According to Pew Research Center, 27% of older Americans of age 60 years or older live alone. Seniors enjoy independence and personal freedom but there are some risks of living alone as well.
The decline in mental and physical health brings many age-related issues such as visual and hearing impairment and a minor fall can become a major issue if a senior is unable to get help on time.
Technology enables seniors to stay in touch with their loved ones and may get any assistance that they may need. You can also check out 15 must have apps for seniors living alone that I have shared in the past.
A daily check-in app for seniors is the best way to check in on the safety of older adults and provides peace of mind for seniors that someone will know if they need help.
We have looked into all available senior check in apps (there are not many great options) and after testing and evaluating, found Snug Safety as the best daily check in app for seniors.
Snug Safety – Daily Check-in App for Seniors
Snug Safety is a daily check in app for seniors living alone. It is a simple-to-use and easy-to-understand app for less tech-savvy older adults, no matter how uncomfortable you are with new technology and smartphones.
The app makes daily check-in part of your daily routine and you can live your life with peace of mind that someone will know if you need help.
How Snug Safety Works
The app provides daily check in for seniors in a very simple way. It reminds seniors (before their chosen time every day) to visit the app to “check in”. You only have to push the big green button to check in (as shown below).
Once you check-in, you will receive an inspirational quote and you are done for the day.
If the app does not get a response from you after 5 attempts (which I will explain later), it will do one of the following.
- If you are on a free plan, it will send your emergency contacts a text message notifying them that you have missed your check-in so they can contact you if you need help or to check everything is okay.
- If you are on a paid plan, a Snug dispatcher will call you to check on you. If you do not respond, they will leave a voicemail with call back number. Then they will call your emergency contacts. If you still have not checked in, an emergency contact will check on you and will request a wellness check at your phone’s last location.
Note: The wellness check or a welfare check is when police/fire/EMS stop by your home to make sure you are okay.
The snug dispatchers only initiate a wellness check if they cannot contact you or your emergency contacts after two attempts.
It is as simple as that; the daily check-in process does not take more than a minute and becomes a habit for you, once your Snag Safety app is set up.
Here is a little video to understand how Snug works.
Setup Snug Safety on Your Smartphone
Let me help you with setting Snug Safety on your phone. It is the easiest daily check-in app for seniors, once you set it up. Let’s go
Step 1: Download Snug Safety on Your Smartphone
You can use Snug Safety on your iPhone or Android phone.
- To get the app on iPhone, download the app from Apple App Store. Snug works on iPhones running iOS 11 and later.
- To get the app on your Android phone, download it from Google Play Store. Snug works on most Android smartphones that are released since 2013.
You now have downloaded the Snug Safety app on your phone (the Snug app icon is on your phone’s home screen or app list).
Let us set up the app for you.
Step 2: Setting Up Snug Safety After Downloading
Once you open the Snug Safety app on your phone, it will ask you to provide your name, email address and phone number.
- Snug will greet you with your name every day
- Your phone number is needed so Snug can send you reminders via text messages
- Your email address is needed to provide support or updates through email
Snug will send you a text message to verify your phone number.
After verifying the phone number, Snug will ask you to pick a check-in deadline.
This is the time that you need to check in with Snug by. You can pick anytime between 5:30 AM to 9:30 PM.
Note: Snug will ask for access to the smartphone’s location (it is only needed in case you miss the check-in deadline and Snug cannot contact you) and for iPhone users, Snug will also ask permission to send you the push notifications.
Next, Snug will ask you to add emergency contacts (it uses the contact book available on your phone to add the emergency contacts). You can select as many contacts as you want. Make sure to add people you trust and can rely upon to follow up with you if you miss a check-in.
After you have added the emergency contacts, Snug will send them a text message confirming that they are added to your emergency contacts. (Here, you can also set your preference for emailing your contacts after your check-ins).
Snug will ask you to choose a plan to finalize the setup. You can go for the free plan or the dispatch plan. We will discuss the dispatch plan features later in this article, but here are two things to keep in mind.
