When asked how we’re doing, we often respond with an automatic “fine”. But How We Feel – created in partnership with research scientists at the Yale School of Medicine’s Center for Emotional Intelligence – wants to help us uncover the truer, deeper answer.

What we love: How We Feel simplifies our vast range of emotions into a sensible, colour-coded system. Feeling low-energy but pleasant? Tap into a sea of green icons to pinpoint a specific feeling – maybe “chill”, “supported” or “blessed”. Or browse the blue icons if your vibe is less upbeat – maybe “spent”, “excluded” or “meh”. The visuals help guide you: the deeper the colour, the more intense the emotion.

Quick tip: The more you check in each day, the easier it becomes to zero in on your feelings. By cross-referencing with details like how much sleep and exercise you get, the app makes your emotional trends apparent. You may see firsthand that on days when you manage to get eight hours of sleep, you tend to log happier, yellow-hued emotions, whereas check-ins after a long commute may tend to be less pleasant.

Meet the creator: Current and former Pinterest employees who volunteer their time teamed up with research scientists to create the app. It is supported entirely by donations.