Mindfulness Coach vs SoCue
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Mindfulness Coach
Learn and practice mindfulness with a guided training program. Access audio exercises, informational resources, and progress tracking tools to reduce stress and improve emotional balance. This app is free and respects your privacy.
- Self-guided mindfulness training
- Audio-guided mindfulness exercises
- Information library on mindfulness
- Goal setting and progress tracking
- Mindfulness mastery assessment
- Customizable reminders
- Access to support resources
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Mindfulness means noticing and paying attention to what is going on in the present moment, without passing judgment on it. Mindfulness has been shown to be effective for reducing stress, improving emotional balance, increasing self-awareness, helping with anxiety and depression, and coping more effectively with chronic pain. Mindfulness Coach 2.0 was developed to help Veterans, Service members, and others learn how to practice mindfulness. The app provides a gradual, self-guided training program designed to help you understand and adopt a simple mindfulness practice. Mindfulness Coach also offers a library of information about mindfulness (for example “What is Mindfulness?”, “How to Anchor Your Attention”), 12 audio-guided mindfulness exercises and a growing catalog of additional exercises available for free download, goal-setting and tracking, a mindfulness mastery assessment to help you track your progress over time, customizable reminders, and access to other support and crisis resources. Mindfulness Coach is free, doesn’t take or share any of your personal information, and doesn’t require add-on purchases. Mindfulness Coach was created by VA’s National Center for PTSD.
SoCue
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SoCue is a drink tracker for nights when you want to pace yourself without keeping score in your head. One screen for the whole evening. A quiet color cue as you approach your personal line. A calm recap the next morning. No spreadsheets, no judgment, no nagging. HOW IT WORKS — First Drink Ritual — The moment you log your first drink, SoCue starts the night with you. You pick the kind of night you want (small, normal, or full send), set a personal stop line, and one optional belongings checklist. Three taps, then you're back to your night. — Tonight Screen — A single screen for the whole night. Tap to log each drink. The screen quietly shifts color as you approach your line. No numbers, no scoreboard — just a calm signal. — Mirror Mode — When you cross your line, your phone can show you a photo or short message you wrote to yourself earlier. Your own face, your own words. — App Lock (optional) — Pre-pick apps you don't want to use while drinking. They lock when you cross your line and unlock at 6 AM. You can still call and text. — Morning Pack — The next morning: where you went, how many drinks, what you brought home, what you forgot. A calm recap, not a hangover lecture. PRIVACY SoCue is local-first. Your drinking data never leaves your phone. • No account, no signup, no password • No servers, no third-party analytics, no tracking • No advertising identifiers • HealthKit is opt-in only (off by default; you control whether drinks log to your Apple Health database) • iCloud Backup is explicitly OFF for drinking data — restore your phone and your history will not come back. Deliberate. PRICING Free to use, forever. No ads, no subscription, no upsell. If SoCue saved your night, there's an optional Tip Jar inside the app — $1, $5, or whatever feels right. One-time, never recurring. That's it. WHAT THIS IS NOT SoCue is not a sobriety app, a quit-drinking app, or a medical tool. It doesn't push abstinence, doesn't shame, doesn't lecture. It's a pacing tool — for the kind of night when you want to drink and want to remember it. If you're looking to stop drinking entirely, look into AA, SMART Recovery, or a therapist. SoCue is for the in-between nights. DISCLAIMERS SoCue is not a medical device and does not measure your blood alcohol content. The "line" it tracks is based on the personal profile you provide (sex, weight, height, flush response, drinking frequency) and is intended as a soft cue, not a diagnostic reading. Individual response to alcohol varies widely. If you have a medical condition affected by alcohol, please consult a doctor. Never drive after drinking. SoCue does not offer or imply driving guidance under any circumstance. QUESTIONS We're a one-person operation. Email naochann2024@gmail.com — we read everything.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Mindfulness Coach at none against SoCue's 3. Mindfulness Coach also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). SoCue's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 9 months). On price and ads 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. SoCue sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Mindfulness Coach asks for nothing beyond the download.
Mindfulness Coach ships an update every 9 months, SoCue every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Mindfulness Coach | SoCue |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (11K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 92.6% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 11K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | Every 5 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 131 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) | 明杨 许 |
Bugs and requests
Mindfulness Coach
Reported bugs
3 issues- Timer not working properly
- Tracking/progress not saving consistently
- App crashing or freezing
Requested features
4 requests- Dark mode option
- Better organization and filtering of content
- More variety in session durations
- Ability to import custom music/sounds
SoCue
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Mindfulness Coach
No in-app purchases
SoCue
- Small thanks$0.99
- Buy a Drink$2.99
- Big Love$4.99
Questions
Is Mindfulness Coach free?
Is SoCue free?
Do Mindfulness Coach or SoCue have ads?
Which is updated more often, Mindfulness Coach or SoCue?
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