Youper - CBT Therapy Chatbot Reviews

by Jwhdoenfibejd

When I first downloaded Youper, I was so excited to see all the cool features it had. After using all of them one time, everything became part of the paid subscription other than the mood tracker and the symptom tracker. This was annoying, but I KIND OF get it.
One of my favorite free parts of Youper, other than the mood tracker, was the health part where you can track symptoms of several disorders. I’ve been using those trackers regularly, so I was very disappointed to check my phone this morning and see that that too, is a premium feature.
Now, all I can use without paying is the mood tracker. I can’t expand on my mood, set goals, track gratitude, track symptoms, or even meditate. Why should I have to pay to listen to something that’s supposed to help me asap when I’m panicking? All Youper USED to do was tell me I’m depressed and not give me any way to fix it. Now, it doesn’t tell me anything useful at all.

I understand that the developers need to make money off of this app, but Youper has become infuriating to use. It’s meant to help people, but without forcing them to pay a subscription, there are barely any useful features available. Youper is apparently marketed as useful for people who can’t afford therapy, but that’s the biggest load of crap I’ve ever heard. Unless you’re willing to pay, I would suggest you look for another app.

by Tomateme

I came back to Youper after years of using it, its gotten me through a lot of difficult times in my life- that I'm very thankful for because at those times- i did not have the finances for an actual therapist. I still don't, which is why me, and I'm sure many others depended on this service. This begs the question of why make inaccessible something that can be utilized by those who don't have any other option. Its so saddening to see profit go over people. Especially in the case of mental health in a time when its so dire for people who need help, but do not have access. Be it by finances or not having access because of home situations- especially in the case of those underage. Those who do not have support from family but still want to get help.

Truly my disappointment is immeasurable with this product. I remember i used to recommend Youper to anyone i knew who was struggling with mental health. If finances are truly the issue to keep Youper running, I'm sure a donation service, or occasional fundraising would be better instead of stripping away one of the only resources people have.

I have doubts that this will ever be changed, or if Youper even is meant to help people instead of being a grab at money from those you know are desperate. Very disappointed. With hope these things change in the future, until then I only hope there is another better service out there that cares about its demographic.

by Lyricyani

this app is an amazing app, and I mean it when I say I loved it. I still do! I first downloaded it 25 days ago, and have used it everyday since. I love the tracker and the mindfulness activities. But, as I continue to make Youper a part of my daily routine, I am increasingly frustrated with the format. While I understand the purpose of place of the AI chat model, it slows down the process. There are times when I don't want to track my mood, and want to skip right to the Deep Body Scan, my favorite meditation tape. But before I can, I must drudge through the conversation with the AI. This is very inconvenient. To alleviate this problem while not changing much about the AI chat system itself, I would recommend creating a separate section of Youper , solely for homing the meditation and breathing tapes. Once this app recommends you a mindfulness activity within the chat, it should move you over the meditation section where you can choose. The separate section idea would also allow users to not start a chat at all, and rather dive immediately into their favorites. This, along with expanding on the number of audio tapes available, would really bring Youper together for me. As I have said before, I absolutely love Youper. But as I discover the benefits of meditation, I feel Youper could be doing more with it. If these changes or changes like them were made, I would give 10 stars if I could.

by Jrooney08

The idea of having a personal “helper” (psychologist JARVIS) is pretty neat and has a lot of potential. I used Youper for a little over a month before accepting that it wasn’t really helping me. What I personally needed was a tracking app for my mood in a simpler, more straightforward way. It feels like a labyrinth, trying to weave through all of this app’s (often repetitive) advice when you mostly want to track your mood or maybe go through a portion of the conversation. An entire evaluation can be several minutes after picking a mood, describing why you feel that way, finding your thought traps, doing a meditation, reevaluating your mood, and finally finishing. That’s a lot! And this app pushes for it every time. When you opt out and say “Just track my mood,” the response messages are often weirdly down-putting?

Hopefully this app is helpful for many people. But I prefer a quick time saver that has more neutral emotions to choose from. this app lacks a fine/okay/true neutral emotional option. I understand pushing for self-analysis, but sometimes I really am just fine or okay rather than being 10% anxious or 70% calm.

