Gluvy
Very few face yoga apps are fully free. Most are free to download, then put their full programs behind a subscription, sometimes with a free trial or a few sample sessions first. Our top pick is Gluvy: you can download it, take the face scan and browse the courses for free, and when you want structure, Gluvy Pro gives you 229 follow-along face yoga videos, about 34 gua sha and massage courses, skincare lessons and relaxation sessions for $49.99 a year. If you want face yoga that stays free, free videos and written routines are the reliable route, and the exercises themselves are the same.
This page was written by the Gluvy team, and Gluvy is one of the apps mentioned. We say clearly below what Gluvy gives you for free and what it doesn’t. We did not run hands-on tests of other apps; competitor details come from their public App Store listings as of October 2026.
The short answer
You have three realistic ways to start face yoga without paying:
- Use the free part of an app. Gluvy, for example, lets you download it, take the on-device face scan and browse all the courses before you subscribe. Other apps offer a look around, a free trial or a few free sessions. After that, you pay or stop.
- Follow free videos. Plenty of face yoga teachers post free routines online. You get real instruction, but you build your own plan.
- Learn a short routine and do it on your own. A five-minute routine done most days costs nothing.
None of these is wrong; it comes down to how much structure you need. When you’re ready for a guided plan, Gluvy is our top recommendation, for the reasons below. For the full comparison of paid apps, our guide to the best face yoga apps covers six of them in detail. This page sticks to one thing: what’s free.
Free vs free trial vs freemium
“Free” in an app store means different things, and the difference decides whether you’ll be charged. Here’s how the terms usually work:
- Free to download. You pay nothing to install the app. That says nothing about what you can use once it’s open. Most face yoga apps are in this group.
- Freemium. Part of the app is free for as long as you like, and the rest needs a subscription. The free part might be a few exercises, one area of the face or a basic routine.
- Free trial. You get the full app for a set number of days, then a paid subscription starts automatically unless you cancel.
- Fully free. Everything is free, often supported by ads. In face yoga, this is rare among apps and common among videos.
How App Store trials renew
A free trial on iPhone is the first stretch of an auto-renewing subscription. When the trial ends, the subscription renews at the price you agreed to, and your card is charged. Apple’s support page on cancelling subscriptions advises cancelling a free or discounted trial at least 24 hours before it ends if you don’t want it to renew.
How to cancel on iPhone
- Open Settings and tap your name.
- Tap Subscriptions.
- Choose the app and tap Cancel Subscription.
If there’s no Cancel button, or you see an expiry date in red, the subscription is already cancelled. Deleting the app does not cancel a subscription. And if you subscribed on an app’s website rather than in the App Store, you cancel with that company, not in your iPhone settings; our guide to Luvly alternatives explains how that works for one well-known app. Gluvy keeps it simple: billing runs only through the App Store, so you always manage it in one place.
Tip: when you start a trial, set a reminder for two days before it ends.
What’s free in each face yoga app
Every app below is free to download; none of the listings we checked offers its full program for free. Gluvy comes first as our top pick. The table shows what each US App Store listing says about free access and paid plans, as of October 2026. Listings change often, so treat this as a snapshot and check the in-app store screen before you subscribe.
| App | What the listing says is free | Trial length | Price after (US, as listed) | Platform confirmed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gluvy (top pick) | Free download; on-device face scan and browsing the courses | Not stated; check the app | Pro $7.99/week or $49.99/year | iPhone only |
| Luvly | Free download with in-app purchases | Check listing | Check listing | iPhone (check Google Play for Android) |
| FaceYogi | Free download with in-app purchases | Check listing | $9.99/week or $49.99/quarter | iPhone (check Google Play for Android) |
| Face Yoga Method | Free download with in-app purchases | Check listing | Check listing | iPhone (check Google Play for Android) |
| Koko Face Yoga | “Free to try” | Check listing | $9.99/month or $99.99/year | iPhone (check Google Play for Android) |
| Mimika | Free download with in-app purchases | Check listing | Check listing | iPhone (check Google Play for Android) |
“Check listing” means we couldn’t confirm the detail from the listing; it doesn’t mean the app has no trial or no price. Gluvy’s prices come from our own pricing page.
