Best Free Sleep Tracker Apps for iPhone (2026)
Snore Timeline gives you the most for free: no subscription, no trial and nothing locked, with or without a watch. I make it. It tracks your sleep stages from breathing sounds, scores each night from 0 to 100, lets you play back your snoring and wakes you in light sleep. It also reads Apple Watch or Fitbit nights through Apple Health. Apple’s built-in Health app is free too and tracks on its own if you wear an Apple Watch. The other four apps charge for features like snoring audio, a smart alarm or an AI coach.
Key takeaways
- Without a watch: Apple Health records no sleep. Snore Timeline, Pillow and Sleep Cycle track with just the iPhone.
- Trials first: Sleep Cycle and Pillow make you start a Premium trial before the free version opens. Cancel before the trial ends and you keep the free features.
- Rings and bands: Oura Gen3 and Ring 4 need a paid membership to send sleep to Apple Health. WHOOP doesn’t track at all without one.
In this article
At a glance
Which apps track sleep stages without a watch?
| App | Sleep stages without a watch | Purchases | Privacy label | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snore Timeline | Yes, from the mic | None | Data Not Collected | 4.9 (298) |
| Apple Health | No [1] | None | Built in | Built in |
| SleepWatch | No, manual logs only [8] | Premium, $3.99 to $39.99 | Data Linked to You | 4.7 (328K) |
| Pillow | Yes, from phone motion | Premium, $19.99 to $59.99 | Data Linked to You | 4.4 (96K) |
| Sleep Cycle | Yes, from mic or phone motion | Premium, $2.99 to $57.99 | Data Used to Track You | 4.7 (32K) |
| Bevel | No, manual logs only [17] | Pro, $14.99 to $99.99 | Data Used to Track You | 4.8 (18K) |
What does each free tier give you?
| App | Senses sleep with | Free tier includes | Paid tier adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snore Timeline | Mic or watch | Sleep stages, sleep score, snoring and sleep talk recordings, smart alarm, a nudge when you snore, weekly report, recovery score and heart rate from a watch, data and audio export | No paid tier |
| Apple Health | Watch | Stages, Sleep Score, overnight vitals | No paid tier |
| SleepWatch | Watch | Watch tracking, daily check-ins, tags; shows ads | Snore recording, SleepWatch Score, smart alarm |
| Pillow | Watch or phone motion | Watch tracking, basic stages, heart rate | Snore recording, smart alarm, detailed stages |
| Sleep Cycle | Mic or phone motion | Smart alarm, nightly sleep graph, export | Snore recording, heart rate, full statistics |
| Bevel | Watch | Sleep, recovery and strain scores; smart alarm | AI coach, biological age, training plans |
Which apps are left out, and why?
| App | Why it’s left out |
|---|---|
| AutoSleep | No free tier; one-time $9.99, needs an Apple Watch [19] |
| Rise | Needs a paid plan or a free trial [20] |
| BetterSleep | Free trial, then very limited content [21] |
| ShutEye | FAQ says some basic features are free, with no list [23] |
| Sleepwave | Free until 31 December 2026, then may need a subscription [22] |
| SleepScore | Listing doesn’t say which features stay free [24] |
Which free tiers include a smart alarm?
Three of the six free tiers wake you in light sleep inside a window you set.
- Snore Timeline: free Smart Wake Up Alarm with a 15, 30 or 45 minute window, or silent wrist taps on a watch. Wake-up alarm has the setup.
- Sleep Cycle: free, on the iPhone and the watch [13].
- Bevel: free, Apple Watch only [16].
- Pillow and SleepWatch: Premium [10] [7].
- Apple Health: a wake-up alarm at the time you set, with no light-sleep window [4].
Already own a ring or a fitness watch?
A free app sees your ring or band nights when the maker’s app writes sleep to Apple Health. Google Health, the renamed Fitbit app, lists syncing with other apps among its free features [25], and Polar sends sleep times, without stages, for free [28]. Oura Gen3 and Ring 4 need an active membership for Apple Health [26]. WHOOP stops collecting data when a membership ends [27]. Daytime data such as strain and readiness stays in the maker’s app. Sleep trackers with no subscription goes brand by brand, and free Apple Watch sleep apps covers the watch.
The apps, one by one
Snore Timeline
After a 15-minute baseline it estimates Awake, Light, Deep and REM from your breathing sounds, scores the night from 0 to 100, and lets you tap the score for what helped and what hurt.
- Free tier: everything, including snoring and sleep talking playback, full-night audio, CSV export, Snore Nudge and a free Watch app.
- Price: none.
- Privacy label: Data Not Collected [5].
- Reviews: 40 of 41 US App Store reviews (Nov 2025 to Oct 2026) give 5 stars. 22 praise that it’s free with no ads or subscription, 19 talk about snoring, 12 call it easy to use and 6 mention sleep talking.
- Limits: no heart rate of its own. A watch or ring adds a recovery score against your baseline, through Apple Health.
Apple Health
Built into iOS and watchOS. With an Apple Watch on, it tracks stages, scores the night and shows overnight vitals, and Series 9 or later can send sleep apnea notifications [3].
- Free tier: all of it. The Sleep Score weighs duration, bedtime consistency and interruptions [2].
- Price: none; it needs an Apple Watch for sleep data [1].
- Privacy label and reviews: none; it has no App Store listing.
SleepWatch
A watch-first tracker that picks up sleep from Apple Watch data with nothing to press [8].
- Free tier: automatic tracking, daily check-ins and lifestyle tags, with ads [7].
