Four apps that all block distracting apps on iPhone, compared on what actually separates them. Every number here is pulled from the App Store rather than from marketing copy, and totalled worldwide rather than from a single storefront.
If you want the most proven blocker, pick Opal. If you want the best free one, pick ScreenZen. If you want the pause itself done best, and on Mac too, pick one sec. If you want blocking and daily habit tracking in one app, pick Norte — that is the one thing the other three do not do. All four are free to install and all four use Apple Screen Time, so the block itself is equally hard to bypass in every case.
| Feature | Norte | Opal | one sec | ScreenZen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blocks apps | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Uses Apple Screen Time | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pause screen before opening | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tracks daily habits | Yes | No | No | No |
| Year-long consistency view | Yes | No | No | No |
| Platforms | iPhone | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Minimum iOS | 15.1 | 18.0 | 15.0 | 16.4 |
| On the App Store since | 2026 | 2020 | 2020 | 2021 |
| App Store rating (worldwide) | 5.0 (63) | 4.7 (226,152) | 4.8 (116,311) | 4.9 (117,360) |
| Price | Free to install, paid tier | Free to install, paid tier | Free to install, paid tier | Free to install |
Ratings are worldwide totals, summed across every App Store storefront and weighted by count. Apple shows only your own storefront, so these will not match the number on your phone. Facts verified on 2026-09-20.
The newest and by far the smallest here — released in 2026, with 63 worldwide ratings. It is the only one that also tracks the daily habits you build with the reclaimed time and shows the year as a single map. iPhone only, iOS 15.1 and up.
The largest app here by a wide margin, on the App Store since 2020 with more than 226,000 worldwide ratings. Deep blocking toolkit, iPad support, and gamified mechanics that many people find motivating. Requires iOS 18. No habit tracking.
The app that popularised putting a breath between the impulse and the feed, with published research behind the approach. Runs on iPhone, iPad and Mac. Around 116,000 worldwide ratings. No habit tracking.
The only one of the four with no paid tier at all, and the highest rating — 4.9 across roughly 117,000 worldwide ratings. Several intervention strategies: growing delays, scroll interruption, limits on opens rather than minutes. No habit tracking.
It depends on what you want it to do. Opal is the most established and has the largest user base. ScreenZen is the best genuinely free option. one sec does the pause-before-opening mechanic best and works on Mac. Norte is the only one of the four that also tracks daily habits, which matters if blocking alone has not worked for you.
All four use Apple’s Screen Time framework, the same system-level API behind parental controls, so iOS itself enforces the block. None of them can be bypassed by simply force-quitting. All of them let you override deliberately, because an app that truly locked your phone would be dangerous.
Of these four, only Norte. Opal, one sec and ScreenZen all measure and reduce phone use; none of them record whether you read, ran or slept early. If you want both, you would otherwise pair a blocker with a separate habit tracker.
All four are free to install. ScreenZen has no paid tier at all. Norte, Opal and one sec are free to install with a paid option; current prices are on their App Store listings.
Apple reports ratings per storefront, so you only ever see your own country’s. The figures here are summed across every storefront and weighted by count, which is why they are considerably higher than the number on your phone.
Block the apps that eat your hours, then watch the habits you build with them instead.
Get Norte on the App Store