Mental health apps put therapy-style tools on your phone: mood tracking, guided meditation, journaling, CBT exercises and, in some cases, a chat with a trained listener or an AI companion. They are not a replacement for professional care, but they can help you manage day-to-day stress, anxiety and low mood between appointments – or while you wait for one.
This guide compares the 10 best free mental health apps to use in 2026. Each entry is honest about what you get for free and what sits behind a paid plan, so you can pick one that fits your needs and your budget. We have grouped them by what they do best – from anxiety and mood tracking to mindfulness, sleep and support for young people.
On this page
- How to choose a mental health app
- The 10 best free mental health apps for 2026
- Comparison table
- Which app for which need?
- A note on safety and crisis support
- Secure video for telehealth and mental health apps
- Frequently asked questions
How to choose a mental health app
A good mental health app is one you will actually open again. Before you commit, check it against a few simple criteria:
- Evidence base. Look for apps built on recognised methods such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) or mindfulness, ideally developed with clinicians or a non-profit.
- Privacy. Mental health data is sensitive. Check that the app has a clear privacy policy, explains what it collects, and complies with GDPR or HIPAA where relevant.
- What is genuinely free. Many apps are free to download but keep the useful parts behind a subscription. We flag the real free tier for each one below.
- Fit for your need. An anxiety toolkit, a mood tracker and a sleep-meditation library are different tools. Match the app to the problem you want to work on.
- Ease and engagement. A simple interface, reminders and small daily actions make it far more likely you will stick with it.
The 10 best free mental health apps for 2026
These 10 apps all offer a usable free tier and cover the most common needs: anxiety, low mood, stress, sleep and peer support. Where an app is freemium, we say what the free plan includes.
1. Wysa – best for AI-guided support
Wysa is an AI chatbot that walks you through CBT and mindfulness techniques in an anonymous chat. The free tier gives you the conversational AI plus a starter set of self-help exercises for anxiety, low mood and stress. Paid plans add a larger exercise library and, separately, sessions with a human wellbeing coach. It is a good first step if you want private, judgement-free support without booking anything.
Free: AI chat and a starter exercise set. Paid: full library and human coaching.
2. What's Up? – best for free CBT and ACT exercises
What's Up? is a fully free app that combines CBT and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help with anxiety, depression and stress. It includes a habit tracker, a grounding "get grounded" page, breathing exercises and a diary for self-reflection. There is no paid tier gating the core tools, which makes it one of the better genuinely free options for structured self-help.
Free: all core features.
3. Daylio – best for effortless mood tracking
Daylio lets you log your mood and activities in a couple of taps, with no writing required. Over time it shows patterns and triggers, which is useful on its own or to share with a therapist. The free version covers daily logging and basic statistics; Premium adds advanced stats, unlimited goals, cloud backup and a PIN lock. It is the easiest entry point if journaling feels like too much effort.
Free: mood and activity logging, basic stats. Paid: advanced stats, backup, PIN lock.
4. Moodfit – best for a mood "fitness" toolkit
Moodfit treats emotional wellbeing like fitness: you track mood, set goals and work through CBT-based exercises, breathing routines and gratitude journaling. It gives you insights into what affects your mood and suggests small actions to build resilience. The free tier covers mood tracking and several tools, with a subscription for the full set of exercises and reports.
Free: mood tracking and core tools. Paid: full exercise set and reports.
5. Insight Timer – best for free meditation
Insight Timer has one of the largest free libraries of guided meditations, sleep tracks and expert talks anywhere, in many languages and for every level. Most of the library is free, including live sessions and community groups, which is unusual among meditation apps. A paid Member Plus tier adds courses and offline downloads, but you can get a lot of value without paying anything.
Free: most of the meditation and sleep library. Paid: courses and offline downloads.
6. Smiling Mind – best for all ages and schools
Smiling Mind is a free mindfulness app from an Australian non-profit, built by psychologists and educators. It offers structured mindfulness programmes for different ages – including children and classrooms – covering sleep, stress and focus. Because it is run by a non-profit, the content is free rather than a trial, which makes it a dependable choice for families and teachers.
Free: the full app (non-profit).
7. Calm – best known for sleep and relaxation
Calm is a popular app for sleep, relaxation and stress, with sleep stories, guided meditations and breathing exercises. Be aware that Calm is largely a paid app: the free tier gives you the Daily Calm meditation and a limited selection of content, while the full library needs a subscription. Include it if sleep is your main concern and you want to sample the approach before deciding.
Free: Daily Calm and a limited selection. Paid: full library.
8. Finch – best for building daily habits
Finch turns self-care into a game: you look after a virtual pet by completing small wellbeing tasks such as breathing exercises, mood check-ins and goals. The gentle, rewarding loop helps people who struggle to keep up a routine, and the free version is generous. Paid plans add cosmetic and bonus features, but the core habit-building experience is free.
Free: core habit-building and check-ins. Paid: bonus and cosmetic extras.
9. 7 Cups – best for free emotional support and chat
7 Cups offers free, round-the-clock emotional support through anonymous one-to-one chat with trained volunteer listeners, plus community support rooms and self-help guides. The listener chat and forums are free; access to licensed therapists is a paid subscription. It is a good option when you mainly want someone to talk to rather than a set of exercises – though listeners are trained volunteers, not clinicians.
Free: listener chat, community rooms, self-help guides. Paid: licensed therapy.
