A staggering 57.8 million adults in the United States are affected by mental illness, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), highlighting the urgent need to prioritize mental health care. Reports indicate that anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness among adults in the country, with depression and PTSD following closely behind. The good news is that technology has opened new avenues in mental health support that everyone can easily access. We’ve done the research and selected the best mental health apps for Android you can use for free.
Note: apps are only tools that aid mental health and can’t replace actual medical treatment or advice.
Content
- 1. Best for Building Endurance – Happify
- 2. Best for Meditation – Calm
- 3. Best for Coping with Stressful Situations – MoodMission
- 4. Best for Dealing with Anxiety & Depression – Youper
- 5. Best for Dealing with Self-Harm Urges: Calm Harm
- 6. Best for Online Therapy – BetterHelp
- 7. Best for Focus, Relaxation & Sleep – Endel
- 8. Best for Fighting PTDS – PTSD Coach
1. Best for Building Endurance – Happify
Price: Free with premium options
Happify is an app that addresses various mental ailments, including stress, anxiety, and mood disorders. It features a bright and simple user interface that immediately immerses users into various so-called tracks (aka issues you want to work on.)
If you’re not sure what to start with, you can take an assessment test and Happify will guide you towards the most useful tracks for you. Some of them include a Digital Coach which you can interact with. Tracks offer a mix of tasks such as writing down your thoughts, mini-games, quizzes, and more. These are all to guide you toward greater resilience, improved mood, and overall life satisfaction
Perhaps the biggest draw of Happify is that many tracks were created in collaboration with scientists. The app’s impressive lineup of experts listed on its official website solidifies its position as a trusted resource for those dealing with a mental health condition. In addition, the International Journal of Wellbeing published the results of a controlled randomized trial featuring Happify. The study found that participants who used the app at the recommended level reported fewer depressive and anxiety symptoms as well as greater resilience after eight weeks.
Tip: drift off to sleep more easily with these sleep meditation apps that can help calm you down.
2. Best for Meditation – Calm
Price: Free with premium options
Calm is one of the more popular meditation apps, a close competitor of Headspace. We haven’t included the latter in our list because Calm offers a greater variety of options through its free tier.
You start by setting a goal such as building self-esteem or reducing anxiety, and Calm will build you a custom track for you to follow. The app’s focus is on meditation, but you’ll also find breathing exercises, sleep stories, and soundscapes. You can also check in daily, so you can have an overview of your shifting mood through your Profile page. Calm also offers the option to keep a journal and write daily reflections.
Calm was part of a study by researchers at Arizona State University, which included a total of 88 participants – all college students, and found that the app is an effective modality to deliver mindfulness meditation to reduce stress, improve mindfulness and self-compassion in stressed-out college students.
3. Best for Coping with Stressful Situations – MoodMission
Price: Free with premium options
MoodMission is a unique app that keeps track of moods and helps you deal with various stressful scenarios in your life. The app’s development is the result of years of research by a team of psychologists and psychiatrists.
After taking a few quizzes so that MoodMission can assess your overall state of mind, you can go and log in your mood. For instance, are you feeling “low, flat, and depressed”? MoodMission will immediately suggest a few activities (aka missions) which should help you feel better. Each mission features objectives and a quick explanation of why this particular has the potential to help you ease stress.
Various clinical trials assessing the effectiveness of mental health apps have featured MoodMission. For instance, a study published in the Australian Psychologist Journal in 2019 noted that engagement with the app predicted an increase in mental well-being. Findings suggest that the app’s efficacy in reducing symptoms of moderate depression and anxiety may be mediated by its positive impact on coping self-efficacy.
FYI: if you’re going on a trip, don’t forget to install one of these travel journal apps to collect all your memories in one place.
4. Best for Dealing with Anxiety & Depression – Youper
Price: Free with premium options
Youper is an app that harnesses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques to help users improve their mental health. This therapeutic approach helps individuals change negative thought patterns to improve emotions and behaviors.
Youper offers a conversational platform where you can open up and share your experiences with the help of an AI companion. This is based on the idea that sometimes all most people actually need to feel better is to have a heart-to-heart conversation with someone. The assistant will asses your state and provide suggestions on how to feel better.
