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Best Of · Last reviewed August 26, 2026

The Best Free Anxiety Apps (2026)

Most 'free' anxiety apps hit you with a paywall within minutes. We tested 6 that are actually free. Honest 2026 ranking — what genuine free looks like, and where the implicit cost shows up instead.

In crisis? Call or text 988 — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, free and 24/7.

At a glance

Click any row for the in-depth section below.

  • #1 · MindShift CBT

    Fully-free CBT for anxiety — nonprofit-built, evidence-based, no paywall anywhere

    Price
    Free, fully (Anxiety Canada nonprofit)
    On
    iOS, Android
  • #2 · Wysa (free tier)

    Free AI-chatbot anxiety support with CBT-grounded conversations

    Price
    Free tier with substantial functionality; Premium ~$99/yr
    On
    iOS, Android
  • #3 · Sanvello (DISCONTINUED)

    (Used to be: a usable free tier with mood tracking, guided exercises, and a peer community)

    Price
    (No longer available to consumers — access is via an employer or health plan)
    On
    (Delisted from the App Store and Google Play)
  • #4 · MoodTools

    Free CBT-based depression and anxiety self-help with research backing

    Price
    Free, fully
    On
    iOS, Android
  • #5 · ILTY

    Not this category — see MindShift CBT or Wysa free if free is the requirement

    Price
    Free download; HARD PAYWALL after onboarding — $12
    On
    iOS and Android
  • #6 · Insight Timer

    Free meditation and breathing audio for anxiety regulation

    Price
    Free with optional Member Plus ~$60/yr
    On
    iOS, Android, web

How we evaluated these apps

Inclusion rule: apps in this list must offer meaningful anxiety-relevant functionality without a subscription paywall. 'Free trial that auto-converts' apps were excluded. Apps with limited free tiers were included if the free content is genuinely usable.

Honest framing: 'free' almost always costs something — usually content restriction, ad load, data harvesting, or business-model misalignment (engagement-maximizing dark patterns). This list is not 'free is best'; it's 'here's what free actually means'.

Evaluation: each app tested for (1) what meaningfully works without payment, (2) what the implicit cost of 'free' is, (3) clinical grounding (evidence base behind techniques), (4) safety / crisis routing, (5) sustainability (will this app exist in 2 years).

Disclosure

ILTY is the publisher of this roundup. ILTY is one of the apps reviewed; we are positioned at #5, not #1. ILTY has a HARD PAYWALL after onboarding — there is no free tier. We include ourselves here only with that caveat clearly stated. If 'free' is your primary requirement, ILTY is not your tool — please use MindShift CBT (the strongest fully-free option) or Wysa's free tier. We add ourselves to this list anyway because the honesty matters more than ranking placement. Pricing accurate as of May 16, 2026. Update, August 13, 2026: this list was audited for discontinued products after two apps were found still being recommended sitewide after they had shut down. Corrections applied here are marked in the entries themselves. Note the limit of this pass: it looked for dead and dying products, and did not re-verify pricing, ratings, or hands-on impressions for the apps that are still live — those still date from the original testing round.

The research behind this

Rankings on this page draw on The 2026 State of AI Mental Health Apps, our own study of 15 apps across 8 criteria. Crisis handling was tested by hand: the same four escalating messages typed into every app, screenshots kept. Four of them never produced a crisis number. Every score is published with the reasoning behind it, including ILTY’s, and the rubric is CC-BY if you would rather score apps yourself.

The apps, in detail

#1 · MindShift CBT

Best for: Fully-free CBT for anxiety — nonprofit-built, evidence-based, no paywall anywhere

Fully free CBT app from Anxiety Canada — nonprofit, no upsell, no engagement traps.

MindShift CBT is the best free anxiety app, period. Anxiety Canada built it as a public service — there's no upsell pressure, no engagement-maximizing design, no data harvesting. The content is clinically grounded and the price ($0) makes it the right first pick for anyone who can't or won't pay.

Strengths

  • +Genuinely fully free — Anxiety Canada is a nonprofit, no upsells, no premium tier hiding the real content
  • +Strong CBT-based curriculum — specific modules for social anxiety, panic, GAD, perfectionism
  • +Includes both cognitive (thought-challenging) and behavioral (exposure) components — most free apps skip exposure
  • +Strong educational content — explains the WHY of anxiety not just techniques

Where it falls short

  • −UX is utilitarian — less polished than commercial alternatives
  • −Self-guided only — no human in the loop
  • −Less personalization than AI-based options

Pricing

Free, fully (Anxiety Canada nonprofit).

