Inflow vs BALAY: a programme or a daily planner
Inflow suits adults with ADHD who want to learn and practise strategies, through a programme rooted in the principles of CBT, with an AI companion, a community and coaching on some plans. BALAY, a daily companion for adults with ADHD on iPhone and Android, suits people who want help with the day in front of them, planned around the energy they actually have.
How do Inflow and BALAY compare?
| Inflow | BALAY | |
|---|---|---|
| What it plans around | A CBT-based programme of daily lessons and exercises | The energy you check in with, in five states |
| Platforms | iPhone and Android | iPhone (iOS 17 and later) and Android (8.0 and later) |
| Free tier | A 7-day free trial. Free memberships on low incomes | Free, which isn't a trial and doesn't expire. Up to two tasks at a time |
| AI or companion feature | Quinn, an AI companion, with task breakdown | Sumi, an AI companion, not a clinician. One conversation on Free |
| Wearable or Apple Health | None mentioned in its FAQ or App Store listing | Apple Health on iPhone: reads context, writes cycle data. Health Connect on Android (coming) |
| Research or clinical page | A peer-reviewed usability study (PLOS Digital Health, 2022) | Sources for each finding, and what BALAY does not claim |
| Price model | Monthly or yearly subscription. Coaching on some tiers | Free, Plus at £7.99 or Ultimate at £14.99 a month, or yearly |
| Where it is made | Founded in London in 2020 | UK. Data stored in the EU |
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What is the difference between Inflow and BALAY?
Inflow is a programme first. It was created by ADHD clinicians and psychologists, and it sets out to help you manage focus, procrastination and follow-through. Daily learning modules and interactive exercises teach the strategies, and Quinn, its AI companion, helps you apply what you're learning to real-life situations and can break a task down. There are live and on-demand focus rooms for body doubling, a community space, and coaching on some tiers.
BALAY is a planner first, and it does not teach a course. You check in with how you are, in one of five states, and the list reorders so the tasks you can start today are at the top. The daily score only rises through the day. On a flat day, resting counts. On Plus and Ultimate, Sumi can break a task into steps and talk through a day that went sideways.
What if I already use Inflow?
If you are working through Inflow's programme and it is helping, keep going. Learning strategies and planning a day are different jobs, and BALAY does not replace the first.
Where BALAY may help is the part after the lesson: the morning when you know the strategy and still cannot start, because the energy is not there. BALAY plans with the energy you have that day rather than the energy a plan assumes, and a partial day reads as wins banked rather than a target missed.
Can I use both?
You can, and they overlap less than it looks. Inflow teaches; BALAY plans the day. Both have an AI companion, Quinn and Sumi, so you would have two conversations to keep up, and you may want to pick one for that. BALAY's Free plan includes a single Sumi conversation, so Inflow for learning and coaching alongside BALAY Free for check-ins and a short task list is one way to try both without doubling up.
What does Inflow do that BALAY does not?
Inflow teaches, and BALAY has no lessons, modules or coaching: Sumi is a companion to talk things through with, not a course. Inflow has a community and live focus rooms; BALAY has nothing social in it. Inflow has a peer-reviewed usability and feasibility study of its own app, published in PLOS Digital Health in 2022. BALAY has no published study of the app itself, and its research page cites the work its design draws on rather than trials of BALAY.
Is either one medical treatment?
Neither says it is. Inflow states that it is not a diagnostic tool and does not offer clinical services or medical treatment. BALAY is a wellness app, not a medical one. It doesn't diagnose, treat, or measure any condition, and Sumi is an AI companion, not a clinician. If something you're dealing with needs professional help, please speak to your GP or specialist.
Who each is for
- Inflow is for people who want to learn strategies through a structured programme, with coaching and a community around it.
- BALAY is for people who want a planner that starts from the energy they have today, with no course to keep up with.
Common questions
For some people. Inflow is a programme that teaches strategies, rooted in the principles of CBT; BALAY is a daily planner that works from your energy. If what you want is lessons and coaching, BALAY is not a like-for-like swap.
Neither is therapy. Inflow says it is not a diagnostic tool and does not offer clinical services or medical treatment. BALAY is a wellness app, not a medical one, and Sumi is an AI companion, not a clinician.
BALAY has a Free plan that isn't a trial and doesn't expire. Inflow has a 7-day free trial before a monthly or yearly subscription, and says it offers student discounts and free memberships for people on low incomes.
Inflow has: a peer-reviewed usability and feasibility study of the app was published in PLOS Digital Health in 2022. BALAY has no published study of the app itself. Its research page sets out the published findings its design draws on, with sources, and the claims it does not make.
BALAY is a wellness app, not a medical one. Wellness insight, not medical advice. Check with a professional for anything health-related.