10 baby heartbeat apps to download for 2019

A baby's heart rate is much faster than adults.  Pregnant women love to hear the baby's heartbeat in utero as they find it very calming and reassuring that the baby is growing.  Usually the first time a couple hears their baby's heartbeat is in the OB/GYN's office.  The doctor uses specialized equipment, a doppler, to find the baby's heartbeat.  The ultrasound allows you to heart the baby's heartbeat very clearly, but you do not normally hear the heartbeat until 10-12 weeks of gestation.

Many pregnant couples are anxious about the arrival of their bundle of joy.  They cannot wait for their next doctor appointment to hear the soothing beats of their baby's heart.  Guess what? There's an app for that!  Seriously, there are a lot of baby heartbeat apps out there from which to choose.  

The quality of heartbeat captured at home depends upon the number of gestation weeks, the position of the baby in the abdomen and the quality of the phone or tablet's microphone.  30 weeks of gestation is the ideal number to be able to pick up a baby's heartbeat because the heart rate is strong at this point. 

If the baby if facing the wrong way, you may not be able to hear a heartbeat at all, so do not panic that anything is wrong.  You will have to try again when the baby has shifted positions.  You must try the recording when you are in a completely silent room.  If there are noises outside, or a dog barking, it will impact the apps ability to pick up a heartbeat.

 

Always use your phone in the airplane mode when you are using it to record your baby's heartbeat.  You want to minimize the possibility of exposing the baby to harmful cellular waves from the phone or tablet you are using.

How do you know which app is best for you?  There are many free apps that I would recommend trying first as these might work and you won't have to spend any money.  If you are not getting the results that you want, then try some of the paid apps to see if they work out better for you. 

Remember, the heartbeat you hear at your doctor's appointments will be louder than the quality you can achieve at home.  This is normal and you shouldn't expect medical type results from the apps you can use at home.  Browse through some of these free and paid baby heartbeat monitor apps for home use.

The Fetalbeats app is free, but it can only be used with the manufacturer's Fetalbeats heart monitoring kit which costs around $79.99.  The kit comes with a fetal doppler, which is the equipment used to monitor the baby's heartbeats, headphones, ultrasound gel, an audio converter, a 3.5mm cable connector and a carrying case for all of the equipment.  The Fetalbeats monitoring system is FDA approved and CE certified.

The Fetalbeats app is available for iOS devices.  The app allows the user to share the heartbeats among all social media platforms.  You can easily name each file with a recognizable title that you choose so you can keep track of the files better.  The app comes with a pregnancy guide so that you will know your baby's expected developments as each month progresses.

The Womb Beats app is used to record your baby's heartbeat when you go to your monthly OB/GYN visit.  Once the doctor has found a strong baby heart beat, use the app to record it. After you save the heartbeat, the app assigns the date recorded and the gestational week.  The app records up to 12 seconds of the heartbeat.  Be sure to get your doctor's permission before recording the heartbeat. 

Once you are home, you select a style of music that you enjoy and the app syncs it to the baby's heartbeat.  The heartbeat is looped to the music style you have chosen and you can listen to the womb beat whenever you want.  The app is only available for iOS devices and is free.

The Hear My Baby Heartbeat app is available for iOS devices and costs $4.99.  No other equipment is needed apart from your phone. The app uses your phone's internal microphone to listen and record your baby's heartbeat.  It was developed by sound engineers who wanted a high quality recording of her baby's heartbeat. They were able to isolate the baby's heartbeat by using an algorithm to amplify the beat to get a better quality heartbeat. 

Best results are achieved once the baby has reached 30-40 weeks of gestation.  Results will vary depending upon the position of the baby and the quietness of the room.

My Baby Heart Rate Record.er-Heartbeat Listen.er is a free app for iOS devices.  Because it is free, there are advertisements within the app.  You can pay $1.99 and then the app will be ad-free.  The app works by placing the phone in the lower abdomen and you hit the record button when you hear the baby's heartbeat.  Works best when you are in a quiet room.  You can save each recording and fine tune the heartbeat with the app.  
 

Tiny Beat is an app available for $4.99 for iOS devices.  No other device is needed other than your iPhone.  You can record whenever you want within the comfort of your own home. The app allows you to record, store and organize all of your baby's heartbeats so that you can listen whenever you want.  You can easily share the recordings with your friends on on social media platforms.

The Baby Heartbeat Listener is a free app for Android device users.  You can listen, record, replay and share your baby's heartbeat.  The app requires a headphone in order to help capture the heartbeat.  After turning on the app, plug in the headphones which will be used as if it was a stethoscope.  The microphone of the phone or tablet is placed on the abdomen of the woman searching for the heartbeat.  Start recording when the heartbeat is heard.  Using a high quality headphone will help lead to a higher quality heartbeat.

The Fetal Doppler Unborn Heart app is free and is available for Android and iOS devices, however it must be used with the Fetal Doppler by Unborn Heart.  The doppler uses high frequency ultrasound technology to detect the baby's heartbeat.  The device is CE certified and FDA approved.  The app allows you to record your baby's heartbeat at 12 weeks gestation.  Through the app, the heartbeats can be shared on social media, text messages or by email.

 

The Baby Heartbeat Monitor app is free and available for Android devices. No other tools are needed other than your phone and the app. The developer suggests removing the protective cover from your phone and then put the phone on the mother's lower abdomen.  You may record up to 10 seconds of your baby's heartbeat.  There are in-app purchases that will allow to to record longer heartbeats.

The Baby Heartbeats Lite is a free app designed for Android devices.  There is a paid version of the app that allows you to share recorded files.  The lite version only allows you to record your baby's heartbeat.  If you want to share the files with others, you will need to get the paid version.  The app is designed to be used in your last trimester of pregnancy when the baby's heartbeat is strongest.  Use your phone's microphone to record the heartbeat.  Use headphones to preview and listen to the recording.  The full version of the app includes a variety of filtering functions that help to amplify and fine tune the heartbeat.
 

The Babyscope app was designed for iOS devices.  The free app allows you to hear your baby's heartbeat just by using the iPhone or iPad's microphone.  No headphones or other accessories are required. You may record and share your baby's heartbeat with this app.

It's important to remember that these apps are simply meant to be fun.  These apps are no replacement for visits to your doctor.  The apps are there for you to record your baby's heartbeat and listen to it when you are feeling anxious and stressed.  Some work better than others and you need to be patient.  Your baby has to be in the perfect position or you may not hear the heartbeat, so you do need to keep trying.  Your partner can help by moving the phone around to help find the right position.  If you do not take it too seriously, you can have a lot of fun trying out these different apps.