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Migraine apps are a great tool for helping people keep track of their episodes and manage the condition. This article looks at 10 of the best migraine apps for the year.

A quick look at 8 of the best migraine apps

Migraine is more than just a headache. It is a complex neurological condition with many symptoms, including severe head pain; disturbed vision; sensitivity to light, smells, and sounds; and nausea and vomiting.

Migraine apps can help people track their symptoms, identify their triggers, manage their pain, and connect with other users with the condition. Research suggests that tracking in an electronic diary allows users to capture more real-time data than tracking in paper diaries.

Factors that may trigger migraine include hormonal changes, foods, beverages, stress, sensory stimuli, changes in the wake-sleep pattern, physical characteristics, variations in the environment, and certain medications.

Tracking migraine triggers and sharing these data with a doctor can help them diagnose the type of migraine a person has and determine the best course of treatment. Also, some insurance companies require migraine tracking data to cover certain treatments.

Migraine apps aim to help people track triggers that may lead to a migraine episode. These apps are usually available on both iOS and Android.

These apps may provide a way to track foods, medication, weather, and other factors. People can also input the date of the migraine episode and how frequently they experience symptoms of this condition.

Over time, an app may help people and their healthcare team identify patterns that lead to migraine symptoms as well as their severity.

Some apps may also provide a community of members to provide peer support.

Medical News Today includes reputable, well-received apps, with a range of price points and features.

Additionally, MNT looks at some of the following:

  • Health claims: MNT includes companies that make no questionable health claims.
  • Trust: MNT includes companies that operate transparently regarding their products, services, and leadership. Also, those companies have certifications from reputable, third-party organizations where relevant.
  • Business standards: MNT will choose companies that follow safe and ethical business and marketing practices.
  • Reputation: MNT will choose companies with no warnings from governing bodies or unresolved lawsuits.

Here are some of the top apps available on Android and iOS that may help people track migraine symptoms and triggers.

Please note that the writer of this article has not tried these products. All information presented is purely research-based and correct at the time of publication.

Medical News Today follows a strict product selection and vetting process. Learn more here.

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Best for tracking features: Migraine Buddy

  • Price: free, with optional in-app purchases
  • Platforms: Android and iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.8 out of 5 stars
  • Reviews on Google Play: 4.8 out of 5 stars

Migraine Buddy is a migraine diary and tracking app that data scientists and neurologists designed.

The app allows people to record their migraine episode frequency and duration, pain location and intensity, symptoms including migraine aura, and medications. They can also identify their migraine triggers.

Users can log specific information — including the start and end times, type of episode, pain level, and the location of the pain — using an interactive head map. The data export is easy to share with a doctor.

The app also lets people record any symptoms they saw before the episode, any medication they take, the relief methods they use, and how migraine episodes affect their daily tasks.

People can also access a community of more than 2.3 million users who can share their personal insights, tips, and experiences with migraine.

Migraine Buddy offers a MBPlus subscription, which gives people access to:

  • 7-day weather forecast
  • advanced reports for weather, symptoms, and triggers
  • trigger suggestions
  • trigger and symptom predictions
  • coaching with a qualified nutritionist and migraine coach

The MBPlus subscription starts at $9.99 per month.

Pros and cons

Migraine Buddy offers many features for free, including basic tracking of episodes, triggers, and symptoms. Additionally, people can easily export the data to send to their healthcare team.

However, many features are only available if a person pays for a subscription. These include trigger and symptom predictions and reports that people may find helpful to share with their healthcare team.

Best for a free app: Migraine Monitor

  • Price: free
  • Platforms: Android and iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.3 out of 5 stars
  • Reviews on Google Play: no reviews

Migraine Monitor is a migraine tracking app that the National Headache Foundation (NHF) recommends. It also received good reviews from the Migraine Research Foundation and the Association of Migraine Disorders, among others.

This app allows people to track the duration and severity of their migraine episodes, as well as their symptoms. It also allows people to track their triggers. One of the ways it does this is by providing a weather forecast to track how weather changes affect migraine episodes.

The app allows people to easily share data with their doctor or with the app’s Headache Navigator tool.

Migraine Monitor also provides access to a community of others with the condition, allowing people to connect and share their experiences and tips.

Pros and cons

This app is completely free. While the developer earns money through adverts on the app, all tracking features are immediately available and not locked behind a paywall.

However, some reviewers state that it is missing some features, such as the ability to stop tracking a headache and recording symptom severity.

