Ten Percent Happier is a secular meditation app and online retreat program founded by Dan Harris, a former ABC News anchor whose 2014 book of the same name introduced a wide popular audience to meditation through a memoir-and-explainer format. The platform combines a daily meditation app with longer online retreats and structured courses, drawing on prominent teachers from the Insight tradition and from secular mindfulness. The online retreat program is the most relevant offering for the contemplative-retreat audience. Multi-day online silent retreats are held several times per year, taught by senior teachers including Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, Jeff Warren, Sebene Selassie, and others from the Insight network. The retreats follow the standard Western Insight format adapted to online delivery: noble silence held during program hours, daily group sittings, dharma talks, and individual or small-group teacher contact. The retreats happen in the participant's home setup with online teacher presence. The app side of the platform offers daily meditations, structured courses on specific topics (anxiety, sleep, parenting, productivity, grief), and a substantial library of guided practices. Joseph Goldstein has a long-standing teacher role with the platform; his Insight Hour podcast and his Ten Percent Happier courses have introduced classical Insight practice to a wide secular audience. The platform's secular framing is deliberate: it is positioned for people who would not engage with explicitly Buddhist material but who want substantive meditation training. Pricing is membership-based, with the annual subscription covering unlimited access to the app library, courses, and most online retreats. Some longer or specially curated retreats may carry separate fees. The platform is one of the larger app-based meditation programs commercially, and its retreat program is one of the more substantive offerings within the app-meditation space, drawing serious teachers from the Insight tradition rather than wellness-industry instructors.
Online silent retreats typically run two to seven days. Daily program includes morning and evening group video sessions with the teaching team, multiple guided sittings during the day, dharma talks, and individual or small-group teacher contact via video. Noble silence is observed during program hours in the participant's home; participants are advised to set up a quiet space and minimize external distractions for the duration. Home daily structure is the responsibility of the participant; the program structures the group elements. App-based daily meditations and courses are on-demand: participants choose what to practice and when. Course series typically run 10-30 sessions over several weeks with a specific focus.
The teaching faculty draws primarily from the Western Insight tradition (IMS / Spirit Rock stream) with prominent teachers including Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, Jeff Warren, and Sebene Selassie. The platform is multi-teacher and secular in framing rather than carrying a single Buddhist lineage. The Insight teachers bring their own lineage backgrounds while teaching in the platform's secular framework.
People who want substantive meditation training without explicit Buddhist framing or religious vocabulary, drawn to Dan Harris's accessible journalistic style.
Practitioners specifically interested in Joseph Goldstein's classical Insight teaching, made accessible through the platform's secular framing and his courses there.
Users of meditation apps who want longer-form online retreats with named senior teachers as a deeper engagement than daily app use.
For online retreats, register through the app or website and receive program materials and video links in advance. The retreat begins at a scheduled time with a video opening session and orientation. Participants set up home practice space and observe the published schedule. Daily group video sessions, sittings, and dharma talks structure the day. The retreat ends with a closing session. For daily app use, the platform is on-demand: open the app, choose a meditation or course, and practice. There is no synchronous element to most app content.
The platform is online; there is no physical facility. Practitioners use the app on a phone or tablet for daily content; online retreats use video-conferencing software for the group elements. A reliable internet connection is needed.
Annual subscription pricing covers unlimited access to the app library, courses, and most online retreats. Pricing is approximately USD 100 per year, with monthly options at a higher rate. Some longer or specially curated retreats may carry separate fees beyond the membership. Free trials and limited free content are available for newcomers. Specific current pricing is on the platform's site.
Dan Harris's secular meditation platform with online retreats taught by senior Insight teachers.
The platform is secular in framing, not denominationally Buddhist. Many of the teachers, particularly Joseph Goldstein, are senior figures in the Western Insight Buddhist tradition and bring that lineage's teachings, but the platform's framing is secular and accessible to people who would not engage with explicitly Buddhist material.
Multi-day online silent retreats run several times per year. Participants observe noble silence during program hours at their home setup, attending scheduled video group sittings, dharma talks, and small-group teacher contact. The retreat structures the group elements; the participant structures their home daily life around the schedule.
Senior teachers from the Western Insight tradition including Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, Jeff Warren, and Sebene Selassie carry the principal teaching. Specific teachers for each retreat or course are listed on the registration pages. The platform is multi-teacher rather than centered on a single lineage holder.
Most online retreats are included in the annual membership. Some longer or specially curated retreats may carry separate fees. The app library, courses, and standard retreats are typically covered by the standard subscription. Specific current arrangements are on the platform's site.
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