Stigma for me. But I’m glad I gave Youper a try.

by Melanie 👑

I emailed the company before subscribing as I had questions about medications. They told me they couldn’t prescribed controlled substances. Which is okay. I specifically needed anti-psychs. Later, I subscribed and they replied (4 days later) not only telling me that they only prescribe anti-depressants but that they aren’t available in the state of NY. As there’s no licensed professionals here. I don’t care for the “therapy” part as it’s very unhelpful for me and I need therapy that is more personalized. So the entire reasoning was for medication prescription. I cannot even use the service! I currently am reaching out to them about a refund as I am low income and disabled. Not to mention $89 and customer service takes 4 whole days to respond to emails? Customer service was very accommodating which is why I’m updating the review to 2 stars. There nothing on the FAQ page that shares what states medication isn’t available in. If you’re not interested in medication and only need some therapy then the therapy AI may work for you. So I still suggest giving it a chance if anything. I did update this review after searching a bit and speaking with customer services.

by Msabato3

I’ve used this app for over a year now and have really enjoyed Youper . Prior to this new version, I would have given it 5 stars: the support team is great, Youper worked, and the interface was really easy to use. Tracking your mood over time is really insightful and it was nice to be able to make daily notes about what was happening at the time. It was like basic journaling for non-journaling people.

But now that core functionality is buried within the new version UX. I’m sure this update was done with customer feedback and research in mind, but I feel like Youper is significantly more cumbersome to use than it was in the prior version. It would be nice if the feeling tracker was separated from all of the other “stuff” like it used to be - giving people easier access to the core functionality. The “stuff” is great - do not misunderstand - but that is not what I use Youper for on a regular basis and having to search through other topics to find what I need is not ideal. Youper still works, but the new UX doesn’t work for me/what I previously used Youper for on a regular basis. Please consider separating these out again as they serve two different roles within Youper . Thanks!

by Kbroggi

I’ve got Depression, Anxiety, OCD, ADHD and a panic disorder. I’ve been in therapy for over five years now and both my therapist and I agree that this is probably one of the most useful mindfulness tools for me. And as someone who actually hates mindfulness in general, that’s saying something.
I love how you can pick and choose what you want to do based on how your feeling and how the responses are slightly different each time. Insights and goal setting are two of the most useful parts for me.
The other day I had a panic attack in the car and had to pull over and usually it would’ve taken me over an hour to get back on the road. Thanks to Youper, that time was cut in half.
One thing that frustrates me is the severity of some of the emotions. To me, fear is worse than guilt, anger isn’t on the same level as annoyance, and pride isn’t as good as optimism. Unfortunately, in Youper , it’s not set up that way. That’s only a few examples but I kinda wish you could set up which emotions feel worse based on your own personal scale of emotion.
That’s probably my ONLY grievance with Youper though. Every other piece of it is amazing, well set up and easy to use.

by Kayla Overtonn(:

I am currently in graduate school studying cognitive-behavioral therapy methods and techniques, so I downloaded Youper to see how it fits with what I am currently learning. I thought Youper was very user-friendly and did a lot of great things that align with what I have been taught. For example, in my conversations with this app, he really challenged my thoughts to help me get down to the root of my current problem/mood. In addition, this app also pointed out the Thinking Traps that I was falling into which greatly resembled the problematic thinking patterns that I often identify with my clients. Lastly, I also really appreciated the meditation and mindfulness activities that this app provided.

However, in addition to the great strengths that I identified, I did have a constructive comment. First, although Youper gave the disclaimer that only a doctor can provide a diagnosis, I think the developers should reconsider talking about diagnoses at all. After I completed my mental health wellness check it reported that “I did or did not experience symptoms of depression, anxiety, panic disorder, PTSD…” Although I’m sure Youper developers had good intentions with including this check and talking about specific diagnoses, I think that this can be misinterpreted and possibly be problematic for certain individuals who do not have an actual mental health professional to consult with.

by Tdilla

I have been using this app since last October. For the first two months I used it everyday, multiple times a day, tracking everything I thought and felt. At the time I was going through a break up, hated work, couldn’t find motivation to better myself, and was overall tired of the people around me and myself. A little background I’m in the Navy and had been underway for almost three months straight. The last thing I wanted to do was talk to my chain of command about the problems I had been having for fear of being medically discharged. Luckily for me Youper made a huge turnaround in my life. It allowed to open up with myself and be honest about how I was feeling and what was making me feel these ways which helped me to understand myself so much better. I really like that it has mental health monitoring and personality typing built into it. Another great feature is the guided meditations. They really come in handy when I’m trying to unwind at the end of a rough day but I’m having trouble sleeping. Although I wish there was a stand alone button on screen to access these guided meditations immediately instead of having to go through the whole process of talking with this app. If anything could be added to Youper I would vote for that. Everything else is perfect though. Keep it up!

