Apps like "Are You Dead?": daily check-in apps for people who live alone
A guide by Joey Tan, FiveClose · 9 November 2026 · 简体中文
In January 2026 a Chinese app called 死了么, "Are You Dead?", went viral (NBC News, CBS News). The idea is simple: you check in, and if you miss two days, it emails your emergency contact. The name made people laugh. The reason it spread is serious: many people live alone and have wondered how long it would take anyone to notice if something happened.
Its makers said they would change the name, and what is in each country's app store changes, so check yours. This page explains what these apps do, what to compare, and where to find one in English. FiveClose is not connected to 死了么.
What a check-in app does
- You give a small sign of life: a tap, or simply opening the app.
- If you stop, after a set time, the people you chose are told so they can check on you.
- That's all. It doesn't call an ambulance and it doesn't detect falls.
What to compare
- Who gets told: one emergency contact, or a few people who can share it?
- How soon: a day, two days, a week, and can each person choose?
- How they're told: email, a phone notification, both?
- Does it go both ways? Can you also see if they go quiet, or are you the only one being checked on?
- Location: off unless you turn it on, or always shared?
- Cost and language: free or paid, and available in your language and app store?
Your options
- A one-off timer on your phone: Apple's Check In and Google's Personal Safety app tell someone if you're not home by a set time. Free and built in, but meant for a single trip, not every day.
- Daily check-in apps: apps like 死了么 or Snug, where one contact is told if you miss a check-in. Some charge, and some add a paid plan where a real person phones you.
- A circle app: FiveClose, where up to five close people look out for each other.
How FiveClose does it
- Free, with no ads and no feed. It works in your phone's browser, with nothing to install, and on iPhone and Android.
- One tap a day: I'm OK. Opening the app counts too.
- You choose who is told: up to five people, invited by one link. Each picks whether to hear after a day, two days or a week.
- You're warned first: an email two days before your timer runs out, then your circle is asked. Who's checking? shows who took it.
- It goes both ways: your circle gets the same button, so nobody is the only one being watched.
- Location is off unless you turn it on, and then it's only where you were last seen, to about 100 metres.
- In English, 简体中文, Bahasa Melayu, தமிழ், Bahasa Indonesia, 日本語, 한국어 and Español.
- Not an emergency service: in an emergency, call your local emergency number.
Set up a free daily check-in →
Questions
What is the "Are You Dead?" app?
A Chinese check-in app called 死了么 that went viral in January 2026. It's made for people who live alone: you check in, and if you miss two days, it emails your emergency contact. In January 2026 its makers said they would change the name.
Is there a free app like "Are You Dead?" in English?
Yes. FiveClose is free and in English and seven other languages. Tap I'm OK (or just open the app), and if you go quiet, the people you chose are asked to check on you.
Is a check-in app an emergency service?
No. It tells someone you know that you've gone quiet. In an emergency, call your local emergency number.