The good news is that self-care doesn't have to be a huge time commitment. Although from time to time I recommend doing activities like taking a nap, bubble bath, or even a massage. The truth is, self-care can be a simple act that allows us to prioritize ourselves.

We already spend a lot of time on our phones every day, so why not dedicate some of that time to self-care?

There are many apps that are beneficial for the topic of self-care. I have tried many of these apps. Today I'm going to share a few of my favorites as well as my overall take on self-care apps. By the end of this post, you'll be able to tell if self-service apps are for you, what types of self-service apps there are, and which ones to start with.

Pros and Cons of Self-Care Apps

While there are many different types of free self-service apps to suit your needs, one thing that bothered me the most about these apps was the lack of features in the free apps. I understand that these apps need to make money, but there are different ways to offer premium services. Some of the free apps I've downloaded automatically put a premium subscription on you. The actions you can perform in these applications are very limited. It almost seemed like it should just be a paid app overall.

That being said, there are a lot of free self-care apps out there that I thought did a great job of providing a lot of free content. They do this without trying for premium features. These are the apps that I would probably buy the premium version of at some point.

Another benefit of free self-service apps on your phone is their convenience. From meditation to mood tracking and everything in between, you can have everything in the palm of your hand. The only downside is that of course, these apps need storage to download them. Currently, I haven't seen a free all-in-one self-care app. This means you'll need to download multiple apps to get all the self-service features you might want in an app.

4 Self-Care Apps That Go With You Anywhere

1. Stop, Breathe and Think

Meditation has many benefits. This particular activity doesn't come naturally to me, but it's something I'm trying to work on.

In a free meditation app, I'm looking for several free options, different meditation lengths, and different categories.

My favorite so far is Stop, Breathe & Think. When you open the app, you are tasked with breathing for 10 seconds. Then just answer a few different questions to find out how you feel physically, mentally and emotionally.

The app will give you different suggested meditations based on your answers. I like that you don't have to decide which one to try. This is helpful for beginners like me.

2. Journy

We may be biased, but we believe Journy is one of the most comprehensive daily planning apps on the internet. There are a few things that do unique things.

Journy lets you create daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly to-do lists. This way you can keep track of things like your New Year's resolutions. It also supports notes and events, so it's not just for tasks, it's also for journaling.

The user interface of the app is also impressive and very easy to navigate. Simply add tasks for a specific day of the week and track them in the daily log. After completing a task, check off the task or add a new task.

Format: Online, mobile app for iOS and Android

3. Drink Water Reminder

This is a broad category. Think about how you take care of yourself with daily tasks like drinking water, sleeping, exercising, and structuring your day.

An app I loved in this category is Drink Water Reminder. It's easy to use and provides plenty of reminders throughout the day. By downloading this app, you will drink more water throughout the day.

4. Moodpath

I first discovered the importance of mood tracking when I was first introduced to bullet journals. I didn't realize there were apps for that.

What's great about tracking your mood is that you can spot similarities and patterns. These patterns can help you be more aware in the future.

While there are many mood-tracking apps out there, my favorite is Moodpath. You don't just track your mood once a day. You can watch it three times, morning, noon and evening.