Timeshifter - The Jet Lag App

Used for a recent trip to help with a three hour time difference. Instructions were fairly easy to follow. Some things that helped follow the instructions were an eye mask and melatonin. There were times where it was a little challenging due to having to change planes or something like that while traveling from state to state. I did my best to follow the suggestions. Going ahead three hours and then adjusting back after a few weeks were made easier. I'm looking forward to using the app where there's a larger time difference on a future travel trip.

I've used this app now for two overseas trips - the first, two years ago, was 8 time zones. I barely had any jet lag on the way there. The way back was quite interrupted, so hard to say. Two years later (and so glad to be travelling again) and this trip was 10 time zones. Again, hardly any jet lag on the way there OR back. The system is easy to use. Although sometimes the recommendations are less than fun (waking up at 3AM, staying up all night on a red eye), you start your trip ready to go. Yes, there is a per trip or annual fee, but how much did your trip cost? How much is wasted if you're a zombie the first two days? I'm a travel agent and after my personal successes, I've started recommending this to clients.

[outdated review:] This app could have been pretty decent, but it just isn't. Now, I will admit that the jetlag prevention part of the app works fairly well, but it is terribly hamstrung by the app itself. The app is verrry slowww to load. Once it does load, the interface is jittery and prone to crashing. TLDR: expensive app is slow and crashes often [Edit:] two years later, it seems the performance issues have been fixed. I'm changing my review from 2 to 4 stars, because it's still expensive

Timeshifter worked great for my transition from the UK back to California time. I just followed the timeline in the app, taking in and avoiding light, enjoying and abstaining from caffeine, and getting healthy doses of sleep, sometimes with the aid of melatonin. The messaging was low-pressure (just do your best), and the notifications on my phone were helpful so I wouldn't lose track of time. At the end of my shift I had insignificant jet lag effects. I'd taken an extra day off work to recover, but I really didn't need it. I could've gone right back to work on the next day. (Shhhh!) My only complaint would be that sometimes when loading the app I would only be shown a blank white screen for at least 30 seconds... maybe even 60 seconds. I would always eventually give up waiting, close and reopen the app, and then see the soothingly designed UI after maybe a second. Hopefully this mere nuisance UI bug will be solved quickly.

I tried out the app on a recent trip to Hawaii, from the EST time zone---a 6 hour difference. The app was very easy to use: I could see the plan at any time, and I got notifications at the right times. The results were very encouraging: within a day of arriving at my destination, I was acclimated to the time change---and similarly when I got home. No more losing groggy days to jet lag! The first thing I did when I got back was to buy blue blocking clip-ons for my glasses, so I could follow the procedure even better next time. One downside was the significant latency for the app. Given what it has to do, I couldn't see any good reason for this. (But this was in Nov. 2018, so they may have fixed it since then.) All in all, I can't wait for my next trip to try it out with the blue blockers!

I followed the app's advice when travelling across the most challenging time zone change there is: from northern Europe to New Zealand and back again in 18 days. I've done this trip many times, and never have I been so unaffected by jet lag! I definitely recommend this app. The usability is great and the scientific explanations are helpful. The biggest challenge is following the specific advice, like reducing or maximising light, when everyone else is doing the opposite. In one 17-hour flight, I had to block out all light and sound when the cabin lights were on and meals were served. I also skipped the main meal. When it was time for me to be awake, the cabin was completely dark! I was also one of just a few people in Doha airport wearing sunglasses inside :-) I think it would be valuable if the app gave advice on when and what types of food to eat, too. This surely contributes to adjusting to new time zones. Good work, guys!

recently traveled from Colorado to Vietnam and used timeshifter both ways. It was simple to follow and easy to understand. I especially loved that I could look at the real time instructions and it mapped out when to sleep etc on the many flights and layovers. On the way I experienced little to no jet lag. A little more on the way home but I didn't follow it as much...plus I was run down from the trip in general. Highly recommend. Using the app made for one less thing to figure out and worry about!

