Personal safety apps have come a long way from simple SOS buttons. Today, there are multiple options, each with a different philosophy about what "keeping you safe" actually means. If you've been researching safety apps, you've probably come across Noonlight, bSafe, and StillSafe. All three aim to protect you, but they take very different approaches. Here's an honest breakdown to help you choose the right one.
The Three Approaches to Personal Safety
Before we dig into features, it helps to understand the fundamental difference in how these apps think about safety:
- Noonlight focuses on reactive emergency response — you trigger an alert when you're in danger, and they dispatch help.
- bSafe focuses on real-time deterrence and evidence — SOS alerts, fake calls, audio/video recording during incidents.
- StillSafe focuses on proactive daily monitoring — regular check-ins that detect when something might be wrong before anyone realizes it.
None of these approaches is objectively better. They solve different problems. The question is which problem you're most concerned about.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | StillSafe | Noonlight | bSafe |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core approach | Proactive check-in monitoring | Reactive SOS dispatch | Real-time SOS and deterrence |
| Daily check-ins | Yes — customizable schedule | No | No |
| SOS / panic button | No (designed for non-emergency detection) | Yes — contacts 911 dispatch | Yes — alerts contacts with location |
| Emergency contact alerts | Email, SMS, and AI voice calls | Optional (primarily dispatches to 911) | SMS and app notification |
| AI verification call | Yes — calls you before alerting contacts | No | No |
| Fake call feature | No | No | Yes |
| Audio/video recording | No | No | Yes (premium) |
| GPS location sharing | Optional (Adventure Mode) | Continuous while active | During SOS events |
| Hiking / adventure mode | Yes — timed check-ins on trail | No (but integrates with outdoor apps) | No |
| Date safety mode | Yes — timed check-ins during dates | Yes (Tinder integration) | Yes (via SOS and fake calls) |
| Pet care profiles | Yes — alerts include pet care instructions | No | No |
| Privacy model | No tracking — only alerts when you miss | Shares location with dispatch center | Shares location with contacts during alerts |
| Price | Free tier / $6.99/mo premium | $4.99/mo | Free / $2.49/mo premium |
| Platform | Web app (works on any device) | iOS and Android | iOS and Android |
What Noonlight Does Best
Noonlight is the gold standard for emergency dispatch integration. When you trigger an SOS, Noonlight's certified monitoring center contacts 911 on your behalf, shares your location with dispatchers, and stays on the line until help arrives. If you're in a situation where you can't speak — someone is following you, you're being threatened — Noonlight's silent alarm is genuinely life-saving.
Their partnership with Tinder also makes them a natural choice for date safety. When you share your Noonlight timeline with a date, the other person knows there's an accountability layer in place, which can be a deterrent in itself.
Noonlight is ideal for: People who want a panic button that connects directly to 911, Tinder users, anyone in urban areas where police response times are fast.
The tradeoff: Noonlight only helps when you can actively trigger it. If you fall, lose consciousness, or simply don't realize you're in danger, Noonlight can't help because it's waiting for you to press a button.
What bSafe Does Best
bSafe has the most creative feature set of any safety app. The fake call feature lets you simulate an incoming call to escape an uncomfortable situation. The live-stream SOS broadcasts audio and video to your emergency contacts. The "Follow Me" feature lets contacts watch your GPS path in real time. And the "I'm Here" feature automatically notifies contacts when you arrive somewhere safely.
At $2.49/month for premium (with a genuinely functional free tier), bSafe also offers the best value in terms of raw feature count.
bSafe is ideal for: People who want a versatile toolkit for uncomfortable or dangerous situations, college students, anyone who values recording and evidence capabilities.
The tradeoff: Like Noonlight, bSafe requires you to be conscious and able to use your phone. It's a reactive tool. It also relies heavily on your emergency contacts being available and responsive — there's no professional monitoring center behind it.
What StillSafe Does Differently
StillSafe takes a fundamentally different approach. Rather than waiting for you to press a panic button, StillSafe monitors your daily well-being through scheduled check-ins. If you miss a check-in, the system first sends you a reminder via text with a one-tap link. If you still don't respond, an AI-powered phone call attempts to reach you. Only after these verification steps fail does StillSafe notify your emergency contacts via email, SMS, and AI voice calls.
This escalation model is designed to catch the situations other apps miss entirely: a fall at home when you live alone, a medical emergency during a solo hike, a night where something goes wrong and you can't reach your phone. It's also built to minimize false alarms — the multi-step verification means your mom isn't getting a panic call because you took a long shower.
StillSafe is also the only safety app with pet care profiles. If you're incapacitated, your emergency contacts receive instructions about your pets — feeding schedules, medications, vet information — so your animals aren't forgotten in a crisis.
StillSafe is ideal for: People who live alone, remote workers, solo hikers, aging adults, pet owners, anyone whose biggest risk isn't an attacker but the quiet emergencies — falls, medical events, accidents — where no one knows to check on you.
The tradeoff: StillSafe doesn't have an SOS panic button. If someone is actively threatening you, Noonlight or bSafe are better choices for that specific scenario. StillSafe is designed for the other 99% of emergencies.
What About Life360, Kitestring, and Cairn?
A few other apps come up in safety conversations:
- Life360 is a family location tracker. It shows where everyone is at all times, which can feel more like surveillance than safety. It doesn't have check-in systems or emergency escalation — it just shows a dot on a map. We've written about this distinction.
- Kitestring pioneered the timed check-in concept with simple SMS-based timers. It's lightweight and affordable (free to $3/month), but lacks multi-channel escalation, AI verification, and specialized modes for hiking or dating.
- Cairn is purpose-built for hikers, with offline GPS tracking and trail-specific safety features. If you only hike and nothing else, Cairn is excellent. But it doesn't help you at home, on dates, or with daily living.
- Snug Safety focuses specifically on seniors with a free daily check-in system. It's a solid option for older adults, though it lacks the broader feature set for hikers, daters, and pet owners.
So Which One Should You Choose?
Here's a simple framework:
- If your primary concern is active threats (being followed, a violent situation, needing police fast): Noonlight.
- If you want a versatile toolkit for uncomfortable situations (fake calls, recording, location sharing with friends): bSafe.
- If your primary concern is the quiet emergencies — living alone, working from home, hiking solo, aging independently, making sure your pets are cared for: StillSafe.
And honestly? These apps aren't mutually exclusive. You could use Noonlight as your panic button for nights out and StillSafe as your daily check-in system at home. The best safety plan is the one that covers your actual risks.
The Real Question
The best safety app isn't the one with the most features — it's the one you'll actually use every day. Noonlight and bSafe are powerful tools, but they sit idle until danger strikes. A proactive system like StillSafe works quietly in the background, checking on you whether you remember to think about safety or not.
Because the scariest emergencies aren't the ones you see coming. They're the ones where nobody knows to look for you.
Ready to explore your options? Create a free StillSafe account and see how proactive check-ins fit into your safety plan. Or compare our pricing and features in detail.