BetterSleep App Review

Please note: BetterSleep provided a free subscription for the purposes of this review. All opinions are honest and my own.

I’m a person who values sleep. And I’m also a person who struggles with sleep—particularly when it comes to unwinding enough to unwind, shut down, and drift off to dreamland. As such, I’m always on the lookout for tools, apps, and technologies that could help me get more and better rest—which is why I was super excited to try BetterSleep.

But what is the BetterSleep app? Does it work? Let’s take a deep dive into my BetterSleep app review, including what it offers (including the BetterSleep app cost), how it works, and whether it actually had an impact on the quality and quantity of my sleep.

What is the BetterSleep app?

First things first—what, exactly, is the BetterSleep app?

BetterSleep is, as the name suggests, an app designed to help you get better sleep—and it comes equipped with a huge variety of features in order to make that happen.

Those features include:

SleepTales. Did you enjoy bedtime stories as a child? If so, you’ll love SleepTales. BetterSleep comes equipped with a huge library of stories to fall asleep to, including stories in different genres (like fantasy, non-fiction, mystery, or kids), stories of different lengths, and stories read by different narrators. So whatever type of story—and narrator—you like, there’s a SleepTale to help you drift off the sleep. You also have the option to play SleepTales on repeat—or, if you’re prone to falling asleep quickly, having the app automatically close at the end of the story.
Sounds. BetterSleep also offers different sound experiences to help you get better rest. This includes colored noise (think white noise or green noise), relaxing background sounds (like wind, gentle rain, or the crackle of a campfire), and a huge variety of music ranging from jazz piano to lo-fi beats to Delta brainwave music—and just about everything in between.
Mixes. One of BetterSleep’s more unique features is the ability to “mix” different sound types to create your perfect sleep soundscape. For example, you can create a mix that layers green noise over deep sleep delta waves and the sounds of thunder and walking on leaves. You can also add isochronic tones to your mix, which influence your brain in different ways—ways that can help you get better sleep (for example, low theta 4 Hz waves are associated with dreams while low alpha 8 Hz are ideal for pre-sleep).
Meditations. If you’re a person who likes to meditate—or is interested in trying meditation for sleep—you’ll find an extensive library of sleep meditations on the BetterSleep app, including short guided meditations and longer sleep hypnosis tracks.
SleepMoves. SleepMoves is designed to help you physically wind down at the end of the day with stretches and exercises, which the app walks you through via audio cues. You can choose to have the audio instruct your stretches and/or exercise from a sitting, standing, or lying down position.
Breathe. Deep breathing has been shown to help promote relaxation and improve sleep—and, as such, you’ll find a number of breathing exercises on the BetterSleep app, including exercises to do throughout the day and right before bed.
Programs. While the BetterSleep app allows you to choose and create your own ideal sleep experience, they also have pre-designed programs for people that want more structure (for example, in honor of Mental Health Awareness month, the app currently features a 21-day sleep reset program that uses CBT-I and mindfulness to transform daily habits and promote better sleep).
Sleep recorder. For the data enthusiasts out there, BetterSleep’s Sleep Recorder tracks your sleep and delivers key insights to understand your current sleep patterns and how to improve them. The app actually records you while you sleep (hence the name), letting you know exactly what’s disrupting your sleep (whether that’s a coughing fit, snoring, or some middle-of-the-night gas).

How to use the BetterSleep App

Now that you know what the BetterSleep app is, let’s talk about how to use it.

The good news? The BetterSleep app is extremely easy and user-friendly; all you have to do is click on the feature you want to explore (which you can find on the app’s homepage)—and then follow the directions on the screen.

For example, let’s say you want to create a sound mix to help you drift off to sleep. You would just click “Sounds” on the homepage navigation bar.

From there, you can either view all sounds, explore different categories based on your preferences (like white noise, nature sounds, ASMR, or brainwave sounds or the app’s music library).

From there, you can click on whatever sounds interesting—and the app will automatically layer those sounds to create your own personal mix.

When you click on your mix, you can further personalize the experience by adjusting each sound (for example, more wind, less green noise) or setting a timer for how long you’d like the mix to play. If it’s a winner, then you can also save your mix for future use.

It’s the same for the other features; once you click on the feature you’d like to explore, it’s super clear on what you need to know.

My BetterSleep app review

Now that we’ve covered all that BetterSleep has to offer, let’s talk about my experience—which bottom line? Like many other BetterSleep app reviews, was overwhelmingly positive.

My favorite feature of BetterSleep was the sounds and mixes. I loved the huge variety of sound types; it allowed me to experiment with different sounds to find the perfect combination for me specifically—and then use that combination to blissfully drift off to dreamland. (Which, in case you’re curious, is campfire and rain.)

I also liked that you could create different mixes and save them; that way, I could switch up sounds and try different things without worrying about losing or forgetting that perfect combo. I found that, on nights I used the sound mixes, I fell asleep faster—and woke up feeling more refreshed—when compared to nights I went to sleep without background noise.

My favorite feature of BetterSleep was the sounds and mixes. I loved the huge variety of sound types; it allowed me to experiment with different sounds to find the perfect combination for me specifically—and then use that combination to blissfully drift off to dreamland.

I also enjoyed the breathing exercises. I’m a person who does deep breathing regularly, including some of the breathing patterns they featured on the app—but logging into the app and getting the reminder to breathe (along with the soothing background noise that plays during the app’s breathing exercises) were super helpful.

BetterSleep is very much a “choose your own adventure” kind of sleep app. The app has so many features, each of which speak to different people.

So, the million dollar question: would I recommend BetterSleep? The answer? A resounding yes.

As mentioned, BetterSleep has something for everyone—so no matter where you are on your sleep journey or what you need or want to explore to get better sleep, the app can help. The price is also reasonable; at less than $60 per year, BetterSleep offers so much variety that would be much more expensive to explore via individual apps (for example, a meditation app, breathing app, and music app).

If you’re looking to get better sleep, then I would definitely recommend downloading the BetterSleep app.

FAQs

Is the BetterSleep app free?

Many people are curious, “Is BetterSleep a free app,” or, “Does BetterSleep app cost money?” The answer is, it depends.

BetterSleep does have a free version that offers access to a lot of content. But, in order to access and unlock all of their features, you’ll need a premium subscription.

So, how much is BetterSleep app? After a seven-day free trial, BetterSleep’s premium option is $9.99 per month. To save money, you could opt for a yearly subscription ($59.99 per year)—or, if you truly love the app and want to use it for the long-term, then you can get lifetime access for $249.99.