Every answer, part 74 of 145
Answers 1,461 to 1,480 of 2,899: Soma Labs' own answers about Soma, drafted from the pages of this site. Free to use under CC BY 4.0.
The Soma app
Is the Mind score in the Soma app a measure of my mood?
Not exactly. Mind gives one score for your nervous system, reading HRV, resting heart rate and breathing against your own usual range. Mood is something you can log yourself in the app, and Soma sets stress and recovery next to how you say you feel. These readings are for general wellness.
From Home, Privacy Policy and FAQ.
Is the Soma app's Body view a medical report?
No. Body turns your weekly Soma Axon visits into a handful of facts, in plain words and with a margin of error on each value, and it says how sure Soma is of each answer. Soma is a general wellness product and isn't medical care, and using it doesn't create a clinician-patient relationship. For anything about your health, talk to a qualified clinician.
From Home, FAQ and Terms of Use.
Is there a web version of the Soma app?
Soma's pages describe an iPhone app. The Soma app runs on iPhone and reads Apple Health between visits, which is why it needs an iPhone. The pages don't mention a web or desktop version. The website at somalabs.me holds the waitlist. Soma is meant for general wellness.
From Blog, FAQ and Privacy Policy.
What is Soma Labs building besides the app?
Soma Axon, a closed pod you step into once a week for a whole-body scan. At each visit it takes photos of your skin, and its sensors read heart and breathing, body composition, balance and strength the same way every time. The Soma app carries the days in between. Soma Labs Inc. of Palo Alto, California, is building the first prototype now. There's a waitlist, and Soma is a general wellness product.
Does the Soma app show my HRV and resting heart rate?
Yes, in the Mind view. It reads your HRV, resting heart rate and breathing against your own usual range and rolls them into one score for your nervous system. Tap the score and you'll see which of them moved it. A watch is optional, and wearing one gives the Soma app more detail about your days between visits. Soma's scores are general wellness estimates, and they can be wrong.
From Home, FAQ and Terms of Use.
Does the Soma app keep a history of my visits?
Yes, in two senses. The Body view reads the trend across all your Soma Axon visits, and optional history sync uploads a compressed copy of your raw Apple Health record once, which Soma's engines turn into long-term trends. Synced data stays while your account is open, and you can ask Soma to delete it at any time. Soma is a general wellness product.
From Home, Privacy Policy and FAQ.
How does a smart ring app's HRV compare with the Soma app's Mind view?
The rings Soma compared read HRV from your finger, one of them at night and the other around the clock. Both turn it into scores. The Soma app's Mind view reads HRV with resting heart rate and breathing against your own usual range, and tapping its score shows which one moved it next to the day's stress peaks and last night's sleep. If your ring writes HRV to Apple Health, the Soma app can read it once you allow that type. Soma is a general wellness product.
From Blog, Compare, Home, Privacy Policy and FAQ.
How does a clinic scan's hour compare with Soma's few minutes?
About an hour, in the clinic scan Soma compared: roughly 30 minutes of measurements, then 30 with a clinician who goes through every result before you leave, as of September 26, 2026. A Soma Axon visit is meant to take about as long as getting a coffee: a few minutes standing still, a short recovery part, then one calm number on your way out and the details in the Soma app. Soma is general wellness and isn't medical care.
How does a clinic scan's dermatologist review compare with Soma's skin photos?
In the clinic scan Soma compared, dermatologists review your moles after the scan. Soma Axon is being built to photograph your skin at every visit, so you have dated photos to look back on and to show a clinician if you choose, but Soma won't say whether a mole is harmful. Staff never see the photos. Soma is a general wellness product and isn't medical care.
How does a fitness band's yearly membership compare with Soma's pricing?
As of September 26, 2026, the band Soma compared is sold as a yearly membership with the device included, at $199, $239 or $359 depending on the plan. Soma hasn't published a price. It says Soma will be priced like a weekly habit, with prices shared before the first pod opens. The Soma app is free during the beta. Soma keeps to general wellness and isn't medical care.
From Compare, FAQ and Terms of Use.
How does a clinic scan's medical care compare with Soma's general wellness?