Platforms

iOS, Android

vs. ILTY

MindShift is fully free CBT. ILTY is paid conversation. For users where free is the requirement, MindShift wins — that's the honest answer.

Visit MindShift CBT →

#2 · Wysa (free tier)

Best for: Free AI-chatbot anxiety support with CBT-grounded conversations

AI chatbot with substantial free tier — strong free content, paywall on premium features.

Wysa is the right pick if you want an AI conversational option without paying. The free tier is more substantial than most 'freemium' apps in this space — Wysa committed early to keeping core functionality free, and they've held that line. Best free AI-based option for anxiety.

Strengths

  • +Free tier is genuinely usable — daily mood tracking, CBT exercises, conversational AI
  • +Established product with peer-reviewed studies — more clinical grounding than most free AI chatbots
  • +Premium adds human coach and advanced exercises but free tier is real
  • +Strong UK NHS partnerships often provide free upgraded access through schools and clinics

Where it falls short

  • −Conversational AI in free tier is shallower than paid (limited memory, less depth)
  • −Some advanced exercises locked behind paywall
  • −Engagement-design elements (streaks, daily prompts) can pressure usage

Pricing

Free tier with substantial functionality; Premium ~$99/yr.

Platforms

iOS, Android

vs. ILTY

Wysa free is gentle, CBT-grounded chat. ILTY is paid, direct (Mr. Relentless), no-sycophancy. Wysa for free; ILTY only if our tone fits and you're willing to pay.

Read our full ILTY vs. Wysa (free tier) comparison →Visit Wysa (free tier) →

#3 · Sanvello (DISCONTINUED)

Best for: (Used to be: a usable free tier with mood tracking, guided exercises, and a peer community)

Consumer app delisted; folded into Optum/AbleTo as a health-plan benefit.

Kept as a historical entry because Sanvello's free tier was one of the most-recommended free anxiety options and people still search for it by name. It is no longer free, and it is no longer downloadable: the consumer product was retired and absorbed into Optum/AbleTo, where access runs through an employer or health plan rather than the App Store. If Sanvello's free tier was your plan, the living free picks on this list are MindShift CBT (fully free, nonprofit, no upsell) and Wysa's free tier (free AI conversation with CBT grounding). One caveat worth naming: nothing free on this list replaces the moderated peer community.

Strengths

  • +(Historical) Free tier included guided journeys, mood tracking, and access to a peer community
  • +(Historical) Insurance partnerships in some US states (Aetna, BCBS, Optum) provided free premium access
  • +(Historical) Strong educational content on anxiety mechanisms
  • +(Historical) Therapy upgrade path if the free tier proved valuable

Where it falls short

  • −DISCONTINUED for consumers — verified 2026-08-13: the App Store listing returns no result, both Google Play packages 404, and sanvello.com no longer resolves. The product was folded into Optum/AbleTo, reachable only through an employer or health plan. Note that several 'Sanvello review 2026' pages still circulating quote a live 4.8 rating and $8.99/mo pricing; that data is dead.
  • −(Historical) Best content (deep CBT journeys, advanced exercises) was locked behind premium
  • −(Historical) Peer community was a double-edged sword — quality varied, some content could be activating
  • −(Historical) Engagement-design pressure to upgrade

Pricing

(No longer available to consumers — access is via an employer or health plan)

Platforms

(Delisted from the App Store and Google Play)

vs. ILTY

Not a live comparison anymore. If you came for Sanvello's free structured CBT and mood tracking, MindShift CBT and Wysa free are the surviving free options; ILTY is paid after onboarding and is conversational rather than exercise-based.

Read our full ILTY vs. Sanvello (DISCONTINUED) comparison →Visit Sanvello (DISCONTINUED) →

#4 · MoodTools

Best for: Free CBT-based depression and anxiety self-help with research backing

Free depression and anxiety app — university-research-based, no paywall.

MoodTools is a solid free backup option, especially if you want both depression AND anxiety content. For pure anxiety focus, MindShift CBT is better; for combined coverage with the simplicity of a single app, MoodTools is the pick.

Strengths

  • +Fully free — nonprofit, no upsells
  • +Built on research-based CBT principles with input from clinical psychologists
  • +Includes thought diary, safety plan, and information resources — practical toolkit
  • +Cross-platform availability

Where it falls short

  • −Less polished UX than commercial alternatives
  • −Less depth than MindShift CBT for anxiety specifically (MoodTools is more depression-leaning)
  • −Limited active development — updates are infrequent

Pricing

Free, fully.

