A library of calming sounds for people living with tinnitus, plus short guided sessions and lessons about it. Available through participating audiology clinics.
Oto is an app for people living with tinnitus, the ringing or buzzing you hear in your ears. You get it through a participating audiology clinic, and your audiologist stays involved while you use it.
At the center of the app is a library of calming sounds you can listen to any time, day or night. Around the sounds sit short guided sessions and lessons about tinnitus.
What's in the app
• Calming sounds: white, pink and brown noise, nature and environmental sounds, and layered soundscapes you can mix yourself
• Volume control and an optional sleep timer, so you can leave sounds running overnight
• Short guided sessions of about 5 to 10 minutes, drawing on cognitive behavioral techniques. They sit alongside the sounds, as part of the plan your clinic sets up
• Short lessons about tinnitus, so you understand what is going on and why
• Optional reminders, private notes, and simple progress tracking you and your audiologist can look at together
How you use it
1. Your audiologist sets up your account and shows you where to start
2. Listen to the sounds when you want them, and work through the sessions at the pace you agree together
3. Your audiologist reviews how you are getting on and adjusts your plan
How do I get Oto?
Oto comes as part of a tinnitus care plan from a participating audiology clinic. There is no separate app subscription to buy.
If your audiologist or ENT has not mentioned Oto, ask them about it. You can also find a participating clinic here:
https://joinoto.com/providers
What does it cost?
Your clinic sets the price of the care plan, and the Oto app is included. Your clinic also sets how long you keep access: most give around 12 months, and some give lifetime access. Full detail here:
https://joinoto.com/pricing
Important information
Oto provides self-guided wellbeing content. It is not a medical device and is not intended to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent tinnitus or any disease or condition. Oto does not replace professional care. In an emergency, call 911 (or your local emergency number).
Privacy
We use appropriate technical and organizational safeguards and do not sell personal data. See our Privacy Policy at https://joinoto.com/privacy and our Terms of Use at https://joinoto.com/terms.
My tinnitus is caused by sudden sensorineural hearing loss that occurred in March 2020, just as the world was shutting down due to COVID. In a matter of hours, I lost all of the high frequency hearing in my left ear, and gained a constant but fluctuating screeching. I saw multiple ENTs and was simply told, your brain will adjust. While the number of bad days has certainly reduced, I still have days when I can’t focus on anything but the constant noise inside my head. While I’ve only been using the app for a short time, I can tell that the tools they provide will help speed the process of my brain’s adjustment. The breath work has already helped me control the anxiety the ringing causes. The therapy sessions are short, so they aren’t overly intrusive and I can squeeze them into my day easily. The way the background noise is tuned to your tinnitus specifically is amazing- I’ve also used the in app to show others in my life exactly what my tinnitus sounds like, which helps me feel less isolated in dealing with this. Anyway, thanks for the app. I wish I’d found it sooner.
Developer Response
Hi Melissa, thank you for your review! We are so glad that the app has been helpful in managing your anxiety. Please do continue with the therapy sessions and do let us know if there is anything that we can do to help :) Melissa
Extremely helpful
LyninSCA
I found this app while in a stage of such severe tinnitus that I was experiencing a panic attack. Only those who are living with tinnitus can appreciate what that kind of experience is like. Between the therapy sessions, the masking sounds, and personal correspondence with members of the staff via email, I gained control, and brought my tinnitus to a manageable level, within a couple of days. Working this program is keeping it there.This program teaches that it is anxiety that increases the symptoms of tinnitus to unbearable levels. Working this program, training your brain to utilize the tools learned here in therapy sessions to become second nature, automatic habits and responses, combats the anxiety, and brings tinnitus down to, and keeps it at, a manageable level.After years of living with this condition, this is the first truly effective means of consistently controlling my tinnitus I have found.Definitely five stars.
Developer Response
Hi - thank you so much for your positive review. We're so pleased that you've found the Oto app helpful with both your tinnitus and anxiety. Let us know if we can help in any way! Cheers, Melissa :)
Very Grateful for this App
Bettiola
I have a long history of different forms of tinnitus associated with moderate to severe binaural hearing loss that have been accumulating over the years to the point that I recently felt so overwhelmed I didn’t know if I could take it any longer. I had heard that masking apps were available online and in my desperation I found Oto and am very glad I did. I think it’s very well-designed and it’s obvious that a lot of careful thought has gone into it. My biggest problem with tinnitus is falling asleep, and the therapy session which I do just before going to bed and the selection of masking sounds are a tremendous help - and not just for falling asleep but in other areas of my life as well. I’m so grateful.
Developer Response
Hey Bettiola, we are so so pleased to hear that Oto has helped to calm your tinnitus. Thank you so much for your kind words and the 5 star review! We are constantly working hard to make sure the app is the best it can be for our users, so this means a lot! Please let us know if there's anything we can help with - Khush :)
Starting to give me hope
nancetta
Thank God for this app. Whoever invented this is a genius. Life saving. I really like the format and the voice of the lady speaking. The writing is fantastic and the information is mind expanding. You don’t even need tinnitus to benefit from this app. If you live in negativity and fear, this will help free you from that. My favorite is the CBT lessons. That’s what I’ve been looking for. I became so calm after listening to the lessons, that I actually took a nap. I never nap. Especially with tinnitus. People don’t like hearing “ you have to learn to live with it”. It’s frightening and not well received. But if you have tools like this, you’ll be looking at tinnitus in a different way.
Developer Response
Hi there, thank you so much for your kind words about the app and for the 5 star review! It means a lot to the team. We are so pleased to hear that Oto is helping to calm your tinnitus. Let us know if we can help with anything :)
Smoother sessions, sharper sound playback, and small improvements throughout the app.
Version 6.4.1
The developer, Oto Health Ltd, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Linked to You
The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
Contact Info
User Content
Identifiers
Usage Data
Diagnostics
Data Not Linked to You
The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:
Location
Usage Data
Diagnostics
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
Seller
Oto Health Ltd
Size
91.1 MB
Category
Medical
Compatibility
Requires iOS 17.0 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 17.0 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 17.0 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 14.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.