📱 Free Mental Health Apps (UK)

A wide range of apps are available to support mental health — from managing stress and sleep to offering guided therapy techniques. Here are some of the best free options people in the UK can explore:

🧘 Stress, Anxiety & Mindfulness

Calm your mind, manage anxiety, and practice daily mindfulness with these tools.

Headspace

Guided meditation, stress relief, focus exercises.

Smiling Mind

Evidence-based mindfulness programs for all ages.

SAM (Self-help Anxiety Management)

A speech bubble containing four colored circles inside, representing a conversation or idea.

Designed to help individuals understand, monitor, and manage their anxiety through self-help techniques, tracking tools, and a supportive online community.

Calm

Breathing exercises, soothing sleep stories, meditation.

Mindfulness Coach

Designed for stress, anxiety, and grounding techniques.

Liberate Meditation

Minimalist white outline of a person meditating with crossed legs on a red background.

Guided meditations and talks designed specifically for the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community, focusing on topics relevant to their experiences like microaggressions, racial trauma, and ancestral healing.

Insight Timer

Huge library of free meditations and mindfulness tracks.

Balance

Icon with a stylized letter 'B' on a teal background.

Popular meditation app with personalised programs

😴 Sleep & Relaxation

Quality sleep is essential for good mental health — these apps help with rest and relaxation.

Pzizz

Sleep, nap, and focus soundscapes.

BetterSleep (Free features)

Sleep tracking and guided relaxation.

Sleepio

Free on NHS in many regions (CBT-based sleep improvement).

Sleepcycle

Orange alarm clock icon with white outline and bells on top

Advanced sleep tracking and wake-up optimisation.

Relax Melodies

Customisable sleep sounds and calming music.

Calm Sleep Stories

Part of Calm's extensive sleep content library

💬 Therapy, Chat & Support

Connect with mental health professionals, support communities, or self-guided therapy.

Togetherall

Online community support (free via NHS, unis, and employers).

Woebot

AI-powered CBT-style chatbot for mental health check-ins.

Kooth

Free online counseling and emotional well-being platform for young people

7 Cups

Free emotional support from trained listeners.

MeeTwo

Safe, moderated peer support for teens and young adults.

Crisis Text Line

A free, confidential, 24/7 text-based mental health support and crisis intervention service connecting individuals in distress with trained volunteer Crisis Counselors through texting "HOME" to 741741.

MoodMission

Suggests “missions” to help reduce anxiety or low mood.

BetterHelp

Icon of two hands holding a leaf with three smaller leaves, on a green background.

Counseling and mental health support through various communication methods like messaging, live chat, phone, and video sessions.

StayAlive

A comprehensive suicide prevention app offering resources and tools like a safety plan, customizable reasons for living, a lifebox for cherished memories, and access to local and national crisis support.

📖 CBT & Mental Health Tools

Evidence-based tools grounded in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).

Moodfit

Mood tracking, breathing, journaling, and CBT strategies.

Feeling Good: Positive Mindset

NHS-approved guided self-help.

Rethink Mental Illness

Digital platform providing trusted information, expert advice, and resources to empower individuals severely affected by mental illness and their carers to improve their lives and navigate the mental health system in England.

CBT Thought Diary

Icon of a notepad with colorful lines and a yellow pencil on a blue background.

Journaling and thought-challenging techniques.

Clear Fear

For managing anxiety using CBT techniques.

Mood Tools

Uses research-backed tools, including a thought diary, meditations, and videos, to help individuals manage depression and negative moods.

Sanvello (Free tier)

CBT-based tools for stress, anxiety, and depression.

MindShift

CBT-based anxiety management

What's Up?

Graphic of a large black hand with a smaller pink hand inside it, on a pink background.

Provides users with tools like a habit tracker, a catastrophe scale, and breathing exercises to help manage challenging emotions.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 NHS & UK-Backed Apps

Trusted apps recommended or funded by the NHS and UK charities.

NHS Better Health: Every Mind Matters

Practical tips for everyday mental wellbeing.

PTSD Coach

An illustration of two hands shaking, forming a heart shape with a blue and orange color scheme.

NHS-recommended app providing education and support for PTSD symptoms.

Hub of Hope

UK’s leading mental health support directory.

Catch It

A blue speech bubble shaped like a thought cloud with small bubbles below it.

Helps users track their moods and reframe negative thoughts. It employs a three-step process, 'Catch it, Check it, Change it'.

DistrACT

Two speech bubbles, one blue and one green, with a white medical cross in the center.

For people in distress or experiencing suicidal thoughts.

Well Mind App

Designed to help with stress, anxiety, and depression by providing advice, tips, and tools to improve your mental health and boost your overall wellbeing.