A few practical points from the table:
- Gluvy’s yearly price is lower than the yearly totals we could confirm. Gluvy Pro is $49.99 a year. Koko Face Yoga lists $99.99 a year, and FaceYogi’s $49.99 per quarter comes to about $200 over a year.
- “Free to try” is not “free”. Koko Face Yoga’s listing uses that phrase, and it still shows monthly and yearly plans. Expect to pay to keep going.
- Weekly prices add up. A weekly plan is easy to start and costs far more over a year than a yearly plan. If you plan to practise for months, compare yearly totals.
- Prices differ by country. Your local App Store may show something else.
Our top pick: what Gluvy gives you free and with Pro
Gluvy is free to download, but it is not a free app: the guided courses are part of Gluvy Pro. What makes it our top pick is how much sits in one app for one simple price. Here’s exactly what you get at each level.
Free, without subscribing:
- Downloading the app on iPhone.
- Taking the on-device AI face scan, a starting-point analysis that suggests focus areas. It’s not a diagnosis.
- Browsing the courses, so you can see what’s in the library before you decide.
With Gluvy Pro:
- 229 guided face yoga video exercises across 8 face areas, each a follow-along video with a countdown timer on every step, so you never count holds in your head.
- 3-week plans of 5–10 minutes a day, with morning and night routines and daily reminders.
- About 34 gua sha and facial-massage video courses, alongside face yoga in the same app.
- Skincare lessons and article courses, plus guided breathing, body scan, sleep and stress-relief sessions.
- A progress journal with selfies, so you can see how your routine feels and looks over time.
Price (US, as of October 2026, from our pricing page): Gluvy Pro costs $7.99 a week or $49.99 a year. New users may see a one-time yearly offer of $39.99 in the app. Billing runs through the App Store, and you cancel in iPhone Settings › your name › Subscriptions.
Gluvy is iPhone only, with no Android or web version. More answers about plans and billing are in the Gluvy FAQ.
Other options
If you’re on Android, check Google Play for Luvly, FaceYogi, Face Yoga Method, Koko Face Yoga or Mimika; their App Store listings are linked in the table above. The free routines below work on any device.
Genuinely free ways to start
You can do a complete, sensible face yoga routine for free; what you’ll miss is the structure, not the exercises. Here are the options that cost nothing.
Learn a short routine from a guide
Our 5-minute face yoga routine for beginners walks through eight moves from forehead to neck, with a suggested time for each. It uses the same moves and timings as the Gluvy app, and needs no app, no equipment and no account. If you want to understand the basics first, start with our face yoga guide.
Focus on one area
Once a full-face routine feels easy, free guides that go area by area are a good next step:
- Jawline exercises with form cues and an honest look at what they can change.
- Face yoga for jowls and exercises for smile lines, both clear about the limits.
- More in our face exercises guides.
Use a gua sha stone you already own
If you have a gua sha stone in a drawer, our gua sha routine covers the angle, pressure and order, step by step. For mornings when your face feels puffy, our guides on how to debloat your face and lymphatic drainage face massage are free too. The gua sha guide has the basics.
Follow free videos
Many teachers share free face yoga videos online. To get the most from them:
- Choose teachers who explain form. A good video tells you where to feel a move, what to keep relaxed and when to stop.
- Skip the big promises. Be wary of titles that promise dramatic changes or results by a certain date. Research doesn’t support that.
- Stick to one routine. Repeat one or two short routines for a couple of weeks rather than hopping between channels. (More on this trade-off in face yoga on YouTube vs an app.)
- Time it yourself. Use your phone’s timer for holds, and set a daily alarm so the habit has a fixed slot.
A free three-move starter
If you want to try face yoga right now, these three moves from the beginner routine take about two minutes:
- Forehead smooth down (about 30 seconds). Place both hands on your forehead and smooth downward over your brows in slow, gentle strokes.
- O-shape pump (about 40 seconds). Make an O shape with your mouth and slowly move your jaw up and down, keeping your forehead relaxed.
- Sky smile (about 30 seconds). Tilt your head back only as far as is comfortable, look up and smile wide, then relax and repeat.
