TRY SOMETHING NEW
22 Awesome Apps for 2022
Ready for a fresh start? Here are 22 ways to learn a new language, get more done, tighten up your finances, spend quality time with your kids, sketch and doodle, and more.
1. Give yourself a virtual makeover
New year, new you! With Snapchat’s ever-growing library of Face Lenses, see yourself in an entirely new light—maybe as a blushing anime character or covered in (totally temporary) tattoos.
2. Watch together
Whether you’re catching the latest episode of The Book of Boba Fett, the family musical comedy Encanto, or the upcoming Eternals (arriving January 12), Disney+ is even more fun when you watch with loved ones. Just start a FaceTime call, launch the Disney+ app, and tap play to get everyone in on the fun.
3. Keep in touch
The voice, video, and text-chat app Discord may be all the rage with teens and gamers, but it’s also increasingly popular among, well, everyone. Download it to stay in the conversation.
4. Make time for play
Looking for a fun activity to enjoy with the little ones in your life? Explore the colorful virtual play sets in Toca Life World. There’s a bustling farm, a wacky hair salon, a bustling ski resort, and much more. Get ready to get silly!
5. Party with Peppa
World of Peppa Pig is packed with educational activities, interactive games, and videos featuring the precocious piglet that parents and children can enjoy together. Oh goody!
6. Dive into esports
The biggest events and players are streaming live on Twitch—or if gaming isn’t your thing, pick up a few oil painting tips from the Bob Ross Weekend Marathons, which kick off every Friday at 12 p.m. ET / 9 a.m. PT.
7. Learn French or Spanish (or Klingon)
If you want to speak it, Duolingo probably offers it: The app’s gamelike lessons teach more than 30 languages—including Spanish, French, German, Japanese, and Mandarin Chinese—as well as the more esoteric Klingon and High Valyrian.
8. Get your to-dos under control
Todoist, one of our favorite productivity apps, is a lightning-fast task manager that makes entering complex to-dos easy. To add an item, just type it as you’d say it: “Call personal trainer next week” or “Tidy up garage on Saturday.”
9. Edit photos like a star
Looking to make your selfies as unique as you are in 2022? Try the artsy effects, cute stickers, wild masks, and much, much more in this powerhouse photo editor.
10. Take a hike
Dive deep into AllTrail’s crowdsourced insights and discover all the places to explore nature near you. (Just be sure to download the super-detailed trail maps for when you venture out of cellular coverage.)
11. Doze off to a story
Bedtime stories aren’t just for kids (although Calm offers many of those too). With the meditation app’s popular Sleep Stories, you can kick back as LeBron James, Kate Winslet, Harry Styles, The Great British Baking Show’s Mary Berry, and many others narrate meandering, not-too-exciting tales in dulcet tones.
12. Work out wherever you are
This everyone-can-do-it fitness app brings simple workouts to wherever you happen to be. Got 30 seconds? Do some curls in your kitchen with milk cartons. Want to get your blood flowing? Try exercises tailor-made for your work-from-home chair.
13. Learn from the masters
The world’s best artists, writers, athletes, scholars, and chefs share their secrets in MasterClass. Study drumming with Ringo Starr, activism and social change with Malala Yousafzai, science fundamentals with Bill Nye, and creative writing with Margaret Atwood.
14. Donate a meal
Created in partnership with the United Nations World Food Programme, ShareTheMeal is an incredibly simple way to donate meals to the millions around the world who are facing food insecurity.
15. Reimagine your space
Minimalist or maximalist? Modern or traditional? Any great home makeover starts with Pinterest. See the latest color trends, ideas for furniture layouts, and hacks to make a small bedroom feel bigger (or a big bedroom feel cozier).
16. Customize your own magazine
Drawing on articles from major publications like Time as well as smaller blogs like Dogtopia, Flipboard lets you create a beautifully designed digital publication on just your favorite topics.
17. Draw together
This beautiful virtual notebook has an artful selection of surprisingly realistic pencils and markers. And with SharePlay, you and another artist can sketch together in real time.
18. Do the numbers
Stumped by a math problem? Point your iPhone camera at it and Photomath will solve it and walk you through the solution. The app works with integers, fractions, decimals, powers, roots, and logarithms. (It’s also handy at calculus and trigonometry.)
19. Read a rising star
If you’re a book lover searching for your next great read or an author looking to get your story in front of an audience, Wattpad is the place to be. It’s a library, book club, and publishing house all in one.
20. Refine your designs
With thousands of templates and unlimited ways to customize them, Canva lets anyone create beautifully designed flyers, social media stories, logos, invites, and more.
21. Keep tabs on your credit
Credit Karma’s handy dashboard puts your latest scores from TransUnion and Equifax front and center, and suggests steps you can take to boost them.
22. Turn your clutter into cash
This online marketplace connects you with buyers and sellers in your community and beyond. (It’s also a great place to find the vintage coffee table of your dreams.)