Pause or finish early whenever you like. The Heart Sutra plays in full. Two minutes, or one complete track Most walks last two minutes. Heart Sutra follows a complete music track, about 2 minutes 45 seconds. If the device orientation changes too far, the walk, remaining time, and audio stop. Hold the phone steady again at a comfortable angle to resume automatically from that position. You do not need to find the original angle. Quiet walks have no penalties or failure ending. Learn the controls and take your time First-use guidance appears over the scene: keep the side-to-side tilt steady, then the front-to-back tilt. If you are already holding steady, no shaking is needed. Once the walk begins, watch the ink feet reach for the next foothold. A subtle indicator shows whether your hold is steady. The scene name and remaining time appear only when needed; pause remains available. You can skip the guidance, pause, or finish early whenever you like. Time does not advance while the app is in the background. Follow the Heart Sutra Heart Sutra includes captions timed to the chant, with an English translation in English mode. Switch captions on or off from the pause screen. They also work with sound muted. A record of your breaks Look back at time spent in the scenery. Stillness time is available as a separate record. Preparation, pauses, and stops caused by changes in device orientation are excluded from your time in the scenery. For a break between work or study, a breather before bed, or a moment when you notice you are still scrolling. One app purchase includes these 10 places and your moment records. No subscription. If you already own the app, you keep access to all 10 places. No account is required. Records are saved on your device. Available in Japanese, English, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. Use while seated, holding your device. This app is not intended for use while actually walking. Your quiet moments grow a forest Time spent here remains as a changing forest. Moss gradually grows across the sunlit forest filling your record screen. Short breaks accumulate, giving you a quiet visual record alongside the time you have spent. Details about growth are available from the record screen.

Screenshots

CalmAnchor4 screens
Ashimoto Zen4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: CalmAnchor at Free against Ashimoto Zen's $9.90. Ashimoto Zen's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and update cadence (every 4 days vs fortnightly). On ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

CalmAnchor is free to download; Ashimoto Zen costs $9.90 up front. CalmAnchor sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Ashimoto Zen asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CalmAnchor ships an update fortnightly, Ashimoto Zen every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 5 level
CalmAnchor versus Ashimoto Zen: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCalmAnchorAshimoto Zen
PriceFree — better$9.90
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size82 MB265 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGW Capital Partners LLC株式会社FREETANCE

In-app purchases

4 purchases

CalmAnchor

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly$4.997 Days
  • Monthly3 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Yearly3 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$79.99
None

Ashimoto Zen

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is CalmAnchor free?
CalmAnchor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ashimoto Zen free?
Ashimoto Zen costs $9.90, with no in-app purchases.
Do CalmAnchor or Ashimoto Zen have ads?
Neither CalmAnchor nor Ashimoto Zen shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CalmAnchor or Ashimoto Zen?
CalmAnchor ships an update fortnightly, and Ashimoto Zen every 4 days. Most recently, CalmAnchor was updated on October 25, 2026 and Ashimoto Zen on October 20, 2026.

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