Platforms

iOS, Android

vs. ILTY

MoodTools is free structured CBT toolkit. ILTY is paid conversation. Different categories.

Visit MoodTools →

#5 · ILTY

Best for: Not this category — see MindShift CBT or Wysa free if free is the requirement

HARD PAYWALL — not free. Listed for honesty. If 'free' is your requirement, skip us.

Honest assessment: we don't belong at the top of a 'free' list. We have a hard paywall. We include ourselves so users searching this query know we exist as a paid alternative — and that we chose paywall over data-sale or engagement-trap free tier as a deliberate values decision. If free is your requirement: please use MindShift CBT or Wysa free. The honest answer for this query is not us.

Strengths

  • +Honest reason for paywall: we don't sell data, don't run ads, and don't have an engagement-maximizing free tier — paid users are the entire business model
  • +Mr. Relentless companion explicitly anti-sycophantic — designed to refuse 'just breathe' default responses
  • +24/7 availability with persistent conversation memory

Where it falls short

  • −HARD PAYWALL — no free tier, period. If you can't or won't pay, this is not your app
  • −Subscription compares unfavorably with $0 alternatives in this list

Pricing

Free download; HARD PAYWALL after onboarding — $12.99/mo or $99.99/yr.

Platforms

iOS and Android

Download ILTY

Free to download · 7-day trial · then $12.99/mo or $99.99/yr

Visit ILTY →

#6 · Insight Timer

Best for: Free meditation and breathing audio for anxiety regulation

Massive free library of guided meditations + breathing exercises for anxiety.

Insight Timer is the best free option specifically for anxiety regulation via meditation and breathing exercises. If meditation has worked for you, the free library beats any paid app on breadth. If meditation hasn't worked, the other apps in this list are better picks.

Strengths

  • +Largest free meditation library — tens of thousands of free guided sessions, many specifically tagged for anxiety
  • +Strong teacher diversity — no single voice dominates
  • +Free tier is genuinely the product, not a teaser
  • +Community features (groups, courses) are largely free

Where it falls short

  • −Meditation may not work for everyone (see /best/anxiety-apps-no-meditation)
  • −Quality varies widely across the free library
  • −UI is dated compared to Calm/Headspace

Pricing

Free with optional Member Plus ~$60/yr.

Platforms

iOS, Android, web

vs. ILTY

Insight Timer is free meditation. ILTY is paid conversation. Different mechanisms.

Visit Insight Timer →

Tired of evaluating apps?

ILTY is on iOS and Android. Free to download, 7-day trial, then $12.99/mo or $99.99/yr. Try it for the tough-love-processing scenario specifically — and see if the conversation feels different from the apps you've tried.

Download ILTY

Frequently asked questions

What's the best free anxiety app?

MindShift CBT from Anxiety Canada is the strongest fully-free anxiety app — nonprofit-built, evidence-based, no upsells, no engagement-maximizing design. For free AI-chatbot interaction, Wysa's free tier is the best option. For free meditation-based anxiety regulation, Insight Timer has the largest free library. For depression-and-anxiety combined coverage, MoodTools is solid.

Is there a free version of any good anxiety app?

Yes — MindShift CBT is entirely free with no premium tier. Wysa's free tier is genuinely usable (not just a teaser). Insight Timer's core meditation library is free. (Sanvello's free tier was the other standard answer here until its consumer app was discontinued — it can no longer be downloaded.) The 'good free anxiety apps' market is real — you don't have to pay for quality. Avoid apps that lock the actual exercises behind paywalls and call themselves 'free' (that's not free).

Why are most anxiety apps not free?

Most commercial anxiety apps run on a freemium-to-subscription model — give you enough free to see value, paywall the parts you actually need. This is the dominant business model in the category. The exceptions are nonprofits (MindShift CBT, MoodTools), university-research projects (How We Feel), and a few companies that committed early to keeping core functionality free (Wysa, Insight Timer). Apps with hard paywalls (like ILTY) chose that model specifically to avoid the engagement-trap incentives of freemium design.

Can a free app actually help with anxiety?

Yes — MindShift CBT in particular has been used by hundreds of thousands of people and has solid clinical grounding. The active ingredient in most anxiety apps isn't the app technology; it's whether you consistently apply CBT or exposure techniques. A free app you actually use beats a paid app you don't. If the free options work for you, you don't need to pay.

Related reading

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The pillar guide explaining what AI mental-health apps are, what works, and what to avoid.

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19 head-to-head comparisons between ILTY and individual competitors.

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Mental Health Without Therapy

The full ladder of affordable options when paid apps aren't the right answer.