Waking Up

What Waking Up does

Waking Up is a privately held meditation and mindfulness application operated by Waking Up LLC and founded by Sam Harris in 2018. The product is a mobile-first audio platform offering over 600 hours of content organized into three pillars — Practice (guided meditations), Theory (talks and archival recordings), and Life (practical tools for daily living) — plus a structured 30-day Introductory Course for beginners. Content is produced by a roster of 100+ interdisciplinary teachers spanning neuroscientists (including Andrew Huberman), philosophers, Buddhist practitioners, and best-selling authors, with archival material such as Alan Watts recordings from as early as 1969. Technically, the app is a standard iOS and Android client with offline download support, customizable session lengths, and integrations with Apple Health and Google Fit, alongside a web-based community and account portal.

The company monetizes exclusively through annual subscriptions sold after a 7-day free trial, with all features gated behind the paywall and a money-back guarantee reducing purchase friction. It serves primarily individual consumers — both beginners building a practice and experienced meditators seeking philosophical depth — and offers a Scholarship Program that provides free full-access memberships for users who cannot pay. Distribution is fully self-serve and global via the App Store, Google Play, and direct web, with no enterprise sales motion, no disclosed institutional funding of consequence, and a lean headcount of 11-50 employees. Marketing is anchored by Sam Harris's personal brand (books, podcast, public speaking) and organic referrals from high-profile teachers and the member community.

The business has reached meaningful scale by self-reported metrics — 100,000+ 5-star reviews, millions of users since 2018, and 50,000+ community members across 26 countries — while operating without disclosed external venture or private equity backing, suggesting a capital-efficient, founder-led model. Competitive positioning is differentiated by the intersection of meditation practice with neuroscience and philosophy rather than pure relaxation or sleep content, and the secular framing deliberately avoids religious requirements.

Name

Waking Up

Legal name

Waking Up LLC

Website

https://wakingup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Waking Up is a subscription-based meditation and mindfulness mobile app founded by Sam Harris in 2018, offering 600+ hours of audio content from 100+ interdisciplinary teachers and serving individual consumers seeking secular meditation, philosophical depth, and stress management through a global self-serve model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Meditation and Mindfulness Mobile App

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Learning Content Bundling & Subscription Passes (All-Access Libraries) (MPACALAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Online/Hybrid Lifelong Learning Platforms & Open Enrollment Programs (EDAAAEAL)

Keywords

• Meditation app
• Mindfulness platform
• Guided meditation
• Meditation subscription
• Wellness audio content

Headquarters

HQ city

Encino

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Annual Subscription: The primary revenue stream is annual subscriptions after a 7-day free trial. Membership provides full access to the entire library of meditations, lessons, conversations, and new content released regularly. The company offers a risk-free money-back guarantee and scholarship memberships for those who cannot afford the subscription.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Waking Up is a mobile meditation and mindfulness subscription application that delivers over 600 hours of audio content, including guided meditations, theory lessons, expert conversations, and a 30-day Introductory Course, all produced by Sam Harris and 100+ interdisciplinary teachers. The product combines meditation training with insights from neuroscience, philosophy, and psychology, and is sold as an annual subscription following a 7-day free trial, with a scholarship program providing free access to those who cannot afford it.

Product overview

Waking Up is a single meditation and mindfulness application that offers a comprehensive library of audio content including guided meditations, theory lessons, and conversations. The core product is the Waking Up App, which provides access to over 600 hours of content through various content types: Practice (guided meditations), Theory (talks and archival recordings), and Life (practical tools for daily living). Additional offerings include the Introductory Course for beginners, a member-exclusive Community forum, and a Scholarship Program for accessibility. The app features content from 100+ interdisciplinary teachers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Waking Up App A subscription-based mobile meditation and mindfulness application offering over 600 hours of audio content including guided meditations, theory lessons, conversations with interdisciplinary experts, and an Introductory Course; targeted at individual consumers ranging from beginners to experienced meditators.
• Introductory Course A 30-day guided foundation course available within the Waking Up app, providing daily short meditations and mindfulness lessons from Sam Harris to help beginners establish a consistent meditation practice and understand what differentiates Waking Up.

Quantifiable outcome

• 60.5 million U.S. adults meditated in 2022 (up from 16 million in 2002)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature6 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Calm: Calm is a leading meditation and sleep app offering guided meditations, sleep stories, and masterclasses. It is the most direct competitor to Waking Up in the consumer mindfulness subscription category, serving similar beginner-to-experienced audiences with audio-based content.
• Buddhify: Buddhify is a modern mindfulness app with themed meditations for different activities and life contexts. It serves a similar secular mindfulness audience and competes with Waking Up on accessibility and modern design.
• Ten Percent Happier: Ten Percent Happier is a meditation app targeting skeptical, secular users with content from teachers like Dan Harris and Joseph Goldstein. It directly overlaps Waking Up's secular, philosophically-inclined audience and several teachers appear on both platforms.
• Balance: Balance is a personalized meditation app offering adaptive content, sleep meditations, and coach-style sessions. It competes with Waking Up for individual subscribers seeking a modern, app-forward meditation experience with personalization.
• Simple Habit: Simple Habit offers bite-sized guided meditations, sleep content, and therapy sessions. It targets busy professionals seeking short daily practices, partially overlapping Waking Up's beginner and mental wellness focus segments.
• The Mindfulness App: The Mindfulness App offers guided meditations, sleep content, and family/kids programs. It is a direct competitor in the subscription meditation space with overlapping feature sets and global distribution.
• Insight Timer: Insight Timer is one of the largest free meditation apps, with a vast library of teachers, community features, and live events. It competes with Waking Up on content depth, teacher diversity, and community — often at a lower price point or free with optional tips.
• Headspace: Headspace is a major meditation and mental health app combining guided meditations, sleep, and focus content with a strong B2B offering (Headspace for Work). It directly competes with Waking Up for individual subscribers and has overlapping value propositions around secular mindfulness.

Emerging players

• Aura: Aura is a personalized wellness app offering guided meditations, life coaching, therapy, and hypnosis. It is an emerging player expanding beyond pure meditation into broader mental wellness, partially overlapping Waking Up's use cases.
• BetterHelp: BetterHelp is a leading online therapy platform that increasingly bundles self-guided meditation and mindfulness content. It represents an adjacent threat and partial competitor as the meditation app market converges with digital mental health services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wakingup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wakingup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Waking Up