How I Redesigned a Sobriety App for People on Their Worst Day
Sunflower is a sobriety recovery app. When I joined, it already had real users and an interface that got in their way. I designed the first version of the redesign: the brand identity, the design system, and the core experience. The app has kept evolving since.
After the redesign, onboarding completion went from 45% to 68%. Today the app holds a 4.8 on the App Store from about 6,400 ratings and has passed 500,000 downloads on Google Play.
Why this one was different to design
Recovery is personal and the stakes are real. Somebody opens this app at the worst moment of their week.
A cold or clumsy experience in most products is an annoyance. Here it can do actual harm. That reframes every decision, including the ones that normally get made on instinct in five seconds.
Emotional safety first
Tone, color, language, pacing. All of it aimed at feeling supportive rather than clinical, and never judgmental.
In a recovery context the interface is part of the care. It is not a wrapper around the care.
Onboarding had to feel like an encouraging first step rather than a form. That is the main reason completion went from 45% to 68%.
Then momentum
Staying sober runs on streaks, small wins, and a reason to come back tomorrow.
So the core experience was built around visible progress and gentle reinforcement. Not notifications demanding attention. Something closer to a companion that is there when you open it.
People return when returning feels like part of the thing they are already doing, not a separate task.
The results
- Onboarding completion from 45% to 68%
- 4.8 on the App Store from about 6,400 ratings
- 500,000+ downloads on Google Play
- A new brand, design system and core experience
Questions I get asked
Why did onboarding convert so well? Because it was written as an encouraging first step and not as a data collection form. People finish something that feels like it is for them.
What drives retention in a recovery app? Visible progress and quiet daily reinforcement. A reason to open it tomorrow that does not feel like an obligation.