- You can upgrade to the dispatch plan anytime in the future without any problem if you want to.
- Snug will ask you for your home address if you choose the dispatch plan. This is for your dispatcher to know which agency to contact for your wellness check in case you miss your check-in and cannot be reached through emergency contacts or phone calls.
That’s it. Your setup process is complete and you are all checked in for today.
You now have the best daily check-in app for seniors on your phone.
Using Snug Safety to Check-in Daily
You can now check in on your Snug Safety app every day before your check-in time deadline that you provided during setup. If you open the app, it will show you your next check-in time.
Snug will send you reminders in advance of your check-in deadline.
- Silent Notification: 3 hours before the check-in deadline
- Regular Notification: 1 hour before the check-in deadline
- Regular Notification: 10 minutes before the check-in deadline
- Regular Notification + Text Message: Check-in deadline
- Regular Notification + Text Message: 2 Minutes after the check-in deadline
You can tap on the notification and go straight to the Snug app and press the big green check mark button to check in for the day (make sure you are connected to the internet so Snug can communicate your check-in).
Snug Safety Alternatives
We have searched for snug safety alternatives. There are not many good-quality apps with the same features and performance as Snug Safety. Dooinwell is the best of all Snug Safety Alternatives with some extra features as well.
Dooinwell for iPhone – A Snug Safety Alternative App
The only good daily check-in app for seniors that you can use as a snug safety alternative is Dooinwell.
It makes grandparents and older adults safe and helps you make sure they are fine when you are not there. This senior check in app has following features.
- Safety Check-ins: You can set in check-in times (1 to 4 times a day) where seniors can check in daily to let you know everything is ok
- Outings Registration: The seniors register their planned activity before leaving the house (like going for shopping, medical appointments, family visits or going for a walk) and set the expected duration. When back, they confirm being safely home and you are updated about the activity.
- Smart Alert: If the seniors missed a check-in or exceed activity duration or need assistance, you are sent alerts on your iPhone.
- Siri integration: Siri integration means seniors can ask for help through Siri and you will get an alert.
Pros
- More options than Snug Safety: This daily check in app for seniors allows some extra features. Snug safety allows 1 check-in per day while Dooinwell has up to 4 check-ins per day options. It also has “Outing Registration” to register outdoor activities and confirm when you are back home safely.
- Assistance Request: Seniors can request assistance or call back through the app and Siri and you will receive an alert to contact seniors.
Cons
- iOS only App: Dooinwell is only available for iOS devices (iPhone, iPad or iPod). This senior check in app is not available for android users like Snug Safety.
- Paid Only: The app has no free version. You are charged $6.49/month or $52.99/ year.
Download Dooinwell App for iPhone
Frequently Asked Question
How much does Snug Safety cost?
Snug Safety has a free plan that is enough for most seniors. There is also a Snug dispatch plan which costs $9.99/ month or $99/year.
What is the difference between a free plan and a Snug Dispatch plan?
In a free plan, Snug contacts your emergency contacts through text messages notifying them that you have missed your check-in so they call and check on you if you need any help.
In a Snug Dispatch plan, if you miss the daily check-in, a snug dispatcher will call you. If you do not respond, they leave a voicemail with a callback number. Then they will call your emergency contacts. If you still have not checked in, an emergency contact will check on you and will request a wellness check at your phone’s last location.
How to change your Check-in time on Snug Safety?
Follow these steps to change the check-in time on snug Safety
- Open the Menu (orange “menu” button on iPhone or three horizontal lines on android phone)
- Go to Change Check-in Time
- Pick a new check-in time and tap Save
How to change your emergency contacts on Snug Safety?
- Open the Menu
- Tap on Change Emergency Contacts
- Add/Remove emergency contacts
You can also change the address if you are on Snug Dispatch plan.
For seniors living alone, you can use best apps for grandparents and grandchildren to connect, read books, play games and do other fun activities together to make your next virtual date more fun.
Family and professional caregivers can also use the elderly care apps to take better care of older adults living alone.