The 10 best sleep apps 🌙

Apps to help you fall asleep faster

No.01: the Calm application

✅ Our rating: 8/10

Calm is a meditation and sleep application designed to help you relax and fall asleep more quickly.

Here are its main features:

- guided meditation sessions of between 3 and 25 minutes, suitable for all levels,

- stories for adults and children, specially designed to help you fall asleep,

- a variety of soothing sounds and relaxing music to create an atmosphere conducive to sleep.

The application offers an annual subscription for €49.99 or a lifetime subscription for €329.99.

A free trial is available to test its features before making a commitment.

No. 02: the BetterSleep application

✅ Our rating: 7/10

BetterSleep (formerly Relax Melodies) is a complete application for improving your sleep.

It gives you access to:

- over 200 customisable sounds and melodies to create your ideal relaxing atmosphere,

- guided meditation sessions to reduce stress and anxiety,

- sleep tracking compatible with Apple and Android health applications,

- brain waves to plunge you into a state of deep relaxation.

The annual subscription is priced at €59.99, with a free trial option to discover the application.

The Noisli application

✅ Our rating: 7/10

Noisli is a background noise generator designed to promote concentration and relaxation.

Features include:

- a variety of natural sounds (rain, ocean, wind, etc.) and artificial sounds (white, brown, pink noise),

- the ability to mix and record your favourite sound combinations,

- a timer with gradual sound reduction, ideal for falling asleep,

- synchronisation of your settings on all your devices via a free account.

The app is available on iOS and Android, with a web version available free of charge.

Apps for tracking and analysing sleep

No.01: the Sleep Cycle app

✅ Our rating: 8.5/10

Sleep Cycle analyses your sleep with:

- night-time sound recording via your smartphone's microphone,

- motion detection using your phone's accelerometer,

- analysis of the different sleep phases (light, deep, REM).

The application also features a smart alarm that wakes you up during a light sleep phase, within a window of 30 minutes before the desired time.

This ensures a gentle wake-up call and a feeling of freshness in the morning.

Price: free version available, premium subscription €29.99 per year.

No. 02: the SleepScore application

✅ Our rating: 7.5/10

SleepScore stands out for its technology developed by ResMed:

- use your smartphone's speakers and microphones to detect your breathing movements,

- precise analysis of your sleep cycles without physical contact,

- calculation of a sleep score out of 100 each morning.

The application provides personalised recommendations based on your sleep habits and your environment.

It also offers monitoring of factors influencing sleep, such as:

📌 caffeine,

📌 alcohol,

📌 physical exercise.

Price: limited free version, premium subscription at €49.99 per year.

The Pillow application

✅ Our rating: 8.5/10

Pillow is specially designed for the Apple ecosystem and takes advantage of the functionalities of the iPhone and Apple Watch:

- automatic sleep monitoring with the Apple Watch,

- recording of night-time sounds to detect snoring or sleep apnoea,

- measurement of heart rate during sleep.

The application presents your data in clear, easy-to-understand graphs.

It also gives you personalised advice on how to improve your sleep, based on an analysis of your habits.

Price: free version with limited functionality, full version at €4.99 (one-off purchase).

Apps for gentle wakeups

No.01: the Sleep as Android app

✅ Our rating: 8.5/10

Sleep as Android is a comprehensive application that helps you track your sleep cycles and wake up at the optimum time:

- track your sleep cycles using your smartphone's accelerometer,

- intelligent alarm that wakes you during a light sleep phase,

- monitoring snoring and nocturnal movements,

- integration with home automation devices to adjust the lighting and temperature in your bedroom.

The application is available free of charge on Android, with premium features available by subscription.

The Réveil Bonjour application

✅ Our rating: 7/10

Réveil Bonjour is a free application that features an intelligent alarm and soothing sounds to gently wake you up:

- intelligent alarm that analyses your sleep cycles to wake you up at the optimum time,

- a wide selection of natural sounds and soothing music,

- simple, intuitive interface, ideal for all users,

- available on iPhone and Android.

Applications for specific needs

For Breethe hypnotherapy

✅ Our rating: 7/10

Breethe is an application that focuses on hypnotherapy and meditation to improve sleep. It offers :

- guided hypnotherapy sessions to overcome insomnia,

- specific meditations to help you relax and fall asleep,

- 7, 30 or 90-day meditation training programmes,

- a variety of soothing sounds and relaxing music.

The application also offers content for managing stress and anxiety, which can often disrupt sleep.

Breethe offers a limited free version and a premium subscription at €12.99 per month or €89.99 per year.

Frequently asked questions about sleep apps

Q. How can an app improve my sleep?

Sleep applications use various technologies to help you sleep better:

- sleep cycle monitoring: by analysing your movements and night-time sounds, these applications determine your sleep phases (light, deep, REM),

- soothing sounds: white noise, relaxing music or guided meditations to help you fall asleep,

- personalised recommendations: based on your sleep data, they suggest adjustments to your routine to optimise your rest.

For example, the Sleep Cycle application found that its regular users improved their quality of sleep by an average of 26% after 4 weeks of use.

Q. Are sleep apps reliable?

The reliability of sleep applications varies according to their technology and use:

- tracking accuracy: applications using only the smartphone's accelerometer are less accurate (60-70%) than those combining several sensors (80-90%),

- limitations: they cannot diagnose sleep disorders such as apnoea, but they can suggest that you consult a doctor,

- usefulness: they provide general trends in your sleep habits, useful for identifying potential problems.

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine in 2021 found that 78% of sleep app users reported an improvement in their awareness of sleep patterns.