# Dumb Phone (dp) — user reviews > 822 indexed App Store user reviews of Dumb Phone (dp) by Michael Tigas, rated 4.60/5 from 3,681 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dumb-phone-dp/id6504743503/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dumb-phone-dp/id6504743503.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 3,144 · 4★ 191 · 3★ 82 · 2★ 58 · 1★ 206 ## What do users think of Dumb Phone (dp)? Overall sentiment: positive **Pros** - 🚀 Easy to set up - 👍 Helps reduce screen time - 👍 Customizable layout - 👍 Responsive developer - 🚀 Smooth app launching - 👍 Minimalist design **Cons** - 🐛 Clunky setup process - 💡 Lack of widget customization - 🔒 Hidden subscription model - 🔒 Expensive for a widget app - 🐛 Inconsistent app launching **Commonly reported bugs** - Widget not appearing in list - Apps opening through Shortcuts app - Compatibility issues with older devices **Most requested features** - Ability to hide App Library - More widget customization options - Customizable widget labels - Detox mode for specific apps - Support for more third-party apps ## Newest reviews (10 of 822) ### 4/5 — Dumb phone, not the dumbest app *2026-08-30* I got dumb phone as a free alternative to the blank app. I already had some measures in order to stop consuming as much short form content on my phone. Actually, by the time I downloaded dumb phone I did not need apps like TikTok or instagram anymore. This app was more of a means to make my phone less convenient in order to further lessen screen time. Overall, it wasn’t the most effective as it is very easy to overcome its limits if you get incredibly desperate, but its overall not bad, especially for someone who’s already less dependent on the dopamine of short form content. Overall, however, something that I’d recommend much more is something like PushBlock. It’s another free app with a similar but also different usage and structure. On this app, you get to choose different apps that you can restrict almost completely, and the only way to overcome this is, you guessed it, doing pushups. As a lazy bum who’s also trying to get better at body weight exercises like pushups, this has been a very good way of both discouraging myself and getting to do more exercise at more times throughout the day. ### 4/5 — Good app 👍 *2026-08-17, version 1.12* Kinda buggy and slow, and it uses widgets to be a launcher - so not entirely what i expected but a good app ### 5/5 — App added as requested *2026-08-06, version 1.12* When an app that I use free wasn’t on dumb phone, I reached out and they added it for me, very impressive. ### 5/5 — The best. *2026-08-05, version 1.12* So thankful for the time/attention put into this (free) app to help other people be better with their phones. You don’t need to buy a fancy dumb phone alternative - this is your solution while keeping your iPhone/iMessage. ### 5/5 — Efficiency & Simplicity *2026-07-16, version 1.12* I’ve been partaking and dabbling w/ Dumb Phone for just over a year now. It’s simple, sleek, clean and helped cut my screen time down by 2/3s. There’s still a level of self discipline required to reclaim lost time scrolling and wasting our lives away on these dopamine devices, but Dumb Phone is the gateway to making that happen. ### 5/5 — Top Tier Alternative Home Screen *2026-07-15, version 1.12* An excellent app. The developer is incredibly responsive and has created an app that sets out to make a less overwhelming Home Screen. I believe he has done it. It’s a great app that mimics a “light phone” type setup for those looking to be more intentional in their phone use. Plus honestly I think it just looks nice. It’s also incredibly easy to set up as well thanks to all of the well thought out knowledgebase articles and walk-throughs during setup. ### 1/5 — Disappointed *2026-07-14, version 1.12* It doesn’t have a simple list of the installed apps and web page shortcuts on the phone. Instead it has a massive list of pre approved apps so I have to do a search every time I update my lists. This limitation directly counters the purpose of the app. Other than this, it’s fairly useful but I won’t give it a good rating until this major limitation is fixed. At the very least give me a list at the top of just my apps. ### 2/5 — Meh. *2026-07-14, version 1.12* Doesn’t work all that well and you can still easily access all your apps just by swiping right so kind of pointless really. Also annoying as you can’t really try it and decide if you like it without buying it first, wish I could get my £10 back! ### 2/5 — Took ages to set up, seconds to work around *2026-07-13, version 1.11.10* Until the App Library can be hidden, this app just makes pages minimalist. I now just use the App Library and the DP homepage never gets used. Waste of time and money. I wish I’d not paid for a year’s subscription ### 5/5 — Intentional Phone Use Heaven *2026-07-10, version 1.11.10* This is my second year using Dumb Phone. Last year, when I started using it, I had downloaded it looking for something to help me be more intentional with my day because I was (and still am) a stay at home mom. I didn’t want scrolling to get in the way of the connection I wanted to make with my young child, so downloading this app has been incredibly helpful. My favorite parts about this app are how you can list the apps on your phone screen to make it boring and low-key, so the doping addiction doesn’t get in the way of your day and it keeps you from being awake all night so you can actually take care of your sleep hygiene. I also thoroughly enjoy that I can’t bypass certain app timers just to get back to an app to scroll. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Disappointed:( *2026-08-22* I absolutely loved it at first, I customised my phone screen nicely but somewhere along the line every time I’d click on an app that was added to the widget a pop up came up instead saying “buy the full version” I then had to flick away the pop up and reload the app just to get into safari! I’m disappointed as this app preached how it’s here to help the serious problem of screen time but it causes people who don’t pay their subscription quite a lot of annoyance :( **Developer response:** Thank you for the review, and sorry to hear it wasn't a great fit in the end. There is indeed a free trial to try the app to see if it works well for your needs, since it can be a pretty big shift to use day-to-day. It automatically begins after opening Dumb Phone the first time, so the prompt you saw is just the trial ending. If you need more time to decide, please reach out in-app via Settings → Contact Us and we can help extend this period for you. Cheers! ### 1/5 — $10 a year for the app picker to never work *2026-08-15, version 1.12* It’s insane to me that this issue hasn’t been fixed yet. Every time I go to revise which apps I want to restrict, it is insanely buggy. I have to move incredibly slowly so that nothing shuts down. Insane. ### 1/5 — Would give it 0 stars *2026-08-10, version 1.12* This “app” is just a widget that they charge you for. They provide no free trial to test the widget, makes you sign up for a subscription to even use it (no free with ads type deal), and apparently offer no way to get a refund once you realize you got hooked in and scammed. Highly would not recommend paying for a screenshot of black for a background and a couple of mediocre at best widgets. ### 1/5 — Text app not opening *2026-08-02, version 1.12* Messages in the stack isn’t opening. Neither does safari. The rest work. ### 1/5 — Bait and Switch *2026-07-30, version 1.12* Loved the app and widget until after about two weeks of use, they disabled the widget unless I paid. They draw you in under the premise it's free and then boom. Disabled unless you pay. IM OUT. ### 1/5 — Beware *2026-07-22* I downloaded the app and went to delete it when payment was requested. It had asked for my lock screen password, same one I’ve used for years. When I went to delete it, it asked for my lock password, but would not let me delete it. I cannot get this app off my phone. **Developer response:** Thank you for the review, and sorry to hear you hit this issue. It sounds like a Detox Lock may have been enabled during setup, which is what is asking for a passcode when you try to remove Dumb Phone. Please reach out in-app via Settings → Contact Us and we will be glad to walk you through removing it and getting the app off your phone. The setting is in Detox configuration section of the app. Cheers! ### 1/5 — My phon e *2026-07-19, version 1.12* Doesn’t work ### 1/5 — Dumb phone *2026-07-18, version 1.12* I was really excited to try it out, but I can’t call anyone or text anyone who has an android. It was not helpful at all ### 1/5 — MIDLEADING *2026-07-16, version 1.12* I mean, I love how aesthetically pleasing this looked & everything. But didn't know it wasn't free. I had it for a week & it stopped working. Misleading. Don't get it. Not worth money to pay for widgets. Bye. ### 1/5 — You can do this all without an app *2026-07-15, version 1.12* Scam app. Doesn’t do anything you can’t do yourself and costs $$ ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — This app cuts down on my phone’s distractibility *2026-08-18, version 1.12* This app makes my Home Screen so much less distracting and my interactions with my phone much more intentional. Instead of opening my phone and getting sidetracked by notifications, banners, or whatever app catches my eye, I actually go to the app I intended to use in the first place. It’s such a simple change, but it’s made a noticeable difference in how I use my phone. The developer is also incredibly responsive, which is a huge plus! ### 5/5 — Can’t live without *2026-08-18, version 1.12* I’m a content creator, but I’m also a homeschool mom so I wake up in the morning before my kids, make my videos, post them on social media and then lock up my phone before they wake up. Then in the evenings once they’re asleep, I unlock it and respond to comments! This makes it the best of both worlds! And as a mom, it can be really overstimulating. It’s so easy to just pull up your phone and press Facebook using this app makes it harder to check out and makes it so much easier to be intentional with the little kids who are right in front of me! ### 5/5 — Great App, Great Support *2026-08-17, version 1.12* I’ve been using this app for almost a year and I love it. It has made my phone easy to manage and reduces decision fatigue (no more staring at my phone apps trying to remember which one is the one I’m looking for). It takes a very short time to set up the display for your phone and anytime you reach out to the “help desk”, you get a personal response within a day. I’ve never felt like an app actually cares about its users but this one does. It’s great. ### 5/5 — Excellent and best value! *2026-08-17* This app is excellent. Out of all the apps that lock you out of your phone, this is by far the most affordable, especially with the lifetime plan. It takes a little time to set up, but it’s well worth it. It saved me a lot of time and is helping restore my attention and grey matter! **Developer response:** Thank you so much for the super kind review! 🙂 That is fantastic to hear how much value you're getting from Dumb Phone, and especially that it's helping you restore your attention. Hope you continue to get plenty of value from using it each day. Enjoy, and cheers! ### 5/5 — Useful *2026-08-17, version 1.12* Giving it a try as I wanted to get a dumb phone but needed certain apps. Looks clean. ### 5/5 — Time saver *2026-08-13* This app is amazing, my screen time is already way down and it makes me more mindful of how I use my phone. No endless scrolling or getting lost in notifications. I feel more focused and presents with my friends, family and at work. Highly recommend it! **Developer response:** Thank you so much for the nice review! 🙂 That is fantastic to hear how much your screen time has been lowered, especially with being more present with friends, family and at work. Really appreciate you spreading the good word, and hope you continue to get plenty of value from using Dumb Phone each day. Enjoy, and cheers! ### 5/5 — The only thing that has clicked *2026-08-13, version 1.12* This is it, this is the one. I’m the type of guy that tries every single thing people make. Open source, closed, free, paid. This tool has had a huge impact on my well being and productivity via the NFC lock and amazing UI. It’s just so easy to use and fun to lock my phone down and check back into the real world. Well worth the price. ### 5/5 — Highly Recommend *2026-08-12, version 1.12* I really like Dumb Phone. It has helped me make my phone feel much less distracting while still letting me keep all the apps I actually need. The minimalist layout makes me less tempted to mindlessly open apps or scroll, and I find myself using my phone more intentionally now. It’s simple, clean, and does exactly what I wanted it to do. Definitely recommend it if you want to cut down on screen time without completely switching to an actual dumb phone. ### 5/5 — Awesome *2026-08-11, version 1.12* I love it, I’ve tried a lot of focus / concentration / minimalist apps and this one is the best. ### 5/5 — Light Phone for iPhone *2026-08-10, version 1.12* I was seriously considering getting a Light Phone, but after talking to some of my friends who have it I realized I would probably still need an iPhone in addition to the Light Phone. Dumb Phone essentially turns your iPhone into a Light Phone, and it’s completely changed my relationship with my phone. Now it feels like a tool that enhances my life instead of a source of entertainment that distracts from it. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-02.*