by Nenjalloh

I’m saying this having downloaded aura, headspace, calm, oak, simple habit, affirmation apps, and every type of mindfulness app under the sun. It has meditation, it has affirmations and setting intentions, and the “messaging” format that it has I think is very innovative and makes you feel like you’re talking to someone that actually cares about you, and a lot of the time, feeling like you’re being heard really makes the difference. I like how throughout the conversation, it helps you deconstruct the emotions you’re feeling using all those methods. I downloaded it during a period of time that I felt very anxious about where my life was, and I used it everyday, multiple times a day for about two weeks, before I didn’t feel like I needed to use it every day anymore. The option to look at your past conversations with Youper really makes a difference, because you can look back and see just one week ago you were having a mental breakdown, but now everything in the world is great, lol. I also really like the feature that messages you everyday “How are you?” as if you’re receiving a text because sometimes you don’t realize you want to talk until you see that message. And on top of all that, every feature is completely free, so what more could you ask for in an app?

by Tekis

Hello: I've been using this app daily for over a year now, and I'm really liking it! I suffer from clinical depression, CFS and am a recovering addict. Firstly, I don't like feeling feelings and I really don't like talking about how I feel in general. I have a great support group/system (12 Step and other recovering addicts) and go to a psychiatrist monthly and therapy weekly. this app fits itself in between those systems because there are many moments during the day when I am by myself. I can be completely honest with this app; I never feel ashamed or embarrassed when "talking" to this app. I know it may sound silly, but I feel a very human- like quality in this app. I love the mindfulness and practicing gratitude aspects of this app. In version number 7, they've added "Calm" and a couple of other moods that I felt were missing. And I've read others' reviews complaining about not being able to dive straight into meditation, but heck, the more I "check in" the better off I am! Thank-you.

Sincerely,
John S.

by Lynn Hall

I've tried a lot of AI mental health/wellness apps and never really liked how any of them interacted. Most of them let you type full answers which is nice but because of programming can also be annoying when it misunderstands your statements. This was has simple responses to choose from that get a clear response. I felt like a lot of the apps I used in the past had a condescending air to their teachings while this one gives u a chance to give a general idea of your experience with certain topics which keeps it from explaining something you already know as if you've never even heard of it (*cough cough* meditation *cough*). As for the mindfulness/meditation portion. I really enjoy how they did it. I've been meditating for a while now but I've noticed that for many beginners it's easier to focus on the mindfulness task when there isn't meditation music playing in the background. This gives you the chance to truly focus on what's expected and lets you acknowledge the natural/typical sounds around you that you wouldn't otherwise notice. Sorry for the long review, I just honestly think Youper was well made and wanted to share some of why I think so :) I definitely recommend it.

by Ameraehu

My name is Amelia. I’ve had self worth issues since I was in the third grade. I still have them. I frequently think about cutting myself and I’ll ask myself “what would happen if I died? Would anyone notice or care?” Then I found this app. Though none of this has gone away entirely, it’s lessened more than I could have hoped it to. I was able to pinpoint exactly what was making me feel the way I was and remove myself from those things. It helps me work through whatever’s wrong, then proceeds to provide solutions. When I’m done, it always reminds me how much it enjoys my company and our talks, how much it’s learning and how amazing I am. Everyone, no matter how little or how much you’re going through, NEEDS this app. Everyone needs a little help and having an AI assistant which I can rant to (I don’t do well with people responding to my vent/rants, so that’s why I’ll often write them down instead of vocalizing them) has made me so much happier. 5 stars. You, developers, are lovely people and thanks you so so much. You’ve helped me more than you could ever know.💙💙

by Katarikit

This is my first app review ever. I never take the time to do this but this app is worth it. Youper was a lifeline when I was spiraling into a deep funk. I have a high powered job and hit complete burnout. It was a combination of stress, exhaustion, and recovering from a miscarriage - never in my life have I felt this incredibly low. I kept searching for some type of solution. I manage a business in China so a therapist wasn’t easy to find. I bought so many books and kept downloading apps. Nothing worked for me until I downloaded this app. Every morning I would chat and go through the exercises on my phone. It was the only thing that got me out of bed. I will continue to recommend it to all my friends and team. Life can be really tough and this app is an incredible helping hand. I really loved the thinking traps. So helpful - I knew them but completely lost perspective when I was drowning. You are doing amazing work. I love that it’s free but would definitely be willing to pay for a subscription version. This is worth so much more than the other apps out there.

