How We Feel vs Sleep Cycle
Which is better in 2026? Five scores, side by side.
How We Feel is the better app overall, scoring 8.9 to 8.0. How We Feel wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Sleep Cycle on 1.
Anyone who wants to understand their moods without paying or oversharing
Light sleepers who hate harsh alarms and want simple sleep trends
Score by score
The details
| Feature | How We Feel | Sleep Cycle |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Mind & Focus | Mind & Focus |
| Category rank | #2 of 11 | #11 of 11 |
| Developer | The How We Feel Project | Sleep Cycle AB |
| Pricing | Free | Free + paid plans |
| Usable for free | Yes | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
Common questions
Is How We Feel better than Sleep Cycle?
How We Feel is the better app overall, scoring 8.9 to 8.0. How We Feel wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Sleep Cycle on 1.
Which is cheaper, How We Feel or Sleep Cycle?
How We Feel: Free; made by a nonprofit funded by donations. Sleep Cycle: Free basics; Premium subscription with a free trial unlocks full stats and sounds. On value for money, How We Feel scores higher.
Do How We Feel and Sleep Cycle work on the same devices?
Yes, both run on iPhone & iPad, Android.
Which is more private, How We Feel or Sleep Cycle?
How We Feel scores higher on privacy (9.2/10). The developer says your data stays on your device unless you opt in to share anonymized check-ins for research. App Store label: contact info, identifiers and other data may be linked to you.
Strengths and weaknesses
How We Feel
- Completely free, from a nonprofit
- Data stays on your device by default
- Strategies take a minute or two
- Android version is rated lower than iOS
- Not a substitute for professional care
How We Feel helps you find the exact word for a feeling, which makes it easier to act on. It was conceived with Yale's Center for Emotional Intelligence, and it links your check-ins to sleep, exercise and other Apple Health trends so patterns show up over time. Short video strategies can shift a bad moment in about a minute, and you can share feelings with close friends. It's free and keeps data on your device by default.
Full How We Feel review
Sleep Cycle
- Smart alarm makes waking up noticeably gentler
- No wearable needed, just your phone
- Snore detection with audio clips
- Less accurate than wearable sleep trackers
- Best insights require Premium
- Privacy label declares tracking
Sleep Cycle listens to your sleep through your phone's microphone and wakes you during a light phase within a window you choose, so mornings feel less jarring. It also detects snoring, sleep talking and coughing, charts trends over time, and now offers Luma, an AI coach that links your sleep to goals like energy and stress. Phone-based tracking is less precise than a wearable, and the best insights need Premium.
Full Sleep Cycle review
