Last updated on September 28, 2023

Oh, we’ve all been there, haven’t we?

You’re trying to zero in on a task, but your mind’s off on a wild adventure. The frustration builds and you feel like you’re just spinning your wheels. But what if there was something to help you focus and actually get stuff done? Enter binaural beats.

So, binaural beats are these crazy auditory illusions that happen when you hear two slightly different tones in each ear. Your brain then whips up a third tone, which is the difference between the two frequencies. And that, my friend, is the magical binaural beat.

Today, we’re going to share the best binaural beats apps and binaural beats alternatives to help you improve your focus.

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Need a quick answer? BrainFM isn’t a binaural beats app, but its music works similarly and excels at enhancing focus. I strongly recommend it due to its effectiveness, user-friendly interface, and wide availability, which sets it apart from most binaural beats apps.

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Curious how we got to this conclusion? Keep reading!

Do Binaural Beats Work?

There is some scientific evidence that suggests binaural beats can help you focus and improve your cognitive performance.

One study found that binaural beats improved task performance and working memory. Another study found that binaural beats may help to reduce anxiety and improve relaxation.

Best Binaural Beats Apps for Android, iOS & PC

Fair warning, there aren’t a lot of binaural beats apps out there that are worth recommending. But keeping the goal of focus music in mind, I’ve listed some of the best apps overall to help you focus (including best apps for binaural beats).

There are a number of binaural beats apps, so how do you choose the best one? In my experience, it depends upon:

1. if it’s available on your device
2. if it fits your budget
3. if it works for you

Here are the best binaural beats apps keeping these requirements in mind:

1. Brain.fm

(I ended up buying this one)

Brain.fm is an app that offers personalized music to help you focus, relax, or sleep. The app uses AI to generate music that is specifically designed to help you achieve your desired state. You can choose from a variety of genres, including classical, electronica, lo fi, groove, post-rock and nature sounds (listen for free)

While Brain.fm isn’t technically binaural beats software, it creates functional music for the brain and it works better than the most effective binaural beats. Here’s the science behind their patented brain music technology.

I’ve been using BrainFM for 5 years now and it’s my most effective companion to get in a state of flow.

Supported devices – Android, iOS & PC

Pricing – Starts at $4 per month (paid annually)

2. Binaural Beats Therapy

Binaural Beats Therapy is the best free binaural beats app for Android users that offers a variety of best binaural music to help you relax from anxiety, focus, or sleep. While it’s free, this binaural beats app for sleep doesn’t get updated very often.

Supported devices – Only Android

Pricing – FREE

3. myNoise

myNoise is the best free binaural beats app that offers a binaural beats machine which has a 10-carrier pure sine wave binaural beat generator. It looks a little ancient, but does the job pretty decently.

Supported devices – Only PC

Pricing – FREE

4. Binaural Beats by Adlai Holler

Binaural Beats is one of the best binaural beats app for iPhone users by Adlai Holler. It claims that it doesn’t interfere with your music, audiobooks etc. and doesn’t drain your battery. There’s a lot of customisations available and it has a 4.7/5 rating on the App Store.

Supported devices – Only iOS

Pricing – FREE

5. Brainwaves

Brainwaves is a binaural tone app that offers 320-bitrate binaural beats and isochronic tones combined with relaxing ambient music and soothing nature sounds to improve focus, sleep, or relaxation in as little as 15 minutes.

Most of the 600+ tracks have been produced by The Unexplainable Store®.

Supported devices – iOS, Android & PC

Pricing – $70/year

6. Binaural (β)

Binaural app (β) is a very simple binaural beats generator built for iOS and macOS. Just choose a frequency and play—it’s quite easy!

You can also create rain sounds, which will mix with the binaural beats to soften them and block out environmental noise. If you choose to, you can automatically log your sessions on your iPhone’s Health app as “Mindful Minutes” via their Health app integration.

Supported devices – iOS & macOS

Pricing – $60/year

7. Focus@Will

Focus@Will is an app that offers a variety of background sounds to help you focus. The app has over 50 noise options, including white noise, pink noise, and nature sounds. You can also choose from a variety of genres, including classical, electronica, and rock. Focus At Will does not create binaural beats, but offers similar binaural music to help you focus.

Supported Devices – Android, iOS & PC

Pricing – $10 per month

Related Reading: Best Focus@Will Alternatives

8. Endel

Endel is a focus music app that creates personalized, algorithm-generated background sounds to help you focus, relax, or sleep. It’s NOT a binaural beat audio app, but it’s a good binary beats alternative.

The app adapts the soundscape to the time of day and temperature to help you stay productive or relaxed. However, some users have reported that algorithm-generated sounds can sometimes be repetitive.

Supported devices – Android, iOS, PC, Alexa

Pricing – $6 per month

Related Reading: Best Endel Alternatives

9. Brain Waves – Binaural Beats

Brain Waves is a mobile binaural sound app that produces binaural beats in real time (not pre-recorded sounds). This enables you to play them without interruption as long as you want.

From infralow through delta, theta, alpha, beta & gamma—you can make all the wave types to focus, relax or meditate. You can also choose from a variety of ready-made presets for quick access.

Supported devices – Android, iOS

Pricing – $3

10. Headspace

Headspace is a fantastic focus music app that offers a variety of curated tracks designed to help you concentrate, relax, or sleep. It’s not a binaural beats audio app, but it’s a great alternative for those seeking a different approach to focus enhancement.

Their Focus Mode is packed with features that cater to your concentration needs. For starters, they’ve teamed up with renowned artists like John Legend, Hans Zimmer, and St. Vincent to bring you exclusive, top-quality focus music tracks.

There’s something for everyone, with a diverse range of music styles spanning jazz, classical, cinematic, and electronic. Here’s a sample track. Additionally, Headspace includes short breathing exercises and meditations, enhancing your ability to focus or relax.

Supported devices – Android, iOS, Web, Alexa, Google Assistant

Pricing – Free basic plan, premium plan at $12.99 per month

Choosing the best binaural beats app

The right app may be the difference between a passive music listening experience and one that is actively changing your state of mind. The best binaural beats app for you will depend on your needs, but like I said before, there are very limited options in the market.

But if you’re open to trying binaural beats alternative apps, then I’d highly recommend BrainFM because of it’s effectiveness, user interface and cross-platform availability. This recommendation comes after using it for 5+ years!

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