Comparison

Session vs Focused Work

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

Head to head
About

Session

Track your progress towards mastering skills by logging dedicated practice time. Manually log sessions or use the automatic timer to record your efforts. Start making measurable progress on your goals today.

Highlights
  • Create custom activities
  • Manual session logging
  • Automatic timer
  • Track progress towards goals
  • Skill mastery tracking
Features
Read full description

ty for 5+ years of Session! but it's time to start a new arc. search timespent on the app store to see what's next. —cal --- "The secret to getting ahead is getting started." ―Mark Twain They say it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to master a skill, but who's counting? Now, you can with Session. Create an activity, and log sessions manually or with the automatic timer. Whether it's for 10 hours, 100, 10,000 or more – start making progress towards your goals today.

About

Focused Work

This app helps users improve focus and productivity through structured timed sessions. It offers customizable timers, goal setting, and distraction blocking to build healthy work habits.

Highlights
  • Customizable focus sessions
  • Pomodoro and Flowmodoro templates
  • Distraction blocking
  • Reflection and goal tracking
  • Statistics and charts
  • Live Activities and widgets
Features
Read full description

## Featured by App Store in 150+ Countries & Regions # Hot This Week # Apps We Love Right Now # Big Apps From Small Teams # New Apps, Features, and Content ## What People Are Saying "A simple, but valuable utility for creating timed focus sessions of productivity." - MacStories "Focused Work helps you stay on track better than ever" - iMore "Focused Work makes it easy to create and manage Focused Sessions." - 9to5Mac "A tool that helps overcome that first step." - Knapsack Focused Work is a powerful timer that helps you focus and be productive. It's purpose-built for people who want to focus for long periods and struggle with this. Add structure to your day with "Focus Sessions" that encourage you to complete goals, tasks, and help you divide your time into Focus, Break, and Prepare stages. Pick from a selection of templates, including a simple timer, Pomodoro - inspired by the Pomodoro Technique, Flowmodoro - inspired by the Flowtime Technique, and other various sessions. You can also create repeatable sessions specifically tailored to your needs. Add stages, set time limits, and much more. Ultimately, Focused Work helps you be more accountable by reminding you to focus, reflect, and build healthy productivity habits by completing various daily goals. **Core Features** · A simple, powerful timer that keeps you on-task Choose what to focus on. Start the timer. Get stuff done! · Curated Basic Sessions to get started Run a Pomodoro session, Flowmodoro session, or even just a simple timer · Create Focus Sessions Tailor them to your needs with a plethora of configurable options · Reminders Be reminded to stay focused, when to take breaks, and also to start a focus session! · Reflection Track what went well for you during your focus session and what you can improve upon · Scratch Pad Jot down thoughts that come to mind during your session and return to them after · Daily Goals Completing your daily focus goals earns you a streak and helps you form healthy productivity habits · Statistics & Charts Review recent productivity across the past week, month, and year · Block Distractions Select apps and websites you want to restrict access to during a session · In-app Shortcuts Automation Automatically perform actions as you progress through your session, such as turning on Focus · Link with Toggl Track Explore advanced time tracking by linking with Toggl to create time entries, assign projects and tags · Productivity Export Export completed sessions in CSV format **iOS & iPadOS Features** Focused Work is available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, with extensive support for each platform; · Live Activities Control your session from the Lock Screen or Dynamic Island · Interactive Widgets Control your session, view daily goals, and start a session from the Home Screen · Control Center Widgets Start a session or access the Scratch Pad with Control Widgets · StandBy Interact with your session while iPhone is in StandBy · Spotlight Search Quick start and interact with sessions from search · Focus Filters Filter which sessions can be viewed & started based on the active Focus · App Shortcuts & Siri Start and interact with a session via various shortcuts that can also be linked together · Picture-in-Picture Show a floating timer above other apps with Picture-in-Picture mode · Session Alerts on all devices Start a session on one device and receive update alerts on others with Focused Work installed · iCloud Syncing Sync productivity stats & created sessions between devices · Privacy Focused Your data is securely stored and managed via iCloud. No account registration. · And much more Mac Support, Share Sheet controls, App Icons, Keyboard Shortcuts, VoiceOver, Split View & Slide Over, Low Power Mode, Drag & Drop, Dark Mode, URL Schemes If you have any questions, please reach out to focusedworkapp@michaeltigas.com.au Privacy Policy: https://focusedwork.app/privacypolicy/ Terms of Use: https://focusedwork.app/terms/