Best for doctor reports: N1-Headache

  • Price: free to download, with some in-app purchases
  • Platforms: Android and iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.4 out of 5 stars
  • Reviews on Google Play: 3.2 out of 5 stars

N1-Headache, formerly Curelator, provides an easy way to identify and manage migraine triggers. The NHF recommends this app on its website.

This app offers a daily diary and personal analytic reports to scientifically track migraine triggers. These include dietary, emotional, and environmental factors.

N1-Headache measures the impact of a variety of factors on the user and lets them test behavioral changes that might reduce the frequency or severity of their migraine episodes.

After the user tracks their data for 90 days, the app sends them an Individual Protector Map, an Individual Trigger Map, a Suspected Trigger Map, a No Association Map, and a Personal Analytical Report that they can share with a doctor.

People can opt for an in-app purchase which provides individual trigger tracking and more for $49.99.

Pros and cons

This app creates trigger maps for an easy-to-view summary and allows people to share 90-day reports with their healthcare team.

However, to access full functionality, a person will have to spend around $50 to unlock additional features.

Best for communities: Bezzy Migraine

  • Price: free
  • Platforms: Android and iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.8 out of 5 stars
  • Reviews on Google Play: no reviews

Bezzy is a community app that helps people find others who experience the same conditions. Bezzy is a product from Healthline, a sister site of Medical News Today.

Bezzy Migraine’s primary purpose is to connect people with similar migraine experiences and provide a safe place for sharing stories, experiences, and tips for coping with episodes.

The app makes it easy to have group discussions, follow threads, and talk one-on-one with other users.

People can join different groups depending on their individual needs and preferences, including migraine at school, mental health, social life and migraine, navigating healthcare, and alternative therapies.

Pros and cons

This app is completely free. It also offers people a way to connect with others who are experiencing similar symptoms and allows users to share tips and strategies.

However, this app does not offer any tracking or logging features.

Best for pain management: Branch Health

  • Price: free
  • Platforms: Android and iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.1 out of 5 stars
  • Reviews on Google Play: 1.5 out of 5 stars

Branch Health is a social platform that can help with pain management. The app’s creators designed it for people who experience chronic pain. It includes a specific community for people with migraine.

People can post updates to their Branch Health profile in a similar way to posting on Facebook or Twitter. Their posts may include data on the location of their pain, its intensity, and the latest treatments they have tried.

The community migraine feed has people sharing similar pain symptoms, and may even have some tips to reduce the pain.

Pros and cons

This app is completely free. It also offers tracking features and community support.

However, it does not offer predictive insights. Additionally, some reviewers on Android devices state the app does not always work correctly.

Best for simple trigger insight: Migraine Insight

  • Price: free, with in-app purchases
  • Platforms: Android and iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.4 out of 5 stars
  • Reviews on Google Play: 5 out of 5 stars

Migraine Insight is a straightforward tool that helps users track migraine and determine possible triggers. It allows people to look for combination triggers and patterns that correlate with migraine episodes.

It aims to make entry logging simple and easy by allowing users to customize what they want to track.

Like other apps, it visually charts migraine data to let users quickly see and share their data.

The developer offers Premium Access starting at $9.99. However, the developer does not state which features this purchase provides.

Pros and cons

This app automatically tracks workouts, sleep, location, and the weather. It also offers customizable triggers.

However, the developer does not clearly state what is included with a free download and which features people can unlock with in-app purchases.

Best for better sleep: White Noise Lite

  • Price: free
  • Platforms: Android and iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.8 out of 5 stars
  • Reviews on Google Play: 4.5 out of 5 stars

A lack of quality sleep is a potential trigger for migraine and other headaches. White Noise Lite aims to help users sleep better by providing a variety of calming sounds at bedtime.

The standard version of the app provides 50 ambient sounds out of the box, with other options to download additional sounds as necessary.

The app also provides a sleep clock and an alarm that gradually increases in volume to gently wake the user up.

The built-in sounds are of high quality, and people can also create mixes of the sounds they like. They can even record their own.

Pros and cons

This app may help improve sleep quality. Additionally, some reviewers state it may mask tinnitus.

However, some users state the app crashes on older Android devices.

Best for clinician-developed exercises: Juva Migraine and Headaches

  • Price: free to download, with mandatory in-app purchases starting from $20.99
  • Platforms: iOS
  • Reviews on the App Store: 4.7 out of 5 stars

Juva uses clinician-developed biofeedback sessions to help reduce symptoms of migraine and headaches.

The app shows people their vitals feedback in real-time and offers several exercises such as diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, visual imagery, body scan, and hypnotic suggestion.

The developers recommend using this app for 20 minutes, five times a week.