Keep the pressure light and stop any move that hurts. If you have jaw (TMJ) problems, a neck condition, or recent facial surgery or injections, check with a doctor first. The full version, with five more moves, is in our face yoga for beginners routine.
When paying for an app is worth it
Paying is worth it when structure is what keeps you practising, and free content is enough when it isn’t. The exercises in a paid app are not secret; what you pay for is the support around them, and this is where Gluvy is built to help:
- A plan. Gluvy’s 3-week plans tell you what to do today, so you don’t spend five minutes deciding what to do for five minutes.
- Timers and pacing. A countdown timer on every step means you don’t count in your head or rush the holds.
- Video for form. Every Gluvy exercise is a follow-along video, so you see the move done slowly and avoid scrunching muscles you don’t mean to use.
- Reminders. A nudge at the same time each day makes the habit easier to keep.
- Progress. A journal with selfies makes it easier to notice how your routine feels over time.
Paying is probably not worth it if you already practise most days with free videos, if you only want a few moves for relaxation, or if you’re not sure face yoga is for you yet. Try a free routine for a few weeks first; if you keep skipping it, structure may be what’s missing.
Whatever you choose, keep expectations realistic. The study most often cited is a small 2018 pilot in JAMA Dermatology (Alam et al., 2018): 27 women aged 40 to 65 enrolled, 16 completed 20 weeks of facial exercises, and dermatologists rating photos saw improved upper and lower cheek fullness. There was no control group, and larger controlled studies are needed. Our article on whether face yoga works goes through the evidence. Neither a free routine nor a paid app can promise a specific change to your face.
Try face yoga with Gluvy
If you like face yoga and want more structure, Gluvy turns it into short, timed follow-along sessions, with gua sha, skincare and relaxation built into the same app. Download it, take the face scan and browse the courses, then decide whether Pro is worth it for you. See all of Gluvy’s features or download Gluvy for iPhone. And if you’d rather keep it free for now, the face yoga for beginners routine is a good place to start today.
Sources
- Apple Support, Cancel a subscription from Apple, checked October 2026
- App Store listings for Luvly, FaceYogi, Face Yoga Method, Koko Face Yoga and Mimika, checked October 2026
- Alam M, et al. “Association of Facial Exercise With the Appearance of Aging.” JAMA Dermatology, 2018. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2017.5142
Frequently asked questions
Is there a completely free face yoga app?
Most face yoga apps, Gluvy included, are free to download, with their full programs behind a subscription. Gluvy lets you take the on-device face scan and browse the courses for free before you decide. Free content and trial terms change often, so check the in-app store screen before you sign up. If you want something that stays free, free videos and written routines are the more reliable option.
How do I avoid being charged after a free trial?
On iPhone, Apple advises cancelling a free or discounted trial at least 24 hours before it ends if you don't want it to renew. Go to Settings, tap your name, tap Subscriptions, choose the app and tap Cancel Subscription. Deleting the app does not cancel the subscription, and it helps to set a calendar reminder on the day you start the trial.
Is free face yoga on YouTube enough?
It can be, especially if you are self-motivated and only want a few moves a day. What you give up is structure: you have to choose the videos, build a plan, time your holds and remember to come back. Pick teachers who explain form and safety and who don't promise guaranteed or fast results.
Is Gluvy free?
Gluvy is free to download, and you can take the on-device face scan and browse the courses before you decide to subscribe. The guided courses themselves are unlocked with Gluvy Pro, which costs $7.99 a week or $49.99 a year in the US as of October 2026. So Gluvy is not a free app beyond that first look, and the free routines on our website are the fully free option.
Are free face yoga exercises as good as paid ones?
The moves themselves are much the same. A jaw press or forehead smoothing stroke works the same way whether you learned it from a free video or a paid app. What you pay for in an app like Gluvy is guidance: follow-along video, a timer on every step, a daily plan and reminders, not secret exercises.
Practise this with Gluvy. Follow-along videos with a timer for every step. See everything in the Gluvy app.
Download on theApp Store
The team that builds Gluvy writes these guides from the app's own face yoga, gua sha and skincare courses. We are not doctors or dermatologists: articles are general wellness information, and we link to the research where it exists.
This article is general wellness information, not medical advice. Talk to a doctor or dermatologist if you have a skin, jaw or other medical condition.
