Written by Lidia Vijga
With a new year comes an opportunity for fresh starts and self-improvement goals. One popular New Year’s resolution is completing “Dry January” – abstaining from alcohol for the entire first month. Although self-discipline is essential, using some of the best sobriety apps can make the recovery journey more manageable and engaging.
That’s why, in this article, I want to share the alcohol tracking apps I’ve discovered that can truly help you take your results to the next level and assist you in sticking to better habits even after completing the Dry January challenge. My hope is that by letting the right app assist you with things like reminders and health insights, you’ll discover firsthand the Dry January benefits that taking a break from alcohol can create. Things like better sleep, glowing skin, balanced moods – you name it!
Then once February rolls around, you can decide if you feel healthier and happier with less drinking in your life.
So shall we take a look at a few of my top recommendations for apps to help make Dry January 2024 your most successful one yet?
Try Dry App: Dry January® & Beyond
Try Dry® is a free mobile app created by the UK charity Alcohol Change to help people take control of their drinking. As the official app of Dry January®, Try Dry® provides tools and support to help users cut back or quit drinking, whether for a set period like Dry January or on an ongoing basis.
Key Features
- Monitor Metrics – The app allows you to easily track metrics like money saved, calories avoided, and sober days to quantify your recovery progress.
- Personalized Goal-Setting – Try Dry enables you to set customized sobriety goals that fit your needs, whether short-term challenges or a long-term lifestyle change.
- Motivational Tools – Stay on track with celebratory badges earned for milestones, daily motivational messages, and progress charts to visualize achievements.
- Educational Resources – Take self-assessments on drinking behaviors and access free coaching content grounded in behavioral science and public health research.
- Hassle-Free Experience -As a free app from a non-profit, Try Dry contains no ads or fees – just an accessible, supportive platform for reducing drinking.
Why you should download Try Dry®
Try Dry® packs numerous useful features into an easy-to-use interface. You can track metrics like money saved, calories avoided, and days sober. The app sets personalized goals and sends daily motivation reminders to help users stay on track. Through the journey, users earn badges for milestones achieved. Try Dry® also provides free digital coaching content and risk assessment quizzes.
Reframe App: Drink Less & Thrive
Reframe is a popular mobile app focused on helping people reduce or quit drinking through evidence-based tools and a supportive community. Created in 2020, Reframe utilizes principles of neuroscience and psychology to change users’ relationship with alcohol.
This sober app aims to remove shame and stigma around alcohol struggles by framing misuse as a medical issue grounded in science. The app accommodates both moderation and abstinence goals, using personalized habit change strategies.
Key Features
- 160-day customized education program with daily reading lessons
- Progress tracking for drinks consumed and money/calories saved
- Private online community forums
- Additional resources like meditations, games, and videos
- Optional 1-on-1 coaching and group coaching calls
Why you should try Reframe app
Reframe’s education program spans 160 days and is backed by evidence. You can track your recovery progress, connect with other users from the private community, and access tools like meditations and games to help you change your relationship with alcohol with just a few clicks.
Breaking Free: The Award-Winning Recovery Program
Breaking Free Online is an evidence-based digital treatment designed to help individuals recover from substance abuse. It offers 24/7 access to evidence-based support strategies in a personalized, confidential and scalable way.
Since 2011, it has continually evolved and been used by community-based alcohol and drug services because it is proven to help service users overcome dependence on 75 different substances – including alcohol, New Psychoactive Substances (NPS), and prescribed medications of abuse.
Breaking Free provides a manualized approach to treatment that can serve as a means of intervention and change prior to treatment, during, or after the end of a program.
Key Features
Due to its inherent flexibility, Breaking Free Online is currently being used to:
- Reinforce Medication-Assisted Treatment Augment telehealth / virtual care provision
- Facilitate Computer-Assisted Therapy (CAT)
- Tailor intervention programs
- Support peer mentoring initiatives
- Strengthen continuing care approaches
Why you should try Breaking Free Companion App
Proven by extensive peer reviewed research to be effective in the holistic treatment of problem drug use, the Breaking Free program includes access to the Breaking Free companion app, outcomes dashboard, and implementation toolkit to provide care providers with individual and group data analytics. Breaking Free provides confidential, 24/7 access to behavioral support, behavioral change techniques, and content that also addresses often associated mental health difficulties like anxiety and depression.
Less App – Alcohol Tracker
Less is a free mobile app created to help people track and moderate their alcohol consumption through intuitive tracking features and motivational tools. Developed by the makers of the popular fasting app Zero, Less takes a science-based and non-judgmental approach to reducing drinking.
Key Features
- Set custom daily and weekly drink limits with guidance from built-in algorithms
- Easily log each drink consumed via the homescreen or discreet widgets
- Track key data like money spent, calories consumed, and consecutive alcohol-free days
- View elegant data visualizations of drinking patterns and streaks over time
- Access educational content on the latest research around alcohol and health
Why you should try Less App
Less provides an easy-to-use and non-judgmental platform to gain awareness of drinking behaviors and make informed moderation choices aligned with health goals. Its thoughtful design and motivational features are optimized for supporting long-term lifestyle changes.
Drinker’s Helper – Drink Less
Drinker’s Helper is a 100% anonymous mobile app created to help people reduce or quit drinking. It takes an integrated approach combining tracking tools, support network, and evidence-based exercises grounded in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and motivational enhancement therapy (MET).
Key Features
- Assessments to evaluate current drinking patterns
- Goal-setting for moderation or abstinence
- Drink tracking logs to monitor consumption
- Motivational tools like sobriety pledges
- 100+ CBT and MET exercises via chatbot
- Anonymous online support group
Why you should try Drinker’s Helper
Drinker’s Helper cites positive reviews and testimonials indicating the app has helped thousands reduce or quit drinking through its multifaceted approach. With this sobriety app you can change your drinking habits via tracking, anonymous support group, and interactive skills training.
Sunnyside App – Mindful Drinking
Sunnyside app is focused on helping people practice mindful drinking and moderation instead of complete sobriety. It utilizes science-backed habit change techniques to help users gradually reduce alcohol consumption.
This app takes a personalized, non-judgmental approach to setting reasonable drinking goals like scheduling alcohol-free days or reducing overall weekly intake. Users track drinks via the app and get daily motivation reminders and progress reports. Additional app features include community forums, coaching resources, and drinking risk assessments.
Key Features
- Drink tracking: Users can easily track drinks consumed via the app interface or text messages. The app provides reminders and feedback to help users stay within their preset drink limits.
- Personalized drink planning: Every Sunday, users receive a recommended drink plan for the upcoming week based on their goals. The plans are adjustable as needed.
- Motivational features: The app delivers daily education, tips, and encouragement focused on mindful drinking and moderation goals. Users also earn rewards for milestones achieved.
- Progress monitoring: Aside from tracking sober days, users can monitor metrics like money saved, calories cut, and sleep improvements resulting from reduced drinking.
- Coaching access: Real human coaches are available on-demand for personalized support and accountability. Users can text coaches anonymously at any time.
- Community engagement: App features like daily discussion prompts and friend referrals help users engage with the broader mindful drinking community for added motivation.
Why you should try Sunnyside
While formal clinical trials are still needed, Sunnyside reports internal data suggesting most users reduce drinking by nearly 30% within their first month. This indicates the app’s behavioral approach can effectively change engrained habits with sustained user motivation and accountability.
I Am Sober – Sobriety app for tracking and recovery
I Am Sober is a free mobile app focused on helping people maintain sobriety. It acts as an interactive sobriety tracker and also provides community support network.
This sobriety app offers a range of support features, including milestone tracking, daily pledges, and motivational messages to help users stay on track. Users can also set custom goals and track their progress towards achieving them.
Key Features
- Sobriety tracking: Users track sober days and time/money saved. Milestones earned for streaks.
- Motivation tools: Daily pledges, reasons to quit bank, custom goals and reminders.
- Withdrawal timelines: Users see expected withdrawal symptoms based on substance abuse and usage history.
- Community engagement: Users share stories, tips and progress photos. Support group accountability features.
Why you should try I Am Sober App
I think the main advantage of this app is the community aspect that fosters a friendly and compassionate environment. The app provides a welcoming and supportive community of people with shared experiences and goals around addiction recovery. And by leveraging peer connections, the app can help you sustain motivation during challenging times.
Benefits of reducing alcohol
For starters, cutting back is likely to improve your sleep quality and give you more energy. Alcohol may help you fall asleep faster initially, but it actually disrupts your sleep cycles later in the night. Less alcohol means better rest, so you’re apt to wake up feeling more refreshed and energetic throughout the day. With improved energy levels, you’ll probably feel more motivated to exercise and be productive.
In addition, decreasing alcohol intake can aid weight loss efforts. Cocktails and beers pack a surprising number of calories, so cutting back automatically reduces your calorie consumption. Also this research indicates that alcohol affects appetite signals in the brain, so you may find yourself less hungry and more satisfied when you don’t consume alcohol prior to a meal. Shedding extra pounds has widespread health benefits like reduced blood pressure and cholesterol.
Mentally, less alcohol clears up brain fog. Most people notice improvements in memory, concentration, and even mood when they cut back on drinking. One study found that reducing alcohol intake led participants to feel less anxiety and depression. Without regular alcohol use tamping down your neurotransmitters, your overall mental health is likely to improve.
Socially, drinking less alcohol means more money in your wallet from less spending on booze. You’ll also free up time previously spent drinking or recovering from hangovers. You can pour that time into new hobbies that enrich your life.
Simply put, less alcohol means a healthier mind and body all around.
Sobriety Apps – From Smart Recovery to Sober Journey
If taking on Dry January or pursuing long-term sobriety goals is part of your New Year’s resolutions, I hope this article highlighted helpful apps to give your commitment the greatest likelihood of success.
Because at the end of the day, achieving our biggest goals often hinges on consistent small actions. And that’s what the best sobriety apps provide – little daily doses of motivation when our own wavers thin. So let one support your aim to create healthier habits and help you take small steps that lead to big transformations.
FAQs
Sobriety apps provide ongoing motivation and accountability to help you achieve and maintain your alcohol addiction recovery goals. App features like sobriety trackers and community support help users stay committed to positive lifestyle changes.
Some of the apps offer tools like withdrawal timeline, daily motivational messages, sober community, and tracking logs to empower users through every step of the recovery process. Sobriety apps sustain motivation while also teaching coping strategies.
I Am Sober app stands out for its interactive features like daily pledges, inspiration banks, and personal stories form the recovery community. These gamified elements make staying alcohol-free rewarding. The app also tracks money and time saved with recovery calculator.
Reframe sober app utilizes principles of neuroscience and habit change psychology to help users change thought patterns around alcohol. Its customized plans accommodate both moderation and abstinence goals.
Sunnyside focuses on self-awareness and planning through drink tracking, weekly goal setting and sobriety milestones. One-on-one coaching and community features further support users in developing healthier drinking habits.
Why should people use the Try Dry app for completing Dry January?
Try Dry offers tailored tools for effectively completing Dry January like goal setting, drink planning features and in-app celebrations for milestones achieved. These help the alcohol-free recovery journey feel rewarding.
