What 9,558 Reviews Reveal: 7 of the 10 Biggest Mental Health Apps Share the Same #1 Complaint
Sourced from real App Store and Google Play review data in Appeye's catalogue.
Figures as of 18 August 2026.
10
apps analysed
9,558
real reviews read
7 of 10
share the same #1 complaint
We ran Appeye's AI-powered review analysis across 9,558 real App Store and Google Play reviews for ten of the most used mental health and wellness apps. The apps have almost nothing in common: a mood journal, two therapy marketplaces, a meditation library, a symptom tracker, a chatbot. Their most common complaint is the same one. Seven of the ten have paywalls and billing practices as their single biggest identified pain point — and it shows up in apps that otherwise score in the 92nd percentile of their category as readily as in the ones scoring in the 11th.
The leaderboard
Overall scores, best to worst
The overall score is a 0–100 blend of store rating and review sentiment. Note where the household names land: Headspace at 73.2 (13th percentile) and Talkspace at 72.3 (11th percentile) sit at the bottom, while Daylio — a mood journal built by a small team — tops the cohort at 89.3.
The headline finding
The paywall problem: 7 of 10 apps
Daylio
Paywall / billing
BetterHelp
Paywall / billing
How We Feel
Platform feature disparity (iOS vs Android)
Insight Timer
Forced Prompts and Goal-Setting
Bearable
Paywall / billing
Wysa
Circular, Non-Responsive Chatbot Behavior
Calm
Paywall / billing
MindDoc
Paywall / billing
Headspace
Paywall / billing
Talkspace
Paywall / billing
Different products, different price points, different business models — one shared top complaint. The three exceptions are instructive too: Insight Timer's reviewers complain about forced prompts and goal-setting, Wysa's about circular, non-responsive chatbot behaviour, and How We Feel's about iOS-versus-Android feature disparity. Two of those three are the ones giving most of their product away.
“Too many upsells for an app, almost every feature to get the full extent costs money.”
“They keep taking money even when they know you're struggling with everything and not using sessions.”
“Went through whole setup only to find it's $50/yr. Feels like bait and switch.”
“Everything is locked behind a paywall, nearly impossible to try before paying $80 yearly.”
The other half
What users actually love
Daylio
89.3Mental Health & Therapy Support
“My therapist recommended it and it's helped me identify mood patterns I never noticed before.”
BetterHelp
89Excellent Therapist Matching & Quality
“My therapist has really changed the way that I look at this world, and my overall perspective.”
How We Feel
88.9Completely free with no ads or paywalls
“Can't believe it's free, no ads, no in-app purchases. It's genuinely a gift to us.”
Insight Timer
88.6Vast Free Content Library
“So much goodness, compassion, kindness, insight, wisdom here. Truly amazing set of free options.”
Bearable
87.3Exceptional Customization and Flexibility
“Can track literally anything - rare symptoms, medication side effects, whatever matters to you.”
Wysa
87Emotional Support & Validation
“Lovely caring responses, feels like someone is really listening.”
Calm
81.8Highly Effective Sleep Aid
“Sleep stories work every time, I never hear the ending because I fall asleep so quickly.”
MindDoc
80Excellent for mental health tracking and self-awareness
“Helps me track my overall mental well-being. Seeing how much you felt good or bad is super helpful.”
Headspace
73.2Transformative meditation courses and teaching quality
“Andy taught me how to meditate; years of daily use changed my life; most important app I own.”
Talkspace
72.3Quality individual therapists
“My therapist is AMAZING, she is a great listener and so far has been helping me a lot.”
Retention risk
Big name, shaky loyalty
| App | App Store | Play Store |
|---|---|---|
| Daylio | LOW | LOW |
| BetterHelp | LOW | LOW |
| How We Feel | LOW | LOW |
| Insight Timer | LOW | LOW |
| Bearable | MEDIUM | LOW |
| Wysa | LOW | MEDIUM |
| Calm | MEDIUM | MEDIUM |
| MindDoc | LOW | MEDIUM |
| Headspace | HIGH | HIGH |
| Talkspace | MEDIUM | HIGH |
The two most recognisable brands here carry the worst retention signal. Headspace is HIGH churn risk on both stores; Talkspace is HIGH on Play. Calm and Bearable are MEDIUM on at least one platform. Daylio, BetterHelp, How We Feel and Insight Timer are LOW across the board. A familiar name isn't the same thing as loyal users.
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