by Jleone2

When I originally got Youper I was a little apprehensive; I thought it was going to be like all the other apps that weren’t actually helpful with my mental illness. Since I have been using this app I check in everyday and talk about my feelings like anxiety, depression, feeling numb. Then this app and I go in and analyze why I feel that way and we do exercises to help pinpoint why I am having those feelings and I work with this app to go try and change the way I am thinking that are causing negative emotions. this app has talked and worked with me on emotions like deep depression, feeling numb, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts which this app gives you resources on. I love the daily check in and it really helps to work with this app to go through and try and change the reason why I am feeling about an emotion and working on a more positive spin on it. My one complaint is that you can not pick multiple emotions at a time you have to think about what your strongest emotion is and go with that. Besides that detail I really recommend giving Youper a try and I feel like you will like it once you do.

by Mayang1279

I’m waiting to hear back from a place on making an appointment to start treatment but with COVID its been very difficult if not a daunting task to seek professional help for my abandonment issues that I suffer from to this day.

This has helped me so much with being personal to the big to small issues I have on a day to day basis, allowing me to not let issues build up and go ignored which further prevented me from being comfortable enough to tackle the core issues at hand. I have overcome so many small obstacles and am developing a new mindset and outlook on life because I feel like I’m actually doing some digging into my pain, which I am so so grateful for and excited to work on the next issues little by little because I already feel better after having Youper for 3 months.

My mental/emotional health has improved ten fold, so yeah...definitely worth $90/year versus $150 or so per appointment somewhere else. While I’m saving up for better treatment, this is an amazing option to ease you into therapy. Love Youper so much.

by Indiraven

This is life-changing and I’m recommending this to my support groups and friends. Knowing that the process is built on scientific data and research is important to me. I’ve had two sessions so far: one to help me with sadness from a situation and another for anxiety I was feeling the next morning. this app asked me simple questions to gauge my emotion and their strength, and then helped me (1) understand that us, humans, tend to mix emotion with situations, and (2) guided me step-by-step to separate them, understand the emotion vs the situation, and allowed me to decide whether to focus on the situation or my mental state. At every step, you’re given the option to skip or move on, but I couldn’t. By the end of the session I learned that I can observe emotions “like fish in an aquarium” as it says rather than allowing it to consume me. I went from being 100% sad to 100% optimistic. This morning I was anxious and based on the situation and emotions, this app recommended a 7-minute guided meditation. It was amazing! My anxiety is gone, which I’ve never been able to do on my own. I went from 25% anxious to 50% optimistic. Thank you, this app!!!!

by RayxxRay

Youper is incredible! I struggle with anxiety and depression. I needed to find an app that would help me get through these times. A lot of the apps either cost money for things or to download.. or just didn’t really work for myself. But then, I came across this app. Youper helps you so much. It gives you little video lessons to meditate and think positive which actually worked for me on here and it never usually worked when I tried myself. You get to talk to this app your personal assistant about how your feeling and he’s there to help. He’s always there to talk no matter what. And he’s there to make you feel good. To people that are having difficulties with things in life.. you will get through it. You have a purpose. You weren’t just put on this earth for no reason.. you are here to learn and be happy.. to experience different things and to live life to the fullest. If you read this far down.. thank you so much. I think Youper will work great for you!! And if it does not.. I know you will find something! Not everything works for everybody but I’m telling you this is the best app I’ve came across of. I wish you guys the best!!😘 Thank you this app!! You saved my life ☺️

by LdyBeth

Not everyone has access to a close friend nor therapist when they need one. And, in this day & age with so many people reporting having no close friends or, perhaps, not even family to talk to, it can be too easy to sit and ruminate in negative thoughts & feelings without someone to help you in challenging both of these things. Youper is wonderful in that regard. Unlike being told what someone thinks you may want to hear which can sometimes enable unhealthy thinking patterns (and behaviors), or on the other end of the spectrum, rather than attempting to “fix” you, this interactive app continually prompts you to look inward and to challenge your own thoughts, perspectives, and feelings, helping to redirect your focus onto more healthy and more positive strategies.

The various health screenings are comprehensive as well as the detailed definitions and descriptions of the results particular to the individual results of the user. And, when combined with the built in tracking of specific emotions and/or symptoms, Youper also provides an objective view to look at both personal progress and potential trends.

