Why start over?

The last real update for Breathe was in 2020. In the years that followed, I wasn’t able to give the app the attention it deserved — life and work kept me busy. Breathe kept running in the background, quiet and reliable.

Mid last year, I opened Breathe again. What I saw: shifted buttons, hidden navigation, things barely clickable. A technical mess.

And at the same time: 4.7 stars on the App Store. 813 reviews. Over 1.5 million completed meditations. A broken app that was apparently doing exactly the right thing.

I looked at what had become of the other meditation apps. Headspace and Calm had turned into massive content platforms — Netflix for meditation. But most people don’t want Netflix for relaxation. Just a few minutes to breathe. Two minutes in the morning, a small ritual before a meeting, a session before sleep.

So I rebuilt Breathe from scratch in three months. Not as an upgrade — as a new app. New architecture. New design. Everything new.

What to expect

One question: “What do you need?”

When you open Breathe, it asks you a simple question. You choose what you need right now — Relax, Energize, Focus, or Sleep — and get matching exercises. No scrolling through hundreds of meditations.

Create your own rituals

With the Ritual Wizard, you build your own ritual in four steps: choose a type (timer or breathing exercise), pick a sound or technique, adjust settings, give it a name. Your rituals live under “My Rituals” — always within reach.

6 breathing techniques

Science-backed breathing exercises, visually guided with an animated breathing circle and cycle counter:

  • Physiological Sigh (Stanford/Huberman) — fastest stress reduction, 1 minute
  • Box Breathing (Navy SEALs) — focus and emotional regulation
  • 4-7-8 Breathing (Dr. Andrew Weil) — sleep aid
  • Coherent Breathing (HeartMath) — optimal heart rate variability
  • Wim Hof Method — energy and alertness
  • Energizing Breath — morning activation

You can try each technique five times for free. And with the 7-day free trial, you get another week of full access to all exercises.

Flexible timer

The timer adjusts to exactly how you need it. Duration, warmup, interval bells, background sound — all customizable. Six bells to choose from: Gong, Singing Bowl, Harp, Wind Chimes, Bell, and Buddhist Bell.

Over 30 sounds

Sound Worlds presents nature, ambient, and music sounds as a visual grid with photo cards. From Rain to Sea to Fireplace for nature sounds, plus 19 music tracks. Five sounds are free, the rest with Premium.

5 themes

Make the app yours: Ocean, Sunrise, Forest, Infinity, or Desert. Each theme changes colors and background — matching your mood.

Ready instantly — no account needed

Breathe works right away. No login, no onboarding. Open the app, press play, meditate. If you want, create a free account for favorites, stats, and reminders — but it’s not a requirement.

Track your practice

The dashboard shows your week at a glance: streak, total time, session count. The calendar shows every single session — and after each one, you can rate how you felt.

Three languages

English, German, and Spanish. Fully translated.

What comes next

This is version 1 of the new Breathe. The app will keep evolving — and your feedback will shape where it goes. What’s missing? What’s annoying? What do you wish for? Write to me directly through the feedback form in the app. I read every single message, and it feeds into the next updates.

Breathe is free on the App Store and Google Play.

Just breathe.

— Johannes