A scientific study conducted by Standford University revealed the positive impact of Youper on mental health. The study demonstrated that participants experienced a significant reduction in depressive and anxiety symptoms, highlighting the app’s potential as a valuable treatment aid.
5. Best for Dealing with Self-Harm Urges: Calm Harm
Price: Free
Calm Harm is targeting people who are trying to manage urges to self-harm, as well as relieve feelings of stress and anxiety. Built on the principles of dialectic behavioral therapy (DBT), the app offers relief to individuals struggling with mood disorders.
Calm Harm uses the concept of “riding the wave” – this is a technique in which you do 5 or 15 minutes activities from different categories such as Comfort or Distract – all aimed to reduce the urge to self-harm. The app also includes a dedicated Breathing Activity section that features breathing exercises to promote relaxation and lessen the intensity of any overwhelming feelings you might be experiencing.
Best of all, the NHS (National Health Service of Great Britain) recommends this app as a valid tool to aid with the suppression of self-harming thoughts.
Tip: did you know that can get mental health support through the use of generative AI? Learn more ways of using such tools to enhance your life.
6. Best for Online Therapy – BetterHelp
Price: starting at $65 per week
If you’re shy, too busy, or perhaps suffer from a condition that prevents you from leaving your house, you might want to consider BetterHelp. It’s a fully paid app, but if you sign up with an account, you’ll be able to access the services of top online licensed therapists from across the world. Plus, discount apply based on your employment status or age.
The best part about this app is that you can select your therapist based on your preferences and needs. Feel more comfortable with a female therapist? Do you want to talk to someone who is trauma-informed? BetterHelp can help you locate such professionals for you.
Once the app finds your match, you can start communicating with your therapist in a way that you’re most comfortable with, including message-only sessions. The options to have phone and video meetings are also available.
7. Best for Focus, Relaxation & Sleep – Endel
An overwhelming number of people suffering from mental health conditions have problems focusing and are also unable to get a good night’s sleep which can potentially further exacerbate their condition. Endel is an app that uses personalized soundscapes to promote relaxation and sleep as well as focus.
The app features a beautifully minimalistic interface that lets you discover soundscapes meant to make you feel better. It’s not only designed to help you get a better good night’s sleep as it includes scenarios for focus, deep work, reading, or anxiety relief.
Endel uses patented technology to create soundscapes that adapt in real-time. A study published by Bioarxiv examined how background sounds, including personalized soundscapes (like those from the Endel app) affect human focus. Using brain decoding technology and EEG recording, the researchers found that Endel’s real-time engineered soundscapes were especially effective for promoting sustained attention, suggesting that personalized, adaptive audio can support higher productivity, relaxation, and focus.
8. Best for Fighting PTDS – PTSD Coach
Price: Free
Developed by the US Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), PTSD Coach is an app that can help you manage your PTSD symptoms through effective exercises. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a veteran or not, you can use the app regardless.
To begin, select a symptom such as “unable to sleep” or “disconnected from reality” and input your current level of distress. PTSD Coach will then suggest an exercise appropriate for the situation. For instance, it will provide you with a breathing exercise or a visualization task. There’s also a useful journaling feature.
The app also helps you better understand PTSD through offering access to a knowledge library that consists of various articles and information. Inside PSTD Coach, you’ll also find resources for getting professional help.
Related: check the best free podcast apps for Android you should try.
Interested in learning more about mental health? Check out these podcasts you should consider adding to your playlist. In addition, since mental health conditions are often associated with physical symptoms, learn how you can stay on top of them by using a Pixel phone to measure your pulse and respiratory rate.
Image credit: Pexels All screenshots by Alexandra Arici
Alexandra Arici –
Staff Writer
Alexandra is passionate about mobile tech and can be often found fiddling with a smartphone from some obscure company. She kick-started her career in tech journalism in 2013, after working a few years as a middle-school teacher. Constantly driven by curiosity, Alexandra likes to know how things work and to share that knowledge with everyone.
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