This works. The key is light exposure, more than caffeine. For the first time ever, no jet lag. Here's a feature that would be nice: a reminder roughly an hour before you're supposed to stop drinking caffeine, or seek out more light, or reduce light exposure. Perhaps that feature exists and either I failed to toggle it or it doesn't come with the free trial run. I highly recommend this app and would absolutely pay for it.

I used it recently for travel from Texas to Sydney. No detectable jet lag either way, and easy enough to follow the instructions. BUT, when I put my phone in airplane mode, the app's screen went blank. Nothing visible and no response. I had to force stop the app to get it to come back after landing and getting cell service again. This happened on each of 4 flights. I'm not seeing this on anyone else's review, so maybe it's specific to my phone: Pixel2XL, Android 10.

Used the app on my recent travel to India. Followed most of their advice and was able to beat jet lag with minimum effort. Only grudge is, I had disallowed push notifications while setting up and there was no way to turn them back on. It would have been easier to keep track of the suggestions with push notifications rather than opening the app each time to check what should be done. But otherwise would recommend this.

This has helped in a lot of different time zones, especially from the us to asia. It is quite difficult to follow when adjusting such a large difference, but if followed it has been extremely helpful. The sunlight you need is definitely not given when following just what the plane ride tells you to get. The app is at times glitchy but I imagine it will improve with more users. I like the UI visualization, would also love to keep a backlog of previous flights if possible to see how I did.

I would recommend it especially for someone who does a lot of long-distance travel, for work for example. Following the instructions really helped me reduce my jet lag and manage my energy. I like the slick interface and the fact that the owners / developers were contactable to answer my questions. Looking forward to the app one day being able to calculate 30 minute intervals! Until then, it's good enough for me :)

A TRAVEL MUST!!!! I can't stress it enough. I followed the advice of this app while flying to and from Europe and managed to completely avoid jet-lag even with a 9-hour time zone difference!!! I seriously didn't think that was possible after hearing horror stories and also struggling on previous trips with a substantially less time zone change.

Nice app, really worked the first time I used it, I find it kind of expensive (first trip was free) but can't deny it works. I took a really long trip with huge timezone changes and my first night at destination was able to sleep until 6am without weird midnight wake-ups. Maybe I would have paid that price for a round-trip flight.

Tried the free introductory trip on an extended trip. Worked great. Signed up for a full subscription and had some issues with the subscription. Great customer service got the issue resolved quickly. Recommended the app to a friend of mine. If you're traveling over more than three time zones, you need this app!

Far superior to other similar apps, because it takes into account your flights, and for example doesn't tell you to sleep during the time you need to check-in, board etc. Also suggests naps to stretch long days. If course every person and every trip are different, and there are no guarantees. My clock was about 3 hrs off on this trip to Australia, despite my best efforts

The theory is sound, but I'd prefer an anonymous paid-for version. It asks you to set up a profile, which is unnecessary for functionality, and takes personal details. But then you have to choose sleep and wake times from a really short list, beginning at 10pm. Profile settings should at least be sufficiently variable. I like to be asleep long before 9 most days, but it varies as my life does.

I used this app on a recent short trip to India. While I normally experience 3 to 4 days of jetlag during the adjustment, I was able to enjoy my 5 day trip without jetlag both at my destination and after I returned home. I highly recommend utilizing the option of using melatonin along with your timeshifter plan. Not only were the instructions accurate , but also relatively easy to follow. I highly recommend this app to anyone who is traveling abroad. The lack of jetlag is priceless.

I used the app for the first time on my trip to Thailand. 13 hour time difference so there was plenty of concern about jet lag! I followed the guidelines provided to the best of my ability while at work (looked slightly ridiculous working in my office with the lights off and sunnies on!) but I almost NO jet lag! It was fantastic! I was able to enjoy my entire vacation without feeling worn out or run down and got back to work with no issues either! Thanks so much for this great app!