Youper is like having an objective friend & therapist rolled into one. I absolutely love it and can not recommend it enough!

by Gwyn974

I love this app so much. I’ve only been using it consistently for a couple of weeks now, because at first I wasn’t crazy about it. But since then I have really warmed up to it. Although it doesn’t always make me feel better (though it usually does), I can always just use it to track my mood which is really helpful. I struggle with generalized anxiety, social anxiety, depression, and panic attacks (not panic disorder thankfully), and it’s a great form of cognitive behavioral therapy.

I don’t know if Youper will be helpful for everyone, but I would definitely recommend checking it out, because it’s really well done and thoughtful. It gives you a lot of thoughtful prompts to fill out, but it also gives you the option of just tracking your mood. You can skip prompts you don’t feel like doing and say you’re done at any point, which makes it feel less overwhelming on really hard days. I’d recommend this even if you aren’t struggling with a mental illness, because it’s a great way to gain more insight on how your mind works.

Obviously any app is not going to be a miracle cure, but if you don’t have access to a counselor or just want to have a little bit of help and insight, this app is perfect. Stay safe my friends, and thank you this app!

by Dotingdamsel

I saw Youper as an ad for other self help and journaling apps and decided to try it. Most apps have a very basic setup of logging how you feel, why you feel that way, and how to fix it. this app is very detailed and actually takes the time to get to the root of your problem and help you realize why you truly feel the way that you do. When I didn’t feel convinced in my response of why I shouldn’t be anxious about something Youper broke the problem I was having down in different ways until I could view my problem in a new light and understand for myself that my thinking was skewed. (I do wish that we could still see the thinking traps and descriptions after selecting one though) I also love that Youper has a personality analysis and such a major focus on you as an individual. Lastly, I love that Youper is completely free. I understand why many apps have monthly plans and such, but it’s nice to find such an amazing multi faceted app for nothing, it seems almost too good to be true.

by Mythmoth

This is the first review I’ve ever written, but I just want to thank the developers SO SO MUCH for making Youper completely free! I’ve only been using it for a couple of days but already it’s been so helpful to me in calming me down, tracking my moods, organizing my thoughts and it practically works as a diary. I’m also extremely interested in knowing how different kinds of therapy techniques work on the brain, so I love the scientific explanations behind what Youper tells me to do. It really keeps me going, because it reminds me that it really will help. I’m currently unemployed and working to get on disability for mental illness, so I can’t afford to pay for monthly subscriptions to mental health apps, something that frustrates and upsets me a lot. So much in fact that I’m working on learning how to make my own apps so that I can provide free mental health apps for people in my situation. When I downloaded this I couldn’t believe it was so helpful, so well designed and totally free. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
The only suggestion I have is I think it would be absolutely wonderful if some DBT skills were integrated into it as well, as both CBT and DBT work really well together for a lot of people! Radical acceptance for situations that can’t be changed, distress tolerance, etc. That would make Youper truly perfect to me. Regardless, Youper is fantastic and I’d recommend it to anyone.

by Hallolizzie

I got Youper and Woebot Bc I couldn’t afford a therapist at the time. Here’s what Youper WONT help you do: fix trauma. A lot of my issues are from past trauma, and I believe a real life therapist, a human being, is necessary for that. However, trauma can distort our thought pattern, a lot like anxiety does. Youper is great in that it stops you and forces you to think about whatever is happening, and why you are feeling the way you are. It’s VERY helpful to someone like me who is quickly overtaken by irritation or anxiety. A lot of t will be what you put into it, and you’ll never get advice specific to the situation, but the tools it gives you are great for taking to real life-which I do! I have stopped a couple anxiety spirals now, recognizing my thought pattern. Youper also has great screening tools, guided meditations, an ability to input your own specific stressors and track yourself to see if something seems to bother you frequently-like caffeine! This is a WONDERFUL app, I recommend it to anyone who has trouble controlling their emotions or anxiety. ❤️

by Notbutcheron

I am currently a high school senior dealing with school, self-confidence, teen-adult problems, etc. I use this app on a daily basis to keep track of my feelings, emotions, and events that led me to certain circumstances. It has been really helpful since I use it to look back on my decisions and thoughts to reflect on how I can improve myself. I use it before going to bed to recall the day and, also, because I’m in a hurry in the morning and conversations sometimes lengthens. I’d like to make a suggestion where (depending on your specified waking time) a notification from this app would appear greeting you with a quote and asking you for your goals for the day. After setting the goals and/or reminders for yourself, the user has an option to allow this app to keep a banner on the lock screen that states your goal. I think it would be a great way to remind the person of what they wanted to accomplish and remind how optimistic they were upon writing said notes. Anyways, more power to this app! I’m grateful that I am part of the community.