While Juva is free to download, people will need to pay for a subscription to use the app. Subscriptions start from $20.99 every 3 months, or people can purchase a one-off subscription for $249.99 which provides lifetime access.

Pros and cons

Juva uses exercises that clinicians develop. The developers state that these exercises are otherwise only available in clinical trials.

However, this app is costly and is only available on devices that have iOS 13 or higher, and on iPhone 8 or newer models.

The following table compares the migraine apps in this article.

PriceIn-app purchasesPlatformsiOS reviewsAndroid reviews
Migraine Buddyfreefrom $9.99Android and iOS4.8 out of 5 stars4.8 out of 5 stars
Migraine MonitorfreenoneAndroid and iOS4.3 out of 5 starsno reviews
N1-Headachefree$49.99Android and iOS4.4 out of 5 stars3.2 out of 5 stars
Bezzy MigrainefreenoneAndroid and iOS4.8 out of 5 starsno reviews
Branch HealthfreenoneAndroid and iOS4.1 out of 5 stars1.5 out of 5 stars
Migraine Insightfreefrom $9.99Android and iOS4.4 out of 5 stars5 out of 5 stars
White Noise LitefreenoneAndroid and iOS4.8 out of 5 stars4.5 out of 5 stars
Juva Migraine and Headachefreefrom $20.99iOS4.7 out of 5 starsno app available

People may wish to consider the following when choosing a migraine app:

  • Platform: Some apps may be platform-dependent and only available on iOS or Android, but not both.
  • Diary and tracking features: Some people may prefer to download an app that allows them to easily track triggers and note down their thoughts and feelings about symptoms.
  • Community features: Some people may prefer to use an app that connects them to others who experience migraine headaches.
  • Price: Most migraine apps are free and may offer optional in-app purchases. People may wish to download more than one to see which suits their needs.

Migraine episodes are different from tension headaches. While both cause pain and discomfort, migraine symptoms are usually more severe.

Tension headaches often cause mild-to-moderate steady pain on both sides of the head. The pain is usually distracting but does not severely impact daily life. Rarely, people may be sensitive to noise and light.

Migraine attacks, on the other hand, can cause mild-to-severe, intense throbbing, and pain on one or both sides of the head. This pain can severely impact daily life, and people will be more sensitive to noise and light.

Additionally, some people may experience nausea or vomiting with migraine. It is also possible people will see an aura before the headache starts.

A recent review found that the following are the most common migraine triggers:

  • stress
  • hormones
  • hunger
  • weather changes
  • sleep disturbance
  • fragrances
  • light
  • heat

Menstruation is also a common trigger. Migraine episodes are three times more frequent in those who menstruate than those who do not. Additionally, pregnancy, oral contraception, and menopause can all trigger migraine episodes.

Certain foods can also be a factor. These include alcohol, chocolate, and food with monosodium glutamate or sodium nitrate.

People should contact a healthcare professional if they experience any of the following:

  • several headaches per month that last several hours or days
  • headaches that disrupt daily life, work, or school
  • nausea, vomiting, numbness, or tingling with a headache
  • eye or ear pain
  • severe headaches with neck pain
  • headaches with feelings of confusion or loss of alertness
  • headaches with convulsions
  • headaches after a head injury
  • more headaches than usual

Here we answer some common questions about these apps.

What is the fastest way to get rid of a migraine episode?

Fast treatments include taking migraine medication, drinking lots of water, and resting in a quiet, dark place.

What causes migraine headaches?

There are many triggers that can lead to migraine headaches, such as stress, a lack of sleep, and certain foods.

Keeping a diary and taking note of any potential triggers may help people identify when a migraine episode is likely.

When should I use a migraine app?

People who often experience migraine episodes may want to explore a few migraine apps to help them identify triggers and patterns.

Other apps provide a community experience to connect people with others who also have this condition.

Migraine apps can help people track their symptoms, identify their triggers, manage their pain, and connect with other users with migraine.

For treatments for migraine prevention, such as Botox, many insurance companies will require a headache diary so that they know how many headache days per month the person experiences with and without treatment.

When using a migraine tracking app, the most important factors to keep track of, for both the user and their doctor, include:

  • all headache days, with ratings of mild, moderate, or severe
  • daily medications, and whether they are acute or preventive
  • associated symptoms, such as fatigue, drowsiness, photophobia, phonophobia, nausea, or vomiting
  • disability related to the headache, such as whether or not the user was unable to go to work
  • very specific possible triggers, such as foods, beverages, sleep deprivation, stress, or changes in the weather

Most migraine apps are free. People can try a few out and see which works best for them.