Headspace vs Calm: In-Depth Comparison

An increasing number of adults in the US are practicing different forms of meditation. A 2012 survey stated that around 73 percent of the population performed mindfulness or spiritual meditation for better well-being. And approximately 92 percent of them reported being happier and less stressed.

These statistics confirm that consistent meditation and breathing practices can do wonders for your mind and body. It helps alleviate stress and anxiety and improves sleep and life quality.

Here are some of the physical and mental health benefits of meditation and mindfulness:

• Effective management of stress and anxiety
• Helps manage symptoms of depression
• Helps manage withdrawal signs arising due to substance addiction
• Alleviates PTSD symptoms
• Helps in improving sleep patterns
• Aids weight management and manages eating disorders
• Helps in controlling high blood pressure
• Relieves pain
• Supports cancer and ADHD treatment and more

You have found the right blog if you are looking for a good platform offering meditation services.

This article covers a detailed comparison between two leading mindfulness meditation platforms – Headspace and Calm.

About Headspace

Let us learn more about Headspace in this section.

Headspace belongs to Headspace Health. It is a virtual guided meditation platform founded by Andy Puddicombe and Richard Pierson in 2010.

Andy Puddicombe, an ex-Buddhist monk with a meditation experience of 10 years, is the platform’s co-founder. Richard Pierson, a former marketing professional, happens to be Andy’s ex-patient.

The company is based out of Santa Monica. But it also has two more offices located in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The platform offers an app and even has a dedicated website. You can sign up for Headsapce’s mindfulness meditation courses for premium mental healthcare. Headspace aims to improve mindfulness and alleviate stress via different meditation techniques.

Headspace began with insightful meditation workshops across London. It later expanded to an extensive array of services and FDA-approved tools to boost mindfulness and address chronic disorders.

About Calm

This section covers basic information about Calm Health.

Calm is a subscription-based online meditation platform headquartered in San Francisco, California. The platform was established in 2012 by Michael Smith and Alex Tew. Calm offers guided meditation services and sleep stories to ease anxiety and stress.

The platform also provides multiple meditation tools, calming resources, breathing exercises, and meditation programs/videos via the app. It has a huge subscriber base of approximately 4 million premium users up until 2022. Talking of the app, it was also awarded the “App of the Year” in 2017.

The platform offers valuable mental healthcare guidance through the app, the website, and the book.

Headspace vs. Calm Health: Details Compared

I will cover in detail the key distinction points between Headspace and Calm in this section.

1. How Does it Work?

This section covers how you can use the mental healthcare services of Headspace and Calm.

Headspace

Headspace is purely a mindfulness meditation platform with additional resources to improve mental health. I started the 7-day free trial by opening an individual account on the app.

Signing up is simple and quick. I could sign in via different options such as SSO, Apple ID, and Google or Facebook accounts. I could take a 14-day free trial by purchasing the annual subscription.

The initial process involved an inquiry about my mental health. A personalized meditation plan is created based on my responses to the questions. This way, I could access their meditation material anytime, anywhere.

I also had the option to explore further with the help of an automated guided narrative involving breathing techniques to unwind and relax. This truly was impressive, as it did help me de-stress quite a bit.

The featured collection in the Headspace App helps with:

• Having a productive start to the day
• Guiding through a 2-minute refreshing activity in the afternoon to stick to the plan without deviating
• Getting a great sleep at night with the 110-minute sleeping guide

There are different collections/innovative guides for different age groups to achieve mindfulness meditation in interesting ways:

• The Parents’ and Kids’ collection
• Power of Mind with Raheem
• The Shine collection
• Unlocking Creativity
• Star Wars Find Your Force
• The National Park Collection and more

Meditation plans exist for all age groups, businesses, and families.

If you run a company/start-up, Headspace could be a good option to try out. You can use its meditation plans to improve work efficiency by helping employees battle stress effectively.

The app provided high-quality guides that helped me with the following:

• Sleep well and grow consistently
• Be more focused and mindful while working
• Wake up at fixed times mindfully
• Cope with stress and anxiety
• Cope with mindless binge-eating
• Achieve mindful spending
• Manage grief and sadness effectively

Calm

Calm also offered a 14-day free trial on its yearly premium subscription. A 7-day free trial also helped me explore the platform at my own pace without any charges.

I was asked to complete a short questionnaire to get started or try Calm for free. This was geared toward knowing my requirements, such as improving sleep or concentration, reducing stress, etc.

I also had the option to skip this quiz entirely. The next obvious step was signing up via Google, Apple, or Facebook. There is also a free introductory audio sample by British Singer Harry Styles.

I had access to featured meditation guides, lullabies, music, and other soundscapes to achieve mindfulness. Also, kids could access sleep stories by powerful narrators. Some of them include the Starry-Eyed Quest by Rapunzel and The Astronomer’s Cat by Stephen Lyons.

Calm made it easy for me to explore its tools, services, and resources. I had premium access to the following:

• Inspirational guides from various instructors
• More than 250 sleep stories with new stories added every week
• Guided meditations to deal with insomnia, stress, and more mental health issues
• Specially curated soothing music to help with better concentration and sleep

It is recommended to first join the 21-day introductory program of Calm after finishing the free trial. There are additional in-house calming techniques such as “Body Scan,” effective breathing exercises, and “PanicSOS” for severe anxiety and stress.

