Comparison

Grayscale App vs Roots

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Grayscale App

Manage hiring and employee engagement on the go. Seamlessly message candidates and employees, schedule events, and collect feedback via SMS or WhatsApp. Stay productive and organized from your mobile device.

Highlights
  • Candidate messaging
  • Employee engagement
  • Event scheduling
  • Feedback collection
  • SMS and WhatsApp integration
  • Onboarding management
Features
Read full description

Take your hiring and employee engagement process wherever you go with the Grayscale Mobile app! Stay connected by seamlessly messaging candidates, new hires, and employees, scheduling events, and collecting feedback—all through convenient sms or WhatsApp messaging. Whether you’re managing interviews, onboarding, or ongoing communication, Grayscale keeps everything moving effortlessly, right from your mobile device. Stay productive, responsive, and organized, no matter where you are!

About

Roots

This app helps you regain control of your phone usage by setting app limits, scheduling downtime, and participating in detox challenges. It provides insights into your screen time habits and offers features like 'Monk Mode' for focused periods. Aimed at improving well-being and reducing phone addiction.

Highlights
  • App and website blocking
  • Scheduled downtime
  • Phone detox challenges
  • Monk Mode for strict blocking
  • Digital dopamine monitoring
  • Daily goals and progress tracking
  • Personal balance score
Features
Read full description

Roots is the #1 screen time app. Set boundaries with your phone, and unlock more time.  Screen time has a major impact on our mental and physical wellbeing. We're here to help — with better app limits, digital downtime, daily goals, balance score, and more. Join thousands of people using Roots to build a better relationship with their phone. WHAT TO EXPECT - Better screen time management - Unlock 2 hours per day - Stop scrolling mindlessly - Cure your phone addiction - Detox from phone dopamine - Find better balance - Be more present - Stay focused BLOCK NOW - Start blocking apps at any time with one tap BETTER APP LIMITS - Block any app or website based on time limits or number of opens SCHEDULE DOWNTIME - Be intentional with "mindful mornings", "evening wind down", and more PHONE DETOX CHALLENGES - Personalized challenges to compete with yourself and friends - Challenges with neuroscientist and Roots Chief Science Officer, Tj Power BLOCK WITH "MONK MODE" - App blocking that doesn't let you unblock until tomorrow MONITOR DIGITAL DOPAMINE - Not all screen time is equal, so we help you understand the impact of each app DAILY GOALS - Set goals for screen time and phone pickups, and track your daily progress PERSONAL BALANCE SCORE - Daily score helps keep you accountable with beautiful illustrations and visuals SCREEN TIME TRENDS - View the progress and trends of your screen time journey BUILD A STREAK - Build a streak as you stay under limits, earn cheat days and custom app icons BLOCK ADULT WEBSITES - Keep yourself off adult websites once and for all DON’T JUST TAKE IT FROM US "We’re all guilty of being obsessed with our phones. Roots helps you break free." -- Tj Power, Neuroscientist and Author “It's beautiful, and it works” -- Jameston78 “This app does what it says” -- Casper-F “Worth every penny” -- Thehikingfool PRIVACY GUARANTEED We use Apple’s Screen Time API so all of your phone usage data stays on your phone. TERMS & CONDITIONS - Auto-Renewing Subscription Options: Roots Plus (Monthly or Annual) - Terms: https://www.getroots.app/terms - Privacy Policy: https://www.getroots.app/privacy-policy

Screenshots

Grayscale App4 screens
Roots4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Grayscale App at none against Roots's 17. Grayscale App also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 75%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Roots's advantage is ratings volume (2.6K vs 4) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Roots sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Grayscale App asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Grayscale App holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Roots has 2.6K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Grayscale App's written reviews are positive against 75% of Roots's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Grayscale App ships an update every 2 months, Roots every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 16, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Grayscale App versus Roots: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGrayscale AppRoots
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (4 ratings) — better4.8 (2.6K ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better75.4% of reviews
Number of ratings42.6K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size56 MB379 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGrayscale Labs, Inc.MWM

Customer experience

Grayscale App

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Roots

All ratings2,649 ratings
Positive94.8%
Neutral1.5%
Negative3.7%
Written reviews362 reviews
Positive75.4%
Neutral5.2%
Negative19.3%

Bugs and requests

Grayscale App

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Roots

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Apps getting blocked when they shouldn't be
  • Screen time data not syncing correctly
  • Frequent app crashes and freezes
  • Subscription issues and inability to cancel
  • Trouble with the initial setup and syncing

Requested features

5 requests
  • Home screen and lock screen widgets
  • Customizable challenges and ability to share with friends
  • More options for the 'Do Not Disturb' mode
  • Improved analytics and progress tracking
  • Ability to easily adjust app limits without resetting

In-app purchases

None

Grayscale App

No in-app purchases

17 purchases

Roots

Subscriptions17
  • Roots Plus - Monthly Plan$6.991 Month
  • Premium$7.997 Days
  • Roots Plus - Weekly Plan3 Days trial$7.997 Days
Show 14 more
  • Roots - Monthly Plan$9.991 Month
  • Roots Plus - Monthly Plan$9.991 Month
  • Roots - Monthly Plan$19.991 Month
  • Premium Pass7 Days trial$19.991 Month
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan$29.991 Year
  • Premium$39.991 Year
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Premium Pass$59.991 Year
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • Premium1 Month trial$69.991 Year
  • Roots Plus - Annual Plan$79.991 Year
  • Premium3 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • Premium Pass1 Month trial$99.991 Year
  • Premium Pass7 Days trial$99.991 Year

Questions

Is Grayscale App free?
Grayscale App is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Roots free?
Roots is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Grayscale App or Roots?
Grayscale App is rated higher. Grayscale App averages 5.0 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Roots averages 4.8 from 2.6K ratings.
Do Grayscale App or Roots have ads?
Neither Grayscale App nor Roots shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Grayscale App or Roots?
Grayscale App ships an update every 2 months, and Roots every 3 weeks. Most recently, Grayscale App was updated on September 16, 2026 and Roots on September 22, 2026.

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