# Onstead: App Blocker, Routines — Your phone, on a shorter leash

> App blocker and routine builder for phone usage control and health tracking. (iPhone/iPad app by Nathan Horowitz.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/onstead-app-blocker-routines/id6809220801 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Nathan Horowitz](https://appshunter.io/developer/6809220803)
- Category: Productivity, Health & Fitness
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 5.00/5 from 4 App Store ratings · 2 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 17+
- Requires: iOS 26.5 · 147 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2026-10-13
- Data updated: 2026-10-26
- Monetization: subscription
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/onstead-app-blocker-routines/id6809220801/reviews.md

## What is Onstead?

Your phone has plenty of opinions about how your day should go. Onstead gives you the last word.

Wake and bed set the day. Take a routine when you want one, and pause the apps that keep eating your evenings.

PAUSE THE SCROLL
• Pick the apps that eat your time. Open one and Onstead pitches something better first, like a walk or ten push-ups.
• Need in anyway? Hold to open. You get a few unblocks a day, and they reset when you wake up.
• Pause now benches your apps for an hour, or until 6, with a countdown on your Lock Screen.
• Name what you want less of, like late nights online, and your swaps line up behind it.

ROUTINES THAT DON'T NAG
• Morning, Day, Evening and Wind-down each get one. Do it or skip it. Nobody's keeping score.
• Steal one from a library of 115. Every step has a tiny version for low-battery days.

HEALTH IN ONE TAB
• Snap your lunch for a calorie and protein estimate, or type it.
• Last night's sleep sits up top, next to a water dial.
• Log a set in one tap. The rest timer waits right there, and a new best gets its own poster.

ORION
• Tell Orion what's not working and it sends back a change as a card. Nothing happens until you tap it, and Undo takes one tap.
• Orion can make a pause stricter. It can't make one looser, so don't bother asking.

HARD MODE
• Tap a card to lock it. Any NFC sticker works. No hold to open and no unblocks, so 1 AM you can't talk your way back in.
• Once a day you can turn it off without the card. After that, you need the card.

YOUR CALL ON THE VOICE
• Clean, or Unfiltered if you'd like it to swear at your apps (never at you). Notifications stay clean, so your Lock Screen won't embarrass you in class.
• One notification a day, tops. No streaks and no guilt trips.

YOUR DATA
Which apps you use, and for how long, never leaves your iPhone. Neither do your Apple Health readings. No ads or trackers, and we don't sell data. AI features run only after you agree, through providers that don't keep or train on your content.

SUBSCRIPTION
Onstead requires an account (Sign in with Apple or email) and an Onstead Pro subscription: $9.99 a month or $59.99 a year. New subscribers can try it free for 14 days. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when the trial ends. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; manage or cancel any time in your App Store account settings.

For adults 18 and over. Requires iOS 26.5 or later. Screen Time and Apple Health are asked for once, right after you subscribe; the camera, photos, microphone and NFC only when you use them. Some features need a physical iPhone.

Privacy: https://onstead.app/privacy
Terms: https://onstead.app/terms
Apple Standard EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Support: https://onstead.app/support

## Key features

- App pausing with timed or until-wake options
- Customizable daily routines
- Health tracking (calories, sleep, workouts)
- AI-powered suggestions for change
- Strict 'Hard Mode' blocking
- Optional voice customization

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Onstead Annual | $59.99 | per year |
| Onstead Monthly | $9.99 | per month |


## Is Onstead safe?

Not enough ratings yet to assess Onstead.

## Is Onstead legit?

Onstead: App Blocker, Routines has limited verification signals. The AppsHunter Legitimacy Score for Onstead is 58 out of 100 points across 7 verification signals from App Store and developer data.

## Recent user reviews (2 of 2)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/onstead-app-blocker-routines/id6809220801/reviews.md

### 5/5 — this app is saving me so much time bro

*2026-10-21*

im a college athlete and i really struggle with my screen time and keeping on my protein goals. i have tried another app to track my calories but the subscription is much more expensive and not as detailed and accurate. trying to set up screen time passwords in apple settings never stops me from getting past them and doom scrolling for hours instead of studying for exams or doing homework. in onstead i have my settings on the most hard difficulty at it really keeps me accountable. i have certain times to access instagram and when i need to study etc. it also has a food tracker and helps me hit my protein goals. the fact that both of these features are in 1 app has helped me so much and the subscription is so much cheaper than all the other apps that have these features. i highly recommend this app😁

### 5/5 — What I need

*2026-10-21*

This is a very cool app because it allows you to document your day in one source, at your fingertips.  Your daily plans in one app, exercise, eating, social media, putting up guard rails against useless things, all very helpful for me.  Notifications remind you and can nudge you to get stuff done.

## Frequently asked questions about Onstead

### What is Onstead?

Onstead is a productivity app designed to help users manage their phone usage by pausing distracting applications and establishing daily routines. It also includes features for tracking health metrics like sleep and workouts.

### How much does Onstead cost?

Onstead requires an Onstead Pro subscription, which costs $9.99 per month or $59.99 per year. New subscribers can try the service for free for 14 days.

### Does Onstead have ads?

No, Onstead is ad-free and does not use trackers. The app emphasizes user privacy, stating that your data never leaves your iPhone.

### What devices does Onstead support?

Onstead is currently supported on iPhone devices and requires iOS 26.5 or later. Some features may require a physical iPhone.

### How often is Onstead updated?

The latest version of Onstead is 3.0.0, and it was last updated on October 23, 2026. This indicates a relatively recent update frequency.

### Can I cancel my Onstead subscription?

Yes, you can manage or cancel your Onstead subscription at any time in your App Store account settings. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period.

### What is 'Hard Mode' in Onstead?

'Hard Mode' in Onstead offers a stricter form of app blocking that cannot be bypassed with a 'hold to open' gesture or daily unblocks. It can only be turned off once a day without a physical NFC sticker.

### What is the age rating for Onstead?

Onstead has an age rating of 17+, indicating it is intended for adults. This is likely due to the app's focus on self-control and potentially mature themes related to productivity and habit formation.

## Version history (last 3 releases)

### 3.0.0 — 2026-10-23

Onstead 3.0 is built around your sleep. Wake and bed set the day. The rest is up to you.

New
• Today is a photo of the part of the day you're in, with your next step on top.
• Routines replace Plan. Morning, Day, Evening and Wind-down can each have one. Take it or skip it. Nothing gets graded.
• A library of 115 routines, each step with a tiny version for slow days.
• Build with Orion: say what you want and it drafts a routine. Undo is one tap.
• Pause now: quiet the apps you pick for as long as you like, with a Live Activity.
• Every pause offers something better instead. A walk, a call, ten push-ups.
• Pulls: name what you want less of, and your swaps follow.
• Hard mode works with a card. Any NFC sticker can be one. Once a day, you can switch it off without one.
• Two tones. Clean, or Unfiltered if you like a swear. Notifications stay clean either way.
• Body, rebuilt: a set logger, the rest timer up front, and a poster for a new best.
• A water dial, and sleep first on Health.
• Fewer, better notifications. One a day at most, never guilt.
• Invite a buddy with one link.

Removed
• Plan, tasks, to-dos and timed blocks. Routines take their place.
• The habit tracker, its consistency grids and "N of M" counts. Your old habits and plans stay in a read-only archive you can export.
• The day score, rings and most charts.
• Pausing through Shortcuts. Pauses run on Screen Time only. Your old automation keeps running quietly, and you can delete it.
• Calendar access.
• Two Siri shortcuts: "Add to my plan" and "Mark block done".
• Partners and kudos. Inviting a buddy stays.
• Support for iOS 26.2 to 26.4. Those iPhones keep Onstead 2.1.

Fixed
• Routine runs follow your wake, not midnight.
• One shared set of unblocks a day, back when you wake.
• Old reminders for retired habits and blocks are cleared.
• Food scans cope with a messy answer instead of failing.

### 2.1.1 — 2026-10-19

Bug fixes and performance improvements.

### 2.1.0 — 2026-10-14

No release notes.

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*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 2026-10-26.*