Screenshots

Session4 screens
Focused Work4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Session at none against Focused Work's 14. Session also leads on iOS requirement (13.2 vs 16.0). Focused Work's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 4 months) and review sentiment (85% vs 77%). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. Focused Work sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Session asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Session against 4.7 for Focused Work. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 937 and 603 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 77% of Session's written reviews are positive against 85% of Focused Work's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Session ships an update every 4 months, Focused Work weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 3, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Session versus Focused Work: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSessionFocused Work
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (937 ratings)4.7 (603 ratings)
Positive reviews76.8% of reviews84.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings937 — better603
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS13.2 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB155 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGlasshouse Studio, LLCMichael Tigas

Customer experience

Session

All ratings937 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral3.7%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews69 reviews
Positive76.8%
Neutral10.1%
Negative13.0%

Focused Work

All ratings603 ratings
Positive93.2%
Neutral3.5%
Negative3.3%
Written reviews166 reviews
Positive84.9%
Neutral4.2%
Negative10.8%

User reviews

Session

From 937 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Aesthetically pleasing
  • ⏱️ Helpful for time management
  • 💻 Simple and easy to use
  • 🧠 Motivating for productivity

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes when trying to edit activities
  • 🔍 Lack of customization options (e.g. color, icon, order)
  • 🗑️ No ability to delete activities
  • ⏱️ Timer issues (stops unexpectedly, doesn't continue in background)

Focused Work

From 603 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 GAME CHANGER
  • 👍 Good app
  • 👍 Good Product
  • 🚀 Phenomenal
  • 👍 Great productivity app!

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Shouldn't be a subscription
  • 🐛 Reminders are annoying
  • 🔒 Stop nagging people for reviews
  • 🔒 App for iwatch is still missing in 2025.
  • 🔒 Could be an amazing timer

Bugs and requests

Session

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Timer inconsistencies when exiting the app
  • Inability to add time manually (only minutes, not hours)
  • App crashes when trying to add a session manually

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add delete and rename session functions
  • Implement activity editing (color, icon, name, description)
  • Provide activity reordering capability
  • Include activity time tracking by day/week/month/year
  • Add Pomodoro timer functionality
Show 1 more
  • Integrate music playback or nature sounds

Focused Work

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login screen freezes
  • Incompatible with older devices
  • Stuck on a session: Gap time
  • Desktop doesn't sync with phone

Requested features

4 requests
  • Need iwatch app
  • Calendar integration?
  • Dark mode option
  • Advanced analytics dashboard

In-app purchases

None

Session

No in-app purchases

14 purchases

Focused Work

Subscriptions6
  • Focused Work Pro (1 month)$2.991 Month
  • Focused Work Pro - Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Focused Work Pro (1 month)$6.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Focused Work Pro (1 year)3 Days trial$19.991 Year
  • Focused Work Pro - Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year
  • Focused Work Pro (1 year)3 Days trial$39.991 Year
One-time8
  • Little Tip$0.99
  • Small Tip$1.99
  • Medium Tip$4.99
Show 5 more
  • Large Tip$9.99
  • Massive Tip$19.99
  • Focused Work Pro Lifetime$59.99
  • Focused Work Pro Lifetime$89.99
  • Focused Work Pro Lifetime$119.99

Questions

Is Session free?
Session is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Focused Work free?
Focused Work is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Session or Focused Work?
Session and Focused Work are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 937 and 603 ratings respectively.
Do Session or Focused Work have ads?
Neither Session nor Focused Work shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Session or Focused Work?
Session ships an update every 4 months, and Focused Work weekly. Most recently, Session was updated on October 3, 2026 and Focused Work on October 7, 2026.

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