10. Calm Harm – best for young people managing self-harm urges
Calm Harm is a free app (in the UK) from the teenage mental health charity stem4, designed with a clinical psychologist and based on Dialectical Behaviour Therapy. It offers timed activities – Comfort, Distract, Express Yourself, Release – to help a young person ride out an urge to self-harm, along with breathing exercises. It is private and anonymous, and intended for ages 13 and over. In some countries outside the UK the app carries a small charge.
Free: all activities (free in the UK; a small charge applies in some countries).
Comparison table of the 10 apps
| App |
Best for |
Standout features |
Free tier |
| Wysa |
AI-guided support |
AI CBT chat, mood tools, exercises |
Chat + starter exercises free |
| What's Up? |
CBT and ACT exercises |
CBT/ACT tools, grounding, diary |
Fully free |
| Daylio |
Mood tracking |
Two-tap mood logging, patterns |
Logging + basic stats free |
| Moodfit |
Mood + CBT toolkit |
Mood tracking, CBT, gratitude |
Core tools free |
| Insight Timer |
Meditation |
Huge meditation + sleep library |
Most of the library free |
| Smiling Mind |
All ages and schools |
Non-profit mindfulness programmes |
Fully free |
| Calm |
Sleep and relaxation |
Sleep stories, meditations |
Daily Calm + limited free content |
| Finch |
Building daily habits |
Gamified self-care, virtual pet |
Generous free version |
| 7 Cups |
Emotional support and chat |
24/7 listener chat, community |
Listener chat free |
| Calm Harm |
Young people, self-harm urges |
DBT activities, timed tasks |
Free in the UK |
Always read an app's current privacy policy and app-store pricing before you rely on it – free tiers and features change.
Which app for which need?
If you are not sure where to start, pick by the problem you most want help with:
- Anxiety and panic: What's Up? (CBT/ACT tools) or Wysa (AI chat you can use in the moment).
- Low mood and mood tracking: Daylio for quick logging, or Moodfit for a mood toolkit with exercises.
- Stress, sleep and mindfulness: Insight Timer for a free library, Smiling Mind for structured programmes, or Calm for sleep.
- Someone to talk to: 7 Cups for free, anonymous peer support.
- Young people and self-harm urges: Calm Harm, built by a charity with clinical input.
- Building a daily habit: Finch, which makes small actions feel rewarding.
A note on safety and crisis support
Mental health apps are helpful for everyday coping and self-management, but they do not replace professional assessment, therapy or crisis care. If your symptoms are severe or getting worse, speak to your GP or a qualified clinician.
If you or someone you know is in crisis or at immediate risk, contact your local emergency number now. In the UK and Ireland you can call Samaritans free on 116 123, at any time. Wherever you are, findahelpline.com lists free, confidential helplines by country.
Secure video for telehealth and mental health apps
Many of these apps – and the therapy services behind them – rely on video calls for sessions with a counsellor or therapist. If you are building a mental health or telehealth product, the video layer has to meet a higher bar for privacy than a standard meeting tool.
Digital Samba's video conferencing for telehealth is built for that. It is hosted on EU infrastructure (Leaseweb in the Netherlands and Scaleway), encrypts data in transit with TLS 1.3 and at rest with AES-256-GCM, and is designed around GDPR. For sessions that need the strongest confidentiality, Digital Samba offers optional end-to-end encryption, where media is encrypted on the participant's device and the servers only ever handle ciphertext. Developers can embed secure one-to-one or group video directly in an app through the API and SDK, with features such as breakout rooms for group therapy.
If you want to understand the build side, see our guide to mental health app development, and for the regulatory picture read the legal and ethical considerations of telehealth. If you are comparing care models, our explainer on virtual healthcare versus telehealth breaks down the terms.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free mental health app?
There is no single best app – it depends on your need. For free CBT and ACT tools, What's Up? is fully free. For AI chat support, try Wysa. For meditation, Insight Timer has the largest free library. For mood tracking, Daylio is the quickest to use.
Are there mental health apps with no subscription?
Yes. What's Up? and Smiling Mind are free to use with no paid tier gating the core tools, and Calm Harm is free in the UK. Others such as Wysa, Daylio and Finch have a genuinely usable free plan, with extras available on a paid subscription.
Is the Calm app 100% free?
No. Calm is mostly a paid app. The free tier gives you the Daily Calm meditation and a limited selection of content, while most sleep stories, courses and meditations require a subscription. If you want a free meditation library, Insight Timer is a better fit.
What is the 3-3-3 rule for anxiety?
The 3-3-3 rule is a grounding technique: name three things you can see, three sounds you can hear, then move three parts of your body. It helps interrupt anxious or spiralling thoughts by bringing your attention back to the present. Several apps here, including What's Up?, include grounding exercises like this.
Can a mental health app replace therapy?
No. These apps support everyday coping and can bridge the gap between appointments, but they are not a substitute for a trained therapist or medical treatment. If you need ongoing support, use an app alongside professional care rather than instead of it.
Are free mental health apps safe with my data?
It varies by app, so check each one's privacy policy before signing up. Look for apps that explain what data they collect, let you stay anonymous where possible, and comply with GDPR or HIPAA. Non-profit apps such as Smiling Mind and charity-built ones such as Calm Harm tend to collect less.
Sources
- App pricing and feature details verified against each app's Apple App Store and Google Play listing and official website, October 2026.
- stem4, Calm Harm – developer and clinical background (stem4.org.uk).
- Anxiety Canada, Smiling Mind and Insight Timer – official sites for free-tier details.
- World Health Organization, Global strategy on digital health (for context on digital mental health adoption).
