Comparison

Stay Dry vs Ember

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

Head to head
About

Stay Dry

This app offers tools to help users achieve and maintain sobriety. It features streak tracking, milestone rewards, an AI coach for support, and guided exercises for cravings and meditation.

Highlights
  • Track sober days and money saved
  • Earn digital medallions for milestones
  • AI coach for judgment-free support
  • Panic button for intense cravings
  • 30-day sober living program
  • Guided meditations and mocktail recipes
Features
Read full description

Getting sober is hard. Staying sober is harder. Stay Dry gives you the tools for both, built with John, a sober dad who has lived every day of it. TRACK YOUR STREAK Count your sober days, watch your progress, and see how much money you keep by not drinking. EARN REAL MILESTONES Collect beautifully crafted medallions from 24 hours all the way to 50 years. Every coin is a day you fought for. A COACH IN YOUR POCKET Talk it out with your AI coach any hour of the night. Judgment-free support for cravings, stress, and the 2am moments. Self-help support, not therapy or medical care. WHEN A CRAVING HITS The panic button walks you through the worst 20 minutes: guided breathing, grounding, and a plan to get to the other side. A 30-DAY PROGRAM THAT GETS IT Short daily lessons on cravings, triggers, sleep, and rebuilding real life sober, written in plain language. CALM, ON DEMAND Guided meditations in John's own voice, including the Full Body Scan, plus mocktail recipes for when your hands need something to hold. PREMIUM Start with a 14-day free trial. Premium unlocks the full program, the coach, and the complete session library. Subscriptions renew until canceled; manage anytime in Settings. Stay Dry is for adults 18 and up. It is a self-help tool and does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you may be experiencing alcohol withdrawal, seek medical care; withdrawal can be dangerous. One day at a time. Let's stay dry. Terms of Use: https://staydry.app/terms Privacy Policy: https://staydry.app/privacy

About

Ember

This app offers a private, compassionate companion to help you stop drinking and stay sober. It provides immediate support during cravings with guided conversations and coping tools, without judgment or shame.

Highlights
  • Private craving support
  • Guided coping tools
  • Compassionate reset after drinking
  • Sober time tracking
  • Money and time saved tracker
  • Milestone achievements
Features
Read full description

Ember helps you stop drinking and stay sober — not with another day-counter, but with a warm companion who sits with you through the hard moments. When a craving hits, Ember is right there: a calm, private coach for the 2am kind of night a streak counter can't reach. KEEP YOUR FLAME LIT Your sober time is a single flame you tend. It breathes while you're lit, dims to a coal when a craving hits, and relights the moment you get through it. Your day count is simply how long it's stayed burning. A COACH FOR THE MOMENT THE URGE HITS Tap "I'm having an urge" any time, day or night. Ember sits with you through it — a short, grounded conversation plus one coping tool that fits the moment: an urge-surf timer, breathing, play-the-tape, or your own reasons for stopping. The urge passes. The flame relights. PRIVATE BY DESIGN — NO FEED, NO ACCOUNT No public community. No feed to doom-scroll. No sign-up. Your recovery is yours: everything stays on your device, and you can start in the first five seconds. Trust is the whole point. A RESET WITHOUT SHAME If you drink, Ember never shames you. The flame gently goes out, and we relight it — that's all this ever is. Your history and journal are always kept. No lost streaks, no punishment. SEE WHAT SOBRIETY GIVES BACK Watch your sober days, the money you've saved, and the time you've reclaimed add up. Reach milestones — 1 day, 1 week, 30, 60, 90 — with a warm flare, and share a flame card if you want to. BUILT FOR ALCOHOL, ON PURPOSE Ember is for stopping drinking and staying sober — not moderation, not "drink less," not a twelve-step program. One focused job, done with care. A GENTLE NOTE ON SAFETY If you drink heavily, please talk to a doctor before stopping — alcohol withdrawal can be serious. Ember is a companion, not medical treatment, and it will always point you toward real help, including 988 and SAMHSA, in a crisis. EMBER PRO Everything you need to get sober is free forever: the flame, your counter, Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets, the craving coach, core coping tools, milestones, and the compassionate reset. Ember Pro unlocks unlimited coaching, personalized daily reflections tuned to your triggers, an Apple Watch flame, Face ID lock, and iCloud backup — $29.99/year with a 7-day free trial, or a one-time $79.99 for lifetime. Monthly is $7.99. Keep your flame lit. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://ember.aiappnation.com/privacy Ember Pro is an auto-renewing subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription renews automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the period. Manage or cancel anytime in your App Store account settings. The lifetime option is a one-time purchase, not a subscription.

Screenshots

Stay Dry4 screens
Ember4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Stay Dry at 72 against Ember's 1. Ember's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.8). On price, update cadence, 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. Stay Dry sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $13.99 per month and Ember sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Ember holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Stay Dry has 72 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Stay Dry ships an update every 10 days, Ember every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Stay Dry versus Ember: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStay DryEmber
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (72 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews83.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings72 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size101 MB8 MB
Age rating17+12+
DeveloperSoberDad Coaching LLCPLAYRIOT LLC

Customer experience

Stay Dry

All ratings71 ratings
Positive94.4%
Neutral2.8%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral16.7%
Negative0.0%

Ember

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Stay Dry

Subscriptions3
  • Premium Monthly1 Month trial$13.991 Month
  • Premium Monthly14 Days trial$13.991 Month
  • Premium Annual14 Days trial$99.991 Year
3 purchases

Ember

Subscriptions2
  • Ember Pro — Monthly$7.991 Month
  • Ember Pro — Yearly7 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Ember Lifetime$79.99

Questions

Is Stay Dry free?
Stay Dry is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ember free?
Ember is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Stay Dry or Ember?
Ember is rated higher. Stay Dry averages 4.8 out of 5 from 72 ratings, while Ember averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Stay Dry or Ember have ads?
Neither Stay Dry nor Ember shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Stay Dry or Ember?
Stay Dry ships an update every 10 days, and Ember every 9 days. Most recently, Stay Dry was updated on October 25, 2026 and Ember on October 14, 2026.

Other comparisons