The Calm app can also be easily used on the following devices:

• All Android and iOS mobile phones
• Apple TV
• Amazon Alexa
• Google WearOS
• Apple Watch
• Google Home
• Sonos
• Samsung TV and Samsung Health

2. Pricing/Affordability

Which platform is more affordable? Let us find out in this part of the article.

Headspace

Headspace provides two membership plans. The yearly subscription costs $69.99 with a 14-day free trial. In contrast, the monthly membership costs $12.99 with a 7-day free trial.

I could choose from a variety of plans based on my needs depending on your requirements. I am listing them below for your reference:

• Annual, monthly plans
• Family subscriptions
• Student membership
• Plans for referrals or gifting purposes
• Subscription for teenagers
• Plans for educators

University or post-secondary program students can get huge discounts of up to 85% on Headspace services. The student package costs $9.99 yearly.

This program is currently offered in the following countries:

• The UK
• The USA
• Canada
• Germany
• France
• Australia
• India
• Spain
• Portugal

Headspace has collaborated with SheerID to verify student IDs. It’s to ensure their full eligibility for the student plan.

For family plans, there is an option to open a total of 6 accounts using the family membership service of Calm for $99.99 per year. (74.99 GBP/EUR, $137.99 AUD, $134.99 CAD, ₹2149 INR, $1,319 MXN).

In this case, only the primary account holder has master access. So, they can invite, remove, or trade out family members. Every group can have a maximum of 5 members.

Calm

Calm pricing is affordable and easy to understand. It offers a monthly subscription service worth $4.17 with a 7-day free trial. The annual subscription costs $49.99, which includes a 14-day free trial option.

I recommend using the 40% discount offer currently active on the platform to reduce the cost further.

Calm’s added benefit is that one can cancel their membership anytime.

3. Insurance Coverage

You can learn everything about insurance coverage on both platforms in this section.

Headspace

The Headspace Plus account provides insurance coverage via the Wellvolution program. This is only available to the residents of California whom the Blue Shield insures.

Headspace also offers EAP or Employee Assistance Programs for companies. Unfortunately, the services are not 100% insured. I had to pay out-of-pocket to purchase my plan.

The platform has also recently started offering its services for free to New Yorkers.

Calm

Kaiser Permanente members can get Calm meditation services free of cost. The self-pay rates are not excessively high. So, I was okay paying them straight up. However, there is no dedicated insurance coverage offered by Calm.

4. Accessibility

This section will help you understand how accessible Headspace and Calm are, Both Headspace and Calm are easily accessible worldwide. There are no geographical restrictions as the meditation programs are offered virtually. They have also made assistive technology available for free for customers with disabilities.

5. Privacy

Your privacy concerns are valid. So, this section will talk about how transparent these platforms are.

Headspace

I did not find anything objectionable in Headspace’s privacy policy. The platform follows GDPR regulations. Customer data such as name, email ID, account opening date, and usage patterns may be collected from time to time. This is to improve services, ease transactions, and overall customer experience.

Calm

Similarly, there is nothing concerning about Calm’s privacy policy either. It is clearly stated in its privacy policy that certain details of the customer will be collected for the following reasons:

• Ease transactions, investigate fake transactions
• Share new updates about existing or new products/services
• Debugging account/billing errors
• Comply with legalities involved in tax filing
• Send discount offers and promotions
• Monitor app usage and trends
• Information sharing with third-party providers only with customer consent

Moreover, I could opt out of ads or marketing material. UK, Switzerland, and EEA residents can refer to the Calm – Privacy Policy. California residents are liable to certain disclosures under the California Consumer Privacy Act (or “CCPA”).

6. Available Treatments

Let us take a look at which mental conditions are in the ambit of Headspace and Calm.

Headspace

Headspace is a self-guided online meditation and mindfulness app. So, there is hardly any human interaction. This app is perfect for self-motivated people to learn various effective meditation techniques for a healthier lifestyle.

It definitely improved my productivity and emotional well-being.

Calm

Calm also works in a similar way as Headspace. There are no one-to-one therapy sessions or psychiatric treatments offered. The mindfulness meditation programs, sleep stories, and other resources helped in mental healing.

A better mind-body connection can enhance efficiency at work and even in daily life. Stress is a slow killer. The platform may help alleviate major emotional stressors for a calmer mind and body.

Both Headspace and Calm meditation programs are designed to help you reduce signs and symptoms of the following mental conditions:

• Trauma, PTSD
• Depression
• Anxiety and stress
• Panic attacks
• Insomnia
• Self-esteem issues
• Substance abuse disorder
• Eating disorders

7. Pros and Cons of Headspace

This section covers all the major pros and cons of Headspace and Calm. So, read on!

8. Pros and Cons of Calm

Conclusion 

Both Calm and Headspace have bad ratings on Trustpilot for poor customer service. However, their apps have received decent reviews on Google Play Store and App Store. I recommend checking out their free trials before making a decision.

Headspace is a better option if you wish to opt for virtual mental health counseling or psychiatric care. However, if meditation and mindfulness are your only goals, you could go for Calm.