A teaching-focused, philosophy-heavy app — serious instruction — but the most expensive, and not for beginners.Best for depth — serious instruction and philosophy, for practitioners past the basics.
Waking Up, built by Sam Harris, is a teaching-focused, philosophy-heavy app. It treats meditation as a way to examine consciousness, pairs practice with philosophy and conversations with leading thinkers, and is taught with unusual rigour. It is also the most expensive, and it is not built for beginners.
How we tested: Evidence-based assessment — from public information, app-store data and independent 2026 reviews. Not based on a long hands-on trial by ONDA.
A deliberately curated library — focused and deep rather than broad, with no real sleep content.
Teaching quality
9.0
Teaching-focused — Sam Harris plus well-known guest teachers, with a rigorous, philosophy-heavy approach.
Personalisation
6.5
A structured 28-day course to start, but lighter on adaptive, ongoing personalisation.
App experience
7.5
A clean, calm app that stays out of the way of the practice.
Free tier
6.5
A 7-day free trial, plus a standing scholarship: a free membership for anyone who cannot afford it.
Value
7.0
The most expensive here at about $130 a year on the website ($149.99 in the app store) — though the scholarship policy softens that.
Evidence base
6.0
A secular approach that draws on meditation research in general and named teaching lineages; we found no trial of the Waking Up app itself, so it scores like other apps without their own trials.
Pros
+Teaching-focused, with Sam Harris and well-known guest teachers
+Pairs practice with philosophy and conversations with leading thinkers
+Secular and intellectually rigorous
+Free access for anyone who cannot afford it
Cons
−The most expensive app here
−Not built for complete beginners
−A smaller, curated library — no sleep content
−Lighter on adaptive personalisation
Price: $130 $129.99/year on wakingup.com ($149.99/year or $19.99/month in-app); 7-day free trial; free scholarship for anyone who cannot afford it (as of 2026-10-01)
Where it leads
Waking Up, built by the neuroscientist and philosopher Sam Harris, is a teaching-focused, philosophy-heavy app. It treats meditation not as a relaxation tool but as a way to examine the nature of consciousness, and it pairs practice with a genuine body of theory — lessons on philosophy and psychology, and conversations with leading thinkers. The teaching, from Harris and a set of well-known guest instructors, is rigorous and philosophy-heavy.
What are the downsides of Waking Up?
That depth is narrow by design. The library is curated and comparatively small, there is no sleep content, and the introductory course moves quickly into advanced ideas — a complete beginner can feel out of their depth. It is also the most expensive option, although a standing offer of free access to anyone who genuinely cannot afford it takes the edge off the price.
Who should buy Waking Up?
Choose Waking Up if you already have a basic practice and want to go deeper — into rigorous instruction and the philosophy behind it — and the price (or the scholarship) works for you. If you are starting from zero, begin with Headspace and move to Waking Up once a practice is established.
Background reading
The science of what meditation actually does at the nervous-system level.
Waking Up is worth it for practitioners past the basics who want depth. It is teaching-focused, with well-known guest teachers, pairs practice with philosophy and conversations, and is secular and rigorous. It is the most expensive app reviewed, not built for beginners, and has no sleep content.
How much does Waking Up cost?
Waking Up costs $129.99 per year on its website, or $149.99 a year and $19.99 a month in the app stores, after a 7-day free trial — the most expensive meditation app in the review. Its scholarship gives a free membership to anyone who cannot afford it.
What are the downsides of Waking Up?
Waking Up is the most expensive app reviewed and is not built for complete beginners. Its curated library is smaller, has no sleep content, and is lighter on adaptive personalisation than other major meditation apps.
Who is Waking Up best for?
Waking Up is best for practitioners past the basics who want serious instruction and philosophy. It suits people who value secular, intellectually rigorous teaching. Complete beginners or anyone wanting sleep content should look elsewhere.
