Make Space for Headspace! But at What Cost?

Americans, young and old, are struggling with sleep. Millions of people are tossing and turning at night, trying to find a solution. Many are left with no hope, but others have turned to popular meditation apps, such as Headspace.

It’s widely known that the Covid 19 pandemic has absolutely wrecked sleep schedules, from students to business owners. Sleep deprivation increases the likelihood teens will suffer from negative consequences, including an inability to concentrate, poor grades, drowsy-driving incidents, anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, with teenage suicide rates in 2020 up over 50%.

And not only students are suffering. The CDC says about 70 million Americans suffer from chronic sleep problems. Lack of sleep is associated with injuries, chronic diseases, mental illnesses, poor quality of life and well-being, increased health care costs, and lost work productivity. These issues only worsened during the height of the Covid pandemic.

According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information and the National Library of Medicine, the global pooled prevalence rate of sleep problems among all populations was 35.7% in 2021. Patients with COVID-19 appeared to be the most affected group, with a combined rate of 74.8%. Healthcare workers and the general population had comparative rates of sleep problems, with rates of 36.0% and 32.3%. Sleep problems during the COVID-19 pandemic have affected approximately 40% of people from the general and healthcare populations. Patients with active COVID-19 appeared to have a higher prevalence rate of sleep problems. That being said, the world is now more desperate than ever for a solution, and that is where Headspace comes in.

Headspace is a meditation app designed to help people relax and sleep. Looking at the download rates of Headspace, customer rates increased in February 2020, or the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Headspace had 2 million paid subscribers and approximately 600 business partnering offers in early February. Throughout the month of February, the app was downloaded 62 million times and in 190 countries. Headspace also has seen a significant increase in businesses looking to partner—with partnership requests up by 500% since mid-March—and to use the app to boost their employees’ mental well-being while working from home amidst the pandemic, with over 1,100 companies already enrolled in the Headspace for Work program, what the company calls “the only employee mental health solution for modern organisations.”

As of April 2020, the height of the first wave of Covid, Headspace was ranked #2 in global downloads among the top English-speaking mental wellness apps with more than $5.5 million in gross revenue, up 31.2% year-over-year, second only to Calm, a similar sleep aid app. About 43.3% of Headspace’s overall revenue as of April 2020 was from the United States, followed by Great Britain with 17.7%. By August of 2020, as the second wave started picking up, Headspace had expanded to 70 million members around the world across all platforms.

During November 2020, election month, and one of the most stressful and significant moments in an already tension-filled year, Headspace saw a 30% week-by-week comparison increase in paid downloads. The data speaks for itself: people slept less on the days leading up to election night.

Amidst a global pandemic and a life-changing election, a population dealing with high stress leads to bigger profits for Headspace and an increase in marketing strategies and advertisements around traumatic events. Headspace is profiting off the anxieties and sleepless nights of the general public.

A free version of Headspace can be downloaded, however, it lacks many of the features of the paid version. The paid version is quite pricey, with the app charging $12.99 monthly–more expensive than a monthly Netflix or Spotify subscription. Headspace also offers a “lifetime” subscription, or one of $399.99. This may seem like a good deal in the long run, yet compared to the lifetime pricing of Calm, Headspace is charging an additional 30%.

Patrick Campbell, the CEO of profitwell.org surveyed 5,391 current, former, or prospective customers of Headspace. The study found that the app is pricing their product much higher than the average for an occasional user. For users who meditate roughly once a week, the average amount they’re willing to pay is $4.90. Not everyone has the time (or patience) to meditate every day, with consumers who use Headspace as much as once or twice being the only people who will see actual value in the app.

For example, researchers from the University of Washington School of Medicine and Seattle Children’s Research Institute found the eight studies on Headspace that they reviewed revealed very inconsistent results. Some of the studies showed that the app was associated with satisfaction, while other studies showed it had no significant effects whatsoever.

Perhaps Headspace is undeserving of all the attention it has gotten. Headspace is offering “a good night’s sleep” for the price of $12.99, but it’s a cost the public can only afford in their dreams.