Soma's comparison describes the clinic scan it covers as a medical check-up, with licensed clinicians, a certified lab on site and referrals. Soma is a general wellness product and isn't a medical device, and using it doesn't create a clinician-patient relationship. Soma doesn't see Soma Axon replacing a thorough check-up, and the two can sit side by side: a check-up when you and your clinician decide, and a weekly read in between.
From Compare, FAQ, Terms of Use and Blog.
Is a clinic scan or Soma Axon suitable during pregnancy?
According to sources Soma read on September 26, 2026, the clinic scan it compared says its scan is considered safe during pregnancy. The first version of Soma Axon isn't for anyone who's pregnant, and it also isn't for anyone under 18 or with a pacemaker, an implanted defibrillator or another implanted electronic device. If you're unsure, Soma says to ask your doctor before a first visit. Soma is a general wellness product.
Can I use HSA or FSA money for Soma like some wearables?
Soma hasn't said, since it hasn't published a price yet. Soma's comparisons note that the ring, band and smart scale it covers are HSA and FSA eligible or accept those cards, and so does the clinic scan it compares, as of September 26, 2026. Soma says it'll be priced like a weekly habit, with prices shared first with the waitlist before the first pod opens. The Soma app is part of a general wellness product.
How does a watch's all-day heart rate compare with Soma's weekly heart read?
The watch Soma compared takes your heart rate every five seconds, and one ring takes it for a full minute every five minutes while you're still. Soma Axon is being built for a different job: its cameras read pulse and breathing without touching you once a week in the same closed cabin, so that if your resting pulse is higher than last week, Soma can say the change came from you. The Soma app shows both kinds of reading. Soma isn't a medical device, and it isn't medical care.
From Blog, Compare, Home, The same instrument, every week and FAQ.
Is a daily wearable or a weekly pod better if I want feedback every day?
For daily feedback, a wearable or a smart scale fits: the band Soma compared is built around a daily read on recovery and strain, and a scale can be stepped on every morning in 30 seconds. Soma Axon is a weekly read instead, and the Soma app's Today view covers the days in between with three scores and one next move from your phone and watch. Soma is meant for general wellness, and it isn't available yet.
How does a smart ring compare with a weekly pod if I don't like wearing things?
Soma's comparisons describe smart rings that are worn day and night and need charging. With Soma, a watch is optional: once a week you stand in a closed pod with nothing strapped to you, and the pod has nothing to charge. The Soma app on your iPhone carries the rest. Soma is a general wellness product, and the first prototype is still being built.
How the numbers work
Why do my body readings change so much from one day to the next?
Most body numbers depend on the hour, the room and the device as well as on you. Change any of those and two readings stop being comparable, which makes a real change hard to tell from noise. Soma Axon is being built to rule the room and the equipment out: the pod, its lighting and its camera angles stay the same between visits, so what moves from week to week is you. Soma is a general wellness product. It can't be tried yet, and there's a waitlist for the first pod.
From The same instrument, every week, About, Home and FAQ.
How can I tell if a change in my body is real or just noise?
A single reading can't tell you much. Readings taken the same way every week show what's changing and how fast, as long as the setting holds still. Soma Axon keeps its pod, lighting and camera angles fixed between visits for that reason: if your resting pulse is higher than last week, Soma wants to be able to say the change came from you and rule out the room or the equipment. It's a general wellness product, and it isn't available yet. The first prototype is being built, and the waitlist hears first.
From FAQ, Home, The same instrument, every week and Compare.
How can I trust a body number that moves from week to week?
Soma's approach is to keep everything but you the same. Soma Axon is designed as the same instrument every week, with the same light at every visit, so when a number moves, Soma says it's because something changed in you. Its pod, lighting and camera angles don't change between visits. Each number still arrives with its margin of error, and Soma says a single reading means less than a trend. It's general wellness and isn't cleared or approved by the FDA. The first prototype is being built, and there's a waitlist.
What are the six promises behind every number Soma shows?
Soma lists six promises that hold in the pod and in the app. Your data stays yours, and every number comes with its margin of error. Nothing gets filled in: a reading that wasn't taken stays blank. Everything is measured the same way every time. Every score shows what moved it, against your own usual range. And Soma is a general wellness product that isn't intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.