- Price: Premium, $3.99 to $39.99, plus a $3.99 Sleep Report Card [6].
- Privacy label: Data Linked to You: Health & Fitness, User Content.
- Reviews: of 178 recent reviews about sleep (Jan 2025 to Nov 2026), 39 talk about snore recordings, about half of them upset that playback needs Premium. Another 24 report the app freezing or crashing.
Pillow
Tracks a night from the watch on its own, or from the iPhone face down on the mattress [9].
- Free tier: watch and manual tracking, basic stages, heart rate, full history at a basic level [9]. You must start the trial first [11].
- Price: Premium, $19.99 to $59.99 [12].
- Privacy label: Data Linked to You: Identifiers, Usage Data, Diagnostics.
- Reviews: of 284 recent reviews about sleep (Sep 2025 to Nov 2026), 62 talk about its insights, 47 of them at 4 or 5 stars. Another 40 mention the sound recordings, and 37 doubt a bedtime or stage it logged.
Sleep Cycle
Best known for its smart alarm. Its Watch app tracks with wrist motion [13].
- Free tier: smart alarm, sleep analysis, nightly graph, sleep goal, database export [13]. You reach it through a trial [14].
- Price: Premium, $2.99 to $57.99 [15].
- Privacy label: Data Used to Track You: Identifiers.
- Reviews: of 326 recent reviews about sleep (Mar 2025 to Nov 2026), 103 talk about the smart alarm, 55 of them at 4 or 5 stars. Another 70 mention snore recordings, and 32 of those complain they now need Premium.
Bevel
A health dashboard that reads your wearable’s sleep through Apple Health and doesn’t track sleep itself [17].
- Free tier: recovery, sleep, strain, stress, nutrition, Watch app and smart alarm [16].
- Price: Pro, $14.99 to $99.99, plus AI credits from $4.99 [18].
- Privacy label: Data Used to Track You: Identifiers.
- Reviews: of 78 recent reviews about sleep (Sep 2025 to Nov 2026), 45 talk about the recovery score and 33 about the AI coach, most of them happy. A few report sync trouble with an Oura ring.
Which one to pick
- Pick Snore Timeline if you want stages, a sleep score, snoring playback and a smart alarm from the iPhone alone, with your watch or ring added when you wear one.
- Pick Apple Health if you wear an Apple Watch every night and want tracking that starts by itself, plus sleep apnea notifications on Series 9 or later.
- Pick Sleep Cycle if you’ll pay for Premium to sort your snoring from a partner’s with Who’s Snoring [13].
- Pick Bevel if you want daytime strain, stress and nutrition next to your sleep in one free app.
Snore Timeline analyzes audio. It is not a medical device and does not diagnose sleep apnea or any other condition. Apple says the same of its sleep apnea notification. Bring recordings to a doctor if you suspect breathing pauses.
Frequently asked questions
Can an iPhone track sleep without an Apple Watch?
Apple’s own Sleep app can’t; on the iPhone alone it gives you a schedule, Sleep Focus and an alarm. A third-party app can, by listening through the microphone or feeling motion through the mattress, and the first table shows which ones.
Do I have to start Snore Timeline every night?
Yes. A Shortcuts automation can start the recording at a set time, as Siri & Shortcuts shows. With a watch, your nights show up on the calendar on their own.
Will a sleep tracker app drain my iPhone battery?
Snore Timeline uses about 3 to 5 percent of battery per hour while it records, per its FAQ, so keep the phone plugged in. Watch-based apps move the problem to your wrist, where the watch needs a charge before bed.
Does Snore Timeline work on Android?
Yes, with the same timeline, sleep stages and exports, and it reads your watch or ring through Health Connect. The Apple Watch app is the one part that stays iOS only, as the Android page explains.
Sources
- Track your sleep with Apple Watch. Apple Support. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- View your sleep score on Apple Watch. Apple Watch User Guide. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Sleep apnea notifications on Apple Watch. Apple Support. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Set up a sleep schedule in Health on iPhone. iPhone User Guide. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Snore Timeline: Sleep Tracker on the App Store (listing and privacy label). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- SleepWatch on the App Store (listing, purchases and privacy label). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- SleepWatch features. Bodymatter. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- SleepWatch without an Apple Watch. Bodymatter. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- What’s included in Pillow’s free features. Pillow Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- What’s included in Pillow Premium. Pillow Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Why is payment information required to start Pillow’s free trial?. Pillow Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Pillow: Sleep Tracker on the App Store (listing, purchases and privacy label). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Sleep Cycle Freemium vs. Premium Features. Sleep Cycle Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- How can I use Sleep Cycle for free?. Sleep Cycle Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Sleep Cycle on the App Store (listing, purchases and privacy label). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Bevel free and Pro features. Bevel Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Bevel supported wearables and sleep data. Bevel Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Bevel: AI Health Coach on the App Store (listing, purchases and privacy label). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- AutoSleep on the App Store (listing and price). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- RISE: Sleep Tracker on the App Store (listing and subscription terms). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Is BetterSleep free?. BetterSleep Help Center. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Sleepwave: Alarm & Tracker on the App Store (listing and subscription terms). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- ShutEye FAQ. Enerjoy. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- SleepScore on the App Store (listing and subscription terms). Apple. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Google Health Premium. Google. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Apple Health Integration. Oura Help. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Canceling Your Membership. WHOOP Support. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
- Connecting Polar Flow with Apple Health. Polar Support. Accessed 8 Nov 2026.
Try Snore Timeline
Free. No subscription, no account, no in-app purchases.