I have severe wanderlust. I am a natural born traveler and have been to 10 countries in my lifetime so far. However, I am not a fan of jet lag. Even when not traveling in a different time zone I have jet lag. This gem of an app came along when I was looking for something to handle jet lag. The app is easy to use and gives you ton of insight on what to do, when and why. Also astronauts have used the app, too! Highly recommend to all travelers around the world! Save yourself from unwanted jet lag!

Absolutely fantastic. Timeshifter helped me sidestep jetlag altogether as I flew to the other side of the world for work. With a quick turnaround of days, I was sure I'd be stung with jetlag and tiredness, but I avoided it completely. Timeshifter is so helpful and you can programme it to be totally tailored to you and your own patterns and habits. Highly recommend.

It works! I am usually terribly affected by jetlag when travelling and spend 1-3 days in a fog. I downloaded the Timeshifter app ahead of a one week cross-hemisphere work trip, each leg a 15 hour flight and 18 hour time difference. I hit the ground running on arrival, slept solidly each night, did not once fall dramatically asleep in my lunch, and slotted straight back into a normal routine when I arrived home. The slight adjustments to routine ahead of travel does take some planning and commitment, but none are onerous and I think very well worth it for the positive travel experience! I intend to use for all future travel.

Used twice. New Zealand was a challenge but able to use Business Class and only suffered a little out and back. Just used it to fly economy to Bangkok via Dubai. I know it was effective because I have done this trip 6 times over last few years and particularly struggle on the return. This time I have hardly struggled at all. I particularly like the quick response to any queries. I did have a blank screen problem on my Samsung 8 but got solution within minutes of query. Highly recommended

Used it for a few trips now, and I whilst I do not follow the timelines religiously, I do try and keep to them as much as I can - I think I have noticed a difference in my 'return' to normal sleep patterns both on arriving to destination and back home, and I have found myself mentioning the app to colleagues who also travel prior to this review being written, so I think it is onto something. Give it a go - I think if you are frequent traveller you won't regret it.

Super helpful! I followed the plan (as best as I could) and it really helped. I didn't have to worry about getting everything perfect which was comforting because it can be defeating to think that you need to. I would definitely recommend this app to others. Overall, I found the plan to be very effective and I experienced very little jet lag.

Really does work. Used the free trial for my SF to Taipei (16 hour time difference) trip and had minimal jet lag. I followed the plan 90% on the way there and had minimal jet lag whereas in the past I had massive jet lag. I followed the plan on the way back 90% as well and had little to no jet lag. Plan is easy to follow. Wish the app would notify you when a new segment starts (maybe it's in the paid version?) And hopefully in future it can adjust to major flight delays as that happened to me.

I didn't really expect this to work, but it worked beautifully on the several trips I have tried it with. I have told a number of friends about this - one just tried it on a trip to Africa and said it worked for her too. Amazing! Plus, Tony was VERY responsive on chat when I needed some help. Great app.

I wanted to ensure I didn't suffer jet lag on my first trip overseas. I followed the instructions quite easily and was surprised at how great I felt when I arrived in Canada (from Australia). I slipped into my usual sleep pattern and was active during the day right away. Coming home was different. I wondered if the app could have made so much difference and hardly paid attention to it (Canada to Aus is known for less jet lag) but it's taken me 4 days to recover. Next time I'll use the app!

I've recently used this app to combat jetlag on flights to Los Angeles from Glasgow (UK) and back. I did not follow the guidance religiously, even so, I have to state that I had little or no ill effects either way. I was fully functioning after both west and east bound and journies and would highly recommend the Timeshifter app to get you into the right time zone.

I love the idea and on my way in it worked great. I couldn't do the plan on my way back, though. I didn't have a regular internet connection abroad and for some reason the app wouldn't show anything without being connected. I would expect an app like this to rely much less on a constant internet connection. This needs to be fixed.