Today, Iâm thankful for living in the digital age: a time where we can order larger-than-life cookies at 1 a.m. and folks across the world can track their menstrual cycles through period tracking apps. As technology continues to develop and become our way of living and communicating, itâs also given us the opportunity to illuminate topics of conversation that, for most of history, have been a âyouâll figure it out as you go through itâ type of deal. The menstrual cycle is a perfect example of that: something women gathered their information from by just simply going through it and leaning on each other for support, advice, and questions. Now, Gen Z says “no more.”
Social media and digital apps have completely changed the game when it comes to womenâs health; more specifically, how we talk about it and the way we view our own personal health journeys. There are apps dedicated to everything you can think of: weight management, mental health, blood sugar tracking, medication management, and even period tracking â the modern way of staying in the know about your menstrual cycle, right at your fingertips.
If youâve never dabbled in a period tracking app, donât worry, you arenât alone. About 50 million women globally use an app to track their menstrual cycles â meaning less than 2% of women today are actually taking advantage of these apps. Luckily for Gen Z and our deep TikTok ties, there are a plethora of viral period tracking apps that users are talking about worldwide that we can learn all about in under a minute. Â
Donât have the time to try a variety of cycle tracking apps? No worries â I tried five TikTok viral period tracking apps to find out which is the best for the modern menstruator.
- Flo
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Flo is a classic period tracking app that I knew I had to include. Iâve heard mixed reviews about the app, specifically concerning their random notifications about discharge and your libido that can (and will) hit your phone at any time, anywhere. (There are some really funny TikToks about this phenomenon, actually.)Â
A few things I noticed upon signing up are the fact that a.) you need to give the app access to your Apple Health data, b.) a significant amount of information provided in the app revolves around sex and masturbation, and c.) half of the content in the âonboardingâ section (when you input the information about your last period, whether or not youâre on birth control, how regular your periods are, etc) was dedicated to promoting Floâs different premium features, instead of just educating the user. This was a bit of a turn-off for me; it just felt like the app was more interested in getting me to pay for its premium version than providing useful information about my cycle.
I will say, there were some interesting features I noticed about Flo: a built-in PCOS self-assessment, daily insights about your chance of pregnancy, as well as symptoms to expect every day during each phase of your cycle â which is super helpful!
- Lively
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If youâre looking for a simple, no-frills period tracking app, Lively is for you! The design of the app is simple and easy to navigate; no overload of information or an overwhelming amount of questions and information. Not to mention, if youâre a minimalist girly, you might just love Livelyâs aesthetic; earth tones (cream, green, brown, rust) and Gen Zâs favorite font styles. (Can you tell Iâm a graphic design nerd?)
The app gives you what they call âLively Tipsâ that you can use during each phase of your menstrual cycle for both your mental and physical health. For instance, Iâm at the end of my ovulation phase, so some of Livelyâs tips are to eat more tomatoes and black beans, do reformer pilates, use a gentle facial cleanser, spend a playful day outside, take zinc, exfoliate with AHAs, and a bunch more.
Lively is lower on my ranking for the sole reason that you have to pay for a lot of the information; half of the Lively Tips are blurred out, as well as information about your hormone levels and exercises that would benefit you during the specific phase youâre in, unless you purchase the premium version.
- FEMM
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FEMM, one of the lesser-known apps of all of these, is a menstrual cycle tracking app that I found to be personal and friendly. The information you can input and take note of varies significantly, which is great since symptoms during your different phases can do the same thing. When you first sign up, FEMM gives you three options to choose from as your goal: achieving pregnancy, tracking your health, or avoiding pregnancy. The different kinds of data you can keep tabs on include your discharge, intercourse, body temperature, physical symptoms, emotional state, medications taken, and much more.Â
The first time you use the app, it gives you a walk-through and shows you exactly how to use it to your advantage. You can analyze your cycles daily, weekly, or monthly â allowing you to compare them to your past cycles and notice patterns. One of the tabs on the app is dedicated to contacting the FEMM team if you need them, or if you want to learn more about the company by taking classes, viewing different topics, and reading their blog.
- Stardust
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I found Stardust to be a very creative and spiritual app; two things that I pride myself on being, so I was really attracted to it from the get-go. Instead of a normal calendar on the homepage showing your phases like most period tracking apps, there are moon phases, and you can click on each day to see which phase the moon was/is in. Youâre also able to track your hormones specifically â like your estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, etc. which isnât really something I saw on the other apps.Â
With Stardust, you can also add your friendsâ cycles and share your own, which I think is a really beneficial feature. The app gives you a âCycle Typeâ after you input your information about your periods and different phases, and I got âRed Moon Witch,â meaning I menstruate when the moon is full. (Kinda cool, right?!)
- Aavia
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This period tracking app has taken over TikTok by storm, and I can see why! The appâs interface is very modern and Gen Z-friendly, with a sleek design, eye-catching colors, and an easy, simple font. During the sign-up process, Aavia asks you a bunch of questions about yourself and immediately tells you exactly which phase youâre in after you log your last period. Before you are able to input any information and log any symptoms, Aavia prompts you to set a goal for the app, followed by a personalized plan. My plan is to detect patterns and insights from my logs and learn how my cycle affects me.
 Thereâs also a âHormonoscopeâ section that gives you things to âtryâ or leave alone (they call it âByeâ) during your phases, along with your forecast and recommendations; if youâre a Co-Star user such as myself, Aaviaâs content and design will remind you a lot of that app! Another favorite feature of mine is the community tab â a space where users from across the world can ask for feedback or share their experiences, connecting women and period-havers globally right there in the app. There are also hashtags acting as subcategories you can go through for specific topics throughout the community, such as #CyclePlanning, #NoBabies4Me, #Sex&Love, #MentalHealth, #PCOS, and so much more.
No matter what period tracking app you use, make sure it works best for your personal goals and needs. Some apps are more dedicated to tracking ovulation or helping women get pregnant; others have the goal of informing their users and allowing them to decide how they want to use it. Whichever journey youâre on, find an app that weaves your best interest throughout its design and content, giving you the prime opportunity to maximize